Brick Rick - Graveyard Shift 128k (2021) Walkthrough + Review, ZX Spectrum
57Huge playlist archive with games from 2021: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxOanVBhqd3uXfij6VCUapODD02S0FBeb
Rick is on the night shift, he likes to work at night because it is quiet, and he can also slack a bit. But on the night of Halloween, because all of a sudden a lot of monsters have invaded the place. Armed with bricks, you can only throw a very limited range, you have to get rid of the monsters.
You have to stun the monsters by throwing a brick at them, then they are harmeless and can be kicked out of the screen by walking into them. If an enemy kicked out of the screen hits other enemies on the way out these will also be stunned. The stun effect is limited and will vary from monster to monster so you have to hurry up, and at some points it will be wise to throw another brick to make sure the monster is still stunned when kicking it.
The levels has different amounts of monsters to defeat, but when the last one has been kicked out of the screen the elevator door will open and be the exit for the next level. There are four enemies at the screen at a time, and new enemies will come out of the elevator you have to use to exit the levels. Watch out for the panel next to the elevator, when this is flashing red an enemy will soon come out. When a level is almost completed there will be less than four enemies on the screen, and no red light in the panel means the elevator is safe to go to.
You have 60 seconds to complete each stage, but it is possible to pick up extra time as a bonus item by killing monsters. If time runs out you will not die, but Grim Reaper will appear and chase you - If he catches you you will die.
The game features 50 levels with a lot of different enemies that all has to be defeatet in different ways.
ENEMIES:
- Pumpkin Head: the most common monster, with no remarkable skills, although they run fast!
- Skeleton: your average undead, walking around throwing you bones (if you are wondering why it doesn’t fall apart, well: magic).
- Wolfman: what a coincidence that is not only Halloween night but also full moon. The wolfman can smell you and will try to catch you if you are in an platform above it.
- Vampire: flying giant bat thirsty for blood. They are hard to hit with your bricks.
- Frank: built from dead body parts, and brought back to live by the Dr. Frank is very resilient and won’t stay dizzy for long after you hit it with a brick.
- Magician: enigmatic character, wearing a tuxedo and a top hat, the magician can use magic to teletransport to platforms that are below him.
- Dr Evil: a total unstable genius, Dr Evil will leave bombs behind. The bombs will go off after a while, be careful and don’t touch them or be anywhere close when that happens.
- Alien: fresh out of Area 52, the alien is angry (for obvious reasons, what were they thinking?), and has a blaster.
- Reaper: if the time runs out, the Reaper will appear and chase Rick until he dies or completes the sage. It can’t be killed, so you better hurry up!
ITEMS:
- Coffe cups: Increase score (every 10.000 gives you an extra life)
- Sand clock: Gives you more time
- Dynamite: Stun all enemies on the screen
It is tough to come up with something new when it comes to platform games, but this one seems to be rather special for the Spectrum scene. It is a huge and challenging game where you will need to play tactical to defeat the different type of monsters. Lots of levels to figure out and luckily there is passwords for each of them so you can start at a specific level from the start menu. There is a bit of color clash in the heads of the sprites most of the time because they are up in the platform above, and the same in game soundtrack that are playing for all 50 levels soon gets repetitive, but besides that a very refreshing and cool platform game!
The game was made by Juan J. Martinez in 2021.
Rating = 90%
Download here (Remember to donate a cup of coffee!): https://www.usebox.net/jjm/graveyard-shift/