Hocus Pocus

Having played the shareware version of this game as a kid, buying it for me was compulsory. I simply needed to know what the entire game felt like. And having played it, I'm glad to say that Hocus Pocus aged well. Largely due to its colorful cartoony graphics, I imagine. Sadly, Hocus Pocus remained what it once was - a mediocre-at-best platformer with wafer-thin plot. It seems back then that all you needed was a decent mechanic, passable level design and nice graphics and you had a game. And Hocus Pocus is simply that. It doesn't excel in any way, and although it is still fun nowadays, play one level, and you played them all. The level design seems to drive the story, rather than the other way around, meaning the entire game feels like a hodge-podge of ideas. It isn't bad, but the game not taking any chances in its level design - repeating levels, I have a hard time remembering any of it. And playing the entire game once, I have no desire to play it again. Hocus Pocus just feels like a hesitant first step. Like a game waiting for a sequel to actually show us what it can do. So although playing it now you will have fun, albeit mindless fun, I can't recommend it. Since its release dozens of better games were released for countless systems, and this one simply doesn't stand out. If it weren't for my nostalgia, I doubt I would have enjoyed it as much as I did.

I played most of the Apogee platformers as a kid (Cosmo, Crystal Caves, Monster Bash, etc), and they're still some of my favourite games ever made. Hocus Pocus is one that I never got to play, so I was ecstatic when I saw it released here on gog. It doesn't disappoint! Basically in each level you have to collect a number of crystals hidden throughout the level. I like this because it makes the levels less linear. You get to do a bit of exploring, and for the most part it doesn't matter which order you collect them in. There's also wizards along the way that you can talk to. Some of the dialogue made me laugh aloud, such as "It took me 64 years to grow this beard." and "Why aren't you dead yet?" There's other little bonuses too, like beating a level within a certain time frame, collecting all of the treasure in a level, and accuracy with your spellcasting. Although I'm not really sure how, uh, accurate the accuracy thing is though, because I generally just fire madly wherever I think monsters are going to show up, and on some levels I've randomly got 100% accuracy anyway. But yeah, it adds replay value to the levels, if you're into getting 100% on everything. All in all a great 2D platformer from the kings of 2D platformers, as far as I'm concerned. Hopefully this is a sign of more Apogee classics to come.

When I was a kid, I often went to visit my grandma. We'd go up to her house for Christmas every year (this was in the early 90s), and while I loved seeing my grandparents, I think I probably loved the opportunity to play video games just as much. You see, she had a computer. It was beautiful. It ran MS-DOS, and she had a HOST of shareware games on it. (She's always been good with a dollar, and figured - why pay for games when the kids will probably never finish them anyway). Looking back, my favorite developer was Apogee Games (or maybe Epic MegaGames). Probably because she got a lot of shareware games from somewhere (I think a computer or video game magazine - she had a few for us kids to read). Those games make up a substantial portion of my childhood - Duke Nukem, Crystal Caves, Commander Keen, Cosmo's Adventure, Word Rescue, Mystic Towers -the only game I remember hating was Boppin'. The reason I say all this is to justify the below. I love this game. I boot it up and I'm in a world where I'm young and excited for Christmas again. Objectively, though, it's pretty average. The platforming segment is just painful, Hocus locking to anything he touches with his feet, making jumping (and walking up stairs) somewhat jarring. There's one combat mechanic, and it's repetitive key-mashing all the way through. It's not difficult where it's fun and not fun where it's difficult - the game just doesn't really work that well. It's not TERRIBLE - the mechanics work, you can get around well enough, and the exploration isn't all that bad, there's just not much to it, and what there is isn't all that good. If you're like me and looking to relive your childhood, this is a great buy. If you're looking for something new, this hasn't really withstood the test of time.

As a 2-D platformer from the 90's, you don't expect much, and the controls are very simple: walk, jump, and shoot. Where the game gets good is the level design. Unlike other platformers of the time, you are highly encouraged to explore. The levels do not a have a goal on the right side of the level; they have several crystals which you must find and collect, forcing you to explore a large and beautifully couloured level. The colour pallette and art style change every 2 levels, meaning the game always feels fresh. The music is midi, but it is very well designed for midi and fits the levels well. Also, with all of the mandatory exploring, there are also tons of secrets and deviously hidden treasures. The game has three difficulties, and it is enough for a young child to enjoy and hard mode is hard enough to challenge a grown gamer. Overall, explorative level design, brilliant art design and music, and a charming simplicity to the controls make for an amazing platformer.