Boulder Dash

All the caves are very colorful but most importantly feature some real brain-aching problems to be solved in order to get jewels. The sound effects are good with explosions, the crash of falling rocks, the tinkle of tumbling jewels and the scrape of Rockford's feet. The scrolling is good to although it isn't 100% smooth.

It might be over six years old, but Boulderdash is still as fresh as ever. Data East have improved the graphics and added a neat front end, but have retained the same maps and gameplay that made the C64 version one of the classic games of all time. It's massively addictive, calling on arcade skills and fiendish puzzle-solving in a way that draws you totally into the game. You shout with frustration as a wrong move results in Rockford being buried under a pile of boulders, then yell victoriously when you work out how to get those last few diamonds and finish the screen! Boulderdash is one of the greatest games ever written - if you want a summer of glorious play, treat yourself to a copy as soon as possible.

The action is pretty intense but there's subtle strategy involved, and you'll often need to initiate an avalanche in order to gain access to a new area. Boulderdash has aged quite well, and includes a nice password save and a fine soundtrack.

Boulder Dash is a superb game, and the ColecoVision version does manage to capture the charm and gaming magic of the original. Fans of this sort of game will certainly enjoy it, and those looking for something different should consider it. Boulder Dash was simply another little-known game for the ColecoVision that deserved much more attention than it received.

Auch in der Game-Boy-Version ist reichlich Abwechslung vorhanden. Jeder Level bietet eine andere Aufgabenstellung und die vier Welten unterscheiden sich nicht nur im Grafiksatz. Schnelle Bewegung und fixes Scrolling sind mit guter Steuerung kombiniert. Die Grafik ist im Rahmen der Funktionalität gut ausgearbeitet. Was der Game-Boy-Version abgeht, ist eine Paßwortoption.

So there you go, now dash of to Boulder Dash!

Die Neuausrichtung des altehrwürdigen Klassiker aus goldenen Zeiten wurde mit den damals neuen technischen Möglichkeiten des NES vorgenommen: Butterweiches Scrolling, knuffige Charakter und das gekonnte Puzzelprinzip machen dabei auch heute noch einen Heidenspaß. Wäre noch eine Speicheroption für den High-Score vorhanden, ich hätte dieses Mal gar nichts zu meckern.

Niewątpliwą zaletą tej gry jest zmuszanie grającego do myślenia, ponieważ często wyjście z danej komnaty okupić trzeba ostrym główkowaniem. Ponadto gra w wersji konsolowej ma znośną muzykę i istnieje możliwość zagrania z kolegą (na 2 graczy).

Boulder Dash is one of the ugliest, oldest, most out-of-date games to hit the Virtual Console yet. But good game design never gets old, and the fun to be had in these visually underwhelming caves and mazes still feels as fresh as it did in 1984. If you're a fan of puzzlers, be encouraged that this is a solid investment of five of your digital dollars. Because though it doesn't look like much, Boulder Dash rocks.

The bottom line on Boulder Dash is that it is a well-crafted, well-executed, thinking man's action game. Strategy is important, but if you don't have the reflexes to back it up, you will be doomed to failure. You must act quickly and think even faster. If this sentence describes you, then Boulder Dash is your perfect game.

According to Front Runner, Boulder Dash has been described as "one of the finest examples of Spectrum programming ever". Balderdash! Slow and jerky movement dog Rockford's every step making it difficult to pass through each cave within the time limit specified. Although there are many features in the game including four interactive puzzles and five difficulty levels to each of the 16 caves your excitement can quickly turn to frustration when time and time again, Rockford is bombarded by boulders.