Commodore User


Kayleth

Author: Keith Campbell
Publisher: U. S. Gold
Machine: Commodore 64/128

 
Published in Commodore User #41

Kayleth

Kayleth starts with one immediate and urgent problem followed by another, solved by gut reaction rather than deep thought. From then on, things get more puzzling, as you use your wits to escape the confines of the space cruiser Komar, in orbit [some text missing] menacing robotic claws which are part of the droid production line of this factory in space.

A good adventure has problems that fall naturally within the plot, that can be solved with observation and logical thought. The means to do that comes from the player's innate knowledge, or through information passed in an innocuous way from within the game.

One of the advantages of a sci-fi adventure is that the author can invent all manner of strange objects, leaving the player to work out how to use them, with a hint or two in the fictional hi-tech name of the device, and in its description when examined. Steve Ufnowski handles this beautifully, and as a result, Kayleth is one of those real midnight-oil adventures.

Kayleth

Take, for example, a simple strip of tape found lurking innocently near the start of the game. Examine it and you'll get the description: "It's a thin, sealed strip of Okpan acid, sticky tape'. Within that message, there's no less than three clues: its use, how to manipulate it, and what to do with it!

Your search for Kayleth will take you down to the planet Zyron, with the city of Zylogg to explore. But first, perhaps you'll take refreshment in the Oblivion Inn? Or visit the mine? Or simply look in to see the local agriculture?

Beyond is the beach, and possibly a trip across the planet's acid sea to an inhospitable island inhabited by a Dribble. Phew! Does it honk! A smell like this can kill - and probably will!

Kayleth

Take a wrong turn (or is it the right one?) and you could be facing the claw-like mandibles of the two-headed Mokki Ray, in Twin Peril Forest. Here, as in other places, the graphics, also created by Stefan, come into their own. Many are animated - and not just in a minor way. The Mokki Ray is probably the finest example. Its two heads move around independently on extended necks, and its deadly mandibles snap as they approach you! The whole cycle lasts about four seconds - which is long enough not to look just like a repetitive flicker.

It is amazing just how much is crammed into the C64's memory - the whole program loads from a one-part cassette. There are 92 locations, each with a detailed picture held in memory, which means they display instantly. There's none of the usual drawing and filling - one second the screen's blank, the next there's a complete picture there.

Kayleth sports a multi-word parser, which includes a GET ALL command, whilst the text descriptions are not brief. On top of all that, a ramsave option is offered with QSAVE and QLOAD and BOM takes you Back One Move.

Just as well, when you have to contend with Mokki Rays, destroyer droids, and Dribbles! Not forgetting, of course, the AZAP chambers, teleport devices, each of which has a unique three-letter code. Punch in the wrong one, and you'll fry! But not to worry; as long as you have remembered to use QSAVE, it will take but a few seconds to recover your previous position.

Presumably Asimov's name on the package will help to sell the game. However, having here proved that Rebel Planet wasn't a mere flash in the pan, Ufnowski's name along on adventure should be reason enough for buying it.

Keith Campbell

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