Commodore User


Great Giana Sisters

Author: Mike Pattenden
Publisher: Rainbow Arts
Machine: Commodore 64/128

 
Published in Commodore User #57

Great Giana Sisters

The last great old arcade classic still to appear in any shape or form in the home computer market is Super Mario Bros. Anyone who wanted a classic taste of the ingenious platform game had to go out and buy a Nintendo console - and who wants one of them? You couldn't even find a clone for heaven's sake. Until now, that is. Behind the tongue-in-cheek title of Rainbow Arts' latest game is a highly playable Super Mario replica.

Despite a lousy package illustration and loading screen GGS retains all the features that made the Nintendo game so addictive, so much so that when the insert says "We recommend that after playing this game continuously for several days you take a break for at least ten minutes", you can believe it.

GGS covers thirty-two levels of really tough jumping and dodging that will take you and one of the sisters on a quest for a large magic diamond. The levels are relatively short compared to the original, but they have all the neat touches it contained including hidden warps, the ability to run across the top of the screen, and bonus levels concealed down holes.

The Great Giana Sisters

There are plenty of extra powers to be found as well. These build up (if you can keep the same life) from a punk hairdo that lets her nut walls, to bouncing dreambubbles which take out nasties, a clock which freezes the nasties and a lolli (sic) which will give you an extra life. Collecting the trail of diamonds along the way will give you an extra life eventually, too. You can't hang around making sure you've collected them all though, there's a 90-second time limit.

The graphics on GGS are fine, with a couple of cute sisters and plenty of camp nasties, whilst the sound has a nice hummable tune and a few jolly sound effects too.

There has to be a gripe somewhere in the Ed's review surely? Well, there is, and it's justified. The only thing that lets GGS down is its joystick control which can be sluggish and a tad unresponsive just when you don't want it to be. Using a good quality stick helps, because unlike the Nintendo version hitting the fire button isn't what makes you jump.

Despite the fiddly joystick problem we can't keep away from this one. In fact it means we won't have to go up to big fat sister C&VG to play Mario on their Nintendo any more. Hurrah! But don't tell Nintendo that...

Amiga

GGS is released simultaneously on the Amiga and the only thing to separate it from the 8-bit version is flatter, less garish graphics. Sound effects are a bit brighter, with a nice buzz when one of the sisters grows a punk hairdo. There's also a heartrending scream when they lose a life. Gameplay remains the same. It's still very addictive, but naturally on this machine it doesn't knock you back in quite the same way.

Mike Pattenden

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