Auf Wiedersehen Monty

Gremlin Graphics
£7.95

What? Auf Wiedersehen? Or is this merely Au Revoir? Whichever the case, it's certainly not Bog Off, 'cos Gremlin has kept up the Monty tradition and put together a really top hole multi-screen platform game.

So what's the latest? As you may remember from our preview in the March issue, Monty's done a runner and has holed himself up in Gibraltar. But Intermole are on his trail, so unless he finds a solution quick, serious chokey is 3-1 on as his likely fate. Monty's no mug - all he wants out of life are peace and quiet plus a steady income and a harem of luscious molettes obeying his every whim. What blue-blooded mole wouldn't? Monty's only chance is to rush around Europe blagging enough money to let him buy the legendary Greek island of Montoss, where he can settle down far away from Plod and extradition treaties. And he needs your help...

Of course Europe's changed a bit since you went on holiday last year. Then it had streets, towns, rivers, that kind of thing. Now it's chock full of platforms and ladders, which is just as well for Monty since this is the environment he knows and loves best. As well as picking up travellers cheques along the way (people are so careless), Monty also finds all sorts of items that will help him get out of all sorts of bother. Italy in particular is a very dangerous place to venture if you don't go prepared. At Pisa Juliet is far from being the sensitive flower she's always been painted as - she'll need mollifying with a suitable gift. And talking about paintings, remember what happens to you if you don't give de Mafia what dey want. Piaow!! Thud. And a concrete coffin.

Every Monty game introduces some new element to the mole's behaviour and Auf Wiedersehen Monty is no exception. Somersaulting's clearly out of fashion - dahling wahling, ballet's in now. Monty's graceful leap is a marvellous bit of animation, as is his pirouette when he uses one of the new springy platforms. Eat your heart out, Baryshnikov! (Bless you! Ed).

Monty also spends much of his time suspended from suction pads on ceilings - a useful device when there's no floor to speak of and you can't swim. Watch out too for bottles of glug - they give you not only points but a hangover too, and their effect is not always predictable. Vital for success are the air tickets littered around the place - these let Monty fly from one airport to another and cut out many of the more awkward screens. When you're flying you can nibble the backs of the other planes for lots of extra points.

There is of course loads more. Much of the fun of the Monty games is finding it all out for yourself, so I won't tell you about the Danish bacon, Gorbachev's head or the dodgy lift. But as you'd expect, the game's littered with the sort of visual puns and japes the Gremlin gagsters are famous for, and should you get that far, you'll enjoy every one of 'em, it's hard to believe that this is the mole's last outing, but if so this is a worthy send-off. (PS For an early laff, wait a couple of minutes on the options screen before you start and see what the two Montys get up to!)

WHAT A BARG!

Summertime, summertime, summer, summer, summertime! Hurrah - summer is here! And what better way to celebrate the advent of sunny, carefree days than by locking yourself in your bedroom and playing a load of Speccy games? With the seemingly unstoppable spread of budget software, we here at YS thought it would be quite a wheeze to sort out the brass from the dross. So take your seats and upset your neighbour's popcorn as JON PILLAR whisks you with shameless bias through a roundup of the best £3.99ers around.

PLATFORM GAMES

4. Auf Weidersehn Monty
Kixx/Issue 18
Reviewer: Jon Pillar

The mighty moles finest hour, this game combines collecting skills with lateral thinking as you leap all over Europe in an attempt to escape the law. Cunningly addictive with a fair spread of incredibly bad puns.