Neighbors From Hell

"Ladies and Gentlemen, slapstick "comedy" just went interactive."

From Charlie Chaplin to Ren and Stimpy, there is no denying that slapstick comedy is always a winner. Whether you find it funny or just rather irritating is down to personal preference of course, but it has become something of an art-form in itself. Myself, I find it irritating. I did not initially realize that the entire premise of Neighbours from Hell would be based on the cheap laughs that various tools and implements can provide when mixed with body parts, but what separates this from the usual rake in the eye monotony of comedy through pain is the fact that it is, indeed, a game. Yes, it is down to you to provide the pain, and as such the potential for sadistic borderline-psychotic glee is immense. Neighbours from Hell is a game for the would-be infamous - it is an exercise in screwing the world up into a tiny little ball and saying ''hey, I caused agony for someone today'' without having to endure either time in prison or the exorbitant fees of Madame Whiplash.

The scenario is that you are a guy with a very large nose called ''Woody'', who is appearing in a TV series in which he has to torment his poor neighbour as savagely as possible in order to keep your frankly freakish viewing public entertained - the more you hurt your neighbour, the more angry he gets, and the more people watch the programme. It sounds like the stuff nightmares are made of, and it really really is. In order to hurt your neighbour, you'll have to find a selection of items and turn them into traps by placing them in opportune locations. However, you will have to avoid your neighbour while doing all this, as you really don't want him to catch you. This leads to a whole element of cartoonish pseudo-stealth being incorporated, which is in my view the most entertaining aspect of this game. Sneaking is graphically hilarious, especially seeing Woody's facial expression whilst doing so.

The main positive aspect of game play is that you have a pretty free rein in setting your traps - trial and error is a strong feature here. Picking up items, deciding what to do with them and then placing them in appropriate places to create traps is entirely left to your ingenuity, which means that there is great scope for using your imagination here to have some real fun. It makes the anger moments all the more satisfying to know that you planned them perfectly and that all is happening in accordance to what you had visualized, although it also adds extra opportunity for you to screw up. Of course, the items will only work in certain ways and in certain places, so you'll have to figure out exactly what to do in order to create the best possible effects.

The appearance of the game is fantastic. It is made to look like a cartoon, which works extremely well with the whole feel of the game. The game is set within a house, which is created with a certain doll house feel to it - rooms appear as though the front of the house is cut away, with action being side-scrolling. Colors are a little dull, but this doesn't really impact on the game at all - it just makes the house look as though it could use a lick of paint (if your home was going to be on television, you'd at least mop the floors though, surely). I cannot comment on sound as my speakers are currently broken.

Overall, this is an averagely entertaining, sickly enjoyable game which made me feel guilty every time I laughed - mocking the pain of others is not to everyone's tastes. It is a simple premise, but certainly original. However, it can become a little too repetitive at times and the novelty does wear off quickly. A good bargain game that could never be accused of over-achieving.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 06/27/03, Updated 06/27/03