~2 minute readCritically Speaking...Multi-Systems
Hollywood Hijinx
HOLLYWOOD HIJINX (NA / ⭐⭐⭐⭐) is one more in a long string of interactive fiction which proves once again that we never met an Infocom game we didn't like! This one is the first effort from author "Hollywood" Dave Anderson, and it's prime Infocom humor all the way. (We wonder: are these authors already unusually creative people with an irreverent sense of humor when they sign on at Infocom, or is there something in the Cambridge water?)
A Treasure Hunt
HOLLYWOOD HIJINX is basically a treasure hunt, although the things you seek may seem more like trash than treasure when you find them. The treasure hunt takes place in the Malibu mansion, "Hildebud," built by your late Uncle Buddy and Aunt Hildegarde. You have great memories of summers spent with your aunt and uncle in that house, along your many cousins. Uncle Buddy was a famous and flamboyant producer of "B" movies, and he was always full of tricks and tales about his string of celluloid hits, including such unforgettable flicks as "Slash'n'Chop Sock Hop," "Plan Nine from Marketing," "10-1/2 Little Indians," and "Maggio Girls and Boys" (a serial about 16 brothers and sisters who were junior detectives). Since you were their favorite niece or nephew, you stand to inherit the whole bundle -- IF you can find ten treasures from Buddy's film career which are hidden in the house, gardens, and the nefarious hedge maze. You have just one night to find them all in this crazy place that some say is haunted. (It just might be haunted, because there are lots of things that go bump in the night as you search the mansion.
Outrageous Humor
We loved HOLLYWOOD HIJINX for its puzzles -- from easy to quite challenging -- and for its totally outrageous humor. The mansion is a delight to explore, from its tastelessly overdone master bedroom and bath (round bed, Oscar-shaped water faucets, a bath mat inlaid with a portrait of Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president Jack Valenti) to tricky surprises like a hidden elevator and stairs that won't let you walk up. Memories of your childhood are stirred by recounting of childhood pranks by you and your cousin Herman (star of the "Little Herman" TV series of the late 1960s). The Tinseltown artifacts are full of fun, such as the scale model of Tokyo used in the filming of "Atomic Chihuahuas from Hell" and the life-sized statue of Buck Palace, the Fighting Mailman, who was featured in "five fantastic films about a mild-mannered mailman whose dedication to the Post Office and the American way of life inspired us all." We guarantee you'll get a lot of laughs from HOLLYWOOD HIJINX, and in between the chuckles and chortles, you'll enjoy the challenge of the many puzzles. (Solo play; Keyboard.) Available for Amiga, Apple II, Atari XE/XL & ST, IBM, Macintosh.
Recommended. (MSR $39.95, except Atari XE/XL, C64/128 at $34.95)
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