F I S H Exclusive
Review
* SUPPLIER: RAINBIRD/MAGNETIC SCROLLS.
* MACHINES: ATARI ST/AMIGA/C64 TURBO-LOAD VERSION TO FOLLOW.
* PRICE: 24.50 GBP
* REVIEWER: KEITH CAMPBELL
It sounds corny, and it's easy to say, but I have to: Fish is like no other
adventure I've played before. And then again... Fish is something like bits
of Leather Goddesses, Stationfall, Lurking Horror, Border Zone, and The
Pawn, all roled into one, with a bit of Monty Piton thrown in good measure.
Just what sort of game am I talking about? I'm talking of the fifth game
to come from Magnetic Scrolls, and the third one this year! Plotted this
time by John Molloy (well known to regular C+VG readers for his contributions
a few years back), Pete Kemp, and Phil South, it takes the art of adventuring
into a completly new dimension - underwater! And before you say "Underwater
- it's been done before!", read on... I don't know what it is about
fish that makes people go completely pun crazy. I mean think about. Why
fish? If someone mentioned cats to you, or dogs, or snakes, you are not
going to start making tho most awful puns imaginable - are you? Fish though,
and it becomes pun city.
Magnetic Scrolls new game doesn't miss the opportunity
to become the most pun packed adventure ever. There you are, one ordinary
Wednesday morning, happiliy swimming round your bowl, when suddenly a plastic
castle breaks the tranquility of the water in your bowl, knocks the pondweed
to one side, and landson the gravel beneath you. When you've quite got your
breath back, you decide to explore the interior of this alien structure
that is now occupying the major part of your environment. Snatching a quick
ant-egg snack from the surface, you enter the dark interior with more than
just a little apprehension. Dagon, the god-like inhabitant of the castle,
mistakenly believes you to have arrived in answer to an advertisement. Before
he is prepared to offer you the job, he insists that you take this aptitude
test, and return three keys to him. Facing you are three portals, each leading
to a mini adventure. One takes you into a recording studio, famous for its
recordings of the group known as the Seven Deadly Fins, another takes you
to wherea group of hippies are signing round a makeshift fire in a ruined
abbey, whilst the third sets you down by a stump in forest clearing. No
pouch full of colours in this stump, though. Instead, you'll find a little
man who is completely off his rocker, jealously guarding a golden disc that
commemorates the millionth copy of a Seven Deadly Fins number. This lunatic
has his own philosophy for life, for which he thinks he is famous: Get a
home, get a bird, and settle down. He has lived by it, too. His best friend
is and his exploding homing pigeon that hasn't a clue where to head for,
and is currently sulking in its cage not far away, following a dreadful
row between the two. This is an utterly mad adventure, and one that definitely
breaks the mould, as I found to my cost just when I thought I was winning!
And so, with the three keys safely retrieved, Damon gives you "the
big one" - the task for which he wanted to hire you. It seems that
the city of Hydropolis is in danger. Water is evaporating away faster that
it is being supplied, and the entire fish-world is in danger. A special
project has been set up to teleport large quantities of water back - but
it seems it has been sabotaged. You find yourself transported into the body
of fish-scientist Dr Roach, the man in charge of the project, and you must
discover which fish are responsibile for the dirty deed, stop them, and
repair the damage. There are plenty of suspects. To start with, there's
your colleagues on the project: Eric Chubb, Simon Tench, and Bertie Bream.
Having been given the day off, you'll find them down at the Hook, Line &
Sinker, having a few snifters. Leaving your apartment (not forgetting your
all-important Fishofax) you set off via the underground, for an appointment
with the principal of the university. It's rush hour on the tube, and you
are jostled by guppies on the way to the city, not to mention the crowds
of ordinary pilchards and sardines, as you head towards the famous seat
of learning. A little investigation will reveal that a number of key components
for the 'device' on which the project depends are out of stock - and a further
look round will uncover some likely replacements.
Here is an adventure full
of fishy puzzles and puns, (try playing The Prawn, or Gilled of Thieves
on the university mainframe...) that is guaranted to produce shoals of laugher
as you scratch your scales trying to fanthom its depths. Scrolls really
seem to be cleaning up on the adventure scene this year. Mind you, it has
to be said they havent had much competition. With their old enemy Level
Nine not producing anything new of late they have had the field to themselves.
Then there is Infocom. What's happened to them - no new game since Christmas.
* VOCABULARY 8
* ATMOSPHERE 9
* PERSONAL 10
* VALUE 9