GEAR WORKS

Gearworks is a multi-platform game published on a few computer platforms, game gear and game boy by... Sony? Sony makes video games? Well no, this game was originally developed by Idea Software, a studio that seemed to specialize in Amiga software. The game is shown from a top-down perspective, with a rather complicated looking UI. You have a few items to select from, which you do by pressing A, then highlighting the one you want and pressing A again, and you actually use items by pressing B. Problem number one: the A button is the universal "doing things" button on Game Boy games, this is very confusing.

On the left side of the screen there's a gear connected to an engine. The goal is to connect the engine to the gear on the right side of the screen by placing gears. You get 50 points for every gear in the drivetrain, and 100 points redacted for every errant gear. There are little gremlins called Poffins going around that take pegs out of the board or add heat to your engine. The engine temperature is displayed above your tools, if it goes critical you have to try the level again.

I couldn't find the Game Boy manual for the game, but I did find the Game Gear manual. Gears can only go together in certain ways, and they spin in the direction of the mechanism (which is apparently a clock you're trying to install in several international monuments, like the leaning tower of Pisa.) As the game goes on, different colors of gear are introduced. These colors of gear all move in the same universal direction, except for 'green' ones that only go one way around that give you bonus points. I think that's what I was getting on occasion when a different colored gear appeared? Most of them spinning in one direction didn't stop me from being properly stumped by this game.

When two of the little cogs mesh together, the company is like a big clock. Now, clocks need to be wound tight to work right. Some clocks have jewel mechanisms that make them, I'm getting ahead of myself Bob. Bob? Look at me when I'm talking to you, Parr!

That man out there, he's getting mugged.

Well let's hope we don't cover him!

Wait, huh? Was this meant to be a, game review? Sorry my brain is mush today, I didn't like this game that much because it was too confusing. I need to sit down and try it some more, get some more footage.

TIME PASSES...

I returned to the game, and almost understood it this time. It is possible to place gears in such a way that it stops up the entire mechanism, and you have to use a bomb to clear it out. If you are out of bombs, you just sort of wait until you die and get to try again.I don't think it's a very fun game, even once you know what gears to put together in what order, you can still get stuck because you don't want to waste your bombs or oil. I commend this games original concept, but don't recommend it.