Classic Software Review. An armoured supply car is carrying drugs to the centre of the city. One after the other, four delivery cars will drive in to meet it, and then drive off to their hide-aways. After the fourth pick-up the armoured car will leave the city. Your mission is to stop the delivery cars after they have made their pick-ups and to finally nab Mr. Big. You must drive carefully, avoiding road works, enemy hit cars and the humble members of the public.
Turbo Esprit is as near to a Department of Transport driving test as you are going to get on the Speccy. Slightly less than a full-blown driving sim (no Hard Drivin' gear-shift here) it's also more than just a straight arcade racer. You view your car and the road ahead as if you were flying behind and slightly above it. The monochrome play area consists of various three-lane highways, dual carriageways, back streets and one-way systems. A practice option is included to get used to the handling.
Controlling your car is pretty simple but you can't perform 150mph handbrake turns unlike Amanda's Mini. Adherence to the highway code is recommended when approaching the minute traffic lights. I've nominated this game a classic because I've not seen anything like it before or since 1985. The graphics, although basic, do become convincing with a tiny pinch of imagination.
After consuming the football league tables of a Sunday morning, Amanda has been known to give her +2 a shammy leather rub down and then taken Turbo Esprit for a spin around town (just to charge up the battery). She is one of those strange people who straight away opposes the rules of the game and does the exact opposite. She drives on the wrong side of the road, runs over pedestrians and generally shoots anything that moves. It happens because the games in question are usually too hard. On a personal note I'd much prefer the game to feature a Ford Anglia but other than that, this is one to track down.
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