76 lines
3.5 KiB
Plaintext
76 lines
3.5 KiB
Plaintext
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BUTCHER HILL
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BUTCHER HILL is an arcade/action game written by Imagitec Design,
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published by Gremlin Graphics, and distributed by Virgin
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Mastertronic. It offers good graphics, three scenarios, joystick
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control, and copy protection.
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The plot of HILL concerns the taking of Butcher Hill. It's divided
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into three phases: the River, the Jungle, and the Village. In the
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River scenario, you must guide an inflatable dinghy along a river,
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avoid water hazards and enemy strafing, collect supplies, and dock
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at one of the three jetties. Doing this leads into the Jungle
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scenario, where you must make your way through dense vegetation,
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eliminate enemy forces and supply depots, and locate the Village,
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which lies at the base of Butcher Hill. In the Village, you'll have
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to kill enemy soldiers and destroy all the buildings. When you've
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done so, you'll be King of Butcher Hill.
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The C64 screen display consists of the landscape of the current
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scenario: The River scrolls vertically; the Jungle is maze-like,
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with many screens; and the Village scrolls horizontally and has a
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time limit. Below the action screen are score counter, stamina bar,
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timer, and number of bullets and grenades. The number of grenades
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you have when you reach the Village will depend on how many you
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collected in the previous scenario. There is a compass to be found
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in the River scenario, and if you do indeed collect it, it too will
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be displayed below the action screen.
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The River twists and turns and has rocks and mines (which will
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destroy the dinghy); enemy planes strafe the water and Allied planes
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drop first-aid, ammunition, and supply packs, which are collected by
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guiding the dinghy over them. Pull up at one of the jetties, and the
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Jungle scenario loads.
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In the Jungle scenario, there are paths to take through the
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vegetation. The manual points out that the Village lies somewhere to
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the northeast, which makes the compass useful but not strictly
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necessary. In the jungle clearings you'll find guarded supply depots
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that, when eliminated, yield extra ammunition and stamina.
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The joystick controls HILL. The stick steers the dinghy in the
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River, moves and turns through the Jungle, and moves left and right
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in the Village. Holding the button down controls the gunsight and
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fires; in the Village, pushing the stick forward throws a grenade,
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while holding the button and pushing the stick forward throws the
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grenade and adjusts the range.
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The BUTCHER HILL package comes with one copy-protected disk and an
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instruction sheet.
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At first glance, BUTCHER HILL is much like Taito's OPERATION WOLF:
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an arcade/action war game in which you kill bad guys. Basically,
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that's what it is, but the Jungle (which isn't as straightforward as
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offing bad guys) turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Moving along
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twisty paths, especially without the compass, makes things a bit
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tougher than merely aiming a weapon, and serves to upgrade the
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game, if only infinitesimally.
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The graphics are similar to those of OPERATION WOLF; actually,
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they're better, most likely because WOLF was translated from a
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coin-op game. In HILL, they're more in line with the machine, and
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there was no flicker or breakup. The joystick worked well as a
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controller, and the game played easily enough. BUTCHER HILL won't
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send the gaming world into a swoon, but it looks and plays just
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fine.
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BUTCHER HILL is published by Gremlin Graphics and distributed by
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Virgin Mastertronic.
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*****DOWNLOADED FROM P-80 SYSTEMS (304) 744-2253
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