McDonaldland longplay part 4 (C64, 1992)

Off to world-two, whose levels feature many jumps into the unknown. Frustration ensues. -)

Drelbs (C64, 1984)

Remember last time when you were CJ the elephant? No more! Now you are a drelb. Don't know what a drelb is? I'm afraid I don't know either. And i can't really tell from the graphics. It looks like a cute puppy robot, to be honest. Anyway, it seems that the drelbs are some sort of tribe and they have been captured and imprisoned. And it's up to you to save them, cause you're the only free drelb available.



How do you do that then? Let's see, the game is basically divided into two distinct types of play. There's the main levels, and then there's a sort of mini-game that serves as the bridge to proceed to the next level. You could describe the main levels as Pacman variants, though that would oversimplify things. Basically you run around a static screen and you're being chased by enemies (whose number and speed increases with each new level). There's a grid which is formed by lines - which you can move to form solid blocks. The main idea is to form as many solid blocks as possible, while also avoiding being caught by enemies.



The first beautiful element of the game is that it allows for different strategies. Say, do you form a big fence to trap enemies within? Or do you form narrow corridors so that you have more freedom of movement? You get the drift. The second beautiful element is the furious feeling of claustrophobia as the chasing gets more and more hectic with each successive level - accompanied by psychedelic visuals and sound effects. And the in-between mini-game? It's a Space Invaders variant, whereas you have to free as many drelbs as possible (set in formations) whilst avoiding guardians that shoot at you.



We played this recently in the Lemon-64 gaming competition and to be honest I wasn't expecting much from such an old game. But i was wrong! This is a brilliant concept and very addictive. Though, it has to be said, it's better suited for competition play; trying, in other words, to beat somebody else's high score. I'm not so sure how many times I'm gonna load this solo.

8/10

McDonaldland longplay part 3 (C64, 1992)

Part three of the ongoing McDonaldland longplay. This features various levels from world-two, which is my favourite. Why? Cause it has lots of ice and snow. I have a thing for ice and snow in videogames. -)

CJ's Elephant Antics (C64, 1991)

Right, here's how it is. You're CJ the elephant (are you?). You're captured and they 'll put you in a zoo (damn). But somehow you escape (yeah). So what do you do? Head back to your family in Africa of course. But.. not so easy. You have to find your way to Africa via four levels of platforming action and such destinations such as France, the snowy Switzerland, Egypt and Africa itself.



The game is a classic platformer. You don't jump on enemies Mario-style, but instead you shoot them with peanuts. You can also throw bombs at them (if you find any around, which you'll do), and there's a simultaneous two-player option. There's also a sub-game that involves biking through obstacles and collecting balloons, which is just that, a sub-game.



OK, so let's not be over-analytical here. I'll be short and sweet. The first three levels are pure magic, with excellent evocative graphics (including a bash around the Eiffel Tower and a tour across the Egyptian pyramids), a great and slightly melancholic tune, and with your basic fun platforming action. And you know what, this was a budget game, which means that while you were buying overpriced pap like, say, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for 20 pounds, this one merely cost 3 pounds. Nice one Codemasters.



PS - The game was such a success that Codemasters released three clones later on (CJ in the USA, DJ Puff's Capers and Stuntman Seymour), while a third installment (CJ in Space) sadly got lost in the translation (any news on that Games That Weren't?).

8/10

McDonaldland longplay part 2 (C64, 1992)

Alright, here's part two of the McDonaldland longplay. It's a biggie, so there's gonna be many more parts. -) This is still world-one in the game, where things are still somewhat faithful to the NES original, albeit almost in slow motion.