Labyrinth

[h1]50/100[/h1] [h2]Really bad digital port of an absolute boardgame classic[/h2] [list] [*]The game itself is still almost as fun as it used to be back in the day. [*]But everything is painstakingly slow. There is always one click or one animation too many. [*]No fast mode for experts to skip or speed up useless animations. [*]No beginner's mode either where beginners could test what shifting a row or column would look like. [*]No windowed mode, only Fullscreen. [*]Music and sounds are either on or off, no slider bars. [*]ALT+TAB away and the music keeps playing... [*]No language option. Seems to be mandatorily in the OS language. [*]Except for Master Labyrinth, the several variants of the game are only skins, nothing more. And not even minimum effort skins. [*]Labyrinth 3D, which would be another gameplay mode instead of just a skin, is not included. [*]Remote-Playing vs. my friend didn't work as it should. She, as the host, was the only one could actually do anything, my keyboard, mouse and controller did nothing. I had to tell her which moves I want to make. [/list] So pretty much exactly the type of low quality design I have come to expect from Markt & Technik products. Maybe there are so many superfluous animations to extend the gametime that nobody is able to request a refund anymore after playing 2 games? Ravensburger, please look for someone else to digitalize your boardgames. This is not it. Any halfway committed solo-developer could do better than this.

[h3]Underwhelming version of a European board game classic[/h3] Ravensburger's Das Verrückte Labyrinth [i](also known as The A-maze-ing Labyrinth in its earlier English-language printings, and simply Labyrinth these days)[/i] rightfully counts among the undisputed classics of European board game industry. Personally, I can't think of anyone this side of the Atlantic who's not played it at least once. While there have already been attempts to make a video game out of the mind-boggling board game classic [i](the currently out-of-print 2001 version stands out)[/i], Ravensburger's current crop of their games' digital versions wouldn't have been complete without a version of Labyrinth - and here's where the problems start. As is common with all current Ravensburger games, there's no online multiplayer [i](a dreadful faux pas in case of any digital board game)[/i]. The question is, why would anyone bother with a local multiplayer digital board game, when one can get a proper board game out? Another strange decision is the choice of Labyrinth versions presented in the game. While it is incredibly nice to see the long out-of-print Das Labyrinth der Meister included, I find it a very questionable decision to include such variations as Labyrinth Germany, Labyrinth Japan, or Labyrinth Ocean [i](for crying out loud!)[/i], instead of including Labyrinth 3D or the ability to change to another version of the classic Labyrinth board other than the dumbed down 2021 design [i](that doesn't have the iconic troll or sorceress)[/i]. [b]Pros:[/b] * Inclusion of the out-of-print Das Labyrinth der Meister. [b]Cons:[/b] * No online multiplayer; * Surprising choices of additional Labyrinth versions included; * No ability to change the design of the classic Labyrinth board to those of earlier editions. [b]Recommendation:[/b] Better get your copy of Das Verrückte Labyrinth out and play solo.

Nice PC version. It includes 6 different variants, each with multiple optional rules. Great for solo or Multiplayer on the same computer, Also great for all ages due to simplicity of the game, though there's plenty of strategy to keep more experienced players interested.