C&VG


Micro Trivia
By Harold Gale Associates
Amstrad 6128/PCW

 
Published in Computer & Video Games #67

Micro Trivia

Another trivia game, this time borrowing the noughts and crosses principal of getting a horizontal, vertical, or diagonal line of three correct answers. Micro Trivia is for one player only, a dangerous limitation for any game of this type as one of the prime attractions of trivia games is that they give a group of people the chance to show off to each other just how smart they are (or aren't).

At the start of the game, you are invited to set the timer at anything between one and 20 seconds. This determines how long you have to answer each question, but it wasn't clear if you could get a better score using a shorter time limit.

Once the timer is set, a 3 x 3 matrix of nine squares appears. Select your question by typing a number between one and nine (each relating to one of the nine squares). Each question is accompanied by four answers, one of which is correct.

Your score is not shown until you have made a line. Each answer you get right gives you a plus score while wrong answers score minus points.

The number of points scored depends on the speed with which you answer. When it becomes impossible to make a winning line, the game is unceremoniously brought to a premature end and your embarassingly puny score will be displayed. the game comes with a 1,000 'pot luck' questions of varying difficulty. Further disks, each with 1,000 more questions on specific subjects, are advertised in the instructions. Subjects include sport, soaps, TV and music.

Micro Trivia is a nice variation on the trivia theme but, with only 1,000 questions on the disk and a similar number on each of the add-ons, there must be cheaper ways of discovering the level of your mental agility.