Review of Super Scramble Simulator

C64 Review of Super Scramble Simulator from Issue 52

After programming Kik Start l and II, Shaun Southern mounts up for yet another motorbike game.

Fifteen courses are divided up into five sets. The three courses in each set must be completed (in any order) to go on to the next set. If you fail to complete a course inside the time limit then it's 'game over'.

Courses feature hills, water obstacles, logs, and VW Beetles! Besides accelerating/braking you can use one of three gears. If you stall the engine, fall over, or go off the course, you are penalized by crucial seconds being taken off your time limit.

This review was typed in/OCRed by Iain

Scan of this review is available

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The current ZzapBack rating is : 48%

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BlackKatMike - 12 Dec 2005

Well guys, IMHO I disagree about bashing Super Scramble Simulator so much! The graphics look quite polished to me (Iain, the bike seems blocky to you, but just look at the gfx in Motocross...), the sound is good and the gameplay too.

The very first levels are easy but they get tricky (if not difficult) quite soon... and here I must admit that sometimes it gets a little frustrating after the Nth time you fail to get over some obstacles or courses. But if you can handle the frustration, it gets challenging! I personally find both Kikstart more frustrating, but they're a different kind of game.

If you're looking for some direct, straight-away fun, both Kikstarts (the second is of course MUCH better...), Motocross, or ATV Simulator are for you. If you're looking for something more realistic (and with great gfx and sfx), then Super Scramble Simulator is for you! Highly recommended, but not for everyone...

Rating : 80%

CraigGrannell - 18 May 2005

Kik Start II was (and still is) a stunning game. Unfortunately, this follow up was inferior in every way, bar the fairly impressive main sprite. The fun of the original, peppered with frustrating moments, became total frustration, and I reckon this was originally rated too leniently. Marks down by five to ten per cent across the board.

Rating : 29%

Iain - 18 May 2005

This game has protential but it's just too picky and annoying when every couple of seconds, you get a message like 'you skidded' or 'you went too fast' or 'you fell off your bike' and the game stops for 6 seconds as a penalty.

The main bike sprite is very blocky and the other graphics aren't great either.

Rating : 35%

Phil King

This would have been a fair budget release, but it's definitely not worth the full price tag. The whole concept is dated and the side-view graphics are crude. But most annoying is the way that the slightest error in your riding is mercilessly punished. This is worsened by the fact that you only get one 'life', and there's no option to practise the later courses.

Stuart Wynne

Kik Start 2 is one of the best budget games around. A full price version would obviously have to be exceptionally good to better its predecessor, and Super Scramble Simulator isn't. Replacing the two-player option of Kik Start 2 are mediocre graphics and three gears which add nothing to playability, especially when the game plays a lot slower.

Ratings

PRESENTATION 42%
Brief, but effective instructions.

GRAPHICS 39%
Respectable main sprite, but minimal animation.

SOUND 35%
In-game sound is limited to engine noises.

HOOKABILITY 39%
Initally a touch frustrating.

LASTABILITY 36%
There are 15 courses, but will you want to keep playing?

OVERALL 38%
An overpriced follow-up to the much superior Kik Start II

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