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Very well written and fair reviews (as always). And having played all the games myself, I almost completely agree. Except maybe 2/5 for Merlins Walls, 1/5 should IMO be reserved for complete crap. Or can you give such a game 0/5?

 

And how far did you get in Power Off!? When fixing a few glitches inside the game I found it a bit too easy. Ok, I had unlimited lives, but still...

If I could've given Merlin's Walls a 0/5, I would've. But the store's rating system doesn't allow it.

 

In my opinion, it's almost completely useless as a game. It's little more than a technology demo. Anything that requires you to lay on your side or rotate your TV 90 degrees is just really poorly thought out.

 

It's too bad, because the 3-D engine in it is kind of cool looking. But the execution is so poor it becomes just a curiosity that someone would try once, and then stick on the shelf forever.

 

As far as Power Off! goes, I haven't found it too easy. I think it's a pretty good balance (with limited lives ). I've gotten into the third level, where the robots speed up rapidly if you deactivate both power cells on a platform.

 

I debated giving it only a 4, but really it's more like a 4.5, so I rounded it up. I haven't posted these reviews to the store yet, so as I play them some more, the scores could change. Right now though, I'm going through the UA Ltd. games. No 5's there.

Except maybe 2/5 for Merlins Walls, 1/5 should IMO be reserved for complete crap.

 

Uhm. All you do is finding the exit in a maze? I mean is there a game attached to it as well? In a regular labyrinth, all you need to do to find the exit is putting one hand on a wall and follow it until you're out of it. I wouldn't consider that a game at all.

 

Of course, with games like Ants and Zyx, maybe 2/5 is still in order

Interesting that you think Pesco is almost too easy; I've mostly read that it is *very* difficult.

 

Thanks for the well-written reviews.

Thanks for the Skelton+ plug.

 

The sideways nature of Merlin's Walls is simply because of the potential and limitations of the 2600's graphics. It would be impossible to create the same graphics "right way up" on the 2600. That's not to say you couldn't reproduce the gameplay though.

The sideways nature of Merlin's Walls is simply because of the potential and limitations of the 2600's graphics. It would be impossible to create the same graphics "right way up" on the 2600. That's not to say you couldn't reproduce the gameplay though.

I understood why he did it, but I think he could have taken the exact same game engine, and adapted a different concept to it, that wouldn't have required rotation.

 

So rather than running through a maze, you'd be flying up and down corridors. Sort of like flying through the Death Star II at the end of Return of the Jedi. Throw a few spaceships in there, and you'd have a nice variation on Tunnel Hunt.

 

Hmmm... maybe I'll append my review with that instead of the Descent reference.

Interesting that you think Pesco is almost too easy; I've mostly read that it is *very* difficult.

It may have been in an earlier version. According to the AA store entry:

This newly released version of Pesco has been modified from the original to make it a bit easier to reach the upper levels!

Maybe the difficulty ramps up a lot more later, but I got bored with the game before reaching those levels.

Changed Merlin's Walls review from:

 

"Maybe flying through caverns (like in Descent) could have been adapted for it."

 

To:

 

"Maybe flying up and down corridors (like in the Death Star II at the end of Return of the Jedi) could have been adapted for it."

I just wondered if 5 different scores for the reviews are enough. IMO 10 would be much better. What do you think?

Hi there,

Interesting that you think Pesco is almost too easy; I've mostly read that it is *very* difficult.

It may have been in an earlier version. According to the AA store entry:

This newly released version of Pesco has been modified from the original to make it a bit easier to reach the upper levels!

Maybe the difficulty ramps up a lot more later, but I got bored with the game before reaching those levels.

IIRC the speed of Pesco was changed so you had a chance on the later levels The original version was virtually impossible on the later levels. Pesco moved so slow while the (red I think) crab moved so fast and it zeroed in on Pesco like a homing missile.

 

The new version also continues on vs. stopping after a certain number of levels (can't remember the old limit now).

 

Great reviews.

I just wondered if 5 different scores for the reviews are enough. IMO 10 would be much better. What do you think?

I'd much rather see a scale of 0 - 10. But then Albert would need to give everyone who has already written a review the opportunity to adjust their scores.

I'd much rather see a scale of 0 - 10. But then Albert would need to give everyone who has already written a review the opportunity to adjust their scores.

Keep 1 to 5 but allow deducting 1/2 points.

Since the college where I teach only allows me to assign letter grades of A, B, C, D, or F (no plusses or minuses), the 5-point scale doesn't bother me If I were rating games, I'd think of them in these terms.

I'm jealous. The college where I teach has a really weird system. High pass, Pass, Low pass, Incomplete, and No Credit. I'd love to be able to give "normal" grades.

I'm jealous. The college where I teach has a really weird system. High pass, Pass, Low pass, Incomplete, and No Credit. I'd love to be able to give "normal" grades.

As far as I'm concerned, letter grades are weird, even though society has completely acclimated to them. I'm jealous that you get to give what is essentially Pass/No Pass, Nathan. Maybe we can trade places. I wish I could discuss the topic more, but I've got 27 midterms to grade this weekend.