America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D Review

Insanely Great Mac

America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D

Reviewed by: Brent Hecht

Review Date: 8.9.99

Publisher: MacSoft

MSRP: $19.99

Genre: Arcade

Everyone remembers the gold ol' days when Tetris and Pac-Man were the coolest games around. There was something special about those classic games that today's 3D first-person shooters lack. For years, game developers have tried to combine modern 3D technology with the simplicity and addictive-ness of the classics. America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D aims to do just that.

America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D includes four classic arcade games, modernized with 3D graphics and a few new features. 3D Munch Man is a revision of Pac-Man, 3D Alien Invaders is a revision of Space Invaders, 3D Qube Jumper is a revision of Q*Bert, and 3D Tetra Madness is a revision of, you guessed it, Tetris.

MUNCH MAN:

In 3D Munch Man, the goal is to get Munch Man to eat all of the "items" before he is eaten by one of the monsters. The game consists of three different environments, each with a different theme. These environments added a dynamic element to the game, allowing it to break from Pac-Man's monotonous style. The gameplay is almost exactly the same as the original Pac-Man however, the game does have its weaknesses. There are some significant problems with the 3D interface that were overlooked by the developers. First, the game has some problems with accurate portrayal of depth. When going up and down hills, it was often difficult to see where Munch Man was in relation to the maze. Second, with no overhead map of any kind, it was hard to find the last few remaining items to eat.

ALIEN INVADERS:

The goal of 3D Alien Invaders is to shoot down all of the monsters before they shoot you and/or reach your base. The gameplay is exactly the same as Space Invaders. All that is added is a third dimension. It would have been nice if 3D Alien Invaders had a couple different environments, like in 3D Munch Man. Going through the game level by level can get very monotonous.

QUBE JUMPERS:

In 3D Qube Jumpers, players must jump on all the cubes in each level, while at the same time dodging various monsters. I definitely enjoyed the backgrounds, which changed at each level. I also enjoyed the cartoon-like sounds that were made by the cube jumper and all the monsters. However, there were a few notable caveats to this game that made it much less entertaining to play. At times it was difficult to tell where the cubes ended, causing me to guide the cube jumper into thin air. Also, the game gets difficult very quickly. By the third level, there are so many monsters hopping down at you that it takes a quite experienced player to dodge them.

TETRA MADNESS:

In 3D Tetra Madness, players try to stack up blocks to complete horizontal lines. In this set of four games, 3D Tetra Madness embodies the "last but not least" mantra. The developers of 3D Tetra Madness have managed to flawlessly transition Tetris, one of the most popular games in history, into 3D. Not only that, they have added to certain elements of the game, making it even more fun that the original 2D version. For instance, the newly added "special pieces" such as bombs and anchors add a whole new level to the game. The only complaint I have is that once you start playing, it will be hard to pull yourself away!

HEFTY SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS:

America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D seems like the perfect set of games to play on older Macs. It uses basic 3D graphics and a simple game engine. However, if you take a glance at the system requirements, you may be very disappointed. The games require a PowerPC processor and 16 MB of free RAM. So some Mac users may miss out on what may have been an ideal target for retro arcade games.

THE FINAL WORD:

It is difficult to give an overall rating to a package that varies in quality as much as this one does. Three of the games, 3D Qube Jumper, 3D Munch Man, and 3D Alien Invaders, offer almost nothing new in terms of gameplay. The only major thing the games add is a 3D interface, which at times, can be an obstruction. But 3D Tetra Madness is an outstanding game that manages add to the addictive-ness of the original Tetris while weaving in a third dimension beautifully. If you are a major Tetris fan, buying the entire package just for 3D Tetra Madness is worth the $20. For everyone else, save your money and either dig up that old Atari or download shareware versions of the games.

SCORE:
5 out of 10

System Requirements: A PowerPC processor, a CD-ROM drive, 16MB or more of available RAM, and Mac OS 7.1 or greater.



America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D Reviewed by: Brent Hecht Review Date: 8.9.99 Publisher: MacSoft MSRP: $19.99 Genre: Arcade
Everyone remembers the gold ol' days when Tetris and Pac-Man were the coolest games around. There was something special about those classic games that today's 3D first-person shooters lack. For years, game developers have tried to combine modern 3D technology with the simplicity and addictive-ness of the classics. America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D aims to do just that. America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D includes four classic arcade games, modernized with 3D graphics and a few new features. 3D Munch Man is a revision of Pac-Man, 3D Alien Invaders is a revision of Space Invaders, 3D Qube Jumper is a revision of QBert, and 3D Tetra Madness is a revision of, you guessed it, Tetris. MUNCH MAN:* In 3D Munch Man, the goal is to get Munch Man to eat all of the "items" before he is eaten by one of the monsters. The game consists of three different environments, each with a different theme. These environments added a dynamic element to the game, allowing it to break from Pac-Man's monotonous style. The gameplay is almost exactly the same as the original Pac-Man however, the game does have its weaknesses. There are some significant problems with the 3D interface that were overlooked by the developers. First, the game has some problems with accurate portrayal of depth. When going up and down hills, it was often difficult to see where Munch Man was in relation to the maze. Second, with no overhead map of any kind, it was hard to find the last few remaining items to eat. ALIEN INVADERS: The goal of 3D Alien Invaders is to shoot down all of the monsters before they shoot you and/or reach your base. The gameplay is exactly the same as Space Invaders. All that is added is a third dimension. It would have been nice if 3D Alien Invaders had a couple different environments, like in 3D Munch Man. Going through the game level by level can get very monotonous. QUBE JUMPERS: In 3D Qube Jumpers, players must jump on all the cubes in each level, while at the same time dodging various monsters. I definitely enjoyed the backgrounds, which changed at each level. I also enjoyed the cartoon-like sounds that were made by the cube jumper and all the monsters. However, there were a few notable caveats to this game that made it much less entertaining to play. At times it was difficult to tell where the cubes ended, causing me to guide the cube jumper into thin air. Also, the game gets difficult very quickly. By the third level, there are so many monsters hopping down at you that it takes a quite experienced player to dodge them. TETRA MADNESS: In 3D Tetra Madness, players try to stack up blocks to complete horizontal lines. In this set of four games, 3D Tetra Madness embodies the "last but not least" mantra. The developers of 3D Tetra Madness have managed to flawlessly transition Tetris, one of the most popular games in history, into 3D. Not only that, they have added to certain elements of the game, making it even more fun that the original 2D version. For instance, the newly added "special pieces" such as bombs and anchors add a whole new level to the game. The only complaint I have is that once you start playing, it will be hard to pull yourself away! HEFTY SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: America's Greatest Arcade Hits 3D seems like the perfect set of games to play on older Macs. It uses basic 3D graphics and a simple game engine. However, if you take a glance at the system requirements, you may be very disappointed. The games require a PowerPC processor and 16 MB of free RAM. So some Mac users may miss out on what may have been an ideal target for retro arcade games. THE FINAL WORD: It is difficult to give an overall rating to a package that varies in quality as much as this one does. Three of the games, 3D Qube Jumper, 3D Munch Man, and 3D Alien Invaders, offer almost nothing new in terms of gameplay. The only major thing the games add is a 3D interface, which at times, can be an obstruction. But 3D Tetra Madness is an outstanding game that manages add to the addictive-ness of the original Tetris while weaving in a third dimension beautifully. If you are a major Tetris fan, buying the entire package just for 3D Tetra Madness is worth the $20. For everyone else, save your money and either dig up that old Atari or download shareware versions of the games. SCORE: 5 out of 10 System Requirements: A PowerPC processor, a CD-ROM drive, 16MB or more of available RAM, and Mac OS 7.1 or greater.