Professor Lupo
and his Horrible Pets
Traverse the narrow corridors of huge spacecraft, pursed by unfriendly alien lifeforms who
haven't had their dinner, in this new puzzle game for the Mac.
Info//
BeautiFun Games
professorlupo.com
£14.99, $14.99
Compatibility:
Snow Leopard or later
S
tory-driven puzzle games have always felt an
uneasy pairing. By definition, the puzzle genre
was devised as a quick-stop gaming fix rather
than a sprawling narrative-driven adventure. This is
why Nintendo sold a trillion GameBoys/Tetris packs
back in the back in the dark ages.
BeautiFun Games' rather misleadingly titled
Professor Lupo and his Horrible Pets takes a fun
and engaging maze-based puzzle and dilutes the
experience with an under-developed plot and a
questionable art style. The narrative, which attempts
to build upon the learn the patterns, avoid/use the
hazards and get-the-exit gameplay, falls almost entirely
flat from the start. Our lead is so dull he isn't even given
a name; it isn’t the titular professor, which is a little odd?
Verdict//
PROS AND CONS:
+ Addictive gameplay
+ Bonus objectives and
boss battles
- Underwhelming lead
character
- Divisive style & cut scenes
LAST WORD
An enjoyable story-driven
puzzle game that fails to
strike a balance between the
narrative and the gameplay.
RATING: 3/5
This lack of excitement is reflective of the remaining
cast, who also fail to spark the interest, combining to
render the narrative even less engaging or actually
necessary. The creatures or horrible pets of the title
fair somewhat better, albeit any impact is lost due to
the strange and ill-fitting art style that embodies them.
A style which feels inspired by the point-and-click
adventures of Professor Layton. Maybe someone in the
design department misread the outline?
Fortunately, the core gameplay and control system
are far more positively defined, and are the key reason
to play. With over 100 levels to explore, boss battles
and a bonus challenge per stage playability and
lifespan save the day. Thank goodness you can skip
the cut scenes! JG
As the forces of three mighty landmasses meet on the battlefield, do you have the strategy, the
tactics, and the economic talent to take your armies to victory?
T
his independent, real-time
strategy opus is set in an
alternate Middle Ages
where three mighty powers vie
for supremacy. Playing as Europe,
China, or the Middle East, you must
build cities, recruit new troops, and
fight large-scale wars with your
neighbours.
Technology is of paramount
importance. As artillery comes to the
fore, superior numbers alone can
no longer guarantee victory. One
thing that’s always been true in war
is the importance of engineers, and
so it proves here as they build your
defences and dig tunnels through
which you can transport soldiers.
As you might expect, each army
has unique abilities not available
to the others. European troops can
form a phalanx, build a wall of stakes,
invoke the Crusaders, and build
gunpowder artillery. The Chinese
can create smoke screens, provoke
support for Mongolian horsemen, and
have early rocket artillery. The Middle
East has war elephants, chariots with
incendiary oils, engineers who can
build underground tunnels and more.
If you like an in-depth real-time
war game, this should keep you
happy until the next Total War game
is released, though the user interface
could do with some polish and the
graphics are only average. BC
Info//
OneOcean LLC
https://store.steampowered.com/
app/758250/Taste_of_Power/
£11.39, $14.99, 14,99 €
Compatibility: macOS 10.10 or
later, 64-bit processor
Verdict//
PROS AND CONS:
- Very in-depth
- Some good ideas
- Useful tutorials
- Graphics only average
LAST WORD
Not the best strategy war
game on the Mac, but far
from the worst. A decent,
if derivative, offering that
will please those who like
in-depth video games.
RATING: 3/5
AppleUserMAGAZINE
