Squibbly Shibbly logo AGA

Squidley Didley! Bobbley Bobbley! Lorks, Andy Smith's gone wibbly wobbly.

This isn’t going to be pleasant I’m afraid. Consider these points: 1. This is the first game from a new outfit called Miracle FX Productions. 2/ The game costs a mere £6.95. 3. It’s rubbish.

Alright, all new outfits deserve a bit of a break – especially with the games scene being what it is today – and we all like low prices, but that third points is just inescapable.

It’s a platform game. It has been created using the Reality Software Construction Kit. Squibbly is the game’s main character (under your control) and the object of the whole exercise is to run around finding bits and pieces to give to other members of Squibbly’s extended family. Grandad wants a bottle of rum, in exchange he’ll give you something that’s going to help you later – that sort of thing. Just like all those Dizzy games from years ago.

But as well as finding objects, Squibbly’s trying to release members of his family that have been imprisoned. Find the yellow key to open the yellow cage – that sort of thing. It’s all very familiar and all very samey.

So what’s Squibbly Shibbly got going for it? Erm, it’s colourful and that’s about it because even the music is poor. Miracle FX are very proud of the "… two exclusive drum ‘n’ bass tracks…" that play along with the game and frankly they shouldn’t have bothered because they’re awful. At least the game isn’t infested with rats which is something I suppose.

But it’s not as if it’s a big game even – there are only about eight different tasks to complete, most of them involving opening a cage, getting a coloured key, opening the corresponding coloured cage to get another coloured key and so on and so forth. Thrilling eh? No, we didn’t think so either.

We’ve had loads of Reality games in from readers for our Reader Games section and most of them have been alright. Some have been decidedly poor and some have been very good, but at least all the authors who sent them in recognised them for what they are – home-made games created using an off-the-shelf utility.

Unfortunately, Miracle FX haven’t realised this. Just because you can put a game together with Reality, it doesn’t mean you game’s up to commercial standards. This one certainly isn’t and I can’t see any earthly reason why someone would shell out seven quid for something like this when there are far better PD and Freeware games available.