105 lines
5.6 KiB
Plaintext
105 lines
5.6 KiB
Plaintext
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MENTAL BLOCKS
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Avantage is Accolade's line of low-priced games, of which MENTAL BLOCKS is one.
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(The others are HARRIER 7, SHOOT 'EM UP CONSTRUCTION KIT, and FRIGHTMARE.)
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Modeled after TETRIS, MENTAL BLOCKS is an expanded version of Spectrum
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HoloByte's popular puzzle game. It comes on a "flippy" disk (C64/128,
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IBM/Tandy), includes four puzzles, and offers fine 3-D graphics and game play,
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joystick and keyboard control, a two-player mode, and copy protection. (This
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review is based on the Commodore 64/128 version; IBM-PC version notes follow.)
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Unlike Avantage's HARRIER 7 (which was hardly worth playing, much less actually
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purchasing), MENTAL BLOCKS is a fine game. Both the C64 and IBM versions look
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good and play well. The $14.95 price tag refutes the "you get what you pay for"
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adage, providing justification for the Avantage lineup of games, and making the
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package an excellent bargain in the process.
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The names of the puzzles are Mental Detector, Fits and Pieces 2D, Fits and
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Pieces 3D, and Shapes Happen.
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Fits and Pieces 2D is TETRIS, more or less. Blocks fall in groups of four, and
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each group must be manipulated -- rotated, moved left and right -- in order to
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form a complete row. When a row is filled, it disappears. The incomplete rows
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atop it drop down, and the blocks fall faster. When the playing area is filled,
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the game ends.
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Although Fits and Pieces 2D is drawn to appear three-dimensional (TETRIS is
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completely "flat"), the blocks can be flipped over and moved left and right in
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only two dimensions. Shadows highlight the playing area beneath the block as it
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falls, giving you an extra aid for positioning.
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Fits and Pieces 3D is TETRIS taken to the extreme. The blocks can be rotated in
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three dimensions, and the shadows move to reflect changes in the three axes. To
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makes things even tougher, you still have to move the blocks left and right,
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toward you, and away from you -- none of which has anything to do with the X, Y,
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or Z axes. The 2-D version is tricky; the 3-D version is incredibly tricky.
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Mental Detector displays a "folded" cube with three visible sides at the top of
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the screen. Below are four unfolded cubes, all six sides of which are visible.
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Before the 30-second timer runs out, you have to fold the bottom shapes in your
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head and determine which one will form the cube when folded.
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In Shapes Happen, at the top of the screen there are three shapes (squares,
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circles, polygons, etc.) and a question mark; below are four shapes. You have 30
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seconds in which to select from the bottom shapes the one that replaces the
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question mark and completes the sequence.
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Both Mental Detector and Shapes Happen offer Easy, Medium, and Hard difficulty
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levels. The Easy levels are far too easy to bother playing, although the Hard
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level makes up for them.
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MENTAL BLOCKS on the Commodore looks good and plays fine. The graphics --
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especially in Fits 3D -- are clear, colorful, and large. The joystick controls
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all games. In Mental Detector and Shapes Happen, moving the stick in a cardinal
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direction makes your selection. In Fits 2D, moving the stick forward and
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backward rotates the falling block; moving the stick left and right moves the
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block likewise; the fire button forces the shape to drop faster. In Fits 3D, the
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stick and button function the same as in Fits 2D, while Function keys F3, F5,
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and F7 perform the X, Y, and Z axes rotations.
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The MENTAL BLOCKS package comes with a "flippy" disk (copy-protected on both
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sides) and an instruction manual for both versions. To abort a game in progress,
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the manual suggests pressing the "Resume" key followed by a double-press of the
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fire button. Since there is no such key, press the "Commodore" and "Run/Stop"
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keys instead.
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While I greatly admire Spectrum HoloByte's TETRIS, part of its charm was
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derived from the Russian folk music, colorful background screens, and extra play
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features, all of which served to crank up the price. If you enjoy puzzles and
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you're on a limited budget, MENTAL BLOCKS will substitute nicely.
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IBM-PC VERSION NOTES
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The IBM-PC version of MENTAL BLOCKS is at least as good as its Commodore 64
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counterpart. Although play is identical, the games look much better, graphically
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speaking.
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On the IBM, you'll need 256K of RAM. The program supports IBM PC/XT/AT and
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compatibles, PS/2 models, and Tandy 1000 Series, 3000, and 4000 machines. Four
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graphics modes are available: Hercules monochrome, CGA, EGA, and VGA color. I
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played the game on a VGA monitor only, but since CGA and Commodore graphics
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resolutions are more or less the same, you can assume that any of the supported
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color schemes will look just fine -- VGA certainly did, and let's not quibble
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over fifteen bucks.
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There are other differences, as well. The IBM version is totally
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keyboard-controlled, whether or not your machine has a joystick port. Also, in
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Mental Detector, the "folded" cube at the top of the screen can be rotated left
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and right, making all but one side visible. The falling block configurations of
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Fits and Pieces 3D are controlled with the arrow keys, the spacebar, and the
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"D," "S," and "F" keys.
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The MENTAL BLOCKS package comes on one 5-1/4" "flippy" disk, copy-protected on
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both sides (a 3-1/2" disk is available for $3), and an instruction manual for
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both versions.
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Unlike HARRIER 7, MENTAL BLOCKS is a decent package. Both versions look fine,
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and both offer easy play. For $14.95, you can't go wrong, especially if your
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personal budget won't allow for the higher-priced TETRIS.
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MENTAL BLOCKS is published by Avantage and distributed by Accolade.
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*****DOWNLOADED FROM P-80 SYSTEMS (304) 744-2253
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