ST Format


Swap
By Palace
Atari ST

 
Published in ST Format #45

Swap

Life is just one big ego trip, with some bits of it making you feel better about yourself than others. Whether or not you believe that, the puzzle game Swap is bound to increase your sense of self-worth. It comes packaged with papers which attempt to explain the nature of intelligence, how intelligence was something you demonstrated when you bought Swap and how it's something you're going to need when you're playing it.

The most important thing to understand about all this is that Swap is dead easy. Your ST monitors your progress so that you progress through the levels according to your ability - it's perfectly possible, therefore, to jump from Level One to Level 40 in about three games, and that can't be bad.

Each level of Swap consists of tessellated coloured shapes on a board and it is your job to get rid of all these shapes by pairing up the colours - the pairs then disappear. You achieve this by clicking on a join between two shapes, their places then swap over - hence the cunning title. Once you have repeated this process as far as you can, you can send an avalanche along to make all the shapes fall to the ground, which may make more pairs, and then finish off the screen by dragging spare tiles from the bank of tiles on the left.

Swap

Each of these moves has a cost - and the aim is to clear the board with as few swaps, avalanches or extra tiles, and within a time limit - and a points limit on the harder levels.

Verdict

To start with, Swap is addictive but does get boring once you've whizzed through as many levels as you can. The time limits are unrealistically long, giving you little challenge, although your speedy efforts are rewarded with a leap to a higher challenge. Fun for a while, but unlikely to keep you glued to your ST for weeks on end.

Highs

Makes you feel brainy because it's so easy and has scores of levels.

Lows

Little long term interest since all the levels are virtually the same.

Paula Richards

Other Atari ST Game Reviews By Paula Richards


  • Lemmings II: The Tribes Front Cover
    Lemmings II: The Tribes
  • The Simpsons: Bart vs the Space Mutants Front Cover
    The Simpsons: Bart vs the Space Mutants
  • Devious Designs Front Cover
    Devious Designs
  • Nicky II Front Cover
    Nicky II
  • Potsworth & Co Front Cover
    Potsworth & Co
  • Huckleberry Hound In Hollywood Capers Front Cover
    Huckleberry Hound In Hollywood Capers
  • Manix Front Cover
    Manix
  • The Last Days Of Doom Plus Hezarin Front Cover
    The Last Days Of Doom Plus Hezarin
  • Scrabble Front Cover
    Scrabble
  • Playdays Front Cover
    Playdays