Jeopardy!
Reviewed by Mike Wales
Looking spiffier than Alex Trebeck in a new Italian suit, Jeopardy! splashes onto
your N64. Gametek, which did a stylish job putting Wheel of Fortune on the N64,
packed this pak with 4,000 answers in 650 categories.
Longtime fans will be pleased with the look and feel of Jeopardy! Gametek
painstakingly rendered the set in 3-D and generously adorned the audio track with
the famous Jeopardy! theme. There's lots of digitized footage of host Trebeck
talking to you in that silky smooth voice. Purists may complain that the graphics
could be a little less grainy, but the words and numbers are always easy to read.
The Player Settings option allows you to choose your contestant's name and look.
Jeopardy! offers three difficulty settings, with answers on the Expert setting
about as difficult as they are on the actual TV show. Lack of battery or Controller
Pak back-up means questions can repeat if you turn the pak off and on. Daily Doubles
are here in all their gleaming, gyrating glory, typically hiding behind one of the
pricier tiles.
Taking advantage of the N64's support for advanced artificial intelligence, Gametek
included computer-assist options that eliminate the tedium of fully spelling out the
correct answer. In Computer Provides Clues, the game will suggest answers after
you've typed only a few letters. For example, typing "It___" will prompt "Italy." If
you find that too easy, your best option is probably Loose Spelling Accepted,
especially if you've never made it to the National Spelling Bee. That's because
the decisions of the toughest option, Exact Spelling Required, can feel awfully
persnickety.
CPU-controlled players always choose the correct answer for Final Jeopardy!, but
they'll always bet conservatively, too. CPU- controlled players are also slow to
press their buzzers. When playing against a real person, though, you'd better be able
to beat them to the punch as soon as the clock ticks down.
But that's where Jeopardy! is most fun. Sure, outsmarting a computerized competitor
is fun, but nothing like trouncing a real person. Jeopardy!'s super-easy play control
means even video-game rookies can quickly get into the swing of things. Now, if
"What makes multiplayer fun?" is the question, the answer is...