Lemmings & Oh No! More Lemmings

The Good
(Note that this review is focussing on the Windows port of the game, not the actual game itself. If you want to know more of that side of it check out the DOS reviews.)

Lemmings was the first real game I played. I was therefore depressed when it did not run under Windows 95 (not easily, anyway). So when I found that it was available in Windows format it seemed like a dream come true.

The fact that this game actually runs in all versions of Windows - even XP - when it came out before Windows 95 is one major plus, and one of the two main reasons I bought it. The other is that it also contains Oh No! More Lemmings in a Windows format, which I had not previously played.

The Lemmings have been improved in terms of graphics - no more are they small blobs of colour, but actually are detailed and have faces (in hi-res mode). Which is another plus if you have a slow computer - the option of a lower resolution. "Visual sound effects" have also been added so you can still know when Lemmings die/get home/finish a bridge even with sound turned off.

The addition of fast-forward mode and replays make the tedious processes of redoing the same bit of a level all over again or waiting for the Lemmings to reach home almost redundant. The password system has been abolished, and the game tracks which levels have been completed - thus removing the need for pen and paper at all times.

The Bad
Sounds perfect? It isn't. Firstly, the game must be run in a window. Maybe I'm being fussy but a windowed game always makes me feel as though there's something wrong with it. Full screen is not an option. Even when maximised it only fills half the screen, the bottom half (and I mean half) being taken up with the toolbar. Scrolling must be done via the standard Windows scroll bar - a real pain in some cases. But the most irritating thing is the way the game has been modified slightly.

1 - Levels removed. 6 from the original and 5 from Oh No. These are the "special" tribute levels and a couple of others. Mind you those aren't the best levels, but I don't understand the point really.

2 - The mechanics. In DOS, as a Lemming blows up he is effectively invisible. In Windows, he acts as a blocker. Bizarre. Also, in DOS when a Lemming hits the top of the screen he turns back. In Windows he goes over the top and, if there is nothing beyond, falls off. Minor points, I know, but they get to me.

The Bottom Line
The first two Lemmings packages in one game and guaranteed to run under Windows. If you played the DOS versions then the slight differences may bother you, but if not then this is well worth getting. It will certainly keep you occupied for a long time.