Snoopy’s Magic Show
Woodstock has been bird-napped! Snoopy must brave a maze full of pushable and breakable blocks, teleporters, and deadly magic balls to rescue all of the birds.
Jeff calls this a “Blockout maze-type game,” and I have no idea what he means by that, because Blockout is 3D Tetris and this has nothing to do with that? It’s an action-puzzle game in a similar vein to Bugs Bunny Crazy Castle or Godzilla, with unique levels that you need to solve while also being careful of semi-random hazards. (And it gives me a similar vibe that the game was developed and then the licensed characters were slotted in—there’s nothing in this game that makes the action or puzzles unique to Snoopy. And even the “magic show” part feels tacked-on to explain how Snoopy can destroy blocks.)
Jeff gives passwords and walkthroughs for the first 20 levels (of 100+) and a lot of that space is distinguishing O from 0 and I from 1, because the passwords use the full alphabet. While you still need to account for the erratically bouncing balls, his walkthroughs are decent ways to handle each level and still get a big clear-time bonus. Jeff then gives a collection of additional passwords, though he doesn’t actually note what stages each one takes you to (they’re for stages 21-43). Jeff doesn’t actually tell you “how to win,” but I think we’ve abandoned expecting that by this point. (Admittedly, I’d hoped for a late-game password or two so I could see the really crazy levels. Ah, well.)
Snoopy moves slowly compared to the balls, and the slightest graze of his hitbox kills you. You get used to it quickly and needing to plan ahead works with the puzzle nature of the game. This game is otherwise very good at being its own tutorial, doling out the new challenges one at a time so you learn how to handle them: Pushable blocks, breakable blocks, blocks that appear and disappear over time, teleporters (that affect the balls), one-way floors (that do not), the invincibility power-up, etc.
Jeff gives this an A, saying it’s fun for the whole family and delighting that the licensed characters actually look like they’re supposed to. I think the best review you can give a game like this is to note that this 64kb game made for a monochrome 2.5” screen more than 30 years ago still commanded my son’s attention for a solid half-hour despite 10,000 other games available on the same retro handheld. The Peanuts IP might be tacked-on, but the game itself is solid and entertaining.