Jokers Wild Review

Are you ready to travel back in time to face the Devil? No, you won't need the Sword of Asmodeous or fire-proof shoes. You're gonna need your CD-i controler and a good head for trivia as it's time to play one of the classic 80's gameshows. THE JOKER'S WILD!! Starring the original host. The occasionally funny, yet ever cool Wink Martindale. You ready to face the devil for a chance to win valuable (and sadly virtual) prizes? Put on your thinking caps. It's time to play one of the better gameshows of the 80's.

Much in the vein of CD-i's Jeopardy!, The Joker's Wild takes it's cues from the original show. Not just in bringing the original host, but adding a very good, easy to use interface that practically anyone can pick up and play right away. It really brings the feel of the original gameshow home.

Visually this one is very appealing. Video of Wink is very clean and loads quickly thanks to the motion pixels style video, featured in games like

Zelda's Adventure, Voyeur and other high quality CD-i FMV games. A real boost as not only is the video ultra clean, but you don't have to have the MPEG cart to play. A boon to those who still cannot find the add-on for their model CD-i.

Audio is very clean, but JW uses the the same naming feature as most of the other CD-i gameshow games, you're limited to a name thats in the (albeit large) list. If you're not on the list of common names (what Gir isn't a common name?) or want to use your favorite handle, you're kinda outta luck. It's still a very nice bonus that all the questions are read by the host, adds to the realisim of the game. The podium interface (see below) is good, but seems to lack a little detail. But still it's very functional, if not 100% stunning.

All in all, this is a fun game. Very true to it's original game, and only slightly annoying. A great game for up to four players, so bring the family. Questions range from incredibly easy to reasonably tough, so all can enjoy. However, if the younger crowd find this one just too tough all in all, there is always Jokers Wild Jr., which I will be reviewing soon. So, in the mean time, pick up a copy of Jokers Wild! and have a good time. It's a great gameshow game, and worth the cash.