182: Zool

Number 182
(12 points)
Zool
1993: 71

The rise of the mascot platformers produces a British attempt to rival its Japanese and American rivals - with a modicum of success.

Zool, the ninja from the Nth dimension apparently, can jump, shoot balls of energy, and perform a spinning jump attack. That's pretty much all you need to know, as the rest is just going through the platform levels as best you can, collecting Chupa Chups sweets for sustenance. It's not very complicated, but it is fast, and at a time when Mario and Sonic encouraged companies to come up with rivals of their own, Zool let Amiga users feel that there was life in the old dog yet.

While Zool is a bit too fast and twitchy - and levels often consist merely of running to the right and shooting repeatedly - it's certainly playable, and the smooth gameplay was a great advert for the ageing Amiga 500 at the time. In hindsight, there are so many other platformers that are probably worth playing before this one, but the playing style is different enough to warrant at least a cursory glance.

Recommended TOSEC disk(s):
Zool (1992)(Gremlin)(Disk 1 of 2)[cr CSL]
Zool (1992)(Gremlin)(Disk 2 of 2)[cr CSL]