Atic Atac

DANGEROUS CASTLE IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Deep dungeons and an attic full of ghosts, witches and spiders await the player of Atic Atac for the 48K Spectrum.

At the start of the colourful game you can choose one of the characters available and they include a wizard, knight and serf. Each of the characters uses a different weapon. The wizard uses a fireball, the serf a short sword and the knight an axe.

When your character is set, you will be transported to a three-dimensional representation of the entrance hall to the castle. To pass the entrance door you have to find the golden key. On the way you have to pick up food to keep you going. The authors have created an amusing and original representation of the strength of characters as it is whittled away by the attacking monsters. At the right of the screen is a turkey which, at the start of the game, has all its flesh. As the monsters attack the turkey will lose its skin and become bones. When it has been picked clean you lose one of your three lives.

Dotted around several of the rooms - which you will enter - are time-warp generators which, if not locked, will transfer you to another room or floor. There are also barred doors through which, on occasions, you will be able to pass to other rooms.

The lower levels of the castle are probably the most dangerous because they have specific monsters like Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. They can be destroyed only with objects which you collect and not with the weapon you are given at the start of the game.

Atic Atac is highly recommended for children and adults as the depth of plot and the GAS graphics make it a superb game. It can be obtained from Ultimate Play the Game, The Green, Ashby de la Zouch, Leicestershire LE6 5JU. It costs £5.50.

Set in a gothic castle with the dungeons and caverns below, Atic Atac is a superb arcade adventure. You move from room to room collecting parts of the golden key. Monsters galore seek to stop you, and there are other objects which help you in your quest. Atic Atac would have been a fine game anyway, but the care lavished on the program makes it outstanding. You have a choice of three characters to play, whose powers effectively create three games. The attention to detail is splendid, with humourous touches such as the roast chicken status indicator.

Position 7/50