Sam & Max on GameTap - A Quickie Look (OK, maybe not that quick)
I had an opportunity between activities last night to download and run the new Sam & Max episode on my main PC. No issues with the download and getting it to run, and, unlike on my arcade machine, there was no polygonal tearing of the scenery. Oddly enough, the game defaults to 800x600 with all features turned to "high". There are options for 1024x768 and one jump higher, but I found both, while they offered more screen real estate, were significantly choppy, even on a machine that should eat such a game for breakfast and still have room for seconds and thirds. Obviously, as adventure games go, Sam & Max is a bit of a resource hog and not quite as optimized as it could be, despite being no more advanced than polygonal adventure games from many years back. In any case, there is lots of fully spoken dialog from what sounds like the same guys who did the voices on the first LucasArts release.
I only played long enough to get out of the office. The initial puzzles are straightforward and relatively simple, easing you into using the inventory and dialog to achieve your in-game goals. So far, so good and I look forward to playing a little each night I get a chance. By the way, after you pass a small puzzle/accomplishment, the game auto saves, but you're able to save any time that you wish.
Despite the questionable efficiency of the game's engine and inability to tune pointer/mouse speed, the actual in-game assets are polished and the constant spoken dialog is a treat. I'll be curious how long this first episode ultimately is, but this is a great start to episodic gaming if I don't encounter anything unexpected going forward. The standard adventure game format seems to lend itself well to "episodes" and Sam & Max are a great way to get people into the idea, especially with it being the number one most played title right now on GameTap. Finally, for better or worse, it's important to keep in mind that this is Adventure gaming taken to its most streamlined level, as you only use one mouse button to do everything, clicking on an area to move to it, clicking on an item to interact in a manner that the game pre-determines with an object, clicking on your inventory to get an item and then clicking with that chosen item on something else to try and use that item on it. It felt rather limiting at first, but once I started to use some of the objects with other objects, I began to see more of the possibilities in this more straightforward approach. Even if it's "adventure light" and a bit on the casual side, there's nothing wrong with that on occasion and certainly lends itself well to the light-hearted subject matter.
I had an opportunity between activities last night to download and run the new Sam & Max episode on my main PC. No issues with the download and getting it to run, and, unlike on my arcade machine, there was no polygonal tearing of the scenery. Oddly enough, the game defaults to 800x600 with all features turned to "high". There are options for 1024x768 and one jump higher, but I found both, while they offered more screen real estate, were significantly choppy, even on a machine that should eat such a game for breakfast and still have room for seconds and thirds. Obviously, as adventure games go, Sam & Max is a bit of a resource hog and not quite as optimized as it could be, despite being no more advanced than polygonal adventure games from many years back. In any case, there is lots of fully spoken dialog from what sounds like the same guys who did the voices on the first LucasArts release.
I only played long enough to get out of the office. The initial puzzles are straightforward and relatively simple, easing you into using the inventory and dialog to achieve your in-game goals. So far, so good and I look forward to playing a little each night I get a chance. By the way, after you pass a small puzzle/accomplishment, the game auto saves, but you're able to save any time that you wish.
Despite the questionable efficiency of the game's engine and inability to tune pointer/mouse speed, the actual in-game assets are polished and the constant spoken dialog is a treat. I'll be curious how long this first episode ultimately is, but this is a great start to episodic gaming if I don't encounter anything unexpected going forward. The standard adventure game format seems to lend itself well to "episodes" and Sam & Max are a great way to get people into the idea, especially with it being the number one most played title right now on GameTap. Finally, for better or worse, it's important to keep in mind that this is Adventure gaming taken to its most streamlined level, as you only use one mouse button to do everything, clicking on an area to move to it, clicking on an item to interact in a manner that the game pre-determines with an object, clicking on your inventory to get an item and then clicking with that chosen item on something else to try and use that item on it. It felt rather limiting at first, but once I started to use some of the objects with other objects, I began to see more of the possibilities in this more straightforward approach. Even if it's "adventure light" and a bit on the casual side, there's nothing wrong with that on occasion and certainly lends itself well to the light-hearted subject matter.
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Bill Loguidice, Managing Director
Armchair Arcade, Inc.
[ My collection ]
[ http://www.MythCore.com ]
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Bill Loguidice, Managing Director
Armchair Arcade, Inc.