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Pow! Right in the kisser!

Name: Tina of the Stars
Type: Arcade/Action Puzzle
Players; 1
System: RmXP
Controls: Arrow keys for movement, space to start and continue, and "a" to pause. That's it.

Tina of the Stars is a playful romp among colorful characters, but don't let your guard down- this game has a nasty right hook. Within the game, you take the role of Tinabom, a space fairy called to rid Planet Pix of the nasties summoned by the space demon Sir Grimm. But it won't be easy. Tina must, Pacman-like, traverse the maze-like levels collecting fallen stars until she regains her power, at which time merely touching the assorted critters will pound them into space dust. Until then, however, their touch is deadly. Each creature type has its own movement patterns and behavior to learn. Tina must collect the full complement of stars in each level before she can dispatch her foes; on top of this, if the timer runs out, all enemies on screen turn into invincible Perforatos- basically a death sentence. Points are awarded for stars collected and enemies wrecked, as well as any coins or items you may pick up upon the death of critters.


Story: 5/5
The plot, in which Tinabom, a space-going fairy, is summoned to defend the Planet Pix from a nasty foe, is pure gold. While a few particulars- the name of the nasty demon space lord, for example- are in the manual, the action was quite easy to follow, right down to Tina's emotions and circumstances. Sand in the shorts, anyone?

Graphics: 5/5: Adorably cute graphics for Tina, her foes, and the environment, as well as weather such as sandstorms and the like, abound, and the art-filled opening sequence is eye-catching.

Music and sound: 5/5
The music all fits very well- the opening sequence underscores the situation's nightmarish tension, while the area music seems to sum up the locations quite well.

Gameplay: 4.5

The critters wandering the world may look cute and, if not cuddly, at least tolerable, but do not take your eyes off them- they're as devious as hell and in combination with the terrain can knock you out quickly if you're not careful. With each collision taking off an entire heart or life and only three or four lives to your name, even with the occasional life-restoring Peacheek, death waits around every corner.

Impressions: Compared to an earlier beta some things have improved; the monsters no longer spawn at your entry point, and with planning and careful movement one can stay alive.

The cheerful graphics, sound, and music all contribute to make this quite a fun game. However, the insta-death upon contact can get to be quite frustrating; a slightly more forgiving half-heart loss, though not arcade-pure, would be easier on the casual gamer, as would the ability to increase the life bar beyond three units.

Posts

Pages: 1
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
Doublepost!
Ratty524
The 524 is for 524 Stone Crabs
12986
I honestly expected this review to be a little less positive considering all the bugs and hardships you were having with this. Thanks.

The initial reason why I imposed a limit on the number of lives is mainly due to the system. The HUD is mostly controlled by parallel process events, not scripts. The hearts on screen are just pictures that change according to certain events (be it death or 1up), and implementing infinite amount of lives would require a lot of work. I am not reluctant to extend the cap, though.
BurningTyger
Hm i Wonder if i can pul somethi goff here/
1289
Eh, I'm a pretty nice guy. As for the life cap,t hat's good to know. One option is to use a numerical counter ("Mario X 6 etc) instead, as with inventory,though I expect that would present its own challenges.
Pages: 1