Previous Next

You have one objective to retrieve the Amulet of Yendor. This precious object is hidden within the depths of the Dungeons of Doom, and only armour, a bow, and an enchanted mace are there to defend you from the fearsome monsters that dwell within.

You explore a maze of rooms and corridors which jerk onto the screen as you progress: your inventory is depicted to the right of this display. A command menu allows you to go up or down stairs, search your current location, or rest. Your strength decreases on contact with an enemy, but you can retaliate with one of several weapons selected from a pack. Armour, treasure, potions, weapons, foot and scrolls can all be found to aid your task.

When designing a Gauntlet-type game, you should first find out what made the original so popular. This list should include multi-directional scrolling, numerous enemies on-screen and frantic battle action.

Unfortunately, Rogue doesn't contain any of these elements. The cursor control method is diabolical, the Rogue himself hardly ever ending up where you want him to. The jerky scrolling adds, in no small measure, to the confusion, giving no impression of movement.

As for battle action, forget it - watching paint dry is far more exciting! To sum up, I can honestly say that budget games don't come much worse than this.

I thought graphically simple role-playing games died out years ago, but Mastertronic in Rogue. The reasonable depth in this game doesn't compenate for the edium of endless 'pick up and use' actions - it's not my idea of variety.

The bow is useless for attacking, as by the time you've run away and wielded it, the monster has caught up wth you and drained your strength. Terrible graphics and 16-pixel scroll jump don't help this somewhat pathetic computer RPG. Avoid it at all costs.

Presentation 39%
Annoying lack of user-friendliness and crude on-screen presentation.

Graphics 14%
Small shapeless objects and extremely jerky scrolling.

Sound 3%
A single beep when objects are selected.

Hookability 27%
The exploration bug bites unenthusiastically.

Lastability 12%
A very big dungeon wth very little variety.

Overall 10%
Only worth a look if you're a (very) big RPG fan.