The Terror of the Wolf part 3Schattenjger
Posts : 2391
Joined: 11 OCT 2002
Status : Online | Well, I promised a quick review of Loom, so here goes.
Probably one of my favourate games, Loom is a slightly dated graphic adventure game from Lucasarts. Released around the time of Monkey Island 1, it's highly innovative and memorable.
What makes it so? For one, the storyline shines with class. Borrowing it's style from the likes of The Dark Crystal, Loom tells the tale of young mage Bobbin Threadbare as he explores the world in an attempt to understand the prophecy of destruction that follows him.
So, on with the hard stuff.
Graphically, it tends to be rather bland and basic. This doesn't detract from the gameplay though, as the environment around the screen is nice and big to play around with. You won't be going around with much pixel-hunting. Really, some of the graphics can be quite impressive for the time, the dragon and the crystal castle spring to mind. But strangely, they never quite equal the impressive standard of Monkey Island.
The interface is entirely unique, in that your character's only possession is his distaff. The interaction with the world around you is done via observing different 'tunes' played by items, characters, etc, and replaying them with the distaff. This can be quite confusing at times, but once mastered is very effective. It can take a while to get used to not having an inventory system. Once you realise that you can effectively 'reverse' a spell by playing it backwards, the game does become a lot simpler.
The sound is, bluntly, quite breathtaking. The music (although simple by today's standards) is thoroughly enchanting, and adds more to the atmosphere than words can describe. It's a classical, fairy-tale fantasy, with marvelour elegance. Really this is the highpoint of the game, and in combination with the distaff interface, creates something truly unique. Do try to get ahold of the audio cassette tape with it too, for a wonderful introductory story.
Problems? Yeah, there's a few. For one, the ending is rather abrupt, and would well benefit with a sequel. But in consideration, this really isn't necessary. It folds up the game nicely, and you get a very polished feel to it. I don't reccomend playing on difficult mode if you're tone deaf even slightly, that complicates matters. And of course, the story won't impress everyone. The world does feel rather empty, without much discussion to be had with other characters.
Really, it's a game that wins out with a great story and a unique system. Definitely a game everyone should at least try once.
[url=http://www.justadventure.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1136331866/0#0]GAMES FOR TRADE!![/url]
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