Deep Blue
Reviewed by Michael LoCascio
When the instruction booklet for a game is only four pages
long, you can be pretty sure that you're not in for a very
fulfilling experience. Deep Blue is anything but deep; it is
a simple, yet insanely frustrating, shooter that serves up
some delicious eye candy to reel gamers in.
Unlike most games in the genre, Deep Blue doesn't take place
in outer space; instead, you'll traverse four
horizontally-scrolling stages in the deep blue depths of the
ocean. It's a pretty ride, if nothing else. You'll encounter
all sorts of beautifully-drawn underwater creatures that
want to crush your puny A. N. G. E. L. ship - with the visual
highlights of the game coming in the battles with the stage
bosses. These behemoths are graphically outstanding - so
well done, in fact, that you may find yourself playing the
game only to see what the major enemies look like.
Unfortunately, chances are you won't make it to any of the
bosses. If you do, you'll have no time to enjoy the eye
candy, as they'll waste no time in blowing your ship to
smithereens. Deep Blue is a depressingly difficult game. The
enemy creatures come so fast and in such vast numbers that
you'll undoubtedly look to hide your ship in one corner of
the screen and pray that nothing approaches it. The few
power-ups in the game are completely inadequate.
The 's afe spot' trick described above will probably get
you through the first half of each of the stages. However,
midway through every level, the game decides to get serious.
The calm, serene music slowly decreases in volume, until it
is suddenly replaced by a hideous, blaring tune that will
make you want to shut the game off right then and there. If
you do decide to keep playing, it will likely only be for a
few seconds longer; the screen will fill up in no time with
quick, huge sea monsters that will pummel you to death in a
matter of seconds.
The creators of the game decided to be fair and allow mortal
gamers a shot at getting somewhere. By repeatedly hitting
the 'Run' button, your ship's energy will slowly be
replenished. The slow-motion effect created by this trick is
the only way to get anywhere in the game anyway. You can
imagine how annoying this rapid button-pressing can become
though; besides, the tougher enemies will crush your ship in
a matter of mere seconds, and nothing can account for the
many times where you will simply have no room to maneuver on
the screen.
The final straw, however, comes when you finally do complete
all four stages - only to be sent back to the beginning
again. As if the four-page manual weren't enough of a clue,
this complete lack of an ending sequence makes it painfully
obvious that the producers of Deep Blue spent very little
time and effort making the title. I suggest that gamers
spend even less time and effort playing it.
Overall: 4 out of 10
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