Spy Vs Spy ReviewThere are few games out there that have a good combination of comic humour, fast game play, cartoony graphics and odd game play that really shouldn’t make a really good game, but only an adequate game at the most, but for some reason you just love it to bits. I am talking about Spy V Spy, and boy, do I love this game. Every three to four years I long to play thing game for no reason other than to relive the memories that only Spy V Spy could offer. So what really makes this game stand out instead of it disguising itself and hiding in the shadows? Let’s get our gear, set a few traps, and most importantly disguise ourselves as we
look at Spy V Spy.
So the story is….um, I’m not sure. To say there isn’t a story might be accurate, but there’s truth in saying that there is a story around all this running around. It’s much like Will E Coyote chasing the Road Runner, but something always goes wrong, or Jerry chasing Tom and failing. They first stared in a comic in MAD Magazines back in 1961. It’s about two spies, one entirely white and one entirely black, trying to get their own back on each other, using a barrage of traps and other sort to inflict harm onto each other. They normally alternating between victory and defeat between new strips. So naturally, they wanted to make a game out of it. It first came out on the Atari, Apple II and the Commodore 64, but the one on the Game Boy Colour is the one I played and this is
the game I’m reviewing.
The game play is, um….pretty much insane. I’ll have to explain in layers here. The bottom line thing you need to do is get all the items. This includes a bundle of cash, a CD, something else, and some secret documents. What’s in these secret documents, we’ll never know. It could be the plans on the enemy, secret attacks, blueprints on making secret weapons, maybe even the formula to make an unstoppable biological disease! Or it could be a recipe to make the best bacon sandwich, for all I care. But you can only carry one item at a time, so you need a suitcase to store all the items in. Once you find this suit case and all the items, then you need to make it out of the building. Sounds simple huh?
Well, that’s just the frosting on the cake, my friend.
Your not alone, as your archenemy the Black Spy (or the White Spy if you choose to be the Black Spy), is also trying to get the items located in this building. So it’s a race against the clock as you need to get the items before he does. But there’s one problem. He’s got the suitcase and three items, while you have the CD. This means you have to somehow get those items off his grubby hands. You can do this one of two ways. The first way is fighting him hand to hand. You must kill him to get the items, or to be more precise, the items will go into the furnisher in that room, should you win. Only, there’s a problem, he’s got a cane, you only have your hands. You can’t win, so you must get the only thing stronger than a cane, a knife. So you are forced to flee until you find it.
It’s probably in the drawer in the bathroom.
But there’s another problem. He’s chasing you! You have you run and lose him before he kills you. You must go through several rooms before you can lose him, and that’s if you’re lucky. That gives you a feeling of dead panic and fear. And that’s the real reason why I love it so much. The second way is to set a trap. You can get anything from a pipe bomb to electric water in a bucket. You set them in a room, in the place accordingly (the bucket for electric water in above the door). With any luck, the spy will fall in the trap, and die, leaving
you to take the items.
Only you sometimes forget were you placed the item. Be careful, as you can die by your own trap. Now, no spy is complete without a way to outwit other spies. So you can pick up items that are able to counter the traps you or your dastardly enemy has placed (for example the umbrella counteracts the electric water in a bucket). You never know what trap you’ll run into, so you got to be careful and lucky. Now imagine you’re running away from your rival with a full set of items ready to make your escape, but there are traps almost at every corner. That is how insane the game play can get. And that’s the game. If you can escape with all the items, you’ll be rewarded with a comical way of escaping as your rival
tries to get his own back one last time, and fails.
Overall, I give this game 8.5/10
This game is insane to say the least. You’re running around, trying to find these items, then you run into the very person you don’t want to, and fight. That gives of a sense of fear and panic….and it is the very reason I love this game! I love the feeling of bumping into someone that's going to kill you (in a game, of course), and then you either fight or try and outwit him. Always a great satisfaction to outwit them ^^ Sure, the music isn’t half bad, and the graphics could be better, but the core game is what brings you back. It might be a little tricky at first, but you’ll get the hang of it. This game is truly one
you’ll remember, and I sometimes feel it is a lost classic among the gaming franchise. If you forget, then you’ll remember it one day. It always
seems to happen to me. Graphics
7 Sound
7 Addictive
9 Depth
8 Difficulty
8