Remakes
Information
- Author: WiDDY
Pros
- Highly playable
- All the original's levels
- Useful options
Cons
- No in-game sound
- Tight time limits
Links
Trailblazer Advance
Shaun 'Sout' Southern was something of an unsung hero of the 1980s gaming scene. Despite creating some of the most playable 8-bit games, including the notoriously addictive Kikstart II, his name remains overshadowed by the likes of Jeff Minter and Andrew Braybrook. However, at his best, Sout was the equal of any coder of the era, as Trailblazer proved. Like most of Sout's games, the concept is simple: guide your ball along the 3D path and reach the end of each course before the time runs out. You can control the ball's speed and you have a limited number of jumps at your disposal. Blocking your way are a number of holes (which cost you time when you blunder into them) and the various coloured squares that litter each course.
Learning what each of the squares does is key to success in the game: for instance, green squares speed you up, red ones slow you down and blue ones fling you into the air, enabling you to leap over otherwise impassable rifts.
Gameplay remains largely identical to the 8-bit original, although either we've grown slow in our old age or the time limits imposed on this version seem ludicrously tight on all but the easiest of levels (and even those limits are hardly what we'd consider 'easy'). In terms of presentation, the game has had a massive overhaul, and the new graphics put you more in mind of a high-end SNES game than something that first appeared on aging Commodore hardware. The title tune from the original is a nice bonus, too, although some in-game atmosphere is lost as the game is devoid of any other sound.
For fans of fast arcade games that require the reflexes of a jittery flea hyped up on caffeine, Trailblazer Advance is a great game. For us mere mortals, it's still a playable if slightly frustrating way to spend a half hour, although it would definitely benefit from the addition of the missing in-game audio and some slightly more relaxed time limits.
CG
