Previous Next

A long time ago in an eastern country far, far away, a young prince seeks to inherit his fathers' throne. To prove his worthiness for his title, he must pass a series of tests. For each test passed, he will be given a lamp. Three lamps awarded and the kingdom is his reward.

That's the scenario for what is basically a very simple two-stage game. Stage one consists of a 3D flying sequence. The prince is seated on a magic carpet and you must steer him through a series of sparkling gates. At first this is very easy, but at higher levels (there are 41 altogether) the course develops some very difficult twists and turns.

Once the magic carpet sequence has been successfully completed, you are presented with seven coloured gongs along the bottom of the screen. Hit one of these three times to call up a genie. He will puff on his pipe and several notes will appear and sound - the number varies from two on the first level up to a virtually impossible 12.

When all the notes have rung, they start to advance towards you. Rush around hitting the correct gongs to destroy the notes before they touch you. If you succeed, you will be rewarded with a section of one of the three lamps, and you can then embark on another flight on the magic carpet.

Activision seem to be going all out for outstanding music nowadays, but unfortunately this game doesn't seem to match that quality. The 3D flying sequence was the better part of the game, but after riding the magic carpet for a while, it soon wore thin.

I enjoyed this combination of arcade and fast moving strategy, with its many variations and levels of difficulty.

The fact that there are only two screens is a shame, but they are still a big challenge. The graphics and sound are marvellous with a great feeling of movement in the first stage and lots of different tunes to add to the reverberation of the gongs.

Overall this is a very simple game with only two screens, and £10.99 is far too high a price to pay for some great tunes and little variation in gameplay. Although it gets increasingly difficult to fly your way through the twisting gates and remembering which gong to hit next, this game boils down to a 'Simon' game with an interlude.

Activision have set new standards in soundtrack music. Master of the Lamps has seven superb tunes, and each tune has several variations as you fly on your magic carpet.

The tunes, specially written by Activision, incorporate a large variety of different instruments and rhythms, giving the flying sequences great atmosphere.

The sound of the gongs as you hit them is also excellent, the reverberations dying away to a humming echo.

Presentation 77%
Activision's usual slick package with plenty of options.

Originality 55%
Simon plus 3D Tunnel in new format.

Graphics 68%
Nice flying carpet 3D sequence but not much else.

Hookability 67%
Very playable carpet flight.

Sound 94%
Wonderful variety of original catchy tunes.

Lastability 55%
Plenty of levels, but not much variety.

Value For Money 58%
Our reviewers disagreed strongly on this one - try before you buy.