THE SPECTRUM GAME DATABASE PLEXAR PUBLISHER M.A.D. AUTHOR Paul Hargreaves YEAR 1987 DESCRIPTION Trailblazer clone (mostly). It's actually divided into different sections, including a straight Trailblazer section, a more puzzly variation, and a top-down 2D maze. CONTROLS Kempston/Sinclair joystick/Keys Q-Up A-Down O-Left P-Right M-Fire T+Y-Abort ORIGINAL INLAY CARD TEXT You have been selected to make the arduous journey along the crystal roads of Plexar. Many travel the roads, but few return, and those who do will never speak of what they encountered on their way... THE GAME Long ago Plexar was a prosperous and thriving planet renown throughout the universe for its natural beatuty. Its inhabitants were a race of highly intelligent beings known as the Miracle Engineers and they constantly strove to improve Plexar until it became the most technically advanced planet in the galaxy. As it was divided into 16 seperate continents, the Miracle Engineers designed a system of roads for Plexar which would link all parts of the planet together, but in order not to detract from the planet's beauty they decided that the roads should be made from crystal, supported at each end by diamond towers. But all this happened many years ago before the Miracle Engineers were wiped out by a plague which swept over the planet sparing no one. The new inhabitants, or Plexarians as they are known, are tribal and primitive by comparison. They dare not use the crystal roads which they believe to have magical properties, but every year in homage to the gods they worship, a canditate is chosen to travel the roads. Those who are fortunate enough to return are never the same again, and are unable to speak of what they have encountered on their journey, but they are the fortunate ones for most never return. This time you have been selected to make the arduous journey along the crystal roads. You must also attempt to find a way through the maze of walkways that link the roads within each tower. To add to the problem, not all the systems within the towers are quite as they should be. The service robots now continuously ramble throughout each complex and you must jump clear of them as they pass. If you don't they will drain some of your strength and you may not be able to complete your journey. Good luck, it's not easy for a humble Plexarian to use the technology left by the Miracle Engineers. GAMEPLAY Each continent is divided into three stages - three dimensional pathways and vertically scrolling roads. The three dimensional paths also come in two different types. CONSTANTLY MOVING 3D PATHWAY Moving the joystick left and right moves you left or right, joystick forward causes you to leap over one square. Joystick back and you leap over two squares, and pressing fire will send you leaping over a number of squares. Different squares have different effects, try to avoid the black ones. CONTROLLABLE 3D PATHWAY Moving the joystick up or down will move you into or out of the screen. Different squares have different trals. If you're caught in a cage. move your joystick in the directions indicated indicated by the arrow below the timer until you break out. To land the helicopter press fire. VERTICALLY SCROLLING ROAD Moving the joystick up and down will move you up and down. Pressing fire causes you to jump. Try to keep moving and watch out for the black squares. If you use the keyboard option to play the game, use the appropriate key to perform the same functions as above. CONTROLS Joystick or Keyboard Q - Up A - Down O - Left P - Right M - Fire T & Y together will abort the game. Joystick options Kempston, Sinclair Interface II HINTS/CHEATS 47754,0 - Infinite Lives RELATED GAMES No direct sequels or prequels, but other Paul Hargreaves games include Terminus. SCORES YS November 1987, 7/10 Crash issue 45, 86% ACE Issue 2, Rating 887 Also included in the 'Top 100 games of the last 12 months' from ACE magazine: "VINTAGE VALUE 805 - Still a good bouncy ball game TIPS - If you're having trouble in the game, remember that certain squares (diagonal black and white ones) make you bounce backwards one square - tricky when there are lots of squares next to each other. The solution is simple - bounce on to the square and before you bounce back move the joystick (or keys) to move you in the opposite direction. The square thinks you've landed it from the opposite direction and thus bounces you the other way - which is where you want to go! TARGET - Complete ten roads without losing a life." URL ftp://ftp.nvg.unit.no/pub/sinclair/snaps/games/by-letter/p/ plexar.zip FACTS The games real title (i.e the one that the author intended) is 'The Roads of Plexar', as shown by the loading screen. Mastertronic had a habit of altering titles like this, but were by no means the only software house to do so - Alternative were infamous for their period of re-releasing old games with new titles, in the belief that this would sell more copies.