MindRover: The Europa Project (PC)

Reviewed by

Michael Ryan

on 01/19/2000

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Page 2

The game's OpenGL-based graphics engine is solid, and it features nicely rendered settings for most scenarios. There is only a handful of settings that evoke images of Europa, but otherwise the rover arenas are nicely done. The rovers themselves look like oversized, well-detailed Matchbox construction vehicles, and each component added to them is completely animated in the 3D view. Although the graphics aren't especially impressive, aside from a few collision-detection problems, they do look pretty good.

There are problems scattered throughout MindRover, including an intermittent crash bug that occurs while exiting the game, and that the camera clips through enclosed spaces when a rover gets too close to a wall. The game may also prove too limited for players who don't enjoy tweaking and replaying their scenario solutions for optimum results. The 23 scenarios are not linked, so if you just want to complete them all without trying different solutions for each, you may be disappointed by the game's relative brevity.

Finally, the game could have really benefited from a better tutorial mode. While the printed manual is very thorough, a more complete audio-visual walkthrough of the game's basic elements would have gone a long way toward making MindRover more appealing to a wider audience.

MindRover is an unusual game. It's interesting and addictive enough to deserve the notice of any adventurous gamer, though it will appeal most of all to those who enjoy programming and logic puzzles.