"8 Bits Die Hard" by Red Brand

8 Bits Die Hard
Red Brand
score: 5/10

The demoscene in Holland has been in a pretty bad state for quite a while now: there are just a few groups left, with only Xenon & Focus actually making an impression in the last 5 years. Compare that to countries like Germany or Sweden and it's clear that things are looking very bleak. Worse still, there has been virtually no 'new blood' coming in.

So imagine my surprise when on this year's Primary Star an until then unknown Dutch group competed with a fast intro, a tune and most importantly, a demo. Even better: both of its members can really be considered newcomers, although one of them apparently is also in 'Raccoon'. Not that I've ever heard of that group either ..

On to the demo then. Simply put, for a debut it's a pretty decent effort. The highlight is the intro which really gets you in the mood with a nice semi-digitized-graphics effect. After that the other 2 parts and especially the loader are a tad disappointing, but overall it shows a certain promise. I wouldn't go so far as to say that they are 'our' future, but with the addition of a good graphician and a little more originality, they might come a long way.

"Accumulator" by Silicon ltd.

Accumulator
Silicon ltd.
score: 6/10

For most (Dutch) sceners the name 'Silicon ltd.' will always be synonymous with some of the best parties organized in the early 90's. They also released a lot of demos, but unfortunately these were not of the same quality. After their last production, "Bloempjes & Bytjes", scored a miserable 10th place in the demo competition at The Party 4 the group dissolved. Some of their key members formed the pc division of Success a little while later, where it finally 'clicked': they did some rather funky demos, making a nice impression before, once again, fading away.

And now the year is 2005 and, like several other groups from yesteryear, they have returned. Unlike most of those other groups however they didn't decide to just pick up where they left, but rather start a-fresh. Fresh being the operative word here: the demo radiates a very pleasant vibe with its groovy graphics and energetic tune. Ofcourse it has its flaws too: some of the effects are either bad (blocky plasma!) or non-existant, and it's both too short and very lightweight. But in the end it's bound to make you feel better, and sometimes that's all that counts.