A&B Computing


Kubla Khan

Publisher: Blue Moon
Machine: BBC Model B

 
Published in A&B Computing 1.08

This is a text only adventure game based loosely on the famous poem, "Kubla Khan" by S. T. Coleridge. I was not able to obtain a copy of the poem while reviewing the game, but I suspect that it might contain clues. The game is similar in most respects to other adventure games; you must explode Xanadu, picking up objects and hints, presumably to enter Kubla Khan's castle, although I have not got in yet. The object of the game is to find Kubla Khan's treasure chest.

Despite being long and complex, the program has many bad points. Firstly, there are no instructions or indications of the commands understood, making it a bit hard for beginners to get going. There are no abbreviations of commands (apart from N, S, E, W); this is irritating, especially when you have to type in commands like INVENTORY in full! There is no SAVE game feature for unfinished games, meaning you have to start right from the beginning every time the game is loaded. The responses e.g. "I don't understand" are pretty uninformative, giving no idea as to how to string together words to do a certain thing (such as jumping into a lake).

Overall I think that I would be prepared to pay an extra one or two pounds for a game such as Colossal Adventure from Level 9 Software, which offers more features and a better game. If Kubla Khan was refined and then re-released at the same price, it would be good value for money.