I reckon ya'll know us Clampetts -- I'm Jed, then there's Elly May, Jethro, an' Granny. Well, this here's our computer adventure, an' you're fixin' to play me. With some mighty fine huntin' an' shootin', we'll find oil an' make my kin millionaires. Then we're off to Beverly ... Hills that is.
Once there, we'll feel much obliged to throw a good ol'-fashioned hoedown to show the local folks some hillbilly hospitality...try Granny's tonic...you get the picture. The humdinger of it all is that someone goes an' kidnaps Granny out of our own mansion, right in the middle of the festivities.
With some help from Jethro and Elly May, we'll go a searchin' for clues to this mind-boggling crime. If we can uncover some secrets, mix up some homemade concoctions an' such, then I reckon we can rescue Granny and finally git to feelin' at home in Beverly.
Whoo-ee, I didn't know these thinkin' machines could do so much!
- Based on the movie from Twentieth-Century Fox - it's the action adventure computer game with the entire Clampett clan!
- More fun than swimmin' in the cement pond!
- There's oil in them thar swamps!
- Collect a heapin' helpin' of interestin' inventory items, all displayed in fine VGA graphics.
- Check out Rodeo Drive -- it ain't nothin' like the Ozarks!
~ from the back of the box
There are few gaming companies with a worse reputation than Capstone. Their output reeked with lazy design and poor programming skills to such an extent they were re-christened 'CRAPstone' by anyone with the misfortune to be suckered in by one of their games. More often than not, this was due to a cheap movie licence you wouldn't necessarily associate with a game tie-in. Case in point: The Beverly Hillbillies. Released in 1993 off the back of the big-screen reinterpretation of the classic sit-com, I was often drawn to the audacity to give this movie a game - a point-and-click adventure game no less - but the dreaded Capstone reputation put me off. Until now.
After spending some time with it, I can honestly say Capstone deserve their crude nick name. When basic pathfinding in an open field is an issue, you're on to a dud, but the problems don't stop there. Let's start from the beginning. You play as Jed Clampett on a mission to hunt a rabbit for tea. You have to find the creature then lure it to a dead end to shoot it and in turn a pocket of oil reserves. There are a few screens to throw you off, such as a water well that does nothing and your family who might as well do nothing, but the biggest hinderance is the wildlife. Two screens are home to a bear and a boar who need scaring off before they do the same to you. It's done by shooting a shotgun round into the air. A sound conclusion, but implementing it is another matter. It doesn't use the same point-and-click logic you might expect (such as use bullet with gun, use gun on bear). Instead, have Jed hold the weapon by using it on him, then have him pop one off by using a bullet on him. Not the bear, him.
This strange way of doing things permeates the whole game, even the arcade sequences (if you can even call them that). The first comes immediately after you discover the oil geyser and sees the entire family packed into a car for the long drive to Los Angeles on a three-lane highway. I thought this was a cutscene at first, but it just kept going with no text except for what is written on the billboards. It turns out, you have to be in a specific lane when the grey billboard says a specific sentence. There is no other hints or directions, just this cryptic billboard. When you do find a walkthrough so you can solve it, you find out those billboards refer to which lane you need to be in. Without it, it's as good as guesswork.y
Once you're found the right exit, you're then take to an overhead map of Beverly Hills as you search of the new Clampett mansion. This is done by visiting each home you come across and ringing the door bell. One of them will trigger the removal of some arbitrary road works blocking your way to the correct route. It's all very confusing, and it doesn't help that the roads loop back on themselves making Beverly Hills seem like Twin Peaks or Silent Hill - you cannot escape!
Once you've found your new home, the game gets a bit more 'normal'. Traditional adventuring fare returns. Pick everything not nailed down and click everything on everything. How else would you figure that telephone pole next to the swimming pool could be chopped down for firewood. Or that TV remote can open the garage door.
In all my time playing point-and-click adventures, The Beverly Hillbillies ranks amongst the worst I have ever played. Yet, there is still something in me that wants to witness the other Crapstone trainwrecks just to see what they're like. I'll take that challenge.
Once you've found your new home, the game gets a bit more 'normal'. Traditional adventuring fare returns. Pick everything not nailed down and click everything on everything. How else would you figure that telephone pole next to the swimming pool could be chopped down for firewood. Or that TV remote can open the garage door.
In all my time playing point-and-click adventures, The Beverly Hillbillies ranks amongst the worst I have ever played. Yet, there is still something in me that wants to witness the other Crapstone trainwrecks just to see what they're like. I'll take that challenge.
File Size: 13.4 Mb. Install Size: 24.5 Mb. Need help? Consult the Collection Chamber FAQ
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The Bevely Hillbillies (the game) is © IntraCorp
The Bevely Hillbillies (the movie) is © 20th Century Fox
Review, Cover Design and Installer created by me
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