| Issue #64/Aug. '00 |
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Navigate: | My Mac Online | The Archives | December 1997 | The Game Guys | |
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By Mike Wallinga and Adam Karneboge
Dr. Max 1.0
Adam: Of course, my first reaction to a game coming from Mike (or rather, from Mike's LC) is, "Yeah right, like this game is gonna be any good." Well, I'm honestly surprised. Either Mike's computer is really good, or Dr. Max is a wonderfully programmed game. I believe the latter is true. (Next month the jokes on Mike's computer will stop, I promise :-)). Now Mike will give you the usual story line/plot for this game...
Mike: Story? You want a story?
Adam: Yes, Mike, please tell us the story.
Mike: Do you really need a plot behind this game?
Adam: YES!
Mike: Ok, ok, Adam. Allow me to quote from the Read Me file:
 Adam: Thank you Mike, that's so kind of you. Now, on to the important stuff. The playing field is actually a test tube, filled with ugly, nasty viruses. There are three different colors of viruses, and your job is to place the falling vitamin capsules in such a way that the colors of the vitamins match up with the colors of the viruses. Mike: If you get four or more of the same color in a row, the vitamins (and any viruses adjacent to the vitamins) disappear. You keep this up until you've either destroyed all of the viruses and move on to the next level, or filled up the test tube and lost the game. Adam: Destroying the viruses can prove to be very difficult. Capsules have two parts to them: some are blue-blue, green-green, and red-red. But some are blue-red, red-green, and so on. So making sure you allow yourself room to get four capsules of the same color lined up can become frustrating. Mike: Of course, there are the obligatory twists in the game to keep you on your toes. Just like in Tetris, when some of the vitamins disappear, the vitamins on top of the layer that disappeared fall down to fill in the gap. The tricky thing is that the viruses do not fall down, but stay fixed where they are. Additionally, if you do not destroy a virus for 30 seconds, an extra layer of "viral residue" appears at the bottom of the test tube, which pushes everything else up one layer and brings you that much closer to filling up the test tube. Adam: The game plays just like Tetris. You can customize your keys for rotating and moving the capsule around. The usual "next" preview is there, so you can see what capsule is coming next. Additionally, you can set different music and backgrounds for your playing pleasure. Mike: Nothing is a bigger thrill than getting your vitamins in position correctly and causing a chain reaction - destroying one virus, having the other vitamins fall down a layer and lining up just right so they destroy another virus, and so on. These "double (or even triple) whammies" really help you in your goal to eliminate the viruses, and also score big points!
Requirements/Availability You can download Dr. Max (1672Kb) at Steve Chamberlin's home page, at http://members.aol.com/granola , or at the My Mac Software Library, at http://www.mymac.com/software .
The Summary Adam: The originality of this game is astounding. Mixing a Dr. Mario-type game with Tetris is an awesome idea, and Mr. Chamberlin has made that idea work. Dr. Max is a game that proves that older Macs can still run good games. I have definitely enjoyed Dr. Max, and chances are you will, too.
Mike Wallinga (mlwall@mtcnet.net)
Websites mentioned:
The Game Guys - Previous Columns
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Download #64
Read Online
Mike: Steve Chamberlain has struck
gold once again with his latest game,
Dr. Max. Many avid Mac gamers may
recognize Steve as the author of two other popular shareware puzzle games, Columns Max and Tetris Max. Longtime My Mac readers may also remember that Tetris Max was given rave reviews by Adam and me in our first-ever Game Guys column. (See Game Guys, July 96, or 