Players
Cassette £1.99
1 player
1 joystick
DIZZY DICE is a computer fruit machine played like a conventional
fruit machine, which obviously means spinning the reels in the hope
that they will display a winning combination of symbols when they
come to rest. In the unlikely event of a win, you can opt to pocket
the prize money or alternatively throw discretion to the wind and
gamble for a higher amount. This feature is implemented by a
'roulette wheel' (looks more like a rotating sundial to me!) – you
must correctly predict the symbol on which the wheel will stop to
collect the bonus. It's up to your gambling sense whether to go for
a higher bonus or a more probable outcome.
All the usual features are included such as Hold,
Collect and Gamble, with the exception of Nudge. An additional
feature is the 'dice game' in which you can win up to $200 by
guessing whether a throw of the die will yield a higher or lower
outcome than the last, or if it will be the same. Also, you can
select either normal or bank mode at the beginning of the game. In
bank mode you commence play with $20 and try to increase it to $100
– to break the bank! Achieve this and the bank limit is increased on
subsequent successes up to a maximum of $1000.
If you dislike games that involve a lot of screen changes, you'll be
pleased with DIZZY DICE as all the main functions are crammed
(crammed being the operative word!) into just one screen, this being
reasonably well laid out with a notably liberal use of colour. The
use of sound however, is rather less than spectacular with the
instruction page and endgame sequence accompanied by the most awful
racket you are ever likely to hear! Incidentally, the inlay card
illustrates a screen shot showing a cartoon style view of the fruit
machine, although it doesn't actually seem to appear in the Atari
version. Methinks it's about time the Trading Standards people put a
stop to this misleading practice.
To sum up, DIZZY DICE doesn't offer anything radically new over
Mastertronic's 'Vegas Jackpot' or indeed the multitude of type-in
listings that have appeared in various computer magazines over the
years, but for compulsive gamblers with a cash flow problem it is a
reasonably entertaining alternative to bankruptcy. And at this
price, you can afford to take a gamble!
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