: ^ofcc' Vol 4 No 9e& t&e, faatidttHQweeMtf Sinclair reaches agreement with major creditors SINCLAIR Research Clive Sinclair, will r< reached agreement w major creditors le troubled unchanged. micro company - The deal was hammer, oul last week between t CBM expands The* EMI, Tim keen to enlarge on the nature C64 and single- C128 28 memory c mechanism and COMMODORE is The CI b stood to take Sinclair safely apparently a response tc sided discs. The C128 itself is schedule for release to up to the peak sales period at hoards lor its C128 micro up launch of machines still on will no shops mid-September. Christmas. Then, if Sinclair grading it to 258K and 51ZK Amstrad's 8356, the by can hold its 44% market and a cheaper version ol itf available in the UK until have are: share, it will be looking again 1S71 disc drive for the Euro- year and no prices s C64 cassette lor additional [inance. pean market. been decided. 1) C64 plus C2N four software Sinclair's chief executive Also The new I decks plus rear- three new special packages — £198; Bill Jeffrey has also nounced — ranged the management team package deals for the Com- 2) C64plusl541dtscdrive and there will be changes to £298.89; the board of directors. Sir 3) 1941 disc drive, MPS 801 printer. Easy Script and Ar- cade Extravaganza (a cas-— LIFE AFTER HAMPSTEAD- SEEdIO sette ol four arcade games) £199.99. ' 'These deals will be taking over from our holiday promo- tion which ends on Septem- ber 30, and the three packs mm the CM will be available from the be- ginning of October," said a 1 Commodore spokesman, Melboiuit "The four software packages with the first special offer are m EPFi Conu INSIDE ) HARDWARE EXPANSIONS FOR THE AM STRAP CPC AN D QL ) 48K SINCLAIR ZX SPECTRUM "NIGHTSHADE" recommended retail price £9.95 inc VAT. Available from W.H.SPIITHS, BOOTS, J.PIENZIES, WOOLWORTHS and all good software retail outlets. Also available from UETIPIATE FLAY THE GANE, The Green, Ashby de la-Zouch, Leicestershire LE6 5JU (POT are included) Tel: 0530 41 1485 CONTENTS 4 NEWS Memotech prices slashed 10STREETLIFE - Christina Erskine takes the trip of a lunchtime toTerrormolinos 12 SOFTWARE REVIEWS Mount Challenge on Spectrum 17 HARDWARE REVIEWS Timatic Multi-interface for Amstrad 18 STAR GAME More arcade action - Smasher on Amstrad 21 COMMODORE 64 Play the numbers game on the 64 22 SPECTRUM A selection of demo routines for ZXIBasic 6 Letters 35 Peek & Poke 24 THE QL PAGE 28 Music Box 41 Adventure Helpline statement creator for QL owners 43 New Releases A Data 29 Book Ends 44 This Week 27 BBC & ELECTRON 31 Arcade Avenue A useful conversion table for programs 32 Adventure Comer EDITORIAL being non-software compatible else is il choosing logical advance ovar the CW and w Commodore appears to be getting paranoid Why tt never gained much software support no! lo review 11b Amiga micro In public a! Inis week's Personal the earlier machine wasn't C64 compatible vavar exciting the Amiga m >mpatioili!y The C128. again I cessiul Commodore W not a slgnlt expensive way or running CPJM soflwa io irteCiM In this Popular Computing Weekly. Tel: 01-437 4343. [Her articles, and any accompanying programs, should be orlg 5-11 SEPTEMBER 1E Memotech MTX prices plunge MEMOTECH hag announced Comprising MTXS12, New Significant price cuts for im £178. Word word processor, Su- eluded in the Speculate two machines, the MTX300 percalc. Contact communica- package- Having entered it and MTX512, a new range of prise 2S0K, 500K tions software disc drive and correct loading routines si disc drives, and a Spectrum pacity models. For the last disc interface board. lected by menus, the us< software emulator for the two Digital Research's CP/M The Spectrum software ei then is able to load and n MTX512. 2.2 is also available. The BOOK ulator, called the Speculatt The 80K MTX512 now costs CP/M system costs £439.00 is priced at £39.95. The pac £123.35, down from £199, and the IM version £549.00, age also includes a tape cc Further cassettes at aroui taining loading routines for £4 are planned to make mo Spectrum programs inclu Spectrum titles available, ing Flight Firebird goes for Simulation (Si The Speculator will 1 clair). Tornado Low Level available initially only i (Vortex), Manic Miner (Soft- disc software ware Projects). Starion (Mel- Details from Memotech, St FIREBIRD is to bring oi bourne House), TWin King- tion Lane Industrial Eslat range oi budget titles on i which we will be putting dom Valley (Bug Byte] and Witney. Oxon (0993 2977). 6- for the Commodore Atat ndisc. rt. Don't Poiry Pigeon (Gremlin). The XL and XE and Amati Chicken Chase and machines. Cylu," said Firebird's Tony Rainbird. Super Silv Another silver range Commodore game, Booty, will be appear- progress "We are however in a good - r the QL position to capitalise on our coupled new families of machines and games with a new game called rently working on the succes- the investment we have made sor to the first Amiga model, in the PC 10 and 20 in Europe being developed in the US and Amiga products." which will offer increased Karateka launch set memory and probably a built-in hard-disc unit. Micro help for KARATEKA, the karate simu- months is set for release in "The Brat machine lation by US company this country by Ariolasoft this the disabled launched in the States last Broderbund, which topped autumnat£9.95. WITH a Little Help from the month—the AIQOO—is the ba- the American charts for some "We should see EarafeJra Chip is a new TV series be- sic model in the series there — ginning on BBC2 on Septem- ber 6. looking at ways said John Collins o( Commo- dore Electronics. The Amiga A 1000 is unlike- There ly to sell for under £1,000 in the UK. "The price will de- on Fudays i pend on how the dollar settles down, but the Amiga is tiol a first-rime entry level comput- Yet er," said Gail Wellington, more Commodore's European Soft- Spectrum ware Manager. She discounted speculation deals that Commodore mighl offer ANOTHER bundling deal has the Amiga without a monitor put togethe to break the £1.000 barrier. Spec - ?!lis a by Spectrum drum elusive selling contract for six The Amiga was received Group, which has continued from page 1 months with an order of 8.000. warmly at its US launch, and 300 fnanchised stores Specdrum costing £39.93, "We see the Specdrum as a Commodore needs high sales throughout the country and which uses the latest sampling to counteract the slump of the supplies to a further 200. techniques lo recreate a wide mer for all kinds of people For £149.95, the package varie ty ofpercussive sounds. who play music and it's not so Commodore International Spectrum Plus. The Specdrum is shaped anti-social," said Boots' John has announced a projected Curr like a joystick interface and Greengraas. Boots expects SBOm (around £S8m) loss. speech unit. Qtiickshot comes with a program on tape IheSpecdrum to be in stock by Sales had halved in the com- stick and Stack rifle. The com- which alio ws library a ofexist- mid-September. pany's third quarter—J 168m pany is also planning a busi- Cheetah is currently pre- as against $32 6m for the cor- ness pack comprising a paring a series ofadd-on cas- responding period last year. Rotronics wafadrive and settes for the Specdrum which "Business has been slow," printer with the micro. Prices a phono plug, to most existing will contain different drum commented Paul Lazovick of tor this package have yet to hi-fi units. Using a (ape-synch Commodore US. "The whole option the unit can also be details from industry More Cheetah has been experienc- : of I major high used with other electronic Marketing, I Willowbrook ing a slow-down since June Science Park, Crickhowell last year, and foreign ex- Boots has arranged a. Road, St. Mellons. Cardiff. changes against the dollar number, he heard a taped Eureka! message asking him to ex- Ocean signs plain why he had called. won by "After the five wrong num- bers that we received during the year that Eureka! t V licence schoolboy been out. it's a great rel ONE of software's richest two new Demon titles— are Mark both planned for release this ward for cracking Eureka!. fiction soap-opera V, in time autumn Transformers is a has been won by a 15 year- ury that the game might b for Christmas. ahoot-'em-up style game, old Middlesex schoolboy. V, which was first shown as while Cosmic War Toads in- Ma thew Woodley reck- ui ITV mini-series during (he oned he had discovered Ihe Los Angeles Olympics, is been disconnected. a hill length series about ber last week. On ringing the invasion and planned over of earth by a replil- Softek goes for 68000 :ace from another galaxy, cean programmers are SOFTEK' ' 'Rhythm is really a combi- working on a linked arcade Softechnics. specialising ir nation of calculator, pocket game for Commodore, Spec- 68000 processor program computer and spreadsheet. n and Amstrad machines. ming, has produced its It's configured like an ex- Development is still in the tremely powerful program- very early stages, but il is Tlmelink and Rhythm hoped the game will come out been completed for the Ap- s £99.99 and before Christmas.