Unkillable Cat
LEST WE FORGET
- Joined
- May 13, 2009
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- 28,580
Time Machine (1990)
Released on the major 8-bit and 16-bit machines of the time (but not the PC) is this neat little puzzle game. You control Professor Potts who's finishing his Wellsian time machine (in 1990 AD) when terrorists attack and damage the delicate device, sending Potts back to the year 1 million BC. Armed with only a couple of handheld portal devices that he can teleport between, a home-made taser and his wits, Potts must change history in his immediate environment so that he 'unlocks' future time periods that he can travel to (how he does that without the time machine is a bit of a mystery, but just go with it) until he can reach the present and stop the terrorists.
With a playing field of only five screens this is not a large game, but it's deeper than it looks. The trick is finding out what actions Potts can do in each time era to unlock the next one. For example Potts needs to block up three lava-spewing geysers to make the surrounding area safer, as well as guide some tiny-looking primates to the safety of a cave. This unlocks the ice age, where the descendants of those same primates are freezing so Potts must build them a fire, while finding a way to warm up the place.
I played it on the Amstrad (like so many other titles) 30 years ago and was a little surprised how well it's aged, though I recommend modern gamers try out the Amiga version for the best overall experience. The biggest problem is probably the clunky controls and the need to Read the Manual, but beyond that it's a neat little timewaster.
Released on the major 8-bit and 16-bit machines of the time (but not the PC) is this neat little puzzle game. You control Professor Potts who's finishing his Wellsian time machine (in 1990 AD) when terrorists attack and damage the delicate device, sending Potts back to the year 1 million BC. Armed with only a couple of handheld portal devices that he can teleport between, a home-made taser and his wits, Potts must change history in his immediate environment so that he 'unlocks' future time periods that he can travel to (how he does that without the time machine is a bit of a mystery, but just go with it) until he can reach the present and stop the terrorists.
With a playing field of only five screens this is not a large game, but it's deeper than it looks. The trick is finding out what actions Potts can do in each time era to unlock the next one. For example Potts needs to block up three lava-spewing geysers to make the surrounding area safer, as well as guide some tiny-looking primates to the safety of a cave. This unlocks the ice age, where the descendants of those same primates are freezing so Potts must build them a fire, while finding a way to warm up the place.
I played it on the Amstrad (like so many other titles) 30 years ago and was a little surprised how well it's aged, though I recommend modern gamers try out the Amiga version for the best overall experience. The biggest problem is probably the clunky controls and the need to Read the Manual, but beyond that it's a neat little timewaster.