Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Crash Presents December 1989 offers a remarkably diverse suite of challenges drawn from four formerly commercial titles and two exclusive shoot ’em ups. From the precision platforming of Super Stuntman to the frantic vertical assaults of Hyperlane, you’ll find your skills tested in every dimension. Each game introduces its own control scheme and pacing, ensuring that boredom is never an option as you leap, shoot or shrink your way through hazards.

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In Cosmic Wartoad and Incredible Shrinking Fireman, the focus is on timing and spatial awareness. In Wartoad, you must guide your toadship through winding passages while fending off alien swarms, and in Fireman you literally shrink to microscopic proportions to extinguish embers hot enough to kill. Both demand finesse on keyboard or joystick and reward careful observation of enemy patterns and level layouts.

The two exclusive shooters—Hyperlane and Deja-Vu—add further variety. Hyperlane’s side-scrolling gauntlets, inspired by classic C64 titles like Delta, challenge your reflexes with rapidly shifting enemy formations and power-up timing. Deja-Vu’s flick-screen, top-down structure feels like an arcade exploration puzzle: locate keycards, dodge patrols and unravel labyrinthine rooms. The result is a compilation that keeps you engaged by continually switching gameplay styles.

Graphics

For a Spectrum release, the visual presentation is impressive. The larger-than-usual case allowed Crash! to showcase bold, hand-drawn cover art that sets the tone before you even touch the cassette. Once loaded, each game reveals its own distinct palette. Cosmic Wartoad opts for stark blacks and neon greens that pop against the screen, while Super Stuntman’s circus arenas use bright reds and blues to delineate platforms and obstacles.

Incredible Shrinking Fireman introduces a clever sense of scale: oversized flames and tiny furniture pieces contrast sharply, adding visual variety to routine firefighting. Locomotion’s top-down levels employ simple yet readable tiles, keeping track of tracks, switches and wagons without overcrowding the view. Hyperlane benefits from parallax-style backgrounds that scroll smoothly beneath your ship, and Deja-Vu’s static screens are drawn with crisp, clean outlines that make every door and corridor instantly identifiable.

Of course, Spectrum’s infamous color-clash rears its head at times, especially in fast-moving moments of Hyperlane and Wartoad. Yet these glitches feel more like a nostalgic quirk than a hindrance, reminding veteran players of the system’s limitations. Overall, each title maximizes the hardware’s capabilities, offering charming visuals that remain coherent even during intense gameplay sequences.

Story

As a compilation, Crash Presents December 1989 doesn’t pursue a single overarching narrative—but each included title delivers its own quick-hit premise to drive the action. In Cosmic Wartoad, you assume the role of an amphibious hero on a mission to repel an alien invasion. The plot is minimal, but the sense of purpose energizes the blaster-heavy gameplay.

Super Stuntman and Incredible Shrinking Fireman both lean on tongue-in-cheek scenarios. The former casts you as a daredevil in a world of precarious platforms and explosive pranks, while the latter shrinks you down to survive a blaze from the smallest vantage point. The premise in both is simple—perform your duty or perish—but the absurdist humor elevates each challenge.

Hyperlane and Deja-Vu each hint at grander sci-fi adventures. Hyperlane’s opening text teases a galaxy under siege, and every level feels like another smoky corridor in the fight for cosmic freedom. Deja-Vu frames its top-down exploration as a covert data-recovery mission, encouraging careful mapping of every flick-screen vista. Even without in-depth cut-scenes, these bite-sized stories provide enough context to keep you invested as you blast, dodge and decipher your way through each title.

Overall Experience

Crash Presents December 1989 stands out as a snapshot of late-’80s Spectrum gaming. The larger case and glossy manual give it a premium feel—almost like a collector’s edition—while the six-game lineup offers staggering value. From the polished commercial releases to the magazine’s own shoot ’em ups, there’s no shortage of content for both new players and nostalgic veterans.

Loading times on tape can feel long by modern standards, but Crash! often mitigated this with quick-loaders and attractive loading screens. Once in-game, the variety ensures that you’ll hop from genre to genre, keeping frustration at bay. The included demo of Gazza’s Super Soccer and cheat sheet for other titles further extends the package’s longevity—ideal for players who enjoy exploring beyond the main compilation.

Ultimately, December 1989’s Crash! compilation serves as both a historical artifact and a genuinely entertaining collection. It captures the creative spirit of the Spectrum era, showcasing developers’ ingenuity in working within tight technical constraints. Whether you’re after platforming thrills, shoot-’em-up mayhem or puzzle exploration, this package delivers—and then some.

Retro Replay Score

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