Vulcanology
Reviewed by Chris Spicer
'Ere darlin', 'ave I got a bargain for you? You got an Amiga? 'Course you 'ave, course you 'ave. Then check this out, right? I'm offering you not one, not two, not even three, but ten, that's right, *ten* Amiga games, on one CD, all for twenty nicker. An' I'll throw in a load of demos for free, alright, no questions asked. It's just, y'see, you'd better make a choice quick, cos this 'ere's a strictly limited offer. Completely kosher deal, this. Apples an' pears, dog an' bone, Gary Glitter an' all that...
Cliched (and, to Londoners, possibly offensive) Cockney banter aside, what I'm trying to say is that Vulcan, yet another long-running Amiga publisher, has left the scene for pastures new, their parting gift a compilation of their Mini Series titles. Ten games, all of which scored pretty well in other Amiga magazines upon their initial releases, can be found upon this limited edition CD.
Perhaps the most famous games on this compilation will be The Valhalla Trilogy. It was with the game Valhalla and The Lord Of Infinity that Vulcan first made their name (not just because it was alright, but because they'd had the audacity to program it in Amos!) and this game spawned two sequels, Before The War and The Fortress Of Eve. These games are arcade adventures, with the player controlling each respective character through maze-like levels, manipulating objects in order to solve puzzles. The USP (Unique Selling Point, jargon-fans) of these games is that they include copious amounts of speech; examining objects will elicit a short sample of speech from your Amiga's speakers rather than just a written message.
Graphically these games aren't bad, but they move at a snail's pace. Some of the puzzles are extremely tricky, and are not all logic-based; many rely on general knowledge, which seems out of place in a game with a fantasy setting. However, the characters have personality, and the Valhalla trilogy will provide a lasting challenge.
Hillsea Lido is best described as a low-budget Theme Park rip-off. Taking the funfair management motif of Bullfrog's game and transferring it to the seafront, Hillsea Lido sees you placed in charge of a strip of beach and adjoining pavement. It's up to you to hire attractions, provide changing rooms and deckchairs, keep the public well-fed and watered, and generally see to the maintainance of the area. Hillsea Lido is fun, but bare in mind that it is simpler than Theme Park, and those coming from that game may find this one a little limiting.
There are two flavours of Timekeepers on the disc; the original game and a version which contains a load of new levels that were originally released as an expansion pack. The game is a little like Lemmings viewed from above, with you controlling a party of little critters who will wander about until you guide them through various puzzles and traps to the end of the level. To my mind, Timekeepers is far too difficult to be much fun, and it niggles to have to guide each one of the little guys through each level seperately. However, if you're a fan of this sort of puzzle game you'd be well advised to check Timekeepers out.
Tiny Troops is a real-time strategy game, depicting a war fought between two races who are so small that the battles take place beneath our very feet and we never even notice. The graphics are bold and colourful, but the controls are limited, the paceof the game slow, and the entire thing too easy. It's fun for a while, but you'll need patience to play it all the way through. Compared to Napalm and Moonbases, it comes out in third place.
Bograts is a 2-D platform-puzzle game. You take control of a strange green creature called a Bograt, and by manipulating switches to operate ladders and conveyer belts must guide your babies through a series of tricky levels. Bograts continues the Vulcan tradition of bold, cartoony graphics, and is real fun to play - if you can get it working. I couldn't get the game to run on my A1200 at all; the only reason I know it's fun is because I've played a demo of it before. That this game doesn't seem to want to load is a black mark on what is otherwise a very professionally presented CD; Vulcan really should have tested this a bit more thoroughly.
In issue 4 of Amiga Survivor, the print magazine i usually write for, we reviewed a demo of Jetpilot in our Flight Sims Special, where Rob and Colin, the trained pilots we asked to judge the game, seemed to like it. I, on the other hand, don't, although that may be due to my complete and utter apathy towards all flight sims. Jet Pilot simulates aircraft which are, for the most part, out of service, and does so in a slow and generally unpleasant manner. Not a highlight of this compilation.
Nor, for that matter, is our final game, Burnout. Burnout is a complete dichotomy; it looks absolutely wonderful, and yet is as much fun to play with as a decapitated kestrel. Take control of a rendered vehicle and drive it against other rendered vehicles on a rendered platform with the aim of, wait for it, driving into the other cars. Knock the vehicles off the edges of the platforms to be rewarded with pointage, which can be exchanged for weapons to make driving into other cars more easy. There's a bonus game where the aim is to be the first car to accelerate. This is as much fun as it sounds. Quite frankly, there's a PD game called Spod Racers which is just as much fun as this, and it's free.
On the other hand, you're only paying twenty quid for the silver discoid containing all of these games, and when viewed in those terms Vulcanology does appear to be a bit of a bargain. None of the games have aged well, some to more extent than others, but at least six of them will provide you with a lasting, fun challenge, and for twenty nicker you can't really argue with that, can you?
Not only does Vulcanology contain the ten games mentioned above, but there are a couple of extra bits to be found. Firstly, there's a drawer full of demos of Vulcans Mega Series, including Wasted Dreams, Genetic Species and, erm, Strangers. All of the ten Mini Series games are present in a variety of languages. Finally, in a hidden drawer you get the games as they would have appeared on their original floppy releases, in case you can't get things running from the CD or hard drive. People wishing to play Bograts will find this very useful.
Don't expect the games on Vulcanology to be up to date with hardware; after all, some of them are three or four years old. As I mentioned elsewhere, I had real problems geting Bograts to work on my '030 A1200. The rest of the games didn't give me any problems, but people who own expanded Amiga's should be aware that problems may occur.
Of the ten games, eight will run on any Amiga. Only Bograts and Burnout have any specific hardware demands; Bograts requires an AGA Amiga with 2 meg of memory, whilst Burnout wants an AGA Amiga with 6 meg. Jetpilot will run on all Amiga's, but will take advantage of any accellerator cards you might have installed.
In the end, all problems aside, Vulcan's compilation is a fine production. Whether you wish them luck or not (they are, after all, traitors to the Amiga scene ; ) it's hard to look back at their output for this platform and not be impressed
.Now, 'ow about a couple of bottles of Growl cologne? No? Well, I got some East German camcorders over 'ere you might be interested in...
Supplier: Weird Science
Verdict: At twenty quid you'd be a plonker not to, Rodney
Score: 80%