Castaway [ZX Spectrum]

Title: Castaway
Memory required: 48K
Retail price: Free to download
Language: C (Z88DK)
Author: Juan J. Martínez
Released: 2016

Juan J. Martínez’ Castaway sees you assume the role of a galaxy explorer who, by the apparent state of his spacecraft, performed an ‘emergency’ landing on a small, unchartered planet. The game’s inlay informs you that the only way to get back home is by finding someone to help with the repairs.

Taking control of your wide-eyed player character, you’ll navigate your way through a brief, but deadly, group of extra-terrestrial slugs before happening upon The Doctor (or at least, ‘a’ Doctor), who will go on to inform you that he’s more than willing to help you repair your ship, just as soon as you’ve helped him with the fact that his laboratory’s computer has gone rogue and turned all his creations against him. Not only do you have to contend with the almost certain PTSD of violently crash-landing your ship into an alien planet, you now have to moonlight as some crazy old doctor’s IT technician. Oh well, “every cloud…” and all that!

The Doc provides you with a keycard that gains you access to his lab. Your goal from here on out is to manoeuvre your way to the mainframe and shut it down. A task made all the more challenging by the various biomechanical nasties that inhabit the building and have no other purpose than to make sure you meet your end as quickly as possible!

Early on in the lab, you’ll simply have to avoid the enemies to survive. Each contact with an enemy reduces your health bar by one (out of a maximum of five.) On the upside, you’ll quickly come across a discarded blaster to even the odds. One shot from this is enough to make short work of your foes and while your ammo is unlimited, each shot does require a short cooldown. In addition to the blaster, you’ll discover some strategically-placed medkits to replenish your health, as well as a pair of moon boots that increase your jumping ability and allow you to access some difficult-to-reach areas.

The lab is presented in a classic flip-screen style, with each screen usually having more than one point of exit. Various sections of the map are only accessible via keycard and the game gives you a couple of choices of which door you’d like to unlock first.

Castaway’s level design is superb, featuring a few well-timed and tricky jumps needed to progress. One screen in particular requires you to traverse a section via moving platforms. Miss one of these platforms and you’ll fall back down to an area you’ve previously been through. It’s an effective tactic to make sure you plan ahead and exercise some degree of patience next time.

Martínez has obviously put a lot of thought into the design of Castaway; it eases you in gently and you never feel lost as a player. The enemy movement patterns are quickly memorised (but nevertheless challenging!) and when you see that Game Over screen you’ll know you have only yourself to blame.

CRITICISM
The biggest problem I have with Castaway is that the game is extremely (almost painfully!) short. You’ll likely get through it in around 15 minutes on your first sitting and subsequent playthroughs will reduce that time dramatically. Additionally, the ending feels rather abrupt.
While the game is designed for the 48K Spectrum, I’d like to see a remake for the 128K, taking advantage of the extra RAM and AY sound. Even better would be a sequel for the Next. Did our traveller make it home safely? What became of the Doctor? Castaway is a short game but nonetheless leaves you yearning for more.

COMMENTS
Control Keys: User-definable.
Joystick: Kempston, Sinclair.
Keyboard Play: No complaints!
Use of colour: Clever use of monochrome sprites and well-defined, colourful map tiles ensure that attribute-clash is eliminated.
Graphics: Crisp sprites and items are immediately recognizable.
Sound: Nice, original beeper tunes for the title and Game Over screens. Basic spot effects.
General rating: Overall, an impressive and fun game. Keep an eye out for future releases from Mr. Martínez.

Use of computer: 75
Graphics: 84
Playability: 85
Getting started: 90
Addictive qualities: 62
Overall: 79