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Valkyrie
17 is a mysterious organisation that hails back to the
darker days of World War II. Rumour has it that they
are once again in operation, developing some unspecified
super-weapon and practising the usual death and destruction
which you, poor fool, must rush off and put a stop to.
The
cassette comes complete with a series of ansaphone messages
on one side, containing reports from your now-deceased
predecessor, who seems obsessed with red kippers. By
the sound of the last message on tape, cut short by
what seems like a gunshot, this obsession obviously
cost him dearly -- you have been warned.
The
game is presented with frequent graphics (though not
one for every location) and is very high on atmosphere.
The graphics aren't tremendous, but they are carefully
done and should be studied closely if you are going
to solve all the puzzles.
You
start off in the bar of the Glitz Hotel in the company
of a young lady who seems mote interested in alcohol
than anything else. Once you've escaped from the hotel
(without paying your bill), you have to negotiate the
deep snow outside, a ski-slope that really ought to
be called a ski-cliff, and then a village with a particularly
nasty line in public aquariums.
Vandalism
pays off in Valkyrie 17
The
program will accept some quite complex inputs, but annoyingly
it doesn't always tell you if it hasn't understood what
you're saying. Typing 'Examine t&*!xz(', for example,
gets you the response 'You see nothing special' and
this lack of precision sometimes means that you're in
danger of giving up on a particular puzzle even though
you may be on the right track.
A
good example of this is when, on the second floor of
the hotel, you attempt to 'Enter Room' and are told
you can't. Typing 'Go South', on the other hand, gets
you in with no trouble at all -- very confusing. Nevertheless,
as a general rule the program is quite adept at understanding
what you're saying.
What
makes Valkyrie 17 so much fun to play, apart
from the excitement of the scenario, is a very logical
design to the puzzles and a great sense of humour throughout.
At the very beginning of the game, for example, you're
asked whether the copy you're using is a pirated version
or not. Say yes, and the program appears to crash --
it's not until you press Run/Stop in despair to start
again that it suddenly reboots and lands you in the
hotel.
This
high quality and sense of fun is maintained throughout
the game. RamJam's next program, Holiday in Carpathia,
is soon making its appearance on the Spectrum, so 64
owners shouldn't have to wait too long for a sequel.
In the meantime the program's yours for £9.95, which
seems a bit on the steep side, but it's an enjoyable
romp nevertheless.
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