QUASIMODO
US
Gold/Synsoft, £9.95 cass, £11.95
disk
|
O New Hunchback adventure
with 4-way scrolling screen |
The
bells, the bells return in the latest and greatest
Hunchback game. Although not having anything
to do with the Ocean offerings, this can still be classed
as the return of the hump, with the familiar figure
hobbling around his new tasks.
This
game has an original scenario, more of a collecting
game then the 'rescue Esmerelda' tones of Hunchback,
even though the familiar battlements, soldiers and bells,
make an appearance.
Collecting
jewels is what it's about and there is a reasonably
large, smooth-scrolling playing area, which you have
to explore to find them.
When
you start a game, and at the start of each new level,
you are presented with an Orc Attack type screen
where the battlement walls are being sealed. Ladders
are put up and soldiers, whilst throwing many spears,
will attempt to climb to the top and attack you. Never
fear, you have plenty of rocks to hurl down on their
heads, which will stop them with a grizzly thud. The
animation here is excellent as you throw the rocks in
any of five directions (down, left, right and diagonals).
Our
hero Quasi leaps between bells with a
bothersome bat below him.
Once
these have been disposed of, it's exploration time:
collect the jewel from its box and take it to its rightful
place on a pedestal at the bottom of the playing area.
Depositing the jewel will give you access to further
sections by extending a ladder you can climb up.
You
then have to work your way round the playing area, swinging
across chasms on bell ropes and avoiding deadly bats,
until you reach the battlements again. The use of the
ropes, in particular jumping off them, requires careful
timing. Unlike Hunchback, you actually have to
swing the rope yourself, and when you've reached full
momentum, this causes the bell to ring with a wonderfully
authentic sound.
While
you're swinging on the bell ropes you're safe from a
bat attack. But if you're in mid air or walking about,
the bats carry a deadly touch.
If
you can safely complete your tour, it's back to the
soldiers and level two. As you move through the levels
new playing screens are made available to you, but on
each new level there's an extra bat to content with.
JR
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