The Game Player, #9  -- Vol. 5, pg. 140, July 22, 1983
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    SUPER SLOPE
    Esoterica, Inc.

     It is no longer necessary to go to your neighborhood Video Arcade and drop 
a quarter in Atari's ALPINE SKI, for SUPER SLOPE is just as good.  As the one 
and only skiing game for the Astrocade system, this Esoterica ski adventure is 
extremely good and well thought out.
     In this one-player game, the player directs his skier downhill, avoiding 
pine trees and large rocks by using the joystick to ski left or right across 
the slope.  A quick tap on the joystick increases the skiers direction from 
straight to slightly angled: another tap increases the angle further; and 
another tap will have the skier doing a traverse.  The same holds true for 
either direction.  Squeezing the trigger will increase the skiers speed.
     As one who enjoys downhill skiing, I am impressed at how well Esoterica 
has simulated the actual movement of a real skier.
     The graphics in SUPER SLOPE are well done, and the sound of skis on snow 
is well simulated.  SUPER SLOPE is a good example of what machine language can 
do for a game.
     There were only a few problems with SUPER SLOPE.  The skier often leaves 
an arm or leg behind when he skims a tree, and we have not been able to 
determine how the scoring is accomplished.  The instructions, which could use 
some improvement, indicate a score of 50 as not so good but less than 29 as a 
victory.  However, the screen will show a four digit number at the end of play, 
such as 5471.  We deliberately crashed our skier constantly and achieved a 
score of 2428.  What do these numbers mean?  (GAME PLAYER will publish an 
explanation if it receives one from Esoterica.)
     The other problem we found is that there is a loud continuous raspy noise 
during initial play until the skier hits an object.  Then the noise will 
disappear.  Perhaps this is a problem with our particular cassette, or it may 
be a program problem.
     Overall, SUPER SLOPE is an excellent game, and will probably be enjoyed 
even by non-skiers.  Those who played it liked it, and it held their attention.  
It's a good game, folks.
