Rod Land

[Detomah]

Round One: Visuals
Commodore 64: The big, chunky sprites of the C64 perfectly suit Rod-Land so you're left with a very solid looking game that closely mimics its arcade parent. The colour scheme is rather drab, but otherwise this is a good conversion and one that was rightfully popular with fans of the game.
Spectrum: We're in two minds about the Spectrum's interpretation of Rod-Land. While it features instantly recognisable sprites, it's let down by a dull monochrome display. Granted, this doesn't affect the gameplay, but it's a far cry from the vibrant colours of the original arcade game and does lose some points for this superb Spectrum conversion somewhat.
Amstrad: This is more like it. Not only does the Amstrad feature some very authentic sprites, but it's also managed to cram in all the vibrancy and charm of the arcade game. A great use of colour and some clever coding means that the Amstrad takes an early lead.
Winner: Amstrad
Runner up: Commodore 64
Round Two: Audio
Commodore 64: Sadly, Rod-Land's audio is surprisingly poor considering the calibre of the machine it's running on. The title tune (which is the same on all three versions) lacks any sort of punch and sounds very tinny, while the in-game spot effects are just as basic. Very disappointing, as the C64 can do so much more.
Spectrum: We were pleasantly surprised when we loaded up the 128k version of Rod-Land. The title music is very jolly and totally fitting with the host hardware, while the in-game effects complement the on-screen action perfectly. There's also plenty of additional music playing while the game loads - a pleasant surprise.
Amstrad: It's not quite as poor as the C64 effort but we were still surprised that the Amstrad was unable to match the upbeat vibes of the Spectrum game. 'Grating' is perhaps too harsh a word, but you'll definitely not want to listen to Rod-Land's main tune more then once.
Winner: Spectrum
Runner up: Amstrad
Round Three: Gameplay
Commodore 64: While the C64 outing runs at a rather nippy pace it does suffer from the odd collision detection problem that isn't as evident as the Amstrad and Spectrum conversions. You're also unable to create ladders on the top platforms, which hurts your strategy on later, trickier stages.
Spectrum: Rod-Land on the Spectrum is nigh-on perfect. The collision detection is of a very high standard, things run at a nice pace and has extremely tight controls. Best of all, though, you can raise ladders above you on any platform, meaning that you can employ the same tactics you did in your local arcade.
Amstrad: The Amstrad version is pretty much the same as the C64 conversion, but has slightly better collision detection. Sadly, the inability to create ladders on the highest platform will frustrate fans of the original, as you'll be unable to use the strategies that work so well on the Spectrum.
Winner: Spectrum
Runner up: Amstrad (just)
And The Winner Is: Spectrum
Okay, so the monochrome visuals are rather disappointing, but there's no denying Rod-Land's classic gameplay. Like R-Type, Rod-Land is a superb conversion that really shows off what the machine is capable of in the right hands.