''Zynaps'' is a side-scrolling shoot 'em up

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

published by

Hewson Consultants Hewson Consultants were one of the smaller software companies which produced video games for home computers in the mid-1980s. They had a reputation for high-quality games which continually pushed the boundaries of what the computers were capable ...

for the

ZX Spectrum The ZX Spectrum () is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer that was developed by Sinclair Research. It was released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982, and became Britain's best-selling microcomputer. Referred to during development as t ...

, Amstrad CPC and

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in the Guinness ...

in 1987 and for the

Atari ST The Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the Atari 8-bit family. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985 and was widely available in July. It was the first pers ...

in 1988 and the

Amiga Amiga is a family of personal computers introduced by Commodore in 1985. The original model is one of a number of mid-1980s computers with 16- or 32-bit processors, 256 KB or more of RAM, mouse-based GUIs, and significantly improved graphi ...

. It was authored by

Dominic Robinson Dominic Robinson (born 1965) is a computer game programmer. He came to prominence as an in-house programmer for Hewson Consultants when he converted '' Uridium'' to the Spectrum (a feat previously considered impossible) in 1986. This was followe ...

, John Cumming and

Stephen Crow Stephen Crow (also known as Stephen J. Crow, Steve Crow, and Steve J. Crow) is a game programmer who worked in the 1980s on the ZX Spectrum platform, programming for companies such as Hewson Consultants and Bubble Bus Software. He also worked with ...

, with music by

Steve Turner Steve or Steven Turner is the name of: Sports * Steve Turner (rugby league) (born 1984), Australian rugby league footballer * Steve Turner (Australian rules footballer) (born 1960), Australian rules footballer * Steven Turner (born 1987), Canadi ...

. The graphics for the Atari ST and Amiga versions were by Pete Lyon. Dominic Robinson and Steve Turner had previously worked together on the ZX Spectrum version of ''

Uridium ''Uridium'' (released on the NES as ''The Last Starfighter'') is a science fiction side-scrolling shoot 'em up originally designed by Andrew Braybrook for the Commodore 64, and later ported to other 8-bit machines. It consists of fifteen levels, ...

''.

Critical reaction

The ZX Spectrum version of ''Zynaps'' was reviewed in the August 1987 issue of ''

Your Sinclair ''Your Sinclair'', or ''YS'' as it was commonly abbreviated, was a commercially published and printed British computer magazine for the Sinclair range of computers, mainly the ZX Spectrum. It was in circulation between 1984 and 1993. History The ...

'', receiving 9/10 and being described as "smooth and slick". ''

CRASH Crash or CRASH may refer to: Common meanings * Collision, an impact between two or more objects * Crash (computing), a condition where a program ceases to respond * Cardiac arrest, a medical condition in which the heart stops beating * Couch su ...

'' magazine awarded it a CRASH Smash in issue 42. The game also won the award for best shooting game of the year according to the readers of Crash.

References

External links

*
Play Zynaps at Gumplayer
1987 video games Amiga games Amstrad CPC games Atari ST games Commodore 64 games Hewson Consultants games Multiplayer and single-player video games Multiplayer hotseat games Shoot 'em ups Video games developed in the United Kingdom ZX Spectrum games {{computer-game-stub