Discworld

"Prepare to be annoyed"

I played Discworld back when it first came out and really enjoyed it. I then sold it because I was lost and back then I didn't have access to the internet to help me out. That being said I randomly came across both Discworld games about a year ago and I just now got around to finishing the first one.

The story is about a wizard named Rincewind. He's not very good but that doesn't seem to matter much. Rincewind is asked to help get rid of a dragon that is causing problems for the city. To do so he needs to find five items that will be used to make an item that tracks the dragon to its nest. That's how the plot starts and while the plot does get a bit deeper, it really isn't the reason to play the game. The reason is for the dry British humor which I happen to be a fan of. Thankfully the game is full of dialog to keep you laughing. Be warned that it isn't exactly kid friendly though.

Graphics in the game show their age by today's standard and even when comparing to some other Ps1 games it doesn't look all that grand. The backdrops are very nicely done. It's easy to make out the items in the shops and along the streets. The problem I had was with the blurry character models. I wouldn't have thought it would look as bad as it does but the cartoon look the graphics mixed with the blur effect just isn't very pretty. It reminds me of a water color painting after it's had a glass of water splashed onto it.

Rincewind is voiced by Eric Idle. Fans of Monty Python should know who that is. He does a fantastic job of bringing life to the slightly rude Rincewind. Rest of the cast also does a fine job, even if some went with a stereotype for the way they portray certain characters. The sound effects are also nicely done. Each item having its own sound. Really brought life to the game as well. The music really did nothing for me and despite playing this a few hours ago, I remember nothing of the music.

The control is a problem for this game. Due to it being a point and click adventure it does require the use of a mouse, more so than most other games of the genre. Thankfully the PS1 does have that item but sadly I don't. Without a mouse the game moves slowly, menus are harder to navigate and nothing is as responsive as it should be. The normal point and click adventure doesn't require timing but oddly enough this one does. There is at least 2 parts in the first act alone that require you timing your item usage and needing to switch around between items and people.

Discworld is a point and click adventure. For those who don't know anything about this genre it has you moving a character around with an arrow and picking up items. You use the items to open up new items and locations.

It sounds simple enough and it really is simple in its basic structure. The idea of the first act is to find items. By the end of the first act you should have almost 20 unused items in your chest.

This is where the problem arises. Not only is the world map huge, it's also hard to navigate (more on that later). You also end up with so many items that it gets too complex when you try to figure out each task. Most games in this genre give you items you need and nothing else. Instead this game kills you with items that aren't needed and even by the end you have more items than you need.

Back to the world map. You move the arrow around the map and select the location of where you want to go to. This would be fine but the name is only present if you're over the area and about 90% of the map is empty. It can be very frustrating to be lost in the game only because you missed that tiny sliver on the map that is a bar.

Besides that the game rarely, if ever, shows you where or what you need to go or do. The game is rather large and with no guidance it becomes slightly annoying trying to figure out what to do. A perfect example of this is when you need to get the Imp. Once you figure out how to get it out of the box you need to catch it from the sewer drain. How do you do this? Go to the toy shop and get string, go to the town square next and pick up a tomato and throw it at the man in the stocks. Go back and pick up another tomato and Rincewind tosses it because it has a worm. Pick the worm up and attach it to the string. Now use the string on the drain and you get the Imp. Now, what's the chance you would pick the tomato up and throw it and then pick up another one? It really isn't likely and the entire game is made up that way.

The game has virtually no replay value. It's so long and tedious at times that it really could deter any gamer from ever revisiting it. The humor is good though and maybe years later someone would return to it but I think reading the novels would work best in the case of this game.

Discworld is actually the second game based on the hit book series. I'm pretty sure the original game never came to the States unless it was for the PC. Discworld is a UK based game and was brought here for some odd reason. Fans of British humor may find something worth while in this game. Adventure fans may also enjoy themselves. If you fit into neither category then look else where.

Story - 8/10
Graphics - 8/10
Sound - 8/10
Control - 6/10
Game Play - 6/10
Replay Value - 0/10

Final Score - 6/10

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 08/22/07