1st May 1990
Perplexity is one of those games which you'll either like or hate. As soon as the game loads a repetitive tune starts playing. This soon starts to grate but luckily you can turn it down or switch it off (thank god!). The sound effects are much better and add to the atmosphere of the game.
The game looks very similar to the Archimedes game Pacmania but has a puzzle element in between the action. The character (who is also similar to pac-man) has to complete 16 levels of brain damaging puzzles.
To complete a level, the character has to collect all the diamonds in the maze in the face of lethal monsters and boulders which block your way and cannot be destroyed.
To complete a section of the maze a key is needed but it's up to you to find what key goes where.
The graphics are not bad but the colour in the background is irritating. The scrolling is good with fast updates making it smooth but the 3D effects could have been more solid. It looks like the main sprites are floating in the maze.
Overall, this is a good game mixing arcade action and puzzles well. A classic for your collection, but you might end up smashing your computer in frustration if the puzzles are too much or you push the key in the wrong gap!
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