Personal Compuer Games


Pi-Mania

Author: Steve Mann
Publisher: Automata
Machine: Spectrum 48K

 
Published in Personal Computer Games #1

Pi-Mania

I'm not too sure that Christian Penfold and Mel Croucher should be allowed to walk the streets. Both of them are obviously warped!

What we have here is a world where saxophones turn into hang-gliders, where red herrings swim across the bottom of the screen blowing bubbles of derision, and where snatches of music confuse, hinder and occasionally help you. Along the way you'll be greeted by a blatant appeal for cash - they promise to send you a T-shirt, but what makes you think you can trust them?

Throughout your adventures you'll be involved with the Pi-Man who will give you presents of useful things like blackboards, then next minute rob you blind.

Pimania

It's a game that encourages all that is noble in the human spirit - namely naked, ravening greed. The prize is a specially designed £6,000 gold and diamond sundial. Whoever wins it will certainly deserve it, but will undoubtedly be a gibbering lunatic by then.

Seeing as there's so much at stake, I'm not going to tell you too much - why should I help you get rich?

Suffice it to say that it's an adventure. But the objects are not your run-of-the-mill swords, magic rings and potions - you pick up TV dinners, cans of worms, handfuls of valium... The object is to get through the Gate of Pi, which will reward you with a place name and date. Turn up at the appointed time and an Automata person will hand over the goodies.

There are potential clues in everything, probably even in the horrendous 'disco single' on the other side of the program tape. The Pi-Man does a mean hokey-cokey.

The animation makes nonsense of the fact that the Spectrum is a slow computer. And the cassette case should carry a government health warning: this game can damage your brain. It would appear that Automata staff are not expecting an early winner - if no one shows up on the first date set, they promise to return at the same time on the same day of every year until the prize is won.

Steve Mann

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