textfiles/games/REVIEWS/gold.rev

 THE GOLD OF THE AZTECS

 I used to think that I _hated_ arcade games, but I've found the better ones
can be fun...in a perverse sort of way. THE GOLD OF THE AZTECS (hereafter
GOLD) is written by Kinetica Software and published and distributed by US
Gold Limited. (This review is based on the IBM-PC version).

 GOLD is definitely an all-out arcade game. The storyline is that your alter
ego, Bret Conrad, has retired from the Special Forces. He is bored and
penniless. The CIA consider him too much of a risk and the FBI won't take
him. It seems that Bret likes action and when bullets start to fly Bret
"kinda of loses control"....hmmmm. Bret comes into possession of an Aztec
treasure map and predictably heads out to make his fortune.

 The game starts with Bret hanging by his parachute from a tree. After
freeing himself, the fun (?) begins. Poor Bret really has to work for his
gold. The natives Bret meets are definitely in a foul mood. They continually
shoot arrows, blow gun darts, or simply try to poke Bret with spears. But
Bret and his trusty pistol are more than a match. Among the dangers Bret
must avoid are man-eating plants (pistol isn't of any value), bridges that
fall away, very mean birds, and a vicious panther...and that is just the
first couple of screens!

 What makes GOLD different from other arcade games I've played is that GOLD
is also a complicated puzzle. Bret's path isn't obvious. For instance, after
killing the attacking panther, Bret can (must) activate a lever. There is a
swooshing sound, but no other indication that anything has occurred. Bret
must retrace his steps three screens to an underground entrance that has
opened in order to continue. As he swings across ropes, climbs down ladders,
and jumps across chasms, he must notice and pick up items required later to
complete the game.

 GOLD isn't only a blast-'em arcade, but is also a co-ordination, timing,
and memory challenge. The path is often found by trail and error (that means
dying). Dangers involve such things as climbing down a ladder, turning, and
very quickly jumping before a platform drops away (it's harder than it
sounds!).

 Although there is a small degree of randomness included (for instance Bret
sometimes gets trampled by an elephant just after starting) the path Bret
_must_ discover and follow is constant. It's awfully frustrating though to
get to an area and forget how to proceed knowing the wrong choice will
likely end the game!

 Bret starts with three lives, but there are more available at various
points in the game. If you are anything like me, you will definitely need
those lives.

 GOLD comes in Amiga, Atari, and IBM versions. The IBM version supports
standard IBM PCs, XTs, ATs, and Tandy 1000/3000/4000 series machines.
However, the box recommends a minimum speed of 10 MHz for proper enjoyment
(I definitely agree). There is a _lot_ of animation, so the faster the
machine the better.

 I played the PC version on a 16 MHz 386 PC equipped with VGA and
SoundBlaster. I installed the game on my hard drive and the included install
routine worked flawlessly. The manual also describes how to play directly
from either 3.5" or 5.25" diskettes, although only 5.25" diskettes were
included in my box. I wouldn't recommend trying to play from floppies as I
think it would slow the game too much.

 The two 5.25" 1.2M diskettes that came with GOLD decompressed to over 4M on
my hard drive, so make sure that you have enough room before starting the
installation. There is an offer (costing $5.00) for standard 360K diskettes
and another (also costing $5.00) for a 256K VGA version. The game as
packaged supports 16-color VGA, EGA, CGA, and Tandy 16-color. GOLD needs at
least DOS 3.1 and 512K free RAM (640K for the 256 VGA version). The manual
also states that GOLD supports MCGA, but no mention is made of this on the
box.

 I really liked the 16-color VGA graphics. The screens were high quality and
the animation was great! Even so, I am tempted to pay the $5.00 to see what
the 256-color version is like.

 Kinetica is very proud of this game, stating in the manual that over 27,000
hours of development were involved, as well as 7000 frames of animation,
600K of music and sound effects, 18 MB of graphics (compressed into 3 MB),
140 different hero actions, 1500 frames of hero animation, and 18,000
individual pieces of graphics! It is undoubtedly a very professional piece
of work and -- most importantly -- I've yet to experience a single crash in
all the time I've played it.

 GOLD supports both AdLib and Roland sound cards. The sound functioned
without problems on my SoundBlaster. In fact, GOLD has options available to
turn either music or sound effects off, but I never bothered. I found the
music both varied and suitable to the scenes.

 The sound effects also worked well (although I got tired of hearing that
same sickening "plop" every time my alter ego fell to the bottom of the
mine!). Also, after having been killed several times by bats, I began to get
a malicious satisfaction from the squeaks they make when shot.

 GOLD can be played either directly from the keyboard or using a joystick. A
mouse is not supported. Frankly, I have never been able to play any arcade
game using the keyboard, so I stuck with the joystick.

 The program uses a code wheel copy-protection scheme, and you are asked
four separate times to supply the correct answer at the start of the game.
The manual indicates that you may also be asked sometimes during the game,
but it has never happened to me. This isn't too bad, but I didn't like the
code wheel: It was black on black! I found it _really_ hard to see and had
to tilt it so that the light would catch the shiny black lettering on the
black background. Fortunately, this is only at the beginning of the game and
not every time that Bret dies, or I would be totally blind now.

 The game also came with a T-shirt offer for $10.95. It has a very tasteful
"US GOLD" on the front and a GOLD OF THE AZTECS snake photo on the back. (My
son couldn't believe his eyes when he saw his mother wearing it!)

 I found GOLD everything it claimed to be. Its graphics are great and it was
more than just a "shoot everything that moves" arcade game. If you like
this type of program, then I highly recommend THE GOLD OF THE AZTECS.

 THE GOLD OF THE AZTECS is published and distributed by US Gold Limited.