Date: Wed, 15 Jan 92 14:40:25 pst
Message-Id: <9201152240.AA06456@limbo.intuitive.com>
From: Info-Source <info@limbo.intuitive.com>
To: abbott@ms.uky.edu
Subject: Re: Your Request For Information


(send Digital.Games/Digests/Digest.33)

 
                        Digital Games Review, Number 33
 
                          Thursday, October 24th 1991
 
This issue we look at:
 
SNES: 	   Final Fight
Lynx: 	   Checkered Flag
      	   Scrapyard Dog
      	   Turbo Sub
Genesis:   Road Rash
           Mike Ditka Football
Mac: 	   SimAnt (Preview)
PC: 	   The Secret Codes of Cypher
    	   Might and Magic III
Amiga: 	   Wonderland

----------------------------------------------------------------------
 
From: dauria@bucsf.bu.edu (David DAuria)
Subject: SNES: Final Fight
Date: Wed, 2 Oct 91 21:19:30 -0400

     Final Fight, one of the more popular arcade games, has finally made
the transition to the home video game market.  It has just been released
for the SNES and I have finally gotten a chance to try it.  In case you
didn't know Final Fight is another run around beat up the bad guys with
street fighting techniques game like Double Dragon.  Now, I knew about
some of the changes.  Guy, my favorite character isn't in it, and it is
only a one player game.  Fine I figured since I don't usually get the
chance to team up anyway.  I was a bit upset about not having Mr.  speed
but I figured I would give the game a chance.  Also one of the rounds is
missing, namely the factory round.  Finally all the little intermission
screens that are between various sections of the rounds are gone.  Now
with all that given up I wondered what we got for it.  After playing it
I can say "Not much".

     The graphics are pretty but they really don't have the detail of
the arcade game.  Still they are good compared to other games.  On the
other hand the animation isn't so hot.  In the arcade the animation was
great.  You noticed, for example, how well your guys walked and the
moves had great animation too.  In this version your guys walk around
like most other video games, their legs just move back and forth out of
sync with the ground.  Your moves are not well animated either,
especially the super attacks.  As for sound its nice but still doesn't
compare to the arcade.  The first boss' whistle isn't as clear as the
arcade and the other sounds have an odd feel to them.  The sounds that
you hear when you hit guys sounds a little too much like the dubbed in
strike noises from a Kung Fu flick.  I'm surprised that Capcom didn't
have the whizzing miss sound and the block thud noise from those flicks
too.  It really comes off as pretty cheap.  One of my favorite sounds in
the arcade was the one after the first bonus round where this character
would come out and say "OH My God" after you destroyed his car.  He was
practically crying when he said it, but not in this version.  He says "
oh my car" almost like he is reading it off a script.  As for music it
is really forgettable.  When a game has a really good sound track I
personally can't get the tunes out of my head.  With this game I can't
remember how the background music sounded and that's not a good sign.

     Admittedly graphics and sound don't make a video game, playability
does.  Here the game really flops.  When there is only one attacker the
game plays fairly well.  Unfortunately the game usually has more than
one attacker on screen.  The first thing you will notice is that if
there is more than 1 character you will have trouble doing the spin
move.(that move is important to get out of a spot where you are being
attacked by several characters) When it gets really bad(3 or more
characters) moves like the pile driver are impossible to perform.  I
don't mean you'll get hit trying for it, I mean the game will refuse to
let you do the move.  When it becomes really bad even the simplistic
punch moves become a chore to perform.  When there are that many
characters this game slows to a crawl.  This is really noticeable in the
bar on level 3 as well as other sections of the game.  One other
annoying change is that the enemies don't get knocked over when you
reappear on screen after you die like the arcade.  It becomes really
frustrating when you have to chase down a punk with your few seconds of
invincibility only to have it wear out just as you reach him and get
nailed by him.

     Finally to make matters worse they edited this game for American
audiences.  You can no longer have Cody knee people in the groin.  Now
he does it to the head.  Also the girls from the original have all been
removed and replaced by a punks called Syd and Billy.  Many of the
ending bosses have undergone name changes too.  Sodom,the double sword
wielding samurai, is now called Katana.  If Capcom wanted to change it
why didn't they come up with a better name than that?  I'm surprised
that they didn't take out the knives and the swords in this game.

     This game is no where near as fun as the arcade.  I would
definitely recommend that you try this one before you buy it.  Maybe
I've been pampered by the arcade but my copy is definitely going back to
the store where I bought it from.

 Sound       8     (not as good as the arcade but nice)
 Graphics    8     (I expected much more from this game and
                   the animation isn't so hot)
Playability  2     (It gets to be a really pain not being
                   able to do the moves you want)
 Fun factor  2     (It isn't fun trying to do moves while
                   the computer wails on you)
 Overall     6     (definite try before you buy material)

Final Fight by Capcom For the Nintendo SNES, retail price $58

------------------------------
 
From: rjung@aludra.usc.edu (Robert Jung)
Subject: Lynx: Checkered Flag
Date: 5 Oct 91 03:17:46 GMT

    It's time to strap on the helmets and head for the tracks; as the name
implies, CHECKERED FLAG presents auto racing on the Atari Lynx. The class is
Indy racing, with the ground-hugging racers that symbolize breakneck speed.
The usual elements are all here: cars to pass, curves to negotiate, and
roadside obstacles to avoid, all while trying to be the first across the
finish line. Option settings allow you to configure the game as desired, and
up to six Lynxes can be connected for a real challenge.

GAMEPLAY:
    CHECKERED FLAG is an absolute joy to play! While the game offers nothing
that hasn't been done before, it implements and integrates all of its elements
effectively. There are no bonus items, pit stops, weapons, or auto design to
complicate matters; rather, the emphasis is on pure driving skills at high
speeds. Even though the promised track editor has been left out, the end
result is an extremely fun card that captures the thrills of the sport.

    The action is viewed from directly behind your car. A course map, race
information, speedometer, tachometer, and rear-view mirrors are always
visible. Controls include acceleration, brakes, gearshift, and steering, all
of which feel properly responsive. The computer opponents are fairly
straightforward, though they manage to stay on the road better, and will try
to pass you whenever possible. Hitting another car or an obstacle may result
in a crash or a spinout, which costs speed and time. Take too many hits and
you might even lose your mirrors.

    To make things even more interesting, the game offers numerous options.
There are 18 tracks to race on, from the slightly curvy to the very difficult.
You can drive for practice, run a single race, or go for an eight-race
tournament, and your car can be equipped with one of three different
transmissions. Up to ten human and computer racers can compete, and starting
positions can be set randomly or by a qualifying lap. For an extra touch, you
can also choose the color of your car and the gender of your driver.

GRAPHICS/SOUND:
    CHECKERED FLAG's images are among the best on the Lynx. From cars to
obstacles, all of the graphics are elegant and highly detailed. The sense of
speed is very convincing, with the Lynx's hardware scaling used to make
everything fly by smoothly. Race information is clearly visible without being
obstructive, and other game screens are equally attractive.

    There are not a lot of different sounds in the game, but they are used
well. Engine whines alert you to change gears, tires squeal on tight turns,
and the stereo roar of other cars remind you of pass attempts. Then there are
the little extras, like the flagman's digitized voice announcing the start of
the race and the musical scores between races.

SUMMARY:
    This is a high-performance title that does nothing but pure video racing,
and does it extremely well. Crammed with exciting gameplay, fast action,
options galore, hot sound and graphics, and true multiplayer challenge,
CHECKERED FLAG is absolutely terrific!

                GAMEPLAY:        10
                GRAPHICS:        10
                SOUND:           8.5
                OVERALL:         10

CHECKERED FLAG, 1-6 players, horizontal game, Atari Corp., for the Atari Lynx
  with stereo sound, $39.95

------------------------------
 
From: rjung@aludra.usc.edu (Robert Jung)
Subject: Lynx: Scrapyard Dog
Date: 3 Oct 91 02:22:06 GMT

    Louie is back for the first time. No, that's not a contradiction; the
big-nosed junkman from the Atari 7800 game SCRAPYARD DOG returns in this new
adaptation for the Atari Lynx. As before, Louie's faithful dog, Scraps, has
been kidnapped by Mr. Big, and it's up to him to rescue his pet pal by
running, ducking, and jumping through 24 stages.

    Along the way, Louie will face Mr. Big's animal gangsters, such as rat
mobsters and rock-dropping birds. He can fight back by lobbing tin cans, or
try to sidestep the problem all together. He can also find money, play in
hidden bonus sequences, and go shopping. However, a timer counts down each
level, so Louie can't dawndle too long.

GAMEPLAY:
    SCRAPYARD DOG offers solid game action in an easy-to-learn package. The
controls are simple and logical, and Louie himself responds sharply to your
moves. The action takes place on a side view, horizontally scrolling
playfield, though some scenes scroll vertically as well. Game dangers are
clearly visible, which prevents you from getting killed by a blindsided
attack. Players comfortable with Bonk or Mario will be right at home with
Louie.

    Though the mechanics are very familiar, SCRAPYARD DOG keeps things
intersting by good use of variety throughout the game. The trip starts off at
the scrapyard, but winds through, above, and below the rest of the town. With
vehicles to drive, places to explore, and villians to foil, the player is
kept pretty busy. Things never get too hectic, though, and overall the game
runs at a leisurely clip. As with other games in this genre, there are very
few random elements, so patterns can be developed over time.

    The most interesting parts of the game are the numerous secret bonuses and
diversions. There are stores along the path where Louie can buy useful items,
such as weapons or protection. Also, hidden throughout the landscape are
various bonus scenes. For instance, by hopping on the right keys of a giant
organ, or winning a shell game, Louie can pick up more money and benefits.
There are also other bonuses, both hidden and overt, sprinkled throughout the
game for the player to find.

GRAPHICS/SOUND:
    The graphics in SCRAPYARD DOG are simple and entertaining. Game elements
are easily identifiable and drawn in primary colors with a minimum of detail.
There are also extra touches that add to the fun, such as an animated opening
cartoon, and Mr. Big's taunting notes throughout the game. Sounds are pretty
basic, offering appropriate but generic noises with a musical tune thrown in.

SUMMARY:
    Despite the cute graphics and the simple plot, this title offers good
clean fun for players of all ages. The numerous hidden surprises and the
variety throughout only add to the game's appeal, making SCRAPYARD DOG a
well-recommended title.

                Gameplay:       8.5
                Graphics:       9
                   Sound:       7
                 Overall:       8.5

SCRAPYARD DOG, 1 player, horizontal game, Atari Corp., for the Lynx, $34.95

------------------------------
 
From: rjung@aludra.usc.edu (Robert Jung)
Subject: Lynx: Turbo Sub
Date: 3 Oct 91 06:25:15 GMT

    Let's get this straight: Earth is under attack (again) by alien invaders
(again). All attempts to repel the invaders have failed (again), but a single
brave hero may (again) restore peace to the planet (again).  Guess who gets
this honor (again)? Yes, you (again).

    TURBO SUB for the Atari Lynx is a first-person nonstop firefight. The
enemy has taken over the skies and seas of the Earth, and it's up to you to
destroy the invaders and save the day. You pilot the Turbo Sub, a high-speed
flying and diving aquatic arsenal. Your foes use everything from amphibious
warships to robotic creatures and flying stone heads. Each level (there are
reportedly seventeen) starts off with an aerial attack, though you can dive to
escape if the situation gets too thick. After the air attack, you head
underwater, with more enemies to fight, obstacles to dodge, and gems to
gather. Survive the round, and the sub enters a supply cavern, where you use
gathered gems to buy additional supplies and weapons.

GAMEPLAY:
    TURBO SUB is what I call a "ten second" game; it takes ten seconds to
learn it, and another ten seconds to get into the thick of things. Your
primary objective consists of blasting everything. Staying alive means dodging
enemy fire, collisions, debris, and underwater obstacles.  The sub's main
weapon is an unlimited supply of electro-plasma bursts; there is also a
limited supply of megabombs, which can destroy all visible enemies at once.
Between rounds, you can buy extra ships, extra fuel, and better weapon systems
for use on the next level. Two players can ComLynx together, but the only
purpose is to see who can out-shoot the other.

    There is little else that needs to be said.  The game idea demands
fast, frantic action, and TURBO SUB delivers it in spades.  The initial
levels consist of small groups of one and two aliens, but quickly
progress into more opponents wielding more firepower.  The game starts
with eleven subs, and they will go quickly if you're not careful.  In
the end, though, TURBO SUB looks overwhelming, but isn't too difficult
if you stay alert.  The other downside of this game is that there is
little variety; as with other games of this type, victory will come to
players with the fastest reflexes and the strongest thumbs.

GRAPHICS/SOUND:
    As expected, the Lynx's sprite hardware makes TURBO SUB's 3D effects
smooth and effortless. The graphics themselves are a mix, from realistically
detailed to bright and simple, and end up attractive and engaging. There is
very little for sound, however.  The only music comes from a bouncy little
tune at the title page, and actual game sounds are mostly explosions and
weapons fire.

SUMMARY:
    What TURBO SUB lacks in originality and variety, it makes up with
blistering excitement. If you've got an appetite for simple, uncomplicated
massive destruction at Mach 3, TURBO SUB is the way to go.

                Gameplay:        7.5
                Graphics:        8
                Sound:           6
                Overall:         7.5

TURBO SUB, 1-2 players, horizontal game, Atari Corp., for the Lynx, $34.95

------------------------------
 
From: eboltz@cndenext.mrs.jhu.edu (Eric S. Boltz)
Subject: Genesis: Road Rash
Date: Sat, 12 Oct 91 10:13:34 PDT

It had been quite a while since my last vid-session.  I had been
focussing most of my free time and assets on bicycling when I was hit
with a wallop of a cold...so much for bicycling for a few days.  On my
way home from work that day I decided to pick up some reading material
to keep me busy since I can't stand daytime TV.  Amongst others, I
picked up a copy of EGM.  It was while skimming EGM that I came across
an ad for Road Rash.  The ad had some nice screen shots and the game
seemed to have potential.  Although I tend to be more interested in
sports games, and I was eagerly awaiting Mike Ditka Power Football, I
decided to give Road Rash a try.  I am usually leery of Electronics Arts
games but after all, if I didn't like it, I could always return it.  I
picked up Road Rash that evening ; I was impressed.

The first thing I noticed was the sound track.  From the opening screen
this cart has impressive music.  The next eyecatcher was the high
quality of the instructions and options.  Instead of the typical options
screens that are found on most Genesis games, Road Rash shows a picture
of the controller at the bottom of the screen and cycles through the
functions of the various keys.  I'd rate the overall interface as top
notch.  Also worth noting is the fact that Road Rash utilizes a password
system for saved games.  I prefer a battery, but this would increase the
cost substantially.

Road Rash is a motorcycle racing game.  The object of the game is to win
races - at any cost.  Their are five courses (Green Valley, Sierra
Mountains, Redwood Forest, Palm Dessert, and Pacific Coast) which you
must place fourth or better in to progress to the next level.  There are
four levels, and the races get longer with increasing level.  The amount
of your winnings after each race is determined by how well you finish
out of a field of fifteen racers.  As you accumulate cash, you can buy
faster motorcycles which are necessary if you are to compete at the
higher levels.  The only problem with the races is that they are
illegal.  In addition to riding fast you must avoid the cops at all
costs.  If you get busted, you must pay bail.  If you don't have enough
cash to make bail then it's game over!  Oh yeah, there's one other thing
; winning is so important to these folks that they'll slam into you,
punch, kick or even club you to win.  Obviously you must protect
yourself.

Gameplay in Road Rash is good.  The racing aspect is simplistic in that
shifting is done automatically.  Your motorcycle controls consist of
lean right, lean left, accelerator and brakes.  The racing is FAST.  You
must concentrate to make turns, avoid traffic and pass the other racers.
The bike handling is awkward at first, but with practice you can learn
to handle a bike at about 140-160 mph.

Your combat options consist of punch, kick, backhanded punch, and club.
In order to use the club, you must grab it from one of the other riders
as they try to club you.  Combat can be tough.  If you concentrate too
much on beating up another rider you will certainly crash.  Crashes
don't hurt the rider, but they do damage the motorcycle.  If your bike
winds up in the street after a crash you might get to see a car smash
into it and drag it down the road a few hundred yards inflicting heavy
damage.  Often you and your bike wind up in very different places.  For
instance if you accidentally have a head on collision with an oncoming
car, you can fly a LONG way while you bike might not.  After you get up,
you must run back to your bike, while avoiding traffic, to continue
racing.  If you're not quick enough, the cops will catch up and you'll
be busted.

Graphics in Road Rash are simply amazing.  With all the talk lately
about hardware scaling in the SNES and MDCD, this game shows that
hardware scaling isn't really necessary to do scaling right.  For
instance, in the Sierra Mountains race course, there are clouds which
move when you stand still, mountains in the background and trees,
bushes, houses, COWS and DEER (yes they sometimes cross the street).
Once you start racing all of these move with respect to both your
position and their respective distances.  It's really hard to describe,
but I'll leave it at this:  the best 3-d scaling I've seen period.

Road Rash is an awesome arcade game which, due to the addition of cops,
winnings, bike purchasing, and higher levels, makes a great home video
game.  Owing to both its unprecedented graphics, originality and
relatively low price, I highly recommend this game.

	Graphics:       10 
	Sound:          9 
	Gameplay:       8 
	Documentation:  8 
	Overall:        9 (Great game)
 
Road Rash, from Electronic Arts, for the Sega Genesis.

------------------------------
 
From: eboltz@cndenext.mrs.jhu.edu
Subject: Genesis: Mike Ditka Football
Date: Thu, 17 Oct 91 13:40:41 EDT

I first heard of this game in EGM's soon-to-be-release section. Being  
somewhat disappointed with both Joe Montana and John Madden, I was  
hopeful that this game might fill the need for a truly exceptional  
football game. The fact, however, is that Mike Ditka football gives  
us the features that were missing in the JM games, but lacks their  
playability.

On paper the features of Ditka Football are extraordinary. Amongst  
them are things like player fatigue, substitutions, 28 different  
teams, 4 passing modes (beginner to pro), eighty different plays,  
digitized voice for the ref's calls, and better kicking for field  
goals. In spite of these magnificent features (possibly because of  
them), the gameplay does not live up to previous football games.

The four different passing modes are a neat way to learn the game and  
a great way for players of varying abilities to compete. In beginner  
mode when you press the pass button all play freezes and the  
quarterback begins to flash. You can then cycle through the various  
receivers to see who's open and pass to that receiver. After the pass  
is thrown motion resumes and the receiver will automatically run to  
the spot of the pass. In the hardest - professional - mode play does  
not freeze, but again you can cycle through your receivers if you're  
quick enough. Once the pass is thrown in pro mode the player must  
move the receiver to the spot of the pass which is indicated by a red  
dot on the field. This is pretty tough and a nice change over the  
easy passing in the JM games.

Running in Ditka football is tough! To some extent, however, this is  
sort of a bug in the game. If you run a sweep right for instance, the  
running back doesn't move AT ALL until the ball is handed off.  
Obviously this doesn't resemble real football at all. The result is  
that you must hike, hand-off (which isn't so easy), and get him  
running. Usually this is a tough thing to do.

Fortunately there are a couple aspects of the running game that are  
good. First you can push a 'power' button which helps the runner  
break tackles. This is the only way I've found to get any positive  
yardage. Second is the ability to hand off to _either_ running back  
regardless of who was _supposed_ to get it. This feature allows for  
the type of 'broken' plays which often occur in the NFL. It also,  
unfortunately, allows for easy mistakes on hand-offs.

The kicking in Ditka is both better and worse than previous games.  
Like Madden, kicking requires timing of a rising-then-falling index  
which determines both power (on the rise) and targeting (on the  
fall). Unlike Madden, however, if you let the power max out then you  
have NO accuracy rather than no power. I consider this an  
improvement. The power of kickoffs is terrible. It is nearly  
impossible to kick a touchback. Punting is very good. 

Field goal kicking is good for two reasons and bad for one really  
serious one. The improvements in field goal kicking over the JM games  
is that you can kick much longer field goals (with some practice) and  
have the option of a wind factor. You judge the wind by a flag flying  
up over the grandstands. For the kicker Ditka is great. For the  
defender there is a serious flaw ; the defense doesn't play on field  
goal attempts, period. There is absolutely no chance of blocking one.  
Also, if you call a field goal you better mean it since you can't  
call a time out after calling that play even though the play hasn't  
begun. I think this must have been an oversight.

Lastly the graphics in Ditka are similar to Madden in that they offer  
a pseudo-3D perspective. Some weird things are the games occasional  
flicker and the way players appear to run through (graphically) other  
players. The running through effect is similar to the same quirk in  
Lakers vs. Celtics. Also, the field has no hash marks and all plays  
start dead-center on the field.

In summary I'd say that Ditka had (still has if Accolade/Ballistic  
will make Ditka II) tons of potential. The problem is that it is  
unpolished. There are just too many little flaws to rate the game as  
good. If the same set of features were implemented more smoothly with  
the playability of the JM games, this would be the best football game  
yet. I am hopeful that we will see a Ditka II with more effort put  
into gameplay and less into digitized voice. The game is 8 Mbits, but  
this is due to the digitized voice and not the graphics or sound  
effects.

	Graphics:	6
	Sound:	        6 (except digitized ref calls)
	Gameplay:	5
	Documentation:  7
	Overall:	6 (below average)

Mike Ditka Football, for the Sega Genesis, from Accolade/Ballistic.

------------------------------
 
From: mmarkowi@pepvax.pepperdine.edu (Mike Markowitz)
Subject: Mac: SimAnt (Preview)
Date: Mon, 14 Oct 91 13:56:25 PDT

 Since the first caveman pondered the mysteries of the beehive
while trying to steal honey without getting lethally stung, the
"social" insects have been a great source of inspiration  and
metaphor for thinking about societies in general.  Evolution has
given  the social insects many advantages we lack -- they
communicate with  swift and precise chemical signals while we
have only halting, ambiguous language.  Their behavior is guided by
finely honed instincts, while  we stumble along with feeble
reasoning and ill-adapted emotions.

        The  ant farm is a staple of elementary school biology and
stand-up comedy. Sandwiched between its plates of glass, any
limited artificial environment can only teach limited and artificial
lessons. Software, on the other hand, is constrained only by the
limits of  RAM, CPU cycles and imagination.  The team that created
the wonderful software toys, SimCity and SimEarth  has now given
us an
electronic ant farm, with a limitless supply of virtual insects that
can never escape from the computer to ravage your kitchen.

        "In SimAnt, you are the intelligence of an ant colony. You will
hop in an out of individual ants, using them as tools. Many of your
ants will die, including, at times, the one you are inhabiting. But the
death of individual ants will not greatly affect you as a colony."

        We evaluated a late beta-test version of the software.  Once a
few INIT conflicts were resolved, it ran without problems on a Mac
LC, a IIsi and a IIci.  The color version runs much faster in 16-color
mode, so if your Monitors Control Panel is set for a higher number,
the program gently reminds you to change it.  The application came
as a self-extracting CompactPro archive and took up  1100 Kb of
disk space after installation.

        SimAnt can be played on several different levels.  An
interactive Tutorial walks you through the mechanics of a Qucik
Game: digging tunnels, foraging for food and doing battle with the
evil empire of the Red ants across the yard.  In the Full Game you
start with one Black colony and one Red colony and your goal is to
establish control over the entire yard and the adjoining house.

        You can view events from the micro-level perspective of a
single ant inside the nest, or zoom out to increasingly expansive
overhead views of your local patch or the entire yard. The game
controls are graphic and intuitive -- for example the Behavior
Control window lets you allocate relative efforts of your colony
between  foraging, digging and breeding.

        The game presents a lot of solid scientific information while
retaining a sense of humor.  Users who are squeamish about insects
may find some of the graphics --- a little too graphic.

I couldn't help wondering whether the program has hooks for add-on
modules like SimBee or SimTermite.  SimAnt may do for entomology
what SimCity did for urban planning.

	Graphics: 	   9
	User Interface:    9
	Documentation:     (N/A -- haven't seen the manual yet, but online 
			    help is quite adequate)
	Play Value:        8
	Educational Value: 9

SimAnt, designed by Will Wright and Justin McCormick, published by Maxis
For: Macintosh (1 Mb monochrome, 2 Mb color) IBM and Amiga, versions to 
be released in late 1991, List price:  $59.95

------------------------------
 
From: mmarkowi@pepvax.pepperdine.edu (Mike Markowitz)
Subject: PC: The Secret Codes of Cypher
Date: Mon, 7 Oct 91 18:15:39 PDT

Like soap operas or music videos, entertaining educational software
packages ("edutainments") increasingly seem to follow a rather rigid
formula.  The player takes the role of an adventurous investigator who
travels around, uses high-tech gadgets and collects clues in order to
solve a puzzle.  We might call this the "Carmen Sandiego" paradigm,
after the enormously successful series of Broderbund games aimed
(roughly) at the 4th - 8th Grade age group.

The educational value of these games derives from the way they encourage
learners to use reference materials, make inferences from emerging
patterns of information, and manage complexity.

The puzzle is an encrypted message (based on a simple substitution
cypher).  The locale is Discovery City, where street names in every
neighborhood are an exercise in category recognition (islands, horses,
national parks, trees, etc.)  The clues are facts about 87 mammals.
When you collect enough clues to identify the animal, you enter the
Wildlife park, select the animal from its appropriate habitat and (if
you have made the right deduction) receive part of the encrypted
message.

To decode the message, you can ask the computer to provide the
substitutions for common letters and experiment to find the other
letters.  Anyone who has grown up on a steady diet of "Wheel of Fortune"
should have no trouble with this.  To make things challenging, you can
play using Morse code, Semaphore, American Sign Language or Braille
symbols instead of the standard alphabet.

The package includes a code wheel for "copy protection", one 3.5" (720 K) 
and two 5.25" (360 K) disks.  After an installer program decompresses
the files they occupy a modest 844 K of disk space.

The Secret Codes of Cypher is a well-crafted program that scrupulously
follows the conventions of its genre.  Graphics and animation are
excellent, and the bouncy sound track can be turned off.  To me the set
of animals and habitats seemed rather limited, but the design tradeoff
between richness of the database and disk file size is a tough one.

   Graphics:      9
   Playability:   8
   Documentation: 6
   Overall Value: 8

Secret Cods of Cypher: Operation Wildlife, from Jeff Silverman and
  Tanger Software, for the IBM PC (640K, VGA, MCGA, EGA, and Tandy 
  16-color grahics, with support for mouse and audio cards), $39.95

------------------------------
 
From: Andy Phang <phang_s@dropbear.cs.uwa.oz.au>
Subject: PC: Might and Magic III
Date: Friday, 18 October 1991

At long last, the third installment in the Might and Magic series has
arrived at my doorstep!  Eagerly I rip the box wide open, chuck the
disks into the drive, and begin the harddisk installation process.
Select the proper machine configuration (EGA/VGA supported, as are all
leading soundboards), and away we go...

Oops.  The game suddenly crashes.  I spend 10 minutes fooling around
with the system (including erasing, and then reinstalling the game)
before I discover that the "Roland + Soundblaster" option doesn't work.
This may only be the case on my machine though, but I DO know (and this
is confirmed by several friends of mine who also have the game) that you
have to turn your PC off, and on again if you want to hear CLEAR music
from your soundcard.  No "warm" reboot here!  Otherwise, a strange
mizture of hypnotic chants and garbled static comes from the speakers.

Okay, I decide to stick with the Roland.  Let's run the introduction
sequence.  BOOOOOM!!!  Nothing could have prepared me for this.  Might
and Magic III (let's call it MM3) has one of the BEST intros I have EVER
seen!!  I can tell that my money has been well spent, when the
realistically disfigured face of Sheltem (the main bad buy) comes up on
screen against a backdrop of swirling nebulae, and starts to issue his
challenge to me.  If you don't have a SoundBlaster, his speech will be
relayed via the PC Speaker.  With a SoundBlaster, though, the speech is
fantastic!!!

Now I'm into the game proper.  I've seen the MM3 demo before, so I don't
expect any surprises.  And yet, the visuals manage to take my breath
away.  The fountains, for example, are magnificently done.  In the
countryside, thrill to the mountains shaded in several levels of grey,
the trees, the enormous castles, the fairy-tale type towns, and the
changes from day to night (a particularly stunning moon appaears at
dusk, perfect for a Moondance!).  The walls of the dungeons look exactly
like rugged dirt tunnels, and the walls of the cities look exactly like
city blocks.  Whenever you decide to Bash down a secret wall, you can
immediately see the gaping hole, as well as what's INSIDE the hole.

Monsters are huge, nicely colored and animated, and graphically varied.
Wait until you encounter the Dragon Lord, or the Great Hydras!  Giant
Spiders never looked better (even better than Eye of the Beholder), and
the Dino Beetles appear to have been ray-traced!  Unlike MM2, you can
actually see how many enemies you are fighting since each one will be
represented onscreen during combat.  Start hitting them, and large red
"splats" will appear on screen.  The stronger you are, the larger the
"splat".

One of the best graphical aspects of the game is the pictures of your
party.  They start off looking pretty normal, but just wait until
someone gets cursed.  Your face droops, your eyebrows frown, your cheeks
swell, and tears of laughter will be running down YOUR face!  There are
several ailments to be encountered in the game, so prepared to be
diseased, weak, poisoned, insane (a real hoot!), in love...

The screen is laid out in a format similar to MM2.  A series of icons
depiciting your party is found at the bottom, the upper right of the
screen displays the overhead map (after casting the Wizard's Eye spell)
and a series of nine action icons, and the rest of the screen is devoted
to the great 3D view of the world you're in.  Text messages appear as
various windows, and the menus you call up using the icons (such as your
inventory menu, Magic menu, Pizza Hut menu..oops, wrong menu...)  will
bring up the relevant information also as (mini) windows dressed up as
parchments.

New World has hired a musical maestro for its sound department, because
MM3's use of the Roland is without equal.  I would say that the music in
MM3 even surpasses some of the great Sierra tunes (though not by too
much!).  This is "role playing music" at its best:  atmospheric,
melodic, as if from the fingers of a bard.  Most of the different areas
in the game will feature their own music (combat, cities, dungeons,
castles, and so forth).  Sound effects are not neglected either, as
various monsters will have some special sound connected to them.  Your
everyday orc will release a pig-like grunt, dragons tend to be heavy
breathers (no pun intended), and as for Sonic Ninjas....make sure your
ears have some protection!

Okay, after all that technical exaltations, what of the plot?  It
continues where MM2 left off.  The eternal (?)  battle between the evil
Sheltem and the "good" Corak has moved on to the Isles of Terra, locked
inside the mysteries of Five Pyramids.  Corak has left clues for you all
over the place, giving you tips on how to survive and making sure your
party solves various subquests (like becoming an Ultimate Adventurer and
a Champion) before you "meet your final destiny".  Exploring the Isles
of Terra take quite a while (about 64 mazes in all, including castles
and cities), but once you're hooked, time will zip past.  Eventually,
your task will lead you to the final pyramid in the realm of Fire, where
you meet up with Corak and Sheltem, and...

The conclusion to this game will tie up quite a few loose ends left
behind in the previous Might and Magic games, and will also pave the way
for a new series of Might/Magic scenarios (though not neccesarily
"sequels" as such).  By itself, the story behind MM3 is intriguing and
suspenseful, and will even satisfy those that aren't die-hard
Might/Magic fans.

Might and Magic III had a scheduled release date of July, but was
delayed until mid-September.  I guess New World wanted to spend more
time playtesting the product, but a few bugs managed to slip out anyway.
One of the more major ones is the Brother Delta/Zeta bug:  you need to
have Brother Delta recognize you before you can meet Brother Zeta, but
for some unknown reason, Delta doesn't seem to want to know you!  And
I'm sure it wasn't my breath...Also, the game will not recognize your
rescue of Greywind the Illusionist (it only does so for ONE party
member, when it's supposed to do it for all).  Finally, there may be one
(or more?)  places where the game crashes completely.  Make sure you
Save often!

Documentation comes in the form of a Command Summary Card, a game manual
(which tells much of Corak's story), and a color map of the Isles of
Terra.  Oh, and let's not forget the great "New World" notepad that's
also included.  Very useful indeed to jot down the many puzzles and
riddles throughout the game.  Copy protection uses the manual, and
unlike other games that utilize this method, New World has chosen
probably the most obscure words to be entered.  The instructions for
finding the correct page, line, and word are very clear, though.  Ah
well, at least my vocabulary is improving...now what does
"supercalifragilisticexpealadocious" mean again?

Improvements of MM3 over MM2?  Obviously the graphics and sound, but
also in the ease of use (just click on relevant icons using the mouse),
the more rational number of enemies to fight, some new spells, and an
extremely strong storyline.  You can also Save and Load your game
anywhere (except combat), unlike the "let's return to the Inn" mentality
in MM2.  Designer Jon Van Canaghem has really put a LOT of thought and
effort into Might and Magic III, and it shows.  The bottom line is:  no
self-respecting RPG fan can be without Might and Magic III, because this
is simply the best game of the year!

  Graphics:    10                          Fun Factor: 10
  Sound/Music: 10                       Documentation: 9
  Gameplay:    10                         Ease of Use: 10 

      Overall: 10

Might and Magic III: Isles of Terra, published by New World Computing, USA, for
IBM-PC and Compatibles, 1991. A HardDisk with about 6 Meg REQUIRED. No Hard
Disk, no play. Comprende? Available in all disk formats (including 360K 5.25's
which is pretty amazing), and if you have it, extended/expanded memory will be
used to speed up the game a bit. Finally, an Amiga version is confirmed and 
hopefully will be out by late December.

------------------------------
 
From: Minotaur@cup.portal.com (Frank Swilling)
Subject: Amiga: Wonderland
Date: Sun,  6 Oct 91 19:28:49 PDT

Wonderland is essentially a text adventure game, loosely based on Lewis
Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, and written with an amusing
British wit that is very much in the same spirit as Mr. Carroll's ageless
fantasy.  What separates Wonderland from any other text adventure I've ever
seen, though, is its outstanding interface.  With Wonderland, instead of
keeping track of things like your inventory in your head, or writing it
down somewhere, all you need do is open a window onscreen, and there your
entire inventory will be, all neatly laid out.

There are at least 6 separate screens you can open, in fact; one for the
game itself, wherein you type your responses in at the cursor in the
traditional fashion; a screen for your inventory; a screen that shows you
what's at your current location; a compass that you can click on with your
mouse instead of entering directions at the game screen cursor; graphics
screens which pop up whenever you enter a new room, and a map screen.

All of these screens are very nice, and you can lay them all out to suit
yourself, save the layout, and reload your custom layout(s) every time you
play the game.  I have to admit, though, that since the graphics screens are
really only "eye candy" and have nothing to add to game play, that I ended
up issuing the command "GRAPHICS OFF" and got rid of them.  You can do the
same with the music that comes on at various locations.  If you tire of it,
just type in "SOUND OFF" and silence will reign once more.

Back to the screens:  the map screen is the single most innovative thing
about this game.  Wherever you go, that location becomes part of your map.
Anytime you want to revisit a location, just find it on your map and double-
click that location's icon.  If it is possible to return to that spot with-
out first doing something special (like eating a mushroom to get smaller so
that you can fit through a door) the game will automatically make all the
moves for you to get back to that spot.

Gameplay consists mainly of logic and sequence puzzles.  You either have to
find objects and figure out which ones you need to do something, or you need
to have both a certain set of objects and do a certain set of things in a
certain order to achieve the desired result.  Puzzles vary from very easy to
mind-bogglingly complex, but most of them are moderately challenging.
 
If you do get stuck, however, Wonderland has yet another pleasant surprise
in store for you:  online HELP.  Just pull down the top menu, select Help,
and you will be presented with help on every puzzle in the game from hints
only up to the actual solutions.

The only problem I've discovered playing Wonderland is that it consistently
hangs up my system when I quit the game, and I have to do a three-finger
reset.  Another slight annoyance is that the game was apparently written in
England and there are one or two instances where the game would only recog-
nize the British spelling of a word, like "vice" for "vise", and you need to
use that word to accomplish your task.  It took me a few minutes to figure
out that it was my spelling that was being rejected rather than the action
I was trying to perform.

I'm running Wonderland on an Amiga 2000 with 7 megs of memory, a 65 meg
Seagate Hard Disk, and Microway FlickerFixer.  Wonderland requires about 5
megs of hard disk space for the game with its graphics, but only about 2.5
megs if you decide not to install the graphics.  In addition, Wonderland
gives you the option of 4 different graphics modes so you can configure it
according to how much (or how little) memory you have, with 1 meg memory
being the minimum requirement.

One final note:  Wonderland was apparently developed on an Apple Macintosh,
and its black and gray GUI look and feel is 100% Macintosh.  Having never
used any computer besides the Amiga, I enjoyed getting a feel for how
another computer "handles", and the Macintosh GUI is so similar to the
Amiga's in the way it works that no one should have any trouble adjusting
to it.  It would be a great idea to look at this game in the store before
you buy IF YOU DON'T HAVE A FLICKERFIXER, though.  Everything except the
graphics is in black and gray, and will flicker like crazy on a stock Amiga
in hi-res mode.  You can use one of the lo-res modes, of course, or change
the black and gray to a less scintillating combo, but I've been told that
the game both looks and plays best in hi-res mode.  I didn't personally use
any other mode, and with a FlickerFixer installed on my Amiga, of course my
hi-res screen was always rock steady.

If you like text adventures, you will certainly enjoy Wonderland.  And once
you've played Wonderland, you'll be spoiled rotten for its wonderful user
interface and won't be happy with anything less from a text adventure again.

    Graphics:      5
    Sound:         5
    Interface:    10
    Playability:  10
    Fun Factor:   10
    Overall:      10

"Wonderland", for the Amiga, developed by Magnetic Scrolls, distributed 
   by Virgin Mastertronic.  Supports Amiga 500/1000/1500/2000/3000, 1 meg 
   memory required.  4 Disk Set, Hard Disk Installable, Copy Protection: 
   Look-up-the-word-in-the-manual, Suggested Retail: $59.99  Also available
   for the IBM PC and Apple Macintosh.

-------------------------------------
 
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