63 lines
3.3 KiB
Plaintext
63 lines
3.3 KiB
Plaintext
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THE KRISTAL
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So there's this Kristal of Konos, a "symbol of unity manifest in the form of a
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shimmering aura," and Malagar stole it and hid it somewhere in the universe.
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You're space pirate Dancis Frake (Get it? Is that really the best name they
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could come up with?), and you have to search for the Kristal.
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Yep, right: You've come across this scenario dozens of times in dozens of
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adventure games. So, is THE KRISTAL sufficiently different to justify going
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through it again? Well...maybe, maybe not. (This review is based on the IBM-PC
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version of the game.)
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The elements setting apart THE KRISTAL from similar games are evident not in
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the gameplay, but in the embellishments: The introduction is delivered by the
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digitized voice of Patrick Moore, and the game features truly superb graphics.
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On land, the backdrops are imaginative and the characters well-drawn. Combined
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with extremely smooth animation, the game does live up to its billing as an
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"interactive movie."
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However, THE KRISTAL isn't just a matter of walking around, finding objects,
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asking questions, and solving puzzles. It also contains very mundane
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arcade-style sequences. There are swordfights on planets, and battles in space,
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and who needs them? If sword-fighting or spaceship-shooting are your thing,
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there are much better games around. And if RPG'ing is your idea of a good time,
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these sequences may seem more like annoying distractions than productive ways to
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reach your goal.
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The IBM-PC version of THE KRISTAL is supplied on six 5-1/4" diskettes (no
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mention is made of 3-1/2" diskette availability). There is a batch file to
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install the program on your hard drive, and thankfully you won't have to refer
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to a manual or code wheel when you boot the game. DOS 2.1 or higher and 512K of
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RAM are required. The game can be played either from the keyboard or with a
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joystick.
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Graphics support is provided for Tandy (black-and-white only), CGA, EGA and
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VGA. As previously mentioned, VGA graphics are stunning. While the pictures on
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the back of the box are taken from the Amiga version, the IBM VGA version comes
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darn close.
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No sound boards are supported, but they aren't needed. While the game starts
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out with digitized human speech, surprisingly enough, most of it unfolds in
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total silence.
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Naturally, a game save feature is included. However, the game can only be saved
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to a diskette in your A: drive, even if you're playing from a hard drive. The
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only way to exit the game is to re-boot your computer.
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From the (lack of) imagination used in naming the characters, to the fact that
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the program even responds to certain key four-letter words, my guess is that THE
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KRISTAL is primarily aimed at teenaged gamers who might well appreciate the
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easy-to-learn user interface and relative simplicity of the tasks that must be
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completed to find the Kristal. (The 16-page manual includes four pages of hints
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and an "introductory walkthru" for novices.) Adults who have played today's top
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RPG games will love the imaginative graphics, but probably won't be sufficiently
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enthralled to want to fight their way through space to ten different planets
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merely to finish this game.
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THE KRISTAL is published by Cinemaware and distributed by Electronic Arts.
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*****DOWNLOADED FROM P-80 SYSTEMS (304) 744-2253
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