Get ready for some eccentric exertions
Producer: Gremlin Graphics
Out of Pocket: £7.99 cass, £12.99 disk
Author: Chris Kerry, with music by Ben Daglish
After the thrills and spills of the Olympics, Supersports offers the chance to participate in some stranger events - well perhaps not as strange as synchronised swimming! Up to four players can compete in the five quirky events (multiloaded), while the 'zany' commentator, Gilbert, makes some often quite insulting comments in his speech bubble.
First off is the Crack Shot shooting range, where in a decidedly seedy street, targets pop up from behind walls or slide horizontally along the ground, while tin cans and plates fly through the air. Armed with a powerful rifle, you aim to score as many points before the one and a half-minute time limit expires. However, shooting alley cats loses you points.
After the relaxing first event, it's time to get really daring as you attempt the death-defying Dare Devil Dive. After climbing up the tower to the desired height - anything from 40ft to a vertigo-inducing 400ft (almost as high as CRASH Towers!), the intrepid diver descends at an alarming rate, performing a variety of clever moves. But here's the catch, this isn't exactly an Olympic-size diving pool he's heading for - it's a tiny tub! So the slightest inaccuracy results in a splitting headache!
Third event is the Slate Smash, in which the multitalented competitor smashes the tiles held up by two blubber-bellied Sumo wrestlers, by kicking and punching. Again a one and a half-minute time limit is given.
Cross Bow shooting comes next as you use skill to aim at the target, taking into account the wind speed. And finally, the strangest event of the lot is the Underwater Assault Course (honest!). You must watch out for nasty, stinging jellyfish and exploding mines as you negotiate the obstacle-strewn course, collecting gold coins on the way.
All the weird events are well implemented and somewhat humorous, especially with the witty quips from Gilbert the commentator. Thankfully there's virtually no joystick-waggling involved-skill and judgment are required for success. Although hardly awe-inspiring, Supersports is a competent, whacky sports game, which is definitely worth a look.
PHIL [77%]
THE ESSENTIALS
Joysticks: Cursor, Kempston, Sinclair
Graphics: well-drawn, monochromatic sprites on colourful backdrops
Sound: adequate spot effects
Options: practise any multiloaded event
Yes it had to happen didn't it, the Olympics have set the software companies releasing a spate of sports game (well, Gremlin mostly). We are guided through the events in Supersports by the smiling face of Gilbert, the zany commentator who witters away between events, informing you of the tasks ahead. Presentation is very good, with each event being nicely drawn and animated, my particular favourites were Crack Shot and Slate Smash, but the whole game is very playable. Shoot Gilbert and this would be a great game - well it is anyway, so check it out.
MARK [80%]
Supersports is yet another multiple sports simulation to make the job of choosing the game for you even harder. This one of the better ones on the market, though, with good graphics, sound and the odd bit of humour thrown in for good measure. The Diving is the best event in my view, you can choose from a variety of heights and it's a great laugh when you miss the tub of water and your little guy gets splurted! As expected there is a multiload, but it doesn't spoil enjoyment too much. One of the better sports simulations around.
NICK [79%]
Label: Gremlin
Author: In-house
Price: £7.95
Memory: 48K/128K
Joystick: various
Reviewer: Tony Dillon
Well I guess that no one should be surprised that what with all those people running about taking steroids at seul, er sole, um seule it's not very surprising that we should be seeing a fair few sports simulations at the moment. Next up is Supersports The Olympic Challenge, a collection of sports most of which are not found in the Olympics at all. Still can't blame Gremlin for that I guess and, more importantly, the program is very well done. The quality of the presentation is such that I can hardly believe this is the same company that gave us dire Alternative World Games. So, forget all that Olympic stuff and have a laugh.
There are five events in all and each introduced by a commentator guy who says things which are almost as inane as David Coleman. Loading each section is, of course, interminable, but that's not anyone's fault. The wait is worth it.
THE EVENTS
Crack Shot
Nicely detailed graphics depict an alleyway. Objects get thrown into the air, target appear - shoot them for points. Don't shoot the occasional cats that appear (how sound). It's pretty fast - you get 90 second to make the hits and that includes reloading time. Nifty.
Dare Devil Dive
Highboard diving... sort of. Climb a high board, Pick one of three ???? more dangerous heights. The longer you fall the more time you have to perform clever twists, turns and other moves - fine - except that you also have longer to miss your target at the end of the dive. Once crumpled diver.
Slate Smash
My least favourite. It looks like some Ninja game when you load it up but actually it's all about smashing slates with your bare hands and feet. It's clever with a lot of possible moves but with no proper adversary I found it just isn't the same somehow...
Cross Bow
Shoot at a target with your crossbow - an insert shows how much tension you have on the string, pick the right amount, line up your sights and fire. Right? Wrong. You also have to take account of the varying wind direction. This adds something to the game but, despite this and despite excellent graphics, this doesn't add up to much long term interest.
Under Water Assault Course
This one is so bizarre I could almost believe Gremlin were working on another game and decided to incorporate it into this at the last minute. Either way it's fab.
Guide your diver through an obstacle course of rocks, tyres, jelly fish, Octopi (?) and other aquatic hazards. Collect coins from the sea bed as you go and remember to come up for air lest you drown. Great graphics, lovely animation, weird idea. Still, who cares?
OK it's a bit of a hotch potch, some sections are better than others, but mostly there is a lot to admire about Supersports. Decent music, far better than average graphics (at least Daley Thompson quality) and a few new ideas. Well done boys.
Gremlin get on the Seoul train.
In the wake of the Seoul Olympics comes Gremlin's collection of alternative sports, compered by "Gilbert".
Five events feature, starting with Crackshot, in which you have 90 seconds to shoot targets that pop up in an alleyway. Mind you don't shoot the alley cats or your score suffers. High Diving follows, where you jump off a board from anything between 40 and 400 feet up in the air, aiming to perform acrobatic stunts before landing in a paddling pool. Then it's on to the Slate Smash, where two Sumo wrestlers holding slates stand either side of your character - smash as many slates as possible in 60 seconds. The penultimate event is a Crossbow contest where joystick-waggling gains tension on the bow, before you line up the sights and fire a total of six bolts at three targets placed at different ranges. The final event is the Underwater Assault Course where old tyres, mines and stinging jellyfish have to be negotiated.
Supersports has been well put together and is great fun to play, but the multiload's annoying and the events are not tough to master. The facility to play with four people increases its lasting interest slightly, but even then there just isn't enough in the game to keep you playing for very long.
Reviewer: Andy Smith
RELEASE BOX
C64/128, £9.99cs, £14.99dk, Imminent
Spectrum, £7.99cs, £12.99dk, Out Now
Amstrad, £9.99cs, £14.99dk, Out Now
No plans for 16-bit versions.
Predicted Interest Curve
1 min: 65/100
1 hour: 72/100
1 day: 55/100
1 week: 40/100
1 month: 10/100
1 year: 10/100
Spectrum 48/128 Cassette: £7.99, Diskette: £12.99
Amstrad CPC Cassette: £9.99, Diskette: £14.99
SPORT FOR ALL
With the Olympics now well and truly over, Gremlin provide an alternative to sprinting, jumping and throwing, in Supersports. The game consists of five events: crack shot, daredevil dive, slate smash, crossbow and an underwater assault course.
In crack shot you have one and a half minutes to shoot as many targets as possible. The shooting gallery is set in a back-street alley populated by cats. Targets appear from behind fences or windows and move across the screen, points are awarded for each successful hit. But don't get trigger happy: shooting cats deducts points from your score and your gun needs reloading after every sixth shot.
Daredevil diving involves hurling yourself off breath-taking heights performing mid-air acrobatics and landing in a bowl of water. The faint hearted dive from a measly 40ft while the more fearless jump from anything up to 400ft. The higher you are the windier it gets skill is needed to remain on course. Midair moves are performed using a combination of fire and direction. Should you be blown off course, direction alone corrects your dive.
The third event, slate smash, takes only a minute to complete. During this time you smash as many plates as possible by any means available. They appear either side of you and are broken using a combination of kicks and punches. This is an easy event to play but it takes practise to accumulate a high score.
BERNIE THE BOLT
Crossbow is the toughest event. Before firing at one of three available distances, the string tension is set. This is done in the time-honoured tradition of waggling the joystick frantically left and right. The faster you waggle, the higher the tension and the more powerful the shot. When tension is set, you aim, taking into account gravity and wind direction. There is no time to rest between shots because the seconds tick away - the more shots you fire in the allotted time the greater your score.
The final event takes place in a water channel polluted with mines and underwater obstacles. You swim through the channel in as short a time as possible. Bumping into obstacles renders you helpless for a few seconds and loses you points. You can only hold your breathe for so long and have to periodically surface for air.
All through the game your zany host, Gilbert acts as score and time-keeper, as well as commenting on your performance. Should these comments be detrimental you can practise an individual event before taking part in the game proper.
Multi-sport games have been covered for a long time now. Gremlin have tried to add new life to a well-worn theme by introducing new events. Unfortunately, while they are enjoyable at first, there is little long term appeal.
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