Conference rusure::nintendo

475.0. "Robodemons " by WNDMLL::SCHNEIDER (Takes 2 jerks 2 make 1 MVanilli.) Tue Jun 19 1990 17:54

    I rented Robodemons one recent evening.  When I rent a game, I'm
    looking for 2 things for my 2 bucks.  Is this a good game to buy?  If
    so it better be complex to the point that one or two rentals won't
    solve it.  If not, then is this a game I can solve in a moderate rental
    time?  I don't want to wear a path to the local video store because a
    game is interesting enough to keep trying to solve yet perceived to be
    too easy to be worth purchasing instead of renting.
    
    Anyway, in my opinion, Robodemons is the perfect one night rental.  If
    anyone thinks about buying it, though, I'd say it's a waste.  The
    reason I say it's perfect is that it does have it's challenges and you
    can still progress steadily and finish the thing in a few hours.  That
    kind of conquest can be fun and rewarding and a good break from those
    frustrating games that have you stalled.
    
    On the other hand, beat it once, maybe a second time and forget about
    it.  Once you win once, it's not hard to master, and once you master it
    there's no challenge left.  If *I* can beat it in a few hours, some of
    you other wizards would probably have a field day with it.
    
    It has it's flaws too, which is why it's not worth more to me than a
    rental.  It's printed text is almost unreadable.  It tries to be too
    nifty with it's graphics, to the point that many characters are not
    easily distinguishable as demons/bats/what-have-you, including the
    character you control.  Never really knew what my warrior looked like.
    
    The game:  You're a warrior, and in this futuristic world of 7 levels,
    a demon has come and destroyed all life, except for you, and now just
    manufactures these awful robodemons.  As expected you proceed through
    the 7 levels until you get to the awful three headed demon whom you
    must detroy to win the game.  At the beginning of each level you must
    fly for a while, but generally you settle down and finish the task
    before you (it is explained in the awful text) at each level.  For
    instance, in one level you must recapture the tortured souls of your
    dead ancestors.  What this means is you must search the entire level
    and merely contact what is obviously a tortured soul hung up in some
    torture device (no, it's not all this brutal, and the graphics are
    wierd enough not to upset anyone).  Meanwhile, at certain points, an
    assortment of walking robowarriors, robodemons or flying demons might
    attack.  As in all levels, there's one main character to defeat who
    requires some 10 hits -- you throw your magic boomerang, it's your only
    weapon -- as opposed to the usual 2 or 3.
    
    As expected, level 7 is easily the hardest, although I had trouble
    figuring out level 2 as well.  3-6 weren't easy at first, but afforded
    a decent enough, and progressive challange.  
    
    You get 5 lives I think, and perhaps 3 restarts.  A new life remembers
    what you have taken, and whom you have killed.  A restart starts you
    fresh at the beginning of the level you died on.  If you run out of
    restarts, it's not that hard to get back to the point you died at -
    you'll now have the skill.  I guess that's what makes it a good rental
    as opposed to a good buy.
    
    Dan