Producer: CRL
Retail Price: £7.95
Author: Colin Ajayi-Obe

A friend once advised me that one of the essential methods of judging the value of a board wargame is to weigh the box. Although this criteria is slightly dubious, it's one that sticks in the mind, and I admit that I can be found in a games shop with the English Civil War in one hand and the War of the Roses in the other, trying to decide which is heavier. Something of the same idea can be applied to the initial impression which a computer game makes on me - I like to see a nice fat rulebook. Samurai's rules have difficulty in covering the back of the inlay; and although short and simple rules need not necessarily mean a short and simple game - just as a heavy card map can make an uninspiring board game overweight - it does seem to be a bad sign.

Samurai is, behind the minimalist introductory material and underneath the cosmetic oriental colouring, a strategy game of the very simplest kind. The rules are concise because there are genuinely very few of them - I'm sure that the rules of draughts or even chess could probably be fitted into a reverse inlay.

At the start of the game the player is asked to purchase fighting units from a coffer of 200 (Japanese yen, perhaps? The monetary unit isn't specified), and from a selection of four different types of warrior. These types are explained in the rules. There are Samurai, high-quality general-purpose fighters, Ashigaru, who are probably peasant-bread cannon- fodder wielding pole-arms, the famous Ninja, and the expensive but extremely effective Mounted Samurai.

Having selected units via icons on the first screen up to the limit of your financial resources, your units are automatically positioned on the main playing area. There are three 'incidents', which start your forces and the computer's in different positions. It is not made entirely clear in the rules where the battle is supposed to be taking place, but by the look of the reasonably attractive scrolling map, and reading between the lines of the brief bit of scene-setting about Shinto, Imperialism and Buddhism, I assume it is supposed to be an imperial temple under attack from warriors of the Buddhist faith. Not ashamed to admit my ignorance of all Japanese history, I am annoyed to realise that I'm none the wiser for playing Samurai. It's impossible to work out from what is said in the rules whether or not the player is supposed to be on the side of the Emperor. The fact that the Samurai monks, which belong to the computer's forces, are described as 'the top warriors of Imperial Japan', leads me to suspect that the player's side is antiestablishment. But why precisely they are fighting the Emperor is left entirely to the player's imagination.

Irritating as this is, it does not affect the gameplay at all. The player's forces are the light-coloured squares and the computer's forces are the dark-coloured squares (I tested this game in black and white, not being able to afford a colour monitor on my £1.99 a year grant), and the aim is to eliminate all the computer's forces from the mildly decorative landscape - this abstract aim is unatmospheric but entirely satisfactory.

The computer, although it appears to play by the same rules, does not have quite the same forces. It has three different types - Monks, Samurai Monks and Young Samurai Monks - and does not have fancy troops like the Ninja and cavalry at its disposal. It doesn'I need them, because even at the first difficult level the computer has considerably more units than the player.

Each unit has a fixed number of movement rates per turn, which are displayed and counted off as the moves are taken. Some parts of the terrain, such as rivers and steps, take two movements points to traverse. Also there are obstacles, pillars and walls for instance, which block the path entirely. The Mounted Samurai have by far the most movement points and the second-class Ashigaru usually the least, though there appears to be a slight random element in the number assigned to each individual unit. When a unit comes into contact with the enemy, combat is inevitable; a unit cannot be moved away once it has come into direct contact.

When all units have been moved, combat is resolved in two rounds with the player always getting first hit. Your hit points and the enemies are displayed side-byside, and damage is immediately deducted. It is in the combat stage where the type of fighting unit really makes the difference. A Mounted Samurai can do a massive amount of damage at one stroke, and a pole-waving peasant has difficulty in denting the opponent. It is hinted in the rules that the best way to win a fight is to outnumber the opposition, and this is certainly true. Each unit gets one attack only, and if single units are in combat both are bound-to-base contact with a counter of the computer's side, one unit effectively gets a free hit.

Therefore a major part of the game's strategy is in manoeuvring things so that you have a greater chance than the computer of getting more than one unit into contact with one of the opposite side. This is difficult because the computer always seems to have the advantage of numbers, and it provides a challenge which eventually becomes frustrating time after time I gathered different combinations of units and tried out my developing theories, and every time I was overwhelmed by the computer's numerical advantage.

The presentation is simple and last-moving. The computer automatically highlights each unit in turn, and the player gives orders via icons. For most units the options are limited to movement, but there is an interesting addition in the case of Ninja; before moving, the Ninja can attempt to throw a 'shuriken' at an enemy unit, forfeiting some of his move points to do so. The player judges the angle. It is entirely possible to hit a friendly unit, or a pillar! Icons are provided to quit the game, and to move onto the next combat phase. There are also two other items which do nothing whatsoever and cannot be accessed. The rules say they are there for 'safety reasons, but do not elaborate. I have absolutely failed to work out the function of the safety icons and am tempted to ask for suggestions on a postcard...

The computer opponent is reasonably adept at positioning itself advantageously for combat, but its movement routine is atrocious. Samurai monks bounce off pillars bewildered, and wade cheerfully through movement point gobbling rivers - colliding with each other without apologising. It's true that this lark of intelligence can sometimes make things easier for the player, but it's not very satisfactory to have to rely on the stupidity of the opponent to win a game.

Samurai is basically a very simple, abstract strategy game - fun to play, easy to get started on, and sufficiently smooth to be playable. However, I really feel that it doesn't have enough content or atmosphere - particularly for a full-price game.

CRL
£7.95

With the games arena swamped by ninja warriors kicking each other to kingdom come it must be hard work for a software house to come up with yet another variation on this increasingly tired theme. But stone me for a bunch of bananas, 'cos someone's gone and done it.

It's ingenious really. Combine the single most popular type of game today (the aforementioned kicking variety) with a traditional old standby, the strategy game, and what have you got? The ancient Japanese strategy game, or Samurai, as CRL calls it.

Ah so, but where's the gratuitous violence? Well, Samurai is by no means a riproaring beat 'em up but it's not to be rejected on that account. And although it's a strategy game, you don't have to wade through a 400-page manual before you start killing people.

Yours is fundamentally a religious quest (now there's a new one). With your samurai and ninja warriors you battle against a fanatical sect of Zen Buddhist monks who, coincidentally, are notably skilled at various deadly martial arts. Each warrior has a stamina quotient and a certain number of steps he can walk each go. Combat swiftly ensues, and unless you've a substantially better battle sense than I have, you'll usually lose. The monks defend their temple with vigour and determination, and what's worse, there's more of 'em than you. There are three separate 'incidents' (battle formations, in other words) to keep you occupied, and three skill levels to silence the herberts. The screen scrolls nicely to reveal all current skirmishes.

I only have one small niggle (That's your problem. Ed) and that's that the game's very playability may turn off the really hardened strategy buffs. Well, it might. But for the rest of us, for whom strategy games are too often a total snore, Samurai provides a pleasant change from joystick juggling...

Label: CRL
Author: In-house
Price: £9.95
Joystick: various
Memory: 48K/128K
Reviewer: Gary Rook

You might think that I review games because I get paid for it, but it's not true (well, almost). Really I do it for love - waiting for a game like Samurai to appear. Something like this just makes it all worth while.

Need some background? Right, here it is in a nutshell. You control a force of Japanese warriors. You have to attack a temple and kill all the warrior monks who are defending it. And that's basically it - simple, clean and fast.

To begin with, you have to pick your forces. Depending on the difficulty level, you have from 200 to 400 points to spend. Mounted Samurai cost 40 points, Ninja (assassins) cost 25 points, a unit of Ashigaru (second rank foot soldiers) 18 points, and a Samurai 12 points. You are free to choose whatever mix you like, so long as you don't exceed the points you are allowed.

Your opponent, the computer, has a force of monks, trained in martial arts and wielding two-handed swords: Samurai monks, apparently regarded as the top warriors of imperial Japan, and young Samurai monks still in training.

You choose your forces by selecting from a range of icons. Move the joystick until the icon you want flashes, hit fire and a unit with that icon on appears in the playing area window which takes up about a third of the screen.

When you're satisfied with the make-up of your forces, then you can start the game. As far as I can work out. there is only one map - but what a map! It's one of the best pieces of static graphics I have ever seen on the Spectrum - in fact, to be honest, on just about any computer including the Atari ST and Amiga.

You see, in the map window, an aerial view of a Japanese temple and the land immediately surrounding it. Everything is perfect - grass, paving stones, chairs, statues, water, wooden planking: someone has taken an immense amount of effort on this.

Dotted about the map are the various warriors under your command, and centred on the temple - which is in the middle of the map - are the enemy forces. Warriors appear as square counters with the icon showing what they are on them. Yours are orange, the enemy's are blue.

The computer automatically cycles through your units. When it centres on one. you have to move the joystick until the icon you want is flashing, then hit fire. So if you choose the icon that looks like a pair of feet, that represents movement: you then move the flashing on-screen cursor to where you want your man to go. To the right of the map window is a status screen, which indicates how many movement points he has left, and how strong he is. Strength starts at about 30, and when a soldier reaches one he is dead and removed from the map.

To attack, you move a unit next to an enemy force. Then, when you've moved everybody you want to, combat takes place. Everybody adjacent to an enemy attacks and is attacked by that enemy.

The only exception to this rule is the Ninja, who can engage in ranged combat. Choose the icon representing a shuriken, or throwing star, and press fire; to the right of the map window you see a circle with a white line. Use the joystick or cursor controls to move the line until it's pointing in the direction you want to throw your star, then hit fire again. If you are close enough, then you have a good chance of hitting. Once a Ninja has thrown his star for that turn, he still has some movement points left - so you can throw and engage the target you have already damaged, or throw and run away.

While historically this is somewhat inaccurate, as Samurai were excellent bowmen, in game terms it works very well. You can also call up a second, smaller, map which allows you to scout out the temple. I didn't realise this, and spent the entire game (actually all four I managed to play) in the dark. I got slaughtered - but I probably would have done anyway, as Samurai isn't the easiest of games.

Samurai is not one of the most complex of games, but that works in its favour. It plays fast and it's addictive. Every time you get wiped off the map you keep coming back for more. And the graphics are so good that it's a joy to play. I haven't seen a game this good in a long time.

The only thing that worries me is that it could be a bit limited: but the design-your-own-side mechanics should allow for varied games.

GORDON HAMLETT REPORTS FROM THE FRONT...

The number of wargames available for the home computer has escalated considerably over the last couple of years. There are several reasons why the micro version of a game is succeeding whereas its traditional 'boxed game' counterpart had only limited appeal.

The obvious benefit that a micro offers is that you don't need a second person if you want to play a game. Then, there is no need to set up thousands of counters on a board or work out combat results from a set of complicated tables. The drudgery is all handled for you. On the debit side, computer wargames are not yet as sophisticated as their original counterparts although the balance is shifting and, as I will point out later, there are certain advantages in playability to be gained on the micro.

Three games have appeared for the Spectrum in recent weeks and all three offer the budding strategist something different. The first of these games is Samurai from CRL (£9.95). This is a one player game with three different scenarios and three difficulty levels.

You take the side of a small band of warriors, trying to wipe out an enemy force of assorted temple guards. The game is icon driven and starts with you selecting your initial forces. You have so many points to 'spend' and each type of warrior costs a varying amount. There are four types to choose from - Ashigari or lightly armoured troops, the traditional Japanese warrior the Samurai, a mounted Samurai and the deadly Ninja.

The mechanics of the game are very simple and are basically move and fight, Ninjas must be carefully managed as they are the only troops who can attack from a distance and should be used very much in hit-and-run tactics.

Samurai is by far the simplest of the three games and will appeal more to the novice. Beware though! To all intents and purposes, Samurai is the same game as Swords of Bane from CCS and it is probably not worth getting both.

Moving forward a few hundred years brings us to 1940 and PSS's Battle of Britain (£8.95). Hitler had commanded Goering, his head of the Luftwaffe, to destroy the RAF prior to a planned invasion of Britain. Due to the RAF's meager resources, just about any tactic would have worked provided the Germans had maintained it. In practice, Goering decided that his methods weren't working and so switched his forces to night bombing major cities. Horrendous though the Blitz was, there was no way it was ever going to destroy the British planes for the simple reason that the Spitfires and Hurricanes never flew at night!

There are three main scenarios for you to try. The training game gets you used to commanding the forces at your disposal by simulating a light raid. In Blitzkrieg, the Germans throw everything they have at you but only for a period of one day. Finally, there is the much longer campaign which is played over thirty days. There are also optional arcade sequences in which you can try shooting down Messerschmidts from the comfort of your own mess room. If you choose this option, how well you do in your own personal combat directly affects the outcome of a particular battle. This is fine for arcade fans but those of you only interested in the strategy elements should leave well alone.

The gameplay depends on you making a lot of very fast decisions. As the German forces start to appear, you must scramble squadrons to intercept them. After combat or a prolonged patrol, a squadron must be landed in order that it can refuel and reload. Failure to monitor the status of your squadrons will result in them becoming dispersed and unavailable to you for a period of time. Airfields closing because of the weather add to your problems.

Again, a fairly simple game to play but as any one who has ever tried to juggle will tell you, it is very easy to throw a lot of balls up into the air at once. It is a different matter to keep them there.

The final game this month is Vulcan (£8.95) from CCS. This simulates the Tunisian campaign of 1942-43 and is by far the most detailed of the three games on offer. Control however remains straightforward and is all menu driven.

There are five different scenarios designed to last anywhere from half an hour to sixteen hours. You can choose to play either the Axis or the Allied forces and the game can be played against either a computer or human opponent. The 128 version offers several other options including a debriefing mode, several historical 'what-if' variations and no need to reload any data after every game (necessary on the 48K Spectrum due to memory restrictions).

One feature not available on board war games for obvious reasons is that of hidden movement by the enemy. Enemy units are only discovered literally when you bump into them. There are several ways of moving your troops. Normal movement, assault and travel. Assault means that a unit will go all out to gain its objective whereas travel is very defensive - you can move only along roads (at double speed) but are very vulnerable to attack. You can also choose to hold a position or fortify it.

Terrain plays an important part in the game. Not only does it affect the rate of movement, but also how well a unit can attack from or defend a position. Combat is decided by many factors including the strength of a unit, how well it is supplied and the weather. Supplying your units is a vital element in your strategy and you should also make good use of any air power that you have, either to deliver an air strike or reconnoiter as you try to discover the enemy's positions.

Vulcan is very well presented with an excellent instruction booklet giving players hints and the historical background to the campaign. Highly recommended to serious strategists.