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| Welcome
to Game of the Week! Each week there will be a
new featured game on this page. The game may be good,
average or diabolically bad, it really doesn't matter!
Just look at the pics, read the text and enjoy the nostalgia!
:-) Game of the Week! is open to contributions so if you
would like to contribute
a game article for this page you're more than welcome
to! Every article we receive will be considered! |
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Blackwyche
1985 Ultimate
Programmed
by ?
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| Most
text of the present article comes from the review published
in the eighth issue of the British C64 magazine ZZAP!64
(December 1985). |
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BLACKWYCHE
Ultimate,
£9.95 cass, joystick
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This latest release from the people who play the game,
is set on a ghost ship with you, once again, as Sir
Arthur Pendragon, trying to free the soul of the ship's
captain, imprisoned long ago by the supernatural forces
controlling the vessel. In the usual Ultimate tradition
there are hundreds of nasties out to stop you, whose
touch depletes your energy. You have to find your way
through the various decks and rooms and equip yourself
for the task ahead (until you find a sword, all you
can do is attempt to avoid the nasties by jumping, and
that isn't very effective).
Actually,
getting the sword brings you into contact with a couple
of very unfriendly skeletons, so you are well advised
to look for a way to replenish that vital energy level.
Some of the creatures (and there are an awful lot of
them) deplete your supply very quickly indeed and it's
advisable to spend the first couple of games looking
for new sources of energy.
Most
of the problems facing you require the collection of
particular objects to he used in certain other locations.
Sometimes their uses are fairly obvious (such as getting
gunpowder to fire a cannon), but on other occasions
the problems are more obscure. You often need to be
in possession of an object to acquire or use another.
The
graphics are in full colour and offer forced perspective
3D. This provides interesting backgrounds for the adventure.
The monsters who attack are single-coloured animated
sprites. To list them all here would take too long;
suffice to say that many are taken from mythology, rather
than being invented for the purposes of the game.
The
game isn't overlarge as there are only five decks, but
there are several locations to each deck and some involve
scrolling. Of course, the complex graphics and puzzles
help make up for the relatively small number of rooms.
As usual with an Ultimate game, you're left fairly much
in the dark as to what you do. A poem on the game sleeve
tells you only the barest details about your quest.
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.
I've always thought that
Staff of Karnath
was a pretty poor attempt at an arcade adventure, being
far too obscure and frustrating to be worthwhile (I'm
amazed anyone ever solved it). Entombed,
while following a similar format to its predecessor,
was a much better game with some excellent problems.
Blackwyche
also has some great problems, such as sub-standard sprites,
sound effects and poor puzzles. It also looks too close
to the two previous Ultimate releases for comfort --
when will they buck up their ideas and come up with
something new? Hopefully their next release, Imhotep,
will be a step in the right direction.
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Presentation
65%
Average packaging, nice loading screen but only
a couple of options.
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This
is one game I just wasn't excited by at all. There
might be a lot of different monsters, but they
all do pretty much the same thing and they all
look pretty dull. The 3D effect, which appears
to be good at first sight, is out of proportion
and frustrating. Blackwyche
looks as if it could have been good and there
are some fairly decent ideas, but these have been
badly implemented on screen. There is nothing
whatsoever remarkable enough to write about. I
think Ultimate have made an unfortunate mistake
with this one.
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Graphics 79%
Stunning backgrounds are all very
well but the sprites are quite primitive.
Sound
38%
Weak, unimaginative tunes and FX.
Hookability
45%
There's just not enough rewarding
play to grab you ...
Lastability
47%
... and if you persevere it's not
even that hard to finish.
Value
For Money 48%
The going rate for an Ultimate
game but well below their standards.
Overall
53%
Sad to see Ultimate turn out a
program like this.
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Htmlized
by Dimitris
Kiminas (28 Dec 2003)
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"Games of the Week!"
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