A Mini Falafel Adventure (PC - Freeware)
Face it. We've all had that time in our life where we needed to make a quick decision. We've all woke up in a place unfamiliar to us. Every one of us has mysteriously accquired explosives one day. And, if you don't mind me getting a little personal here, I know we've all had to commence war on an afro at some time in our life. We've all played A Mini Falafel Adventure. http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p105/Icy_X-Cel/Reviews/Falafel1.gif
No? Probably not, actually. But that's okay, because it's freeware! The game takes up just over 1MB and is a must-download for anyone who wants to enjoy a 15 minute break. While this 2D platformer doesn't have color, depth, or bonus features, it does star a falafel, and that should be enough for you.
So, the game starts, and immediately you're given control. There's no explanation for the controls, though you find out quickly what to do: "Shift" is used to jump, and the arrow keys move you around. Ctrl is needed later in the game, after you acquire explosives. There's no instructions on where you need to go or what you need to be doing, but with only one path, it's not needed.
You get four bars of health for the journey before you "Game Over" and have to start over from the beginning. To prevent this from happening, you've got a couple of different traps to avoid. While you need to watch out for everything from fire to jelly monsters, the difficulty of avoiding them is very low, and you'll probably get used to passing them after one or two game overs. http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p105/Icy_X-Cel/Reviews/Falafel2.gif
AMFA also contains two boss battles, both equally wacky: a giant tomato and a monster with an afro. These guys are quite a bit more difficult than the regular traps, and as short as they are, they're really entertaining. You don't need to be a professional to beat them, but you need to time movements and placement of explosives to avoid their attacks. As simple as the game is, the minutes you'll spend on the boss battles are actually pretty entertaining.
The creator of AMFA wanted the game to have a Gameboy feel, and because of that the graphics are in greyscale. With a bit of color, I could see it being a bit more interesting, but you're really not missing much as it is. The pixels are pretty cute, and the background is nice. The three audio tracks the game has are very catchy, and I would love to post the MP3 here, but the man who created them is somewhat snobby and refuses to let others put them anywhere without his approval. Just think of a lively, poppy, somewhat techno-style jam; it's really pretty sweet, especially with a game like this.
Alright, there's not a lot you can do with 1.1MBs. This game won't last you more than a half hour, but that time spent will be fun. It's not Super Mario World or anything, but like I always say: it's freeware. There's no reason not to try it! [http://www.planetfreeplay.com/download/A-Mini-Falafel-Adventure/] I guarantee it will be the best game starring a Falafel you will ever play.
