


Schelober's Quest For A Babe, by 3DK
4 disks, requires 512k

	I have to admit that for a long time after receiving this one, I wasn't sure how to react. Here we have this little, caveman-like guy who uses his monstrous belching abilities as a weapon against monsters, carries a big club and has an ultimate goal of finding the ingredients needed to perform the ultimate mating belch in order to win the love of an elusive female. At first glance, a lot of people are going to pass this one off as sophomoric, maybe even sexist gaming humor.
	All I can say to them is to just play for a couple of hours. After the initial loss of brain cells due to the absurd storyline, you'll find a game that is huge in scope, rich in puzzles, traps and fun and a game that is quite simply hard to put down. A cross between Gauntlet- the graphic view is virtually identical- and Eye of the Beholder- it's filled with secret passages, puzzles, keys and monsters and the game engine itself is very much that of an RPG, as opposed to a straight arcade fest. 
	Schelober, who is the player's character, starts off very weak, with little in the way of hit points, strength, or anything else. As with most RPGs, his abilities advance as he gains experience. There are a multitude of magical items to find, along with the monetary system which consists of "bucks" and "chucks." He can purchase things, pay tolls and even put money and items in a bank during the course of the game.
	Combat, which happens often, is my biggest complaint for Schelober. Every time he encounters a hostile organism- and there are many- the game moves to the combat screen, which displays the strength and hit points of Schelober and his opponent, along with a small battle window on the upper left side of the screen. Combat consists of Schelober burping the tar out of his opponent from long distance, then just clubbing the monster when it gets close. The monsters will attack in various ways and some are extremely powerful. The problem with this system is, first of all, that the belch gag gets really old really fast and sinks into annoyance soon after. The constant screen switching also gets annoying. I would have preferred more of an arcade style to it, possibly something more like Gauntlet's shoot 'em up style.  
	Throughout the game, there are hints and tips given to the player by signs and notices, most of which are humorous and the game definitely has a tongue in cheek air to it- as it should. Graphics are not great, but are animated well enough and the terrain is nicely done. Schelober allows for multiple saves on the save disk, installs onto a hard drive and was programmed especially for the Amiga.
	It should be noted that this is the first game from 3DK and they are supposedly working on a sequel. Coming from a very small company, Schelober is short on packaging, but more then makes up for it in play value. This is a very big game that is fun to play and, in it's way, original. Get past all the belching that goes on within the game and you'll find something that's just chock full of play value. In the future, I expect to see more good things from the guys at 3DK and look forward to the sequel, but in the meantime, I'm being surrounded by killer eyeballs and trident throwing nymphs- but, it's worth it, isn't it? If only because the ultimate goal is true, romantic love...
	Or something like that, anyway.
 