66 lines
3.6 KiB
Plaintext
66 lines
3.6 KiB
Plaintext
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QIX
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QIX is a port of the ancient arcade game. Written by Alien Technology Group and
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published and distributed by Taito, QIX features good graphics, simple gameplay,
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a two-player mode, "V-Max! fastloader," joystick control, and copy protection.
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This review is based on the Commodore 64/128 version.
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Taito calls QIX (pronounced "kicks") the "computer virus" game. While I don't
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recall the arcade version being so described, I suppose it makes sense, viruses
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being trendy and all. It's better than saying, "QIX? Oh! there's this bunch
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lines that kinda twists around, and ya gotta fill in 65% of the screen with
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squares that get filled in." No matter how you say it, this version is a
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faithful translation of an odd and frustrating game.
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The Qix is a spinning, whirling bunch of lines (a simulation of a virus) that
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hides within the dark confines of your computer. Booting the game brings Qix to
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life, along with its sub-viral assistants, Sparx and Spritz. Your goal is to
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build a "vaccine" by filling in sections of computer memory, thus preventing Qix
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from infecting the system.
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To accomplish this, you control a marker that moves only in straight lines and
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turns only on 90-degree angles. Each time you create a square or rectangle (of
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any size), a fill is generated; each fill is worth a percentage of the screen.
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To complete Level 1, you must fill in 65%. The required percentages increase as
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you move up in levels.
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You start with four lives. Termination of a life occurs when the Qix touches an
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incomplete line, if your marker is hit by Sparx (a cluster of dots), or if your
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marker is hit by the Spritz (a star-like object that follows you). You should
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also be aware of the Fuse: Stopping in mid-draw lights the Fuse back at the
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start of the current line; when it reaches the marker, a life is lost.
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The Commodore 64 screen display consists of a large square -- representing a
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section of memory -- within which Qix twists and tumbles and spins about in a
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random fashion. To the right of the square are: percentage needed, percentage
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completed, current level, and the Sparx timer. The Sparx timer is a red line
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that shrinks by increments as the game progresses; when it disappears, two new
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Sparx are created.
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Your marker is a movable screen pixel that's controlled with a joystick.
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Pressing and releasing the button, then moving the stick in a cardinal
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direction, draws a line: This "fast draw" earns a certain amount of points.
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Pressing and holding the button, then drawing a line, is called a "slow draw"
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and it earns twice as many points as a fast draw. Each percentage of the screen
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you fill over the needed amount earns 1,000 bonus points.
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There is a Practice mode and a two-player mode. The disk is copy-protected.
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V-Max! is a speed demon of a fastload utility that doesn't waste time either
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booting the game or loading new levels.
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If nothing else, QIX is different. It's a simulation, perhaps only because
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Taito says it is, but it's unlike the simulations you're used to. The elements
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are few and play is deceptively simple. The manual claims that the Qix gets
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smarter, having learned something from previous levels. I don't know if it gets
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smarter, but it definitely gets faster and more unpredictable.
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Graphics on the C64 are good, clear, and understandable -- though primitive by
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today's standards. QIX has great potential to become addictive. It's not
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necessarily fun, due to its high frustration factor, but you'll find yourself
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playing it anyway.
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QIX is published and distributed by Taito.
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*****DOWNLOADED FROM P-80 SYSTEMS (304) 744-2253
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