My summary says it all. Space Quest is getting tired. Perhaps that is why they haven't made a new one in a long time? Perhaps its why I just dusted off the CD and finished it almost 10 years after its release? It was a challenge getting a game from the mid-90's to run on a 3G P4 XP machine. Thankfully there are some dedicated "fans" of the genre that put much needed timer fixes on the 'net or I'd have to resort to pulling out my old P90 from the closet. In addition, there was one part near the end of the game (by the tapeworm) where I had to turn scrolling off in order to see the screen - very frustrating, but hey, the software is fairly old and designed for DOS/Win95 - I'm amazed I got it to run at all! I have to say, I wasn't too excited about playing the game. I seemed to spend a lot of time wandering around, not quite sure of what to do next. The story, or just lack of general idea of what Roger was supposed to be doing was totally lacking most of the time. Most puzzles were of so-so difficulty - however, some were quite obscure. If you can't locate the enclosed "Popular Jantronics" magazine that came with the game (mine is buried in my closet somewhere) you will lack vital clues on how to do things, like fuel the ship, or build a homing beacon. Again, dedicated fans on the internet helped by posting the solutions. Finally, I just gave up. The game could not hold my interest. Silly (corny) jokes and lack of cohesive game plan just bored me and I cheated the rest of the way through the game and finished in a few hours. I won't bother talking much about graphics - they were probably great for the '90's - this game is old. Today they just look horrible in comparison to modern games. Furthermore, the voice acting is, well, corny and the game is entirely to smug for my liking. It tries to be funny, but is just annoying. Kinda of like those Leslie Nielson flicks (Naked Gun, etc.) where they just push for one more laugh, but it never comes.... Anyway, the game is mediocre, the whole design tired and boring. One gets the impression that this was just shoveled out there to bring in a few more dollars for a fading series. That said, I loved Space Quest's earlier incarnations. Hopefully Sierra and successors will be able to breed new life into the series again (c'mon it's 2005 already, can't Roger come out of retirement already?) If you can get this game for $1.99 or less and either have an old machine (or don't mind fiddling with a newer machine its probably worth the time if you are a fan of the series. If not, just pass by - you aren't missing much) Sorry Roger, I hope you aren't rotting away out there. Set course for Earth and come visit us, but not without a new adventure.
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Back in the mid 80s Sierra decided to develop a long list of adventure games. The list included Quest for Glory, Kings quest, and Police Quest. The Space Quest series followed as the joker of the class. In the very first... Read Full Review
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