RetroReview: Alphabet Zoo. ColecoVision Flashback

Alphabet Zoo

You may remember around this time last year I promised to review all the games included on Atgames ColecoVision Flashback console. Since the site crashed and I lost everything in April of last year, its been slow going. Well I’m going to hold to my promise and get back to it. Starting from the beginning once again with Alphabet zoo. This damn abomination of a game I still don’t understand.

What the f#ck is this?

Alphabet Zoo

Oh! A submarine! Better catch that S 5 million times…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK so in Alphabet Zoo by Spinnaker, it appears they sort of draw you a picture and you go around a pac-man-esque map trying to collect the first letter of the word being displayed. Just the first letter, which seems weird because at first look you’d think you have to actually spell out the word. So if your word was say “Elephant” all you’re doing is walking around this map looking for the letter E entangled with a bunch of other random letters that have nothing to do with the word. Usually there is two or three E”s and a jumble of A’s, Q’s etc. Additionally, the letter you’re looking for seems to jump all over the place. You could be half a second from reaching that coveted letter E when bam! It shoots to the other side of the screen. What the hell? The inclusion of warp points is a nice little addition, if only I didn’t think they were Pac-Dots you would use to turn all the letters into the one you were looking for for a short period of time.

The sound track is also god-awful. In that there is none. Which might be a common theme among ColecoVision games, but the constant bleeps and never ending change to the sound design of the game is just poor. Even for a game released 30+ years ago.

I don’t get it Spinnaker. I know this game was perhaps meant to be educational but…DAMN. Alphabet Zoo might be fine to have in your collection as someone who collects vintage games, but why even include this on a plug and play console?

Thanks for nothing ATGames. Alphabet Zoo is awful.

Alphabet Zoo

Wonder what letter I’m meant to catch now!

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