[Deshrill]

GAME TITLE: Loom
COMPANY: LucasArts
DESIGNER: Brian Moriarty

Loom was probably one of the most unique adventure games LucasArts has ever released. Designed by Brian Moriarty (with Orson Scott Card as one of the writers), who also designed several Infocom games, Using a minimalist 'one-click' interface, you play as Bobbin Threadbare, a young Weaver who goes off on an adventure to explore the world around him. Throughout the game, you learned different spells that had to be cast by playing musical notes on a staff. Despite the simplistic interface, the game is fun to play and has such a unique variety of places to visit that it's one of the more memorable LucasArts graphic adventures ever made.

As a technical note, I have only played the disk version of Loom. LucasArts also released a CD-ROM version with voices that also came with a second CD that had an audio drama; I have not had the pleasure of playing through this version of the game.

STORY

Playing as Bobbin Threadbare, a Weaver who looks like a wizard carrying a gnarled staff while wearing a grey cloak, the plot of the game unfolds gradually. In fact, a lot of the game is wandering from location to location, solving puzzles along the way; the plot is memorable, but it's done in a subtle way. There are characters to talk to in this adventure, but it's certainly not as dialogue heavy as many LucasArts games.

From the simple introduction when a sprite talks to you and the last leaf falls from a barren tree to the ending that just cries out for a sequel which never was made, the story is rather memorable. Loom is a short game, but a very fun one as well.

PUZZLES

The puzzles in Loom are pretty easy for the most part. Most of them deal with casting spells via a music-note based interface; it's a bit tricky to explain, but playing certain combinations of notes on the musical scale activate certain spells. In a way, it's similar to how Link plays the Ocarina in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to cast different spells.

Since there aren't a lot of people to talk to during the game, there aren't a lot of "deliver the item" puzzles; there are a good bit of environmental puzzles, but nothing too tricky.

This game has three different levels of difficulty, which all correspond how to cast spells; on the hardest difficulty level, you have to cast spells by ear, which is an interesting challenge, especially when I was playing the game on my 386 with a PC Speaker!

GRAPHICS

The graphics are very colorful. The environments, from the initial primitive town to the glimmering crystal city, are impressive to behold. The detail in the graphics of the close-ups of characters when speaking to them (similar to what is done in the first Monkey Island game) is done very well.

MUSIC/SOUND EFFECTS

The music in the game is done by six different composers, most of it as variations on Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. I enjoy classical music a lot of the time anyway, so I found it to work well for the game. It's an interesting way to do music for a video game; I'm not sure of how many other games have had their entire musical score based on compositions by classical composers.

The sound effects are average, if a bit bland. Then again, the game doesn't have a lot of sound effects to deal with.

OVERALL

Loom is one of those adventure games that sticks out in my mind over the years. While the graphics and music might seem dated to newer adventures, I still like to play through it every couple of years or so. The game is too easy for experienced adventurers, but the unique settings, music, and gameplay makes it worth your time to play through.

It's a tricky game to find... Try to look at E-Bay or Half.com to snag a copy of it; LucasArts isn't selling their "Classic Adventures" compilation on their site anymore (the diskette compilation which had Maniac Mansion, Zak McKracken, Loom, Last Crusade, and Secret of Monkey Island), so it's tougher to find. Still, it's worth it.