Difference between revisions of "Loom"

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[[Image:Loom - DOS - USA.jpg|thumb|256x256px|North American box art.]]
 
[[Image:Loom - DOS - USA.jpg|thumb|256x256px|North American box art.]]
  
'''''Loom''''', known in Japan as '''''ルーム [Rumu]''''', is an adventure game by produced by [[Brian Moriarty]] and developed and published by [[Lucasfilm Games]], originally released in 1990 for [[Amiga]], [[Atari ST]], and [[MS-DOS]], and later ported to several other platforms. Although the game uses the [[SCUMM]] engine, it doesn't use the typical verb-object control scheme. The game also came with an audio drama which gave backstory to the world.
+
'''''Loom''''' is a [[graphic adventure]] [[puzzle video game]] by produced by [[Brian Moriarty]] and developed and published by [[Lucasfilm Games]], originally released in January 1990 for [[Amiga]], [[Atari ST]], and [[MS-DOS]], and later ported to several other platforms. Although the game uses the [[SCUMM]] engine, it doesn't use the typical verb-object control scheme. The game also came with an audio drama which gave backstory to the world.
  
A middle school friend of mine had the LucasArts Adventure box set and showed me a short part of this game. I was impressed enough to ask to borrow it, and, after a few days, I had beaten it. Later, I got a copy of the MCGA CD version and beat that one as well. I really loved the game and thought it told a very clever and creative story. I was, as expected, a bit miffed at the ending.
+
==Personal==
 +
My middle school friend friend Mike had the ''[[LucasArts Classic Adventures]]'' box set and showed me a short part of this game near the end. I was impressed enough to ask to borrow it, and, after a few days, I had beaten it. Later, I got a copy of the MCGA CD version and beat that one as well. I really loved the game and thought it told a very clever and creative story. I was, as expected, a bit miffed at the ending.
  
 
==Status==
 
==Status==
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==Review==
 
==Review==
* '''Overall:''' 6/10
+
{{Video Game Review|6|5|8|7|4|CD Talkie}}
* '''Best Version:''' CD talkie version.
+
 
 +
{{Spoilers}}
  
 
===Good===
 
===Good===
* The game's story is really creative and original. Having different guilds, each who see the world in a unique manner, was a fantastic idea.
+
* The game's story by [[Brian Moriarty]] is really creative and original. Having different guilds, each who see the world in a manner befitting their own trade, was a fantastic idea.
* Even in the [[Enhanced Graphics Adapter|EGA]] version, the graphics are amazingly well drawn.
+
* The game is wonderfully packaged with mixed-media. In addition to the diskettes, the game came with multiple booklets like the manual and the Book of Patterns, which is a nice addition and adds depth to the game world. It also came with a cassette which contained an audio drama setting up the story. I really wish more development companies put this much work into their games.
* Despite just being arrangements of [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]]'s [[Swan Lake]], the music is wonderful and extremely fitting to the atmosphere of the game.
+
* I really like the idea of having short songs to act as magic spells, and the fact that you can play them in reverse to have the opposite effect was really clever.
 +
* Even in the 16-color [[Enhanced Graphics Adapter|EGA]] version, the graphics are amazingly well drawn.
 +
* Despite just being arrangements of [[Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky]]'s ''[[Swan Lake]]'', the music is wonderful and extremely fitting to the atmosphere of the game.
 
* The SCUMM engine is well-made and solid, even after being altered to handle this game.
 
* The SCUMM engine is well-made and solid, even after being altered to handle this game.
* The Book of Patterns is a nice addition and adds depth to the game world.
+
* I like that the game has an easy and hard mode to accommodate players who don't have a good ear.
* The audio drama included with the game was a great addition to the story.
 
  
 
===Bad===
 
===Bad===
* The game is both too easy and too short. More effort should have been put into complicating it and extending its length.
+
* The game is both too easy and too short. More effort should have been put into making more complicated puzzles and extending the game's length.
 
* The box art is pretty lame. I remember seeing it in stores and having no desire to buy the game because it looked like a cat's cradle simulator.
 
* The box art is pretty lame. I remember seeing it in stores and having no desire to buy the game because it looked like a cat's cradle simulator.
  
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===Box Art===
 
===Box Art===
 
<gallery>
 
<gallery>
Loom - DOS - USA.jpg|This is the art used by nearly every region and platform. It's pretty bad and doesn't explain much about the game. However, it does fit with the game's universe.
+
Loom - DOS - USA.jpg|This is the art used by nearly every region and platform. It's pretty bad and doesn't explain much about the game. However, it does fit with the game's universe. It was painted by [[Mark J. Ferrari]], with help from Dugald Stermer.
 
Loom - FMT - Japan.jpg|The FM Towns art is quite different, with the head (no pun intended) of each guild in the background and the the loom looming (no pun intended) over Bobbin. Also not that great.
 
Loom - FMT - Japan.jpg|The FM Towns art is quite different, with the head (no pun intended) of each guild in the background and the the loom looming (no pun intended) over Bobbin. Also not that great.
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
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Loom - USA - Manual.pdf|The game manual for the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS versions.
 
Loom - USA - Manual.pdf|The game manual for the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS versions.
 
Loom - USA - Book of Patterns.pdf|The Book of Patterns manual for the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS versions.
 
Loom - USA - Book of Patterns.pdf|The Book of Patterns manual for the Amiga, Atari ST, and DOS versions.
Loom - Hint Book.pdf|The game's hint book.
+
Loom - Hint Book - Cover.jpg|''[[Loom: Hint Book]]''.
Loom - Hint Book Revealed.pdf|The game's hint book, with answers revealed.
+
Loom - Hint Book Revealed.pdf|''Loom: Hint Book'' (with answers revealed).
 
Loom - USA - Cassette - Front.jpg|The audio cassette cover.
 
Loom - USA - Cassette - Front.jpg|The audio cassette cover.
 
Loom - USA - Cassette - Back.jpg|The audio cassette back.
 
Loom - USA - Cassette - Back.jpg|The audio cassette back.
 
Loom - USA - Cassette.jpg|The audio cassette.
 
Loom - USA - Cassette.jpg|The audio cassette.
Loom - USA - Audio Drama.jpg|The audio drama.
+
Loom - USA - Audio Drama.mp3|The audio drama.
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
  
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Loom - DOS - Screenshot - Dye Room.png|Dye room in EGA.
 
Loom - DOS - Screenshot - Dye Room.png|Dye room in EGA.
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
 +
 +
===Videos===
 +
{{#ev:youtube|f_ankA6dcSI|256|inline|Longplay, EGA, hard mode.|frame}}
 +
{{#ev:youtube|-AuSdzo1WTU|256|inline|Longplay, VGA Talkie, hard mode.|frame}}
  
 
==Download==
 
==Download==
This is the LucasFilm Games Passport to Adventure game sampler. It contains an MS-DOS demo version of Loom, [[The Secret of Monkey Island]], and [[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure]].
+
This is the LucasFilm Games Passport to Adventure game sampler. It contains an MS-DOS demo version of ''Loom'', ''[[The Secret of Monkey Island]]'', and ''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure]]''.
  
 
* [[Media:Passport to Adventure v1.0.zip|Download]] ([[:File:Passport to Adventure v1.0.zip|Info]]) - Passport to Adventure Demo.
 
* [[Media:Passport to Adventure v1.0.zip|Download]] ([[:File:Passport to Adventure v1.0.zip|Info]]) - Passport to Adventure Demo.
 +
 +
==Titles==
 +
{| class="wikitable"
 +
! Language !! Native !! Transliteration !! Translation
 +
|-
 +
| English || Loom || ||
 +
|-
 +
| Japanese || ルーム || Rumu || Loom
 +
|}
  
 
==Links==
 
==Links==
* [http://www.mobygames.com/game/loom mobygames.com/game/loom] - MobyGames.
+
{{Link|MobyGames|http://www.mobygames.com/game/loom}}
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game)] - Wikipedia.
+
{{Link|Wikipedia|https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loom_(video_game)}}
 +
{{Link|TCRF|https://tcrf.net/Loom_(DOS)}}
 +
 
 
* [http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Reviews/Loom/Index.html thealmightyguru.com/Reviews/Loom/Index.html] - My old site.
 
* [http://www.thealmightyguru.com/Reviews/Loom/Index.html thealmightyguru.com/Reviews/Loom/Index.html] - My old site.
  
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[[Category: Games]]
 
[[Category: Games]]
 
[[Category: Video Games]]
 
[[Category: Video Games]]
 +
[[Category: 1990 Video Games]]
 +
[[Category: Video Game Prime Order - Adventure, Strategy, Action]]
 +
[[Category: Video Game Genre - Adventure]]
 +
[[Category: Video Game Genre - Graphic Adventure]]
 +
[[Category: Video Game Genre - Puzzle]]
 +
[[Category: Media Theme - Adventure]]
 +
[[Category: Media Theme - Fantasy]]
 
[[Category: Amiga Games]]
 
[[Category: Amiga Games]]
 
[[Category: Atari ST Games]]
 
[[Category: Atari ST Games]]
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[[Category: FM Towns Games]]
 
[[Category: FM Towns Games]]
 
[[Category: Linux Games]]
 
[[Category: Linux Games]]
[[Category: Macintosh Games]]
+
[[Category: Macintosh Classic Games]]
[[Category: TurboGrafx CD Games]]
+
[[Category: TurboGrafx-CD Games]]
[[Category: Adventure]]
 
[[Category: Fantasy]]
 
 
[[Category: Games I've Beaten]]
 
[[Category: Games I've Beaten]]
 
[[Category: Favorite]]
 
[[Category: Favorite]]
 
[[Category: Favorite Games]]
 
[[Category: Favorite Games]]
 
[[Category: 4-bit Color Graphics]]
 
[[Category: 4-bit Color Graphics]]
 +
[[Category: Video Games That Fail the Bechdel Test]]

Revision as of 22:05, 21 June 2020

North American box art.

Loom is a graphic adventure puzzle video game by produced by Brian Moriarty and developed and published by Lucasfilm Games, originally released in January 1990 for Amiga, Atari ST, and MS-DOS, and later ported to several other platforms. Although the game uses the SCUMM engine, it doesn't use the typical verb-object control scheme. The game also came with an audio drama which gave backstory to the world.

Personal

My middle school friend friend Mike had the LucasArts Classic Adventures box set and showed me a short part of this game near the end. I was impressed enough to ask to borrow it, and, after a few days, I had beaten it. Later, I got a copy of the MCGA CD version and beat that one as well. I really loved the game and thought it told a very clever and creative story. I was, as expected, a bit miffed at the ending.

Status

I do not own this game, but have beaten the DOS EGA and MCGA versions on easy mode.

Review

Video Game Review Icon - Enjoyment.png Video Game Review Icon - Control.png Video Game Review Icon - Appearance.png Video Game Review Icon - Sound.png Video Game Review Icon - Replayability.png
6 5 8 7 4

Best Version: CD Talkie

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

  • The game's story by Brian Moriarty is really creative and original. Having different guilds, each who see the world in a manner befitting their own trade, was a fantastic idea.
  • The game is wonderfully packaged with mixed-media. In addition to the diskettes, the game came with multiple booklets like the manual and the Book of Patterns, which is a nice addition and adds depth to the game world. It also came with a cassette which contained an audio drama setting up the story. I really wish more development companies put this much work into their games.
  • I really like the idea of having short songs to act as magic spells, and the fact that you can play them in reverse to have the opposite effect was really clever.
  • Even in the 16-color EGA version, the graphics are amazingly well drawn.
  • Despite just being arrangements of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, the music is wonderful and extremely fitting to the atmosphere of the game.
  • The SCUMM engine is well-made and solid, even after being altered to handle this game.
  • I like that the game has an easy and hard mode to accommodate players who don't have a good ear.

Bad

  • The game is both too easy and too short. More effort should have been put into making more complicated puzzles and extending the game's length.
  • The box art is pretty lame. I remember seeing it in stores and having no desire to buy the game because it looked like a cat's cradle simulator.

Ugly

  • Nothing.

Media

Box Art

Documentation

Maps

Screenshots

Videos

Longplay, EGA, hard mode.
Longplay, VGA Talkie, hard mode.

Download

This is the LucasFilm Games Passport to Adventure game sampler. It contains an MS-DOS demo version of Loom, The Secret of Monkey Island, and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: The Graphic Adventure.

Titles

Language Native Transliteration Translation
English Loom
Japanese ルーム Rumu Loom

Links

Link-MobyGames.png  Link-Wikipedia.png  Link-TCRF.png