15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic, but not without its flaws..., June 26, 2001
This review is from: $100,000 Pyramid (CD-ROM)
I was thrilled with this game! The graphics are terrific and look just like the show, and the animated celebrites that give you the clues are adorable. Die-hard fans of the $25,000/$100,000 Pyramid will thoroughly enjoy this game, which has to be the most outstanding PC-adaptation of a game show ever made.
However, I found the following weaknesses. Many of these are incredibly minor, but hardcore $100,000 Pyramid fans will appreciate reading them...
1. Others have said this, but it bears repeating: no Dick Clark? What the... C'mon, guys, you can't have the $100,000 Pyramid without Dick Clark! 2. Again, to repeat some of the above reviews: what's with the theme music? If I can find the REAL theme music and somehow replace it, I will. The music they have is *blech*. 3. In the real show, when you get to the winner's circle, you first try for $10,000. Then, if/when you make it a second time, you try for $25,000. Then, the fastest winners are brought back for a tournament to win $100,000. With this game, it's $5,000 then $10,000, then $25,000, then $50,000 then $100,000 (or something like that). Blech. Stay true to the original game show, guys. 4. Clues that the animated celebrites give in the bonus round are often illegal. For example, one time when I played, the subject was "Things that are refrigerated." The celebrity said, "Milk, so it doesn't spoil." On the television show that would be "buzzed." You can only list items; you can't elaborate or get descriptive like that. This happens way too often. 5. On the television show, after each round, whether in the preliminary game or the bonus round, Dick Clark will usually reveal what the real answers were, often times suggesting good clues. Nothing like that happens in this game, and the user is often frustrated by not knowing what he was previously trying to guess. 6. Annoying music plays during the actual game play. Totally unnecessary. During the preliminary rounds there should be no sounds at all except for the "ding" when you get the answer, and during the bonus round, there should be nothing but the "chirps" of the time clock. 7. This is really nit-picky, but the view that you look at during the bonus round is awkward. It looks like you're seeing the winner's circle from the back row of the studio. I'd rather see the same view you see on TV; mainly, a side view of both players, with a cutaway of the current subject block from the board appearing on the bottom in the center. 8. In both the preliminary rounds and the bonus round, the animated celebrities always say little things like, "Impressive!" and "Nice going!" after you type in the right answer. That never happened on TV, and it is a waste of time, not to mention annoying.
To be fair, here are some things that I considered to be pleasant surprises...
1. After you quit each game, there are hilarious little television commercials that play during the closing credits ("Some departing contestants will receive..."). Cute! 2. The game has "7-11" and "Mystery 7" categories, with very authentic-looking logos. Great! 3. The opening sequence has a view of the stage that looks incredibly true to the television show. They even super-impose the words, "The $100,000 Pyramid" over the bonus round playing board, just like in the opening of the television show.
Not hearing Dick Clark say, "Here is your first subject...GO!" and not having the original theme music is disappointing, but all in all, a terrific game, and I look forward to more Sierra versions of classic game shows.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Almost a 5-star game, October 19, 2001
This review is from: $100,000 Pyramid (CD-ROM)
Graphics - Excellent graphics! The set of the classic game is perfectly recreated with actual fonts that were used on the trilons (aka "flippy boxes"), and the boxes flip just like on the actual show. The characters (civilian players and celebrity players) are nicely animated, but some of their winning animations look overzealous. No Dick Clark in this one, so if you're expecting everything from the classic show, then you'll be slightly disappointed. Score (out of 5) - 4.5
Sound - Voices are crisp and clear, and the music is nice, however the classic $100,000 Pyramid theme is not on here. It was replaced with a livelier, jazzier rendition of the theme. I actually prefer the classic 2 themes (the original theme used from the beginning of the $10000 Pyramid to the end of the $50000 Pyramid, and the updated theme used from the beginning of The New $25000 Pyramid to the end of the $100000 Pyramid). You even have the Winner's Circle timer sound ("doot doot doot") which sounds during the last 10 seconds on both the Winner's Circle and in the main game. The only thing missing is the classic "cuckoo" sound for an illegal clue and Dick Clark, especially his classic "So long" sign-off. Score - 4.5
Control - You use the mouse to choose which civilian character you want, which celebrity partner you want, and which box you want to play. You use the keyboard to type in your name and your answers. You also use the keyboard's TAB key if you want to pass on a subject in either the main game or the Winner's Circle(unlike the actual show, you can come back to passed subjects in the main game). Score - 5
Playability - You can play one person vs the computer, 2 players against each other, and an option called Party Play (4 players with 2 players on a team). This would make an excellent party game. Score - 5
Overall - Not having Dick Clark in this game hurts a little because he is the best-known host of the Pyramid show since its inception in 1973 (Bill Cullen did a good job hosting the syndicated weekly $25,000 Pyramid from 1974 to 1979, and John Davidson hosted a slightly updated version of the $100,000 Pyramid from 1991 to 1992). However other than that, this game is a near-exact version of the classic show that is one of my most favorite of all time (other favorites being Match Game [I hope to see the PC version of Match Game soon], Password [I'd love to see a PC version of either Password Plus or Super Password], and The Price Is Right [which has yet to have a good computer/videogame version...a lackluster version appeared on the PC and Commodore 64 in 1990, and a NES version was developed around the same time but never released]). Overall Score - 4
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good, but repetative, November 26, 2001
By A Customer
This review is from: $100,000 Pyramid (CD-ROM)
This game is a lot of fun, but...
The same categories keep coming up over and over. The "celebrities" give the same clues repeatedly, even when you obviously can't get the answer from what they've said so far.
I am not bothered at all by the lack of Dick Clark or the original music.
Play is fast, and it's nice that you can type just part of the answer and get the points. Otherwise, the better typists would always win.
Worth the money I spent on it, but they really should have more different categories.
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