Codename MAT

Copyright : Amsoft | Reviewed by : Malc Jennings

Codename MAT is often referred to as more than just a space shooter and with the option of playing as the pilot or commander in charge we would have to agree with that claim, while not as in depth as the mighty "Elite" it is much better than many other space shooters available on the CPC.

Graphics

Codename MAT is not quite as graphicaly right as you might have expected and with magazines such as Amstrad Action only rating it as a 54 you can bet the developers didn?t quite like this news but we?ll talk more about that when we review the sequel. In space there is not much to look at which is a fair point for the game not to be as graphicaly rich as you might expect but even the enemy craft look like something that was lifted from a Star Wars game and not very well lifted either.

You can look at various maps to plan your course and these are pretty well laid out but overall the game is lacking that special something in the graphics department. Though a game is not the graphics, it?s the game!

Sound

Sound is very basic indeed, we expected much more than this from a game we have heard so much about in the past but sadly didn?t get very much in return. Again we are let down in the music department and the overall sound is lacking, sure we have a few gun shots here and there but that is about your lot.

This game has the potential for great sound effects, the red alert warning for example could have had an alarm sound effect in the background but it doesn?t. This falls into the average box for us and after all the hype, we expected better.

Gameplay

Gameplay is still very high and does have a good replay value for fans but for those that didn?t play the game on release and have since played more in depth titles such as Elite it might not impress you as much as you expect. While the game is a long shot from being poor and not worth bothering with it is a bit of a let down in other departments.

You can play as either the pilot or the commander which adds another depth to the game but as with the pilot it all becomes much of the same. We are looking forward to reviewing the sequel and much highly praised version of Codename MAT at a later date.

One for the fans for sure but others may be let down as we have.