Bad Mojo is like Myst after eating bad yams. If that thought conjures up all sorts of strange and gruesome images, you'll probably like this game from Pulse Entertainment. Mojo is a role-playing game in the truest sense of the word; you can't really go much further into another persona than by playing a cockroach. When the game starts off, you're Dr. Roger Samms, a scientist who develops pesticides. Just as you're about to leave for Mexico (with a briefcase full of money in hand) you're transformed by an ancient magical locket into the very creature your work has sought to destroy - the common cockroach.
Why were you transformed into a cockroach? Why were you getting ready to leave the country with all that money? These are just a few of the questions you have to answer as you search through six now-huge rooms in search of clues to return you to your former stature. Along the way, you'll encounter all sorts of dangers: half-dead rats, a hungry spider, a gas stove, the strangely-inviting-but-deadly roach motel, and many more. You'll also encounter beings that might be able to help you, such as friendly cockroaches, a mouse, and a slug. They'll speak to you in riddles, though, so be careful who you listen to and how far you take their advice. With a little luck and more than a little ingenuity, you just might be able to wiggle your way out of this nightmare.
The graphics on Bad Mojo are incredibly detailed and realistic. More than two years in development, Bad Mojo has more than 800 3D and 2D scenes as well as over 35 minutes of live-action video. Most impressive is the way your roach scurries and scuttles across the floor, an achievement that somehow manages to invoke curious fascination and a great sense of the creeps at the same time. While the rich graphics and detailed movement would be a boon to any adventure game, it's the Kafkaesque plot that makes this one a true original. After playing Bad Mojo, you'll never think of cockroaches in quite the same way again.
Windows 3.1/Windows 95/Macintosh. List price: $54.95. Pulse Entertainment, 310/264-5577.
Copyright (c) 1996, Joe DeRouen. All rights reserved.
Before leaving, why don't you visit my guestbook? You can read what others had to say about my page and even add a comment or two yourself.