Previous Next

Just before he died, the last Drune Lord cursed the small village of Tautega and its inhabitants...

Into this foreboding scenario walks the wandering barbarian Slaine Mac Roth and his trusty sidekick, Ukko the dwarf. The player's task is to guide the warrior king through the story which unravels before him.

The playing screen is split into two parts, the left hand side displays thoughts as they cross Slaine's mind, while the right keeps the player informed of locations, objects of interest and situations as they occur.

Slaine's actions are controlled by 'capturing' his thoughts as they float across the screen. A severed hand is directed to the desired option and fire initiates the selected idea. Thus, Slaine is able to move from place to place; manipulate and examine objects; interact with other characters and attack and defend himself.

Combat is presented as a series of rounds. The player alternately attempts to defend and attack from the list of manoeuvres, which include the ultimate deterrent - a warp-spasm.

Energy is displayed as a 'warp rating', which is decreased by wounding, but replenished by consuming food or resting. If the current 'wasp rating' is equal to that required for the forthcoming fracas, Slaine is sent into a strange and terrifying battle frenzy that decimates the opposition entirely.

The latest chapter in the decimation of 2000 AD characters sees Slaine go up for the chop. Selecting the 'thoughts' is an original idea, but I find the constant and unrelenting concentration needed to direct Slaine's every action extremely wearisome.

In fact, this proves to be a major hurdle since the gameplay isn't terribly captivating. Combat appears frequently, but fails to be an interactive experience since you never actually see anyone, and all the action is related via text. Some of the smaller frames are also difficult to read, with black words on a dark blue background!

The only redeeming features are the soundtrack - which is quite fitting - and the smart comic-style graphics. Full marks for innovation, but it's all a bit of a non-starter as far as I'm concerned.

I'm always one for a bit of innovative thinking, and 'Reflex' is definitely something new in control methods (although it's more like an 'out-of-control' method). It's incredibly frustrating when you're about to select a command it suddenly zips off-screen to appear elsewhere!

This results in a frantic game of chase-the-word, which is confusing and hampers progress. The terse locations descriptions create little in the way of atmosphere and I never felt totally ensconced in the story, which is really the key to a playable adventure.

Ten out of ten for trying something different, but I can't wholeheartedly recommend playing Slaine.

Presentation 78%
The sparse instructions proffer no clues at to the game's objective. Generally polished however, with a useful RAMsave option.

Graphics 69%
Small but stylish graphics, reminiscent of the comic illustrations.

Sound 73%
An atmospheric soundtrack, but little else.

Hookability 57%
Initial appeal is severely marred by the unusual method of accessing commands.

Lastability 39%
Shallow gameplay and the intrusive control method conspire to make playing Slaine a short-term occupation.

Overall 45%
An interesting concept that unfortunately fails to convey any drama or action.