~4 minute readMicro-Reviews
Seastalker
There you are, cozy and safe in your research laboratory, hunched over your workbench, studying the diagram of your futuristic submarine, the "Scimitar." Suddenly, the videophone alarm begins to blast, but you're so engrossed in your work that you don't look up until your friend Tip Randall rushes to your side yelling, "Patti, snap out of it!" You pick up the microphone and speak with Zoe Bly, Commander of the undersea Aquadome. The information she relates is bad: An enormous sea monster is battering the Aquadome, and you're the only person who can help. Your quiet studies are at an end, and your adventure begins.
SEASTALKER, Infocom's newest "interactive fiction," is not for experienced adventurers. Indeed, the game is labelled by Infocom as a "Junior-Level" adventure. Garners who have come to know and love ZORK, DEADLINE, or STARCROSS will be disappointed with SEASTALKER. A good player will be able to solve the game within a couple of hours, and that's not a whole lot of fun for the price. However, youngsters and beginners may enjoy SEASTALKER, and its "tutorial" aspects make it a perfect introduction to text-only games.
As always with Infocom games, the program diskette is accompanied by several superbly written and illustrated documents. The "Scimitar Logbook" contains detailed diagrams of the submarine, the laboratory, the aquadome, and a variety of submariner gear. A nautical chart of Frobton Bay, as well as nine "Infocards" with hidden clues and descriptions of people and equipment, are included in the game package. The novice adventurer will want to frequently refer to these materials, but an experienced player can make the game more difficult by ignoring these documents. You could try running through the game without reading the hint booklets, then refer to them later to see what you might have missed.
Even if you refuse to peek at the "Infocards," you will still encounter a lot of unavoidable "hand holding" in this game. Your buddy Tip Randall has a marked tendency to offer advice, especially in tight spots. For example, when the videophone malfunctions, Tip suggests that you check out the problem by using the Computestor. Later, when you finally encounter the sea monster (the "Snark"), Tip grabs the throttle and halts your sub saying, "This isn't mutiny, Patti! I just figured we should stop now." Other characters in the game also volunteer timely information, and the program occasionally refers you to the Infocards: "If you want a clue, find Infocard â4 in your SEASTALKER package. Read hidden clue â1 and put 'electrolyte relay' in the blank space." The Infocard decoder consists of a piece of red plastic that allows you to decipher the printed clues on each card.
Perhaps you're wondering why Tip addresses me by name. Well, in this "interactive fiction," you really are the main character. After booting the game diskette, you're immediately asked to enter your first and last names, and the story is thereafter entitled "SEASTALKER: Your Name and the Ultramarine Bioceptor." In replaying the game for this review, I had a few chuckles by changing my name to "Peaches LaRue" ("Peaches, snap out of it!").
Depending on which brand of computer you use and whether you have a printer, you may use the "script" command to simultaneously print out a transcript of the game. A transcript of the story is an added bonus, particularly for beginners who want to check and correct their mistakes.
The SEASTALKER plot is quite simple: The undersea Aquadome, staffed by Commander Bly and a crew of five technicians, is being attacked by an enormous mutant creature. Treachery is suspected, and you, along with your pal Tip, have precious little time to find the traitor(s) and incapacitate the Snark. The Aquadome staff is a gossipy bunch; they seem to enjoy discussing one other, sometimes in great detail. By following certain individuals and questioning them, you can quickly discover who's telling the truth and who's not. The only difficult segments in the game involve underwater travel and combat. It's easy to smash into a submerged, obstacle or to fumble your moves when you're chasing that tentacled sea monster.
As usual with Infocom games, humor takes the edge off of your failures: "Uh oh! Its rocket weapon is swinging slowly in your direction! As you and Tip eye each other despairingly, one thing's for sure: THE ADVENTURE'S OVER!" Infocom's famous parser accepts and understands over 800 words, but if you enter a really strange command, you might receive these types of responses: "What a fruitcake!" or "I assume you mean turn on the reactor." To save moves, you can enter numerous commands on one line. For instance, the following command string works just fine: Close reactor then turn on engine then open throttle then open gate.
There are a few little inconsistencies or glitches in the program. For example, you aren't allowed to turn off the microphone and drop it without saying "Goodbye" first. You can hand the mike to Tip and then walk away, but the program subtracts 3 points from your score if you don't say goodbye and then solve an additional problem. When you visit the aquadome's storage room, you're told that there are several supply shelves with mechanical, electrical, and chemical supplies. But when you ask to examine the mechanical (or other) supply shelves, you're told that "You can't see any mechanical supply shelf here!" Searching, even searching very carefully, reveals nothing. Although several important items are indeed in the storage room, other characters have to tell you about these items before you can pick them up. It's also odd that your sidekick asks you questions (leading questions, naturally) regarding certain issues which were raised â- in your and his presence -â by a crew member. These conversations were obviously placed in the program to help you along, but they aren't "realistic."
SEASTALKER, written by Infocom's Jim Lawrence and Stu Galley, is a fine game for new players, especially young kids, who may need extra help. Puzzle-loving adults and experienced adventurers should stick with Infocom's more complicated games.
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