Amstrad PCW users had a true adventure game at their disposal: Batman, one of the programs with the best graphics released, not only for the PCW, but for the entire great Amstrad family.

Our mission, as usual, is to get someone out of a big mess. This time, two unscrupulous programmers have left our poor Bat in the middle of a massive and complex labyrinth infested with monsters and dangers.

After careful consideration, Bat decides that this is not the best place for him and sets off to escape in a hurry, but he encounters a few minor obstacles that we must naturally help him overcome.

The objective of the game is to find the seven pieces of the fabulous Batmobile, which are hidden among the labyrinthine walls of the villain's castle—packed, as expected, with enemies—and to assemble it in a specific location within the maze. Just that easy! Awaiting him are only about one hundred and fifty rooms, with more than two hundred enemies, and three hundred static traps.

Several essential items are key to achieving success: the backpack, where we can store other objects found along the way; the boots, for jumping; the aerobat, to glide when falling from considerable heights; and the bat-belt, to extend our jumps.

From time to time, babybats may appear; small little Batmans that will occasionally protect us from enemies encountered along our path, "speedys" to move at top speed through the rooms, and the odd destructive genie dressed as a babybat, as well as extra lives.

Batman is controlled via the keyboard, since the PCW does not have a joystick port, but it is possible to redefine the keys as desired at the beginning of the game. Also, before starting the adventure, we must choose the background music we wish to hear: constant, only useful sounds, or for playing late at night, none at all.

We can also select Batman's sensitivity. This serves as the game level selection, as lower sensitivity means fewer chances of crashing into any of the dangerous objects cluttering the castle.

We will also find items that, upon being collected, allow us to start the next game from the exact same location and state where we picked them up (OLD GAME). Additionally, from time to time, the computer will grant us an extra life (DOGS LIFE), which always comes in handy.

The corridors and rooms of the base are crawling with enemies and monsters, mad scientists, and dozens of different characters that will delight our fingers for many afternoons.

Now, bursting with courage and morale, oozing optimism—in a word, completely desperate—let us begin this endless adventure, though remember: do not forget that your best weapon, as we have repeated many times, is patience. There is so much we could write about this game, almost a book...

With a swift and flawless flight, he headed toward the city suburbs, where he knew he would find the cynical Harlequin waiting for him to take revenge for the defeat he had inflicted upon him. But he also knew that he would not be waiting in the open field. Without a doubt, Harlequin would hide in his cave packed with deadly devices and traps to play with all the cards in his favor. When he reached the dark entrance, he did not hesitate to enter, as he fully trusted his bat senses, and although these were formidable, he failed to realize how quickly the floor was opening up beneath his feet. He managed to land well, thanks to his agility, while thinking that it was now time for action. And if at that moment BATMAN was beginning his adventure, we at this one begin to recount one of the games we can truly label as excellent.

The adventures of this caped crusader take place in a type of graphical scenery that at its time, and even today, caused a sensation; we are talking about the "filmation" technique, which took its first steps with the well-known Knight Lore. Some of the games that followed were content with simply copying this magnificent technique, while others have tried to improve it. BATMAN is among the latter.

The first thing we must highlight about this game—or rather, its creators—is the imaginative display they have shown. Although the theme is that of a typical arcade, the graphical sequences in which it unfolds are remarkably original and charming. All of this was crafted, and very well indeed, due to the unique personality of BATMAN's enemy; the malevolent Harlequin.

Somewhat skeptical, you load the program. Of course, after seeing the CPC version, you highly doubt that the PCW version could even come close to matching it. You know the drill: color, sound… When you load the game and the menu appears, you see that so far everything is fine; there were no major differences from the Batman CPC. But what the hell! You start playing and you cannot help but be amazed. Where is the difference from the home computer version? The game is exactly the same—incredible! The only difference you notice is the sound.

The rooms through which we will see all these entities move are beautiful and original, as Harlequin's cave is a singular blend between an amusement park and a gloomy medieval castle.

Batman must keep his eyes wide open to avoid the dangers that can be seen, but he cannot forget that his opponent is fond of using steps that disappear when stepped on, traps in the passageways, lethal gases, and much more…

On the positive side, which we must not forget, our hero will be able to use four of his highly specialized gadgets—if he manages to collect them in the rooms where Harlequin has left them, of course. The powerful boots will allow him to make grand leaps; with the backpack, he can collect certain items essential to his mission; with his ionic thruster, he will increase his jump speed and be able to glide; and his anti-gravity belt will slow down his falls.

When we manage to have our superhero gather this portentous equipment, his difficulties will be significantly reduced, although he will still have an arduous task ahead since the machiavellian Harlequin has divided his car into seven parts, hiding each one of them in a room of his immense cave.

So BATMAN began to walk through the strange rooms, wondering how long it would take him to find the first of these useful devices. Fortunately, after a short while, he saw the backpack in a room, guarded by a diabolical entity; he skillfully dodged it and grabbed his bag. A couple of rooms later, he managed to find the place where the boots were; he entered and, after a demonstration of balance to avoid falling into the void, he collected them. Increasing his speed, but without failing to memorize the route, BATMAN continued traversing the jumble that was Harlequin's cave. And so he kept exploring another portion of the cave until he reached the room where the thruster was and put it on with a smile. Now he only had to find one of the wondrous devices of his equipment. He crossed a strange bridge that fell apart when stepped on. He continued checking rooms, and upon opening the door to one of them, he saw what he had searched for so much: the belt. But due to the haste he made to grab it, he failed to notice that, once again, the floor would disappear beneath his feet. However, on this occasion, the thruster enabled him to land without consequences.

From the floor of the room rose a platform that seemed to lead to upper floors. BATMAN jumped onto it, and while ascending, he discovered another platform holding the last—and therefore highly craved—piece of his equipment. BATMAN knew that with this complete, his mission was almost accomplished. Another factor that will make our task easier or harder will be the small figurines, shaped like BATMAN, that Harlequin has placed in some rooms and corridors. Some make us move faster; others allow us to perform 10 super jumps; a third type makes our enemies harmless; while the fourth and fifth grant and take away a life respectively.

After taking a breather, BATMAN began his search for the object that had truly brought him there, the fantastic Batmobile. The first piece of it, a tailfin, was located in one of the lower rooms. To collect it, he ignored a false staircase of blocks, which was a trap, placed a piece he found under the block next to the tailfin, and jumped. The block dissolved and the tailfin fell to the floor; he picked it up and went on his way.

The second one he found after an intricate climb in a secluded room. If he had fallen, he would have had to climb back up, wasting precious time. But this did not happen, and swiftly he went to search for the third piece. This one appeared in an eccentric room where two pistons were moving up and down. As the place where it sat was very accessible, collecting it did not require much effort. The fifth piece, another tailfin, was in a room where everything had been planned as a deadly trap. Upon entering it, BATMAN heard a loud buzzing sound. He looked up and barely had time to dive out of the way to dodge the massive stone hurtling toward him. After recovering from the shock, he prepared to leave the room, which seemed to contain nothing, when a bluish gleam in a labyrinth of Z-shaped structures caught his attention. Avoiding touching the walls, he reached the place where the glow could be seen and discovered that it was the fifth piece.

Not far from the previous one, he found the sixth. To reach the room where it was, one had to traverse a corridor riddled with obstacles. Any mistake led to the abyss. BATMAN managed to pass without any mishap, thanks to his exceptional sense of balance, and collected the piece located in what appeared to be an imitation of a castle. With the certainty of being able to recover his Batmobile, BATMAN continued the search for the seventh piece.

But this one was very well hidden and required our hero to travel through countless rooms. Discouragement was beginning to take its toll on him when he entered a room with three teapots and a series of blocks forming a bridge, upon which rested a sphere with a question mark. BATMAN suddenly understood and got to work. He placed two teapots next to the door to form a stopper. He climbed the block bridge and pushed the ball, which rolled until it stopped next to the teapots. With great care, he separated them and stood behind the ball. He gained momentum and sent it rolling under the block bridge. The ball struck an object and dragged it out into the open. The last piece of the car was in his possession.

As can be seen, this game lacks neither excitement nor activity; the latter could even be defined as feverish. If we speak on a graphical level, we must not forget that on this occasion the game is aimed at the PCW, and that on these, the monitor is green phosphor—meaning we must forget about color, or at least anything that is not green. While this might matter in another game, it does not happen here, since on the CPC it unfolds on almost monochrome screens, so we are not missing out on great colorfulness. The movement, however, is truly good, fast, and fun.

It is really amusing to watch how our hero puts his hands on his hips and taps the floor nervously with his foot when we make him stand still for a while. It is as if he were saying: "What are you waiting for?".

If to this successful movement we add very good drawings and a plot—though already classic—full of adventures, we form a "cocktail" that will succeed in entertaining us. In conclusion, we will say that it is well worth having a game like this. A true comic classic for the PCW.

It is, in conclusion, a sensational game, featuring extraordinary graphics in three dimensions, whose originality comes from being the first game of this type programmed for the PCW.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS