The Philadelphia Inquirer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page 244

8 Sunday. November 21. 1982 Philadelphia Inquirer LEISURE Sky Jinks is for preteens, videoland's neglected fans ytvxsmw' w. -r is good practice to cut the closest possible turn around each pylon. After circling any one pylon, hold the turn so that the plane moves toward the opposite side of the screen.

When the next pylon is sighted, adjust your course so that it lies dead ahead. Under full steam, start turning instant the nose of the plane reaches the tip of the pylon's shadow. Through careful observation, you can memorize the layout of each course. With practice, the art of cutting a tight turn can be But the test of a true pilot comes' when you least expect it. Two less-' than-life-thrcatcning obstacles hot-air balloons and trees litter the IMl's flight path from takeoff to touchdown.

To minimize time loss, pass each obstacle as closely as possible without colliding with it. Unfortunately, there is no sure-fire method of circumventing these hot-air balloons and trees. The best course of action is to adjust your bearings as each obstacle is confronted. The trick is to minimize time loss, so don't be intimidated by a stray balloon. Maintain as straight a course as possible.

the game varies from a short 25-pylon hop in to a marathon flight in which the pilot must pass 99 randomly positioned pylons in Game 5. Pylon placement is consistent in Games 1 through 4, random in Game 5. Sky Jinks is a race against time. Memorizing the layout of the courses in Games 1 through 4 helps, but it docs not guarantee a low clocking. Plane' speed (and the way plane speed affects the handling of the plane) is also a major factor.

Under normal speed, your P-41 will cruise at its lowest altitude. At idle, the plane banks and slides when a turn is initiated. Depressing the red button on the joystick housing causes the plane to accelerate. Altitude also increases as the plane accelerates. But as air speed increases, so does the lag in the time that it takes for the plane to respond to your commands.

At higher speeds it is necessary to start a turn sooner. Your pylon count is reduced each time a red pylon is passed on the right or a blue pylon is passed on the left. In the interest of saving time, it By Michael Blanchct hungo Tribune Service As game manufacturers compete for the business of the sophisticated gamesman, difficulty is the yardstick most often used to measure video games. Imagic offers games "created by experts for experts," and Coleco counters with cartridges that "play like the real arcade game." one segment of the video market has been lost in the shuffle preteens, who are too old for simple educational games and tod young to appreciate the sophisticated themes of most current titles. Sky Jinks, Activision's latest Atari-compatible cartridge, attempts to fill the breach.

It combines simple play action with an interesting story line. The result is a game that is easy to learn, yet stimulating enough to provide challenge. Sky Jinks players test their skill in a scaled-down recreation of air racing, a sport practiced by a daring few. As the pilot of a P-4I racer, the player must slalom through a strip of pylons strewn along the length of the game's course. The duration of Sky Jinks: Easy to learn, yet challenging New releases in videotapes are brandished case heats up Surveys as Sony By John Tects to I'tw Inqiiirt-r The Sony case, about copyright liabilities involved in off-the-air video recording, is starting to heat up before the U.S.

Supreme Court. court agreed earlier this year to hear the case in the current session. Now both plaintiffs and defendants are shifting their cases into high gear. Movie studios that sued Sony and several other defendants, charging copyright infringement and demanding compensation, are being bolstered by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The audio-industry group is seeking royalties on audiotape if any such sys- tern is imposed on videotape, and it has filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of Sony's opponents.

It says, among other things: Legal analyses of home audio recording support the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling holding Sony liable for copyright infringement. The so-called home audio-recording exemption that Sony and its supporters have cited against copyright liability does not exist. Home audio recording docs not come under the "creative exemptions" that Congress included in the copyright law. The head of the RIAA, while urging the Supreme Court to uphold the 9th Circuit decision, still says that SILENT RAGE (193?) Chuck Norns asks the filmic question of what would happen if a star of the karate genre ly found himself in a standard Frankenstein horror movie. The result, though it represents an attempt by Morris to move away from the straight karate film, is a blow below the black bell (Pauvnount) GENEVIEVE (1944) A sophisticated British comedy about two couples who, returning home from a British auto race, become involved in racing their own roadsters.

Witty script full of Biilish humor and fine acting. Dinah Sheridan. John Gregson, Kay Kendall and Kenneth Moore star, (Embassy. Video) SILENT PARTNER 1979) A Canadian suspense-thriller with a tinge of humor. Elliott Gould plays a mild-mannered bank clerk who senses that the Santa Ciaus standing outside his branch bank is contemplating a robbery.

He stashes most of the money before the thief comes in, so when the robbery occurs, he winds up with most of the cash. Santa turns out to be a psychopath who is enraged when news reports describe the full extent of the bank's loss Lovers of tricky crime stones will appreciate the twists and turns of the clever plot. Also stars Christopher Plummer and Susannah York. (Vestron Video) Top 10 rentals of videocassetles 1. Conan the Barbarian 2.

On Golden Pond 3. Sfar Wars 4. Quest for Fire 5. Death Wish 11 6. The Sword and the Sorcerer 7.

Sharkey's Machine 8. Deathtrap 9. Nice Dreams 10. Chariots oj Fire Source: Billboard mannzme A selective check of Philadelphia-area stores discloses that these releases have been received recently and are lor 'sale or rent at most video outlets. STAR TREK II THE WRATH OF KHAN (1982) Ricardo Montalban is a villain with a grudge who lakes on Capl.

Kirk and the Enterprise in the second film inspired by the 1960s television series. The film's more interesting aspect an experiment in the creation of life called Project Genesis takes a back seat to the main plotl'ne's tired story of vengeance. The choice of Montalban to carry the burden of evil seems especially wrongheaded. The special effects work is competent rather than dazzling, but with humanity restored to the characters, this is an enjoyble journey rather than a mere trek. With William Shatner.

Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley. (Paramount Video) NIGHT OF THE JUGGLER 1979) Cliff Gorman plays an psycho who plans a kidnapping and mistakenly seizes the teenage daughter of an ex-policeman (James Broli'i). The film's theme, dealing with a clash of unstable people that results in a tragedy that hurts innocent bystanders, is a common one. What appears to be shaping up as an interesting plot turns into several incredulities. (Nostalgia Merchants) Top 10 video carries 1.

Donkey Kong, Coleco 2. Pitjall, Activision 3. Frogger, Parker Bros 4. Berzerk, Atari 5. Megamania, Activision 5.

Empire Strikes Back, Parker Bros. 6. Star Raiders, Atari 1. Lock n' Chase, Intelli vision 8. Pac-Man 9.

Defender, Atari 10. Chopper Command, i4cfivision Source: Billboard magazine the taper." Every time a legitimate tape or record is purchased, of course, the artists and copyright owners are paid a royalty. Post-Newsweck Video must believe in the old bridge axiom about leading from strength. The first production of the company, launched in July by the Washington Post, will feature Bette Davis and James Stewart in their first joint appearance. The feature is a drama, Right of Way, about aging but who cares about plot with stars like that.

The film's initial sale is an exclusive to Home Box Office. Conventional wisdom about video' and the recession has it that dealers arc strapped to get rid of their inventories and indeed some of them may be. But latest dealer-order figures from the Electronics Industry Association show that significant parts of the retail market can't be sweating too heavily yet. September sales-to-dcalers figures for video recorders and video cameras arc up significantly from September 1981; for recorders, more than 243,000 this year, as opposed to 153,000 last year, an increase of more than 58 percent; for cameras, almost 27,000 this September vs. 21,000 last year, an increase of almost 28 Video "the problem of home recording, both audio and video, must be resolved by Congress rather than the courts" and vows to "continue to press for the speedy passage of legislation" that would impose a royalty on all home taping.

The other side anticipated the audio assault. It is now citing a nationwide Yankelovich study (which it commissioned) showing that fully 25 percent of all people who record audio at home never use their equipment to copy prerecorded music, and that three-fourths of the tapes made by people between 35 and 49 contain no prerecorded music. Their big contention, however, is that home taping actually encourages the purchase of prerecorded music. "Home taping has introduced two out of three tapers to mimical artists or composers that they discover they like, and well over half have been prompted to buy records or prerecorded tapes taping the artist's work. In short, those who tape also buy, and the more they tape, the more they buy." The Yankelovich survey also found that "51 percent of all tapes of prerecorded music made at home were made from records or tapes already owned by Trr-rr-rrr'.