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The Archers uses exactly the same system as Adrian
Mole. As in Level 9's other games, text prints on
the bottom of the screen scrolling upward, while 'multi-tasking'
pictures draw simultaneously on the top half.
Also,
as with Level 9's other games, the pics aren't really
that brilliant. Others may disagree but I'm afraid that
I still don't go for Level 9's graphics. I know they
have problems with memory space, but I'm sure fewer
pics and higher quality plus attention to detail would
be more welcome to most players.
However,
UNLIKE Level 9's other games, in The Archers you
do NOT get to enter any text. Instead, the story scrolls
up the page and every so often you get a choice of three
alternative courses of action for the character being
controlled. Selecting different choices has different
results.
In
The Archers, the different results -- apart from
what actually happens in the story -- are either a drop
in the number of listeners (if things get too boring)
or an angry letter from the BBC authorities (if things
get too hot). In other words, you take the role of program
producer/story editor and have to carry the can if things
go wrong. If they go badly wrong, you get the sack and
start again.
The
program is divided into four parts, and each part requires
that you make decisions for one of the major characters
in the series. These are Jack Woolley, Eddie Grundy,
Elizabeth Archer and Nelson Gabriel. In the interests
of equality, it would have been nice to have had two
female characters -- especially since in my view the
Elizabeth section is one of the strongest. Perhaps designer/writer
Pete Austin felt nervous about writing about ladies.
The
good news, comparing this program to Adrian Mole,
is that there are far more frequent decisions to be
made and therefore more variety in the game. Furthermore,
the game is not much affected by whether or not you
listen regularly to The Archers program. With
Adrian Mole I felt that having read the books
put me at a slight advantage, which in turn made the
game less interesting. Not the case here. And if you're
totally unfamiliar with the radio program, there are
extensive notes on the different characters on the cassette
cover.
The
bad news, frankly, is that I found the game rather boring
and certainly not worth the asking price. The sense
of humour that I found so attractive in Mole reoccurs
in this program, but seems somehow rather strained.
The growing pains of adolescence that characterised
the earlier program seem to be replaced by moral and
political considerations here, but the issues seem somehow
naive. Altogether, I felt a bit of a disappointment.
But
then the Wiz is a dyed-in-the-wool adventurer and not
an Archers' fan. I think that families who listen to
the radio program might really get a kick out of playing
this game together in the long winter evenings, but
personally I'd rather tackle a Balrog than Walter Gabriel
any day.
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