Computer Gamer


Twin Pack

Publisher: Audiogenic
Machine: BBC Model B

 
Published in Computer Gamer #19

Twin Pack: The Genesis Project Plus International Megasports

It's two games for the price of one time again with a bundling of International Megasports and The Genesis Project in a twin-cassette pack; both incidentally also available as part of a larger collection, The Complete BBC (Tape: £19.95). As is increasingly usual with these collections, it is a smart marketing ploy to get you excited at the bargain - even together I think these are overpriced.

International Megasports is yet another of the multi-event sport games causing shelves in computer shops to groan under the weight of numbers this year. Not a patch on Tynesoft's Winter Olympics top-seller, this is closest in feel to Alligata's Olympic Decathlon, another disappointing package.

A full range of events is offered: running, skeet shooing, long horse, archery, hurdling, high jump and long jump. Personally, I find these multi-event games a real bore and nothing about this package has caused me to change my mind: endless practices to reach the required level for competition, no real sense of involvement, the strain of having to repeat early events again and again in order to reach the later events (surely a disc version with an option menu ought to be available?).

Graphically, this is average for the genre and compulsive sports fans may find this of interest. I think this is not, however, the one sports compilation to buy if you are only going to choose one, and not even the game's good humour and flashes of humour can triumph over its essentially boring nature.

The Genesis Project, on the other hand, is really dire. Playing like a sophisticated version of a type-it-in magazine game, this is a dull Star Trek game where, despite interesting graphics, you have to plod through star sector after star sector trying to track down Klingons - now there's an original game idea. The galaxy is represented by a grid and there is a small window showing the Enterprise, a star background and whatever nasties are lurking in the area.

This is not worth playing unless you are catatonic by nature, and the best I can say about it is that, assuming you want a sports simulation game, then this at least is "free".