Gods is a classic side scrolling action game, released in the early nineties by The Bitmap Brothers. It features elements of a jump and run platformer that requires very deliberate and carefully timed actions and a puzzle game, with a small degree of shoot ‘em up. Everything is combined into a colorful mythological setting.
In Gods, the user assumes the role of Hercules, the son of the god Zeus. Being half mortal and half god, Hercules embarks on a quest to find his immortality and become a true deity. Hercules, the masked hero, has to battle his way through a total of four unique levels, each with a huge and nicely animated guardian at the end. To aid Hercules in his battles, there are many weapons that can be found, and also some that can be purchased from traders at shops with coins (jewel bags) that he picks up as the spoils of war. These traders are located between levels. Hercules can equip up to three weapons at once and has the unique capability of changing the focus of the weapons’ fire. He can either concentrate the fire, to make a smaller, more powerful beam, or diffuse it more to spray the screen with weaker fire…an excellent feature when fighting on cliff platforms with monsters hiding on levels above or below the hero.
Because of the combined elements in the game, Hercules has to run back and forth across the map often. Many of the puzzles require multiple elements to solve, and Hercules has a limited inventory of three items only. This added feature lengthens the game and provides more opportunities to shoot at enemies.
One of the most highly praised aspects of the initial console versions of Gods, was its excellent soundtrack by John Foxx as Nation XII. Unfortunately, the music made it only to the introductory sequence and there is no background music throughout the remainder of the game. The other sound effects, however, are right up front and every action is represented by a noise. Pick up an item, shoot down an enemy or listen to a coin drop. All have sound which add nice detail and depth. The graphics were highly praised in its day, but they pale compared to modern standards. Still, there is evident quality in the level design and the graphics are certainly not terribly pixilated or grainy. In total, Gods is a great platform game that combines elements of many other gaming genres. Any fan of the classic PC game should find something of merit in Gods.
Written by:
~dorento1
