A Quick Look At ....

                           by Sue
           Information obtained from the Internet

The Curse of Monkey Island - LucasArts Entertainment Company

Running under Windows 95 in 640 x 480 x 256 mode, controlled by
the keyboard and mouse, CoMI requires a minimum P90 with 16 meg of
RAM, 2 meg HD space, a 4 speed CD ROM and DirectX 5 (which is
included on the CD). This third game in the hilarious Monkey
Island series has taken an amazing 5 years to appear. The previous
2 games came only on floppy disks because CDs weren't about then
so the graphics were understandably basic (though good), and
speech non-existent, though the music was good.

The last game ended on a strange note with us, the players, unsure
whether Guybrush Threepwood, the hero, had dreamt the events of
MI1 and 2. MI3 doesn't continue where MI2 left off - in fact it
starts with Guybrush floating in the Caribbean in a bumper car!
Captured by LeChuck, he manages to escape but as he proposes to
Elaine, his sweetheart, the ring he was giving her, which turns
out to be a voodoo ring, transforms her into a gold statue. She is
promptly stolen by pirates and Guybrush will have to find a way of
getting her back, while defeating LeChuck - yet again!!

Graphically the game looks much improved with SVGA graphics, drawn
in a cartoon style with detailed backgrounds, smooth animation and
excellent cut scenes. The music is evidently very atmospheric and
catchy with some old themes recognisable from the previous games.
The interface is a variation on the one used in Full Throttle with
a pop-up action menu with hand, eyes and mouth symbols to cover
all options. The humour is also as apparent as in the other games,
taking a few shots at other adventures in places (eg Indy, Myst
and The Dig). We'll be introduced to new characters but some old
friends will reappear too such as the Voodoo Lady and Stan who
used to be a used coffin salesman. The game can be played on two
difficulty levels and is in 6 parts. There are a few action
sequences but some can be bypassed.

Zork: Grand Inquisitor - Activision

This also runs under Windows 95 with SVGA and needs a minimum P90
with 16 meg or RAM, 50 meg HD space and a 4 speed CD ROM drive.
Olde time adventurers will realise that this is yet another game
in the famous Zork series which started back in the 1980s and went
from text to graphics with the release of Return to Zork and
Zork:Nemesis. This latest game harks right back to the original
games with many favourite places to visit such as the white house
and Port Foozel, while Grues wait in dark locations for an unwary
and lantern-less adventurer!

Magic has been banned by the Grand Inquisitor - boo, hiss - with
penalties (such as the nasty-sounding totemization) for its use or
for other misdemeanours such as breaking the curfew or any of the
strict laws he has imposed. Your task is to reverse this state of
affairs, returning magic to the land and ousting the Inquisitor.
The game is fully mouse controlled using left and right mouse
button clicks to perform actions or access your inventory; moving
the mouse to certain parts of the screen will perform similar
tasks.  The puzzles are variable in difficulty, starting easy and
getting progressively harder but mostly logical. Clues abound to
help you on our way and the game contains a lot of humour, good
music and sound effects and excellent full screen graphics with
360 degree views. All this and Zork too - what more could you ask?

Tomb Raider II - Core / Eidos

Another Windows 95 game needing at least a P90 with 16 meg of RAM,
2 meg of HD space, a 4 speed CD ROM. A Direct X compatible
accelerator card is also highly recommended.

Evidently the follow-up has a minimal story line, but maybe it
doesn't matter as Lara Croft returns for more leaps and bounds
through several distinct areas, starting with the Great Wall of
China and Venice (with a speedboat to drive along the narrow
canals). You'll also explore an opera house, oil rig and sunken
ship before heading off to Tibet (here you drive a snowmobile) and
a monastery.

Sadly, this second game sounds a bit of a let down where many of
the puzzles are contrived. The new weapons (a harpoon gun and
grenade launcher) are a disappointment too and your opponents
generally brainless. Though the graphics are good, the game isn't
as exciting as the first ... or do you disagree? If so, write in
and tell us!!













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