Editorial / News from the World of Spectrum

SCENE+ is published by:
L. C. D.
Prager Str. 92/11/12
A-1210 Vienna, Austria
Tel: (0 1) 272 34 63 from Austria,
or: 0043 1 272 34 63 from abroad (outside Austria).
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Hello, SCENE+ readers.

After buying Independence Day on videotape, I wasted a few hours watching the movie, and then came the new mystery TV shows on Pro 7. Anyone who knows me knows how I feel about such shows: I simply must watch them. Dark Skies is genuinely thrilling. The Outer Limits, on the other hand, was completely new to me, even though the show is a remake from the '60s.

Then I gave some thought to the future of my magazine. Well, the omens are pointing toward something really big: an offer dropped into my mailbox that I simply could not refuse. I don't want to get ahead of myself, and the sender asked me not to disclose any details just yet. But what I can already say is that SCENE+ will be made accessible to a much larger readership, its quality will improve, and if everything pans out, the volume of articles will grow tremendously. There are also plans to publish SCENE+ not only for +D/Disciple, Opus, and MB02, but also on tape! Hey, let's hope this wasn't an early April Fools' prank!

Once everything is signed and sealed, you'll find out next month what kind of deal was struck. From now on, I will do my best to stick to the release schedule, aiming to publish SCENE+ on the first of each month, or by the 15th at the latest. For that, naturally, I need more articles from all of you!

As previously mentioned, Shadow Nemesis came to an end in this issue. There would have been enough story left for several more pages, but I wanted to make room for a brand-new fiction series. It will be fairly substantial—not quite LORDS OF ZER, which spanned nearly two +D disks, but since I am actively working on it right now, it might very well reach about half that length (30–40 chapters).

NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF SPECTRUM

• FPD PD Service was sold to Prism PD for the token price of 1 penny. Well, I know Dave Fountain and I also know Martyn Sherwood, and one thing is inevitable: the service will become worse and more chaotic (even worse than mine!). It is a real shame, because FPD truly had the potential for something great. One side note was an open "farewell letter" to Andy Davis of Alchemist Research. I quote:

  "I know about your dark side, and don't forget I have all your letters where you actually admit to lies, forgeries and set-ups directed against Prism. It's time people knew the real you."

  Apparently, everyone has a dark side; in Dave's case, it was his girlfriend who pushed him to take this step.

• Proxima Software is now clearing out all of its Spectrum inventory and subsequently pulling out of this market. Proxima, which made itself rather unpopular with inflated prices and little innovation (compared to, say, Ultrasoft), now plans to move to the PC. However, there is little hope of them turning a bigger profit there than on the Spectrum unless they rethink their game concepts and pricing.

• Datel is dropping computer hardware (+D, Action Replay for Amiga) and shifting to console hardware. Can one truly make good profits with that nowadays?

• Persona has released Protracker II for the SAM Coupé. Price: £18. Address:
  Persona, 31 Ashwood Drive, Brandlesholme, Bury, BL8 1HF, England.
  Persona also offers MIDI Sequencer 9 for £15, among other products. Your best bet is to write to them directly and request a catalog.