Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine

Copyright: KBkids.com

Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine may drive experienced gamers nuts with its poorly designed controls, but those who are willing to overlook this (major!) flaw will find a fun game with great graphics. Teens who have many other action games to keep them busy may just not think it is worth the hassle. Opinions of testers were decidedly mixed on this one.

Indiana Jones finds himself traversing the globe looking for the Infernal Machine. This machine will allow inter-dimensional travel. As you can imagine, he isn't the only one looking for it. The Nazi's are hot on the trail of the machine, and will give Indy no rest. There is some violence in this game. Compared to other violent games like Golden Eye this one is not as bad. A bit of blood and shooting, so be aware before purchasing. Hey, at least we are spared Lara Croft's cleavage on this one! This game will actually be popular with fans of Tomb Raider type games. This one is a bit more complex, and with more 'thinking skill' involved.

Nice touches:

• Spectacular scenery
• Nice soundtrack
• Impressive special effects such as shadow and sun which add to the tension
• Seventeen very diverse levels for long play time
• Problem solving 'puzzles' scattered throughout which are nicely done

Drawbacks:

• Confusing and frustrating controls plague this game (you will fall off many cliffs before getting the hang of them!) Difficult controls make this game seem harder than it really is.
• Odd interface with game features. You must use many keystrokes to get to needed features.

If you are willing to give this one a try, and deal with the frustration of the controls, you will find a diamond in the rough. The storyline and game are actually quite good. It is too bad this fact may be lost on some who won't (and shouldn't have to!) wade through bad control design.

Bottom Line: A very nice action adventure game that is plagued with poor control design. A good game underlies these drawbacks.

Ratings: (based on KBkids.com's 4 star rating system)

Overall: 3

FunFactor: 3

BrainGain: 2

EasePlease: 1 1/2

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