Shareware Platform Game Review: Commander Keen - Invasion of the Vorticons: Marooned on Mars

This review was originally posted at Jupiter Beagle on October 10, 2008.

Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticons - Marooned on Mars is a shareware platformer created by Apogee Software, now known as 3D Realms. It is the reason I bought a Super VGA monitor for my DOS computer in the 1990s, and there’s a good reason for it. Commander Keen is one of the best classic platformers, and my number one pick for the game I’d love to see get a re-release on modern consoles.

Marooned on Mars was the first part of Invasion of the Vorticons, a three-part trilogy that was a shareware game by iD Software and published by Apogee. The idea of shareware was that the first episode was free to download and upload from dial-up text-only BBS systems before the World Wide Web, copy, and share with all of your friends. If you enjoyed the game, the rest of the episodes could be purchased by phone or by mail from Apogee, who would mail you the episodes on disk.

The trilogy starred the 8-year-old genius Billy Blaze, who built a spaceship out of household parts. He dons his brother’s football helmet and defends Earth from the forces of evil in the galaxy as Commander Keen. Part one finds Keen marooned on Mars, where he must find various parts for his spaceship so he can make his way back home.

At first, Keen can only jump over creatures or jump on top of the weaker ones. If he tries to hop on a strong creature, Keen loses a life. The weaker creatures are only stunned, and snap out of it momentarily. These weaker creatures just push Keen forward, while the stronger ones kill him on contact. There are hazards on the levels, such as pits, fire, and spikes, which also cause Keen to lose a life upon contact. Once Keen finds a laser gun, he can shoot laser shots until he runs out of ammunition or finds another gun. Located throughout each level are candy treats and soda, as well as things like teddy bears. Collecting these adds to Keen's points, and at certain score levels, Keen receives more lives.

Later on, Keen also finds a Pogo stick, which lets him jump higher when the pogo button is pressed, which can get Keen to higher platforms and collect more treats. Some levels require exploration, as there are doors that can only be opened by finding the correct colored key (a gameplay concept that iD Software will later incorporate into its popular first-person shooting games). The stages in the game become tougher as they go on, with more hazards and stronger and higher concentrations of enemies.

The game sported great graphics at the time for DOS, which were on par with the graphics on the Nintendo Entertainment System. The music, however, is non-existent. The game was made at a time when most PCs did not have sound cards, and sounds came from the PC speaker, which produced pretty terrible sounds. So, there are only bloops and bleeps in here for the jumping and shooting sound effects. These sound effects are not bad though, and the game is engrossing enough that even playing through the game again recently, I didn’t notice the lack of music.

There is a fan-developed interpreter, however, titled Commander Genius, which uses the original data files and adds optional music. This is my favorite way to play, as the music adds a lot to the atmosphere of the game. All and all, Commander Keen: Invasion of the Vorticons - Marooned on Mars is a definite classic. The storyline is interesting, the graphics are nice, and the gameplay is superb.

Final verdict:
4½ out of 5

Shareware Direct-Controlled Adventure Review: Hugo's House of Horrors

Hugo's House of Horrors (known as Hugo's Horrific Adventure in the Windows re-release) was an independent adventure game solely designed by David Gray and released in 1990. It does fall into many of the traps that befall independent adventure games by first time game developers, but it's zany atmosphere and freeware status of the DOS version may make it worth playing to those willing to overlook it's many flaws.

The game interface uses a combination of keyboard for movement and text parser for actions like the early games in Sierra's King's Quest or Space Quest series.  The Windows remake features optional point and click controls, including using inventory items.  If you use ScummVM to play the game, the freeware DOS version of the game also gains most of these point and click features, with the exception of inventory items.  The Windows version has clickable icons representing inventory items, but in the DOS version through ScummVM, the inventory is only represented in text that is not clickable.  The control and parser method works, however the  text parser is lacking.  It doesn't understand many verbs, and you will find yourself typing verb after verb until you find the one that the parser is expecting in some puzzles.  The Windows version gets around this nuisance since you can left click to perform an action on an object instantly without having to worry about guessing the correct verb.  The Windows version (and the DOS version through ScummVM) also adds text letting you know the name of the object when you hover over it, which is very useful for finding an exit to a room that is a bit of a pixel hunt in the original DOS version.  However, the Windows version is not freeware, and is only available in a bundle including all three Hugo adventure games from the Gray Design Associates website for $10 USD.

Although David Gray hadn't heard of Maniac Mansion before the game was created, their similarities are undeniable.  Like Maniac Mansion before it, Hugo's House of Horrors is a pastiche of the horror movie genre.  However, Hugo aims in a slightly different direction, tackling classic movie monster cliches rather than teenage slasher films.  You will find just about every movie monster in the mansion, although few of them are put to good use.  The one exception is the mad scientist and his assistant, which are part of a rather funny puzzle early on in the game.  Although this was released the same year as The Secret of Monkey Island, it doesn't contain the vast dialog seen in that game.  This is a game that has a decidedly 1980's design philosophy.  There isn't a lot of dialog from the characters.  Hugo doesn't speak at all, and most of the dialog comes from the narrator.  Instead, like Maniac Mansion, the humor in the game comes from the humorous actions that are performed by the zany characters in the mansion.  And like Sierra's games, some of the humor comes from the death sequences.  You can die in this game, and sometimes it's unavoidable.  So, saving is highly recommended.  Most of the death scenes are solved with puzzles, however there is one annoying instance where death is avoided simply by getting an enemy's AI to get stuck behind a foreground object.  This results in trial and error, and you will find yourself saving and reloading many times before you get the timing just right.  Thankfully, this kind of gameplay only occurs once, and the rest of the deaths can be avoided by puzzles.

As this was released on PC in 1990, the artwork is of the pixellated variety of that time period.  However, the art in the mansion is bright and cheery and the characters are reasonably detailed.  Even with the limitations of the engine, you can still make out every monster that is being parodied, even without the help of the text from hovering over the characters with your mouse.  The art style will be a put off to some due to it's age, but to those willing to overlook it's age, the art style is really one of the best aspects of the game.

The other differences from the DOS and Windows versions is that the DOS version only has music at the beginning of the game, whereas the Windows version has another music track.  The silence in DOS games was usual at the time, due to few computers possessing sound cards.  Programmers had to play the music through the boops and beeps of the PC speaker instead.  As this was difficult to implement, and usually didn't sound too nice, PC games of the 1980's and sometimes (as in this case) the early 1990's only had opening songs.  The opening music is nice, and slightly catchy, and the Windows MIDI music sets the mood well although it's not as memorable as the title tune.  The choice between versions in regards to music really has to do with whether you mind silence in your games, since the Windows song, while nice, isn't necessary to the experience.

The puzzles are where this game both shines and falters.  There are some really good adventure puzzles here, but there are some which aren't as well executed.  There's a puzzle in particular at the end of the game, where the player is asked some various pop culture questions.  There is no context for this in the game.  Like the Leisure Suit Larry age verification questions, the player is just expected to know them from their own memory.  This kind of puzzle doesn't work, as a player born in different generations or from other countries might not know the questions.  I, personally, didn't know the question that related to an American television show from the 1950's, and resorted to looking it up on the internet.  It's a shame, because this puzzle could have been integrated into the game through text found throughout the mansion, as was the case of another puzzle where the answer was written in graffiti in one of the rooms.  There's another puzzle that results in a dead end if you don't do the right action right away.  The ability to perform the action is right there, but the character that is required to do that action refuses to do so after the action has already been performed.  It's puzzles like these that make the game more frustrating than it should be.  The last drawback of the game is that it is quite short, and can easily be played in a few hours or less by those who have never played it before.

Hugo's House of Horrors is a conundrum.  It is full of many faults, but it has gained a small fanbase due to it's quirky art style, music, and characters.  With just a few changes to some of the more ill-conceived puzzles, it could be a much better game.  But as it stands, it's hard for me to recommend this game.  That said, if you wish to play through it and see if you're willing to overlook the flaws, the DOS version is free, and it is short. If you do opt to play it, I'd recomend playing the freeware DOS version in ScummVM for the ability to point-and-click with your mouse.

Final Verdict:

 2½ out of 5

Hugo II: Whodunit? Review