| Introduction
Gift is quite an unusual thing on the GameBoy Color
- an original character. We've become so used to the
Marios, Warrios and assorted movie characters of this
world that it takes a confident company to release a
game with a 'new' main star. CRYO are a French company
who have been in the games industry for quite some time
now and they're pinning a great deal on their new creation
with not only a GBC version but also one for PC and
PS2. So is it worth your bucks, francs or pounds? Let's
see.
GamePlay
There's no hanging around with this game, it's the
title screen then straight onto the game map. No options,
no difficulty setting, just right in there. There are
7 areas to conquer and only one is available at the
start. Others open up when certain goals have been achieved
although there's no particular order in which you have
to do this. The game is played from an almost above
perspective and whenever Gift enters a new room the
screen will scroll in that direction. First level tasks
will include finding coded keys to open doors, moving
box puzzles over pressure pads and flipping switches.
It does however get a little more difficult in later
levels and some of the puzzles will have you wondering
around the dungeons for quite some time. Do remember
that you'll also have to deal with numerous creepy things
who are reasonably intelligent and will pursue you as
soon as you're in their space.
The first few hours of playing Gift are purely trial
and error and the manual gives little guidance. There
is, however, help at hand and pressing 'select' gives
you your information screen. This includes a full game
map (including color codes to where you've been), keys
collected and other information. This is invaluable
and a very useful feature that you'll get used to referring
to on a regular basis. Without it this game would be
almost impossible.
The game screen is thankfully very uncluttered and
leaves almost all of it for gameplay. The only other
information you have constantly is your health bar.
This is indicated by red hearts. When you get injured
they start to turn grey and obviously once they're gone,
so are you. Although you only start with 3 hearts there
are lots of opportunities to build these up and bonus
hearts are scattered around the various worlds. Make
sure you seek them out as without this extra health
you won't finish the game.
Finally, the password system is an easy 4 letters
which can be entered on the map screen. Thankfully developers
are starting to keep it simple. A game like this doesn't
really warrant a battery backup but nor does it deserve
a complicated save system.
Control
As with all our trusty GBC titles it's 'A' for jump
and 'B' for action so nothing complicated there. Everything
is collected or used by simply moving over it. Gift
moves at quite a speed around the levels but thankfully
the sprite detection both for our hero and all the dangers
is excellent. This is really important with a game of
this type as there's nothing more frustrating as working
a move out to a split second only to get killed anyway
because the danger is closer than you think.
Graphics
Both graphics and animation are simple but well conceived.
Gift isn't asked to do too many moves and always looks
pleasing to the eye. The background throughout appears
suitably different and special effects such as laser
beams and fire are constructed so it's obvious they
are dangerous. One aspect that could have been given
more thought though is the chasms, holes, bits of floor
missing, call them what you will. These are simply areas
of black and until I fell down one I just assumed it
was an area of shadow.
Sound & Music
The music throughout the game makes you feel that
you're involved in a game far faster and pacier than
the one you actually have in your hands. It's almost
like they've written a soundtrack and then cranked it
up and it is so loud you can't even hear the sound effects.
It is impossible to change this so do yourself a favour
and turn the volume down.
Final Comments
Although this is no Zelda it is a very satisfying
gaming experience. The learning curve has been very
well thought out and some of the puzzles in the various
areas are excellent. The game has been out for a few
months now but has had very little exposure and we think
it's a little gem. If you want a nice puzzle/platformer
to waste away a weekend then this could be for you.
It's not as challenging as some other titles around
but also not as frustrating. As the emphasis moves from
GBC to GBA games like this will become a rarity so don't
let this one pass you by.
|
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