61 lines
3.1 KiB
Plaintext
61 lines
3.1 KiB
Plaintext
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EYE OF HORUS
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Fans of arcade games are a lot like action movie buffs. They expect every new
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release to be more powerful and grandiose than the last one, with plenty of new
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bells and whistles. But not every new release can be a blockbuster, and such is
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the case with Fanfare's EYE OF HORUS. (This review is based on the Amiga
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version).
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Don't get the wrong idea: HORUS, with its good soundtrack and smoothly
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scrolling graphics, is a nicely engineered game. But the competition in the
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arcade genre is cutthroat, and HORUS doesn't quite deliver the "cutting edge
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arcade action" that the back of the box promises.
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HORUS has a bizarre but interesting story line that should hold the attention
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of most gamers, particulary those who enjoy fantasy-filled adventures. As Horus,
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you are the son of an Egyptian king named Osiris, and you are bent on avenging
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your father's death.
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The king was killed by his evil half-brother, Set, who tore his corpse into
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seven pieces, and then scattered them throughout an Egyptian tomb. You, Horus,
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must place your father's spirit at ease by finding the scattered bones and
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defeating Set. Of course, there will be many obstacles along the way, and you
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must conquer them, one by one.
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Such an interesting plot is one of HORUS's highlights, and it helps make up for
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the cumbersome copy protection, which seems too extensive for a game that's only
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above-average. You are requested to enter a six-digit code from a four-page
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manual. That seems easy enough, but the manual is printed on dark burgundy paper
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designed to discourage photocopying. The paper is so dark, and the black code
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numbers so hard to read, that you'll have to hold the manual under a lamp to see
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what you're doing.
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Without meaning to be harsh, I find this a deplorable method of copy
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protection. I simply cannot agree with any form of copy protection that
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encourages eye strain, and that is the case here. As if that weren't enough,
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there is also on-disk copy protection that prevents you from making a backup,
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and only the IBM version can be installed on a hard disk! (HORUS, which comes on
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a single disk, runs on A500s and A2000s with at least 512K of RAM. A joystick is
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required.)
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Fortunately, nothing else is aggravating about HORUS, and it's really quite
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enjoyable. Move the joystick up and you can move about in the tomb as a hawk;
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move it down and you're in human form. In either case, you'll be able to fire
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bullets, darts, and other weapons at your many attackers.
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As you go about, zapping everything in sight, you'll discover items (such as
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keys to locked elevators) to place in your inventory, in order to make winning
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easier. And of course, you'll stumble upon the needed seven body parts.
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All this talk about body parts and tombs may make HORUS seem morbid, but it
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isn't. It's a nice little game with a different story line, but although the
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colors are rich and full, the game does not break any new ground in graphics,
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sound effects, or playability. Catch this one after it has been marked down a
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few dollars.
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EYE OF HORUS is published by Fanfare and distributed by Britannica Software.
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*****DOWNLOADED FROM P-80 SYSTEMS (304) 744-2253
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