Never has an organ made such a massive impression on the population. It's rude
but side-splittingly funny, it's the inimitable Viz comic. Phil King probes
into the computer licence which is purportedly not for sale to children.
(We sincerely apologize for the mysterious problems during typesetting which
have caused asterisks to appear in certain words in this review.)
Now you can find out what it's really like to be an outrageous Viz character,
by stepping into the shoes of either Biffa Bacon, Johnny Fartpants or Buster Gonad
who are all taking part in Fulchester's annual fun run.
The race comprises five horizontally scrolling sections, the first of which takes
place in The Country with fences and trees to avoid and crevasses to cross via plank
bridges. Additional hazards include the new-fascist Parkie who wallops you if you
tread on the grass, and Bertie Blunt's parrot which does some diarrhoeical dive
bombing.
Also watch out for referee Rodney Rix, who throws a brick at anyone straying
from their designated race lane. Hitting any hazzard results in your character
falling over, collecting a 'shame token' in the process - get three of these and
you are too embarrassed to continue.
Beat the other competitors (and time limit) to the finish line and you then
go into The Town, with cars and roadworks to avoid. Next is a dangerous Building
Site littered with girders, then a stroll along The Beach, avoiding the beachball-throwing
Pathetic Shaqrks and quicksand.
Finally, The Disco is surprisingly hazardous with The Fat Slags wobbling around
and Sid The Sexist spilling his beer everywhere. To help them during the race,
each character has one unit of Superpower plus a lesser 'special power', of which
units can be earned between race sections in one of six simple bonus stages (two per character).
Viz is, as Roger Mellie might say, a load of bo***cks really. The only thing
that lifts it up (oo-er!) is the wacky humour. It's great to see all your favourite
comic-strip characters come to life, represented by accurate cartoon sprites with
much attention to detail in their animation.
There's also plenty of funny comments appearing in speech bubbles plus Roger Mellie's
inimitable (and unprintable!) race commentary. The race itself is a fairly stiff
challenge (k-yuk k-yuk!) with the hazards difficult to avoid. All five race
sections play almost identically, the humorous and often rude graphics being the only
incentive to carry on.
But when the humour eventually wears off, the game becomes frustrating and the
tape multiload is simply appalling, requiring you to reload extremely long sections
(guffaw!) every time you lose. Now that's no joke.
