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| Best thing about democracies is that you won't have to worry too long about raving rulers |
You probably expected another Rome-post from Reiko, but unfortunately she has had to take a break from playing the game. Rome is now on hiatus, and we'll return to it later, when we've found a new reviewer for it. In the meantime, let's check on Gobliiins!
This is already the third Coktel Vision game from 1992 we are encountering! Since I seem to have become the resident expert on their games, it is just reasonable that I should tackle the beginning of probably their best remembered game series. Just like with all Coktel Vision games we’ve encountered, Muriel Tramis, whom we interviewed a while ago, played a role in creating Gobliiins. Yet, as she herself admitted in the interview, the driving force behind the Goblins -series was not her, but Pierre Gilhodes.
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| You have to respect a person with such a nice hat |
Gilhodes is not a new name in gaming industry, as he has been responsible for graphical design of several of Coktel Vision games, for instance, Geisha, a weird erotic mishmash. In addition to graphical talents, Gilhodes is also a person with a..., let’s say quirky sense of humour, as you can see, if you check some pictures he has drawn on his Facebook-page. From what I’ve heard, Gobliiins should be full of similarly quirky humour.
In addition to weird jokes, rumors say that I should expect puzzles in the style of Lemmings, to which Gobliiins -series has often been likened. This makes me slightly wary, since my track record with Lemmings is not that good, and I’ve never managed to get past the few starting levels of the game. I hope I’ll fair better with this game.
Checking the manual, I noticed it included lot of what I presume will be major plot elements of the game. For now, I’ll just go through with stuff that seems to cover the intro of the game.
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| Looking at my screenshots, I just noticed that the pig isn’t dead and wonders off after a while |
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| Voodoo dolls are not a good sign... |
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| ...especially if you are on the wrong side of the needle |
So, someone is harassing the Goblin King, and it is up to me and my team of goblins to save him. Manual tells me that I should first find Niak, a wizard of incredible skills. Well, what are we waiting for, let’s get the show running!
Note Regarding Spoilers and Companion Assist Points: There's a set of rules regarding spoilers and companion assist points. Please read it here before making any comments that could be considered a spoiler in any way. The short of it is that no CAPs will be given for hints or spoilers given in advance of me requiring one. As this is an introduction post, it's an opportunity for readers to bet 10 CAPs (only if they already have them) that I won't be able to solve a puzzle without putting in an official Request for Assistance: remember to use ROT13 for betting. If you get it right, you will be rewarded with 50 CAPs in return. It's also your chance to predict what the final rating will be for the game. Voters can predict whatever score they want, regardless of whether someone else has already chosen it. All correct (or nearest) votes will go into a draw.
I disagree with whoever compared this game with Lemmings. Admittedy I haven't played either for years (decades, actually), but from my memories of both games they aren't at all similar.
ReplyDeleteI also don't think this game will do very well with the PISSED rating so I'll guess a 33!
I think it at least some of our commenters did the comparison. And it seems a frequent take on reviews - for instance, at one place the game was called "like a twisted version of Lemmings but with cute goblins". What little I've seen of the game, the comparison seems exaggerated, since the games have very different mechanics.
DeleteI wouldn't say not at all similar. They both use the mechanic of maneuvering little guys with certain special skills to parts of the landscape to overcome obstacles.
DeleteIt's been a long time, but my memory of playing Gobliiins is that it was very much a Lemmings clone. I didn't consider it an adventure game at all.
DeleteLemmings is a real-time game that challenges your reflexes as much as your wits. I don't see much parallels between that and Gobliiins, and i don't recall ever seeing that comparison before.
DeleteI do enjoy this series quite a bit, and found the graphics really funny and endearing, but i feel the sequels are strongers.
Beware, the games are filled with very silly puzzles.
Oh dear, I hope Reiko is all right.
ReplyDeleteGobliiins always seemed really weird to me. But, I vaguely recall there being minimal or no text, so everything's kind of understandable even without particular language skills... Would it be fair to characterise this as a lower-key Lost Vikings game?
I'm fine, thanks for the concern. Rome was just not a good fit for me at this time. I'll be back later with a different game.
DeleteI guess Lost Vikings is similar with Gobliiins in that both games have three characters with different skill sets. Then again, I suppose Gobliiins is less of an action game and more of an adventure.
DeleteIt's definitely a better comparison than the Lemmings one, but Lost Vikings takes on a platformer approach, and this one a point-and-click adventure template.
Deletethis is not a good game, but still .. lets try with 30
ReplyDeletethis got a couple of sequels right? so it must be at least OK, so I'll guess 43.
ReplyDeletethe sequels are much better, but this one is sort of a black sheep, same with 4 which is from 2009 if I recall correctly
DeleteI'll guess 36. Your enjoyment of this game (and the sequels) will be greatly dependent on how much you enjoy its slapstick humor.
ReplyDeleteWell, I was pretty amused with the intro animation, so I'm feeling quite positive about the humour so far.
DeleteThe Gobliiins series was one of my favorites as a kid! Playing it again recently, however, I've found that I liked the sequels (2 & 3 at least, I haven't played the fourth one) far more because of a certain game mechanic that brutally punishes experimentation that, fortunately, got taken out for the rest of the series. That alone will probably tank the score, as the rest of the game I found pretty fun and amusing, though some of the puzzles are a little moon-logic-y. I'm going to be a little more optimistic and guess 50, as I quite enjoy the atmosphere and the quirky sense of humor, and even the wrong puzzle solutions are fun to see.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised to see it compared to Lemmings, as the only things they really have in common is the password save system (instead of being able to save the game, each screen gives you a password when you complete it in order to start from there) and, I guess, the fact that it's a 1990's DOS game.
Well, that hat reminded me of a certain Alex DeLarge, who had an unhealthy preference to Ludwig van.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the game,I remember I had started playing the 3rd iteration, installed from a CD, but that eternal storage medium got scratched and I never did much.
I will go for a 46, just because we should be at an era in which we should be getting average scores in general.
As others have already commented, Gobliiins is nothing like Lemmings. That said, it is a difficult puzzle game-- they weren't lying when they put that warning on the cover!
ReplyDeleteI predict 44 and at least one request for assistance.
I did not enjoy the first one. I'm going with 29.
ReplyDeleteI'll take 40, and if my memory of puzzle games from this era serves correctly it will probably be nice and easy and then BAM you hit a learning cliff.
ReplyDeleteGoing with 37.
ReplyDeleteI never thought to compare Lemmings and Gobliiins. Gobliiins doesn't have a time limit and the gobbos are less suicidal than the lems as well.
ReplyDeleteI'll go for 50 points. Always had a soft spot for this game.
Although i never played this, from the look of the pictures of the game i saw in the magazines back in the 90s, i always thought that this is no adventure game at all, like Corey said. It looks more like a single screen puzzle game and that is not very engaging to me, so i don´t think i will play along. Guess the score is gonna be 39
ReplyDelete