http://www.zhell.co.uk
http://zhell.atari.org
Amstrad
Atari
Sinclair
Atari and Atari logo is copyright of Atari/Infogrames.
All other copyrights recognised.
Mach 3
Loriciels 1987. Programmed by V. Baillet. Graphics by B. Masson. Music by MW.
Ooo la la, the first French game we've reviewed here (apologies to the French nation, that was both uncalled for and very predictable). Now French games got a bit of a bizarre reputation in the UK during the 80s and 90s for being both generally quite pretty and also quite odd. This game is similar in style to Space Harrier, but with a gratuitous semi naked 'babe' on the title screen, some lovely sampled sound effects (which are voiced by some outrageously overly sexy sounding women, who probably was hired from a premium rate phone line company), and some awesomely pretty graphics, which are as smooth and fast as they could be. Sadly the gameplay doesn't quite live up to the presentation. The levels, despite being very attractive to look at, consist mainly of stones with a few ships whizzing about. A few arches pop now and then for you to fly through, but they are nothing as exciting as Space Harrier's forests or towers. The enemies themselves are thoroughly disappointing, especially considering Space Harrier's huge dragons. The final insult is also the annoying way of finishing the level. You have to fly into a gateway, in front of which is some sort of field. Lining up for the gateway is hard enough, but dodging the field is even more tricky. That said I was pleasantly surprised by this game, especially considering it's senior citizen status.
Zogging Hell Rating: 8/10
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