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Hot on the heels, or should
that be cold on the heels, of
Apache Gold comes
Incentive's other Medallion
Graphic Adventure, Winter
Wonderland. The scene-setting in this
one is terrific, with you playing the
part of an anthropologist who's
plunged, in the manner of Harrison
Ford (Yummy! Ed), into a tale of
adventure and discovery. You receive a
telegram from a Russian archaeologist
friend working in Tibet who tells you
to get your anthropological self over
there at once. He's found evidence of a
civilisation that's advanced at the same
rate as the rest of mankind, but totally
independent of it. On the last leg of
your journey in the Himalayas, your
Cessna aircraft is forced down by bad
weather, and as you dive into the snow
you're sure you get a glimpse in the
distance of sunlight reflecting on glass.
Can this be true in this deserted
landscape? Well of course it can,
otherwise there'd be no adventure.
You begin the game by the wreckage of your aircraft, with a fur coat and a pair of snowshoes. "Welcome to Winter Wonderland" the radio crackles, before expiring. Better wear the fur coat before you do the same. I made two moves east and died an instant death, falling through thin ice. Not my favourite way to start a game, as regular readers will know. I wandered elsewhere, found a gun, saw off a grizzly, then got myself stuck at the bottom of a rocky crevasse, having discovered a rope and ice-pick down there. I tried for ages to get out, but having gone SOUTH to get in I couldn't return NORTH, or go in any other direction, including UP or DOWN. I couldn't DIG, couldn't THROW ROPE, couldn't do anything. Eventually I ran through the directions again, and discovered the program recognised U but not UP. Bad programming, methinks. Having sorted that out, I entered at last the world of Shangri-la, a strange world and not at all like you'd imagine. I mean to say, the Milton Walk Shopping Centre? Here were pet shops selling hamsters, florists selling roses, and the inevitable bookshop too. If only I'd had some money I would've had a good time. All I got instead was some kid continually throwing snowballs at me. I wouldn't mind, but I wasn't allowed to throw any back at him. And I thought it a bit much when he followed me into the health food shop and bombarded me there. The game itself doesn't quite live up to the expectations created by the scenario, but I'd be happy to go back to it and I reckon it's just got the edge on Apache Gold. Shame about the price.
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