Reviews for EL BIGOTUDO
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Review #5 for EL BIGOTUDO by Beaver
Review #4 for EL BIGOTUDO by André Leão
Full review here at Planeta Sinclair: https://planetasinclair.blogspot.com/2024/04/el-bigotudo.html
Anyone who's been missing games from the other side of the Iron Curtain now has reason to delight in the new work from Romancha (White Jaguar) and co. And let's be honest, it's the best game we've seen in many, many months (maybe years). We dare say it even surpasses Seraphima, Wonderful Dizzy or Marsmare: Alienation, three of the best games to come out in recent times. And we mention these three because, in one way or another, they have similarities with El Bigotudo. If you happen to be one of those who say that everything made nowadays doesn't measure up to the 80s (in which case you don't know what you're missing), we can mention two other games that also come to mind: Dan Dare and V, the latter because of the many puzzles you'll encounter during this adventure.
We've already talked about the game's story here, and the developers' page has the story and instructions in greater detail, duly accompanied by a short but magnificent manual. When you flick through it for the first time, it's almost the same. This is not due to a failure on the part of the programming team, who developed a magnificent game and then no longer had the time (or money) to produce a detailed manual. No, that's entirely deliberate, because the idea is to explore the game and unravel its many secrets, with the manual only giving you a few clues. And it's only after much exploration of the corridors of this alien base that we begin to fully grasp the schemes contained in the manual. Or maybe not, because some are almost as indecipherable as the codes in V or Captain Blood.
The care taken by the developers in this release extends to the intro, which you can see as soon as you press El Bigotudo. It gives you a flavour of what you're about to encounter and introduces you to the hero of this adventure, an inveterate drinker who spills beers and whisky like normal people drink water. But despite this, he's brave, and even though he's been forcibly put in his base by the aliens, he'll do anything to get back home. By the way, the game has several endings and even after you've finished it, the surprises don't stop...
But let's start from the beginning. You wake up in the alien base, made up of five levels connected by a lift, which, as well as serving as transport, is also a very useful place to hide from the robots patrolling the corridors. They come in many shapes and forms, some are just zombies, who wouldn't pose much of a danger if they weren't in large numbers. You always have the chance to disguise yourself as a zombie by wearing the mask that an indigent person exchanges with you if you offer him what he asks for. They're easy to spot, usually leaning in a corner, looking like they've been keeping our hero company over drinks. What's more, they usually ask for matching objects, such as tobacco or knives. But they always give us something very useful in return.
More annoying are the robots, who periodically shoot if they sense our presence. As well as being larger than the zombies, and therefore more difficult to jump over, they usually patrol points that have traps you can fall into, doubling the danger. But there's nothing that three well-placed shots can't solve, assuming you find the gun and the bullets.
On the lower levels there are also robotic guardians, who fire as soon as you enter their range. You have to study the path they take very carefully in order to avoid them (your gun can do nothing against them).
Added to this list of monstrosities are slimy beings that cling to the ceilings and fall when you least expect it, computer engineers (on the top floor) that you have to jump over (you don't want to waste bullets on them), and robots with periscopes on the satellite, which you can access if you find a helmet and manage to activate the lift.
You might think that the enemies and the many obstacles that populate the corridors are our main problem. Far from it, because after a while you know your way round all the dangers. The main problem lies in the many puzzles we encounter throughout the adventure. And while some are given clues or are even well-known problems, such as the one in the first image, in which you have to divide the liquid between two containers, others are less obvious, such as the quantum generator, which is responsible for activating or deactivating certain parts of the base. In this case, only with experience and many attempts will we be able to understand how it works (and, by the way, how useful it is).
Another difficulty, at least until you find a way to solve it and then it becomes a good help, is the numerous shortcuts found in the base. Some are obvious, at least once you've figured them out. But others are well hidden, and it's only by trial and error that you realise them. A word of advice: try everything in every place. Sometimes you might be surprised by the horse doors you find. We'd also like to make a note: it's possible to get blocked in the game by taking a shortcut and ending up in a room with no return, where all the doors are blocked (in the control panel on level 3 we had blocked the doors). But it's just a small detail.
As well as fantastic gameplay and extremely clever puzzles that will take us many hours to solve, the scenery is also magnificent. The profusion of colours is astounding, there's not a hint of colour clash, but you don't lose the feeling that you're playing a ZX Spectrum game. Graphically, as with everything else, it is excellent, and the sound is on the same wavelength. The programming team hasn't overlooked a single detail and sometimes you just stop and stare in awe at the scenery unfolding in front of you.
El Bigotudo is a ZX Spectrum masterpiece, going straight into the restricted gallery of the best games of all time. It's totally absorbing and addictive, and we can guarantee that anyone who tries it won't rest until they've finished. Without a doubt, it's the game of the year so far, and the only reason we can't go so far as to say that it's going to be the leading contender for the GOTY is because we're going to have some very tasty surprises before the end of the year that are still under wraps (our mouth is a tomb).
The game costs 3 euros. What we can say is that it's a bargain. It's been a long time since we've spent so much money on a game...
Anyone who's been missing games from the other side of the Iron Curtain now has reason to delight in the new work from Romancha (White Jaguar) and co. And let's be honest, it's the best game we've seen in many, many months (maybe years). We dare say it even surpasses Seraphima, Wonderful Dizzy or Marsmare: Alienation, three of the best games to come out in recent times. And we mention these three because, in one way or another, they have similarities with El Bigotudo. If you happen to be one of those who say that everything made nowadays doesn't measure up to the 80s (in which case you don't know what you're missing), we can mention two other games that also come to mind: Dan Dare and V, the latter because of the many puzzles you'll encounter during this adventure.
We've already talked about the game's story here, and the developers' page has the story and instructions in greater detail, duly accompanied by a short but magnificent manual. When you flick through it for the first time, it's almost the same. This is not due to a failure on the part of the programming team, who developed a magnificent game and then no longer had the time (or money) to produce a detailed manual. No, that's entirely deliberate, because the idea is to explore the game and unravel its many secrets, with the manual only giving you a few clues. And it's only after much exploration of the corridors of this alien base that we begin to fully grasp the schemes contained in the manual. Or maybe not, because some are almost as indecipherable as the codes in V or Captain Blood.
The care taken by the developers in this release extends to the intro, which you can see as soon as you press El Bigotudo. It gives you a flavour of what you're about to encounter and introduces you to the hero of this adventure, an inveterate drinker who spills beers and whisky like normal people drink water. But despite this, he's brave, and even though he's been forcibly put in his base by the aliens, he'll do anything to get back home. By the way, the game has several endings and even after you've finished it, the surprises don't stop...
But let's start from the beginning. You wake up in the alien base, made up of five levels connected by a lift, which, as well as serving as transport, is also a very useful place to hide from the robots patrolling the corridors. They come in many shapes and forms, some are just zombies, who wouldn't pose much of a danger if they weren't in large numbers. You always have the chance to disguise yourself as a zombie by wearing the mask that an indigent person exchanges with you if you offer him what he asks for. They're easy to spot, usually leaning in a corner, looking like they've been keeping our hero company over drinks. What's more, they usually ask for matching objects, such as tobacco or knives. But they always give us something very useful in return.
More annoying are the robots, who periodically shoot if they sense our presence. As well as being larger than the zombies, and therefore more difficult to jump over, they usually patrol points that have traps you can fall into, doubling the danger. But there's nothing that three well-placed shots can't solve, assuming you find the gun and the bullets.
On the lower levels there are also robotic guardians, who fire as soon as you enter their range. You have to study the path they take very carefully in order to avoid them (your gun can do nothing against them).
Added to this list of monstrosities are slimy beings that cling to the ceilings and fall when you least expect it, computer engineers (on the top floor) that you have to jump over (you don't want to waste bullets on them), and robots with periscopes on the satellite, which you can access if you find a helmet and manage to activate the lift.
You might think that the enemies and the many obstacles that populate the corridors are our main problem. Far from it, because after a while you know your way round all the dangers. The main problem lies in the many puzzles we encounter throughout the adventure. And while some are given clues or are even well-known problems, such as the one in the first image, in which you have to divide the liquid between two containers, others are less obvious, such as the quantum generator, which is responsible for activating or deactivating certain parts of the base. In this case, only with experience and many attempts will we be able to understand how it works (and, by the way, how useful it is).
Another difficulty, at least until you find a way to solve it and then it becomes a good help, is the numerous shortcuts found in the base. Some are obvious, at least once you've figured them out. But others are well hidden, and it's only by trial and error that you realise them. A word of advice: try everything in every place. Sometimes you might be surprised by the horse doors you find. We'd also like to make a note: it's possible to get blocked in the game by taking a shortcut and ending up in a room with no return, where all the doors are blocked (in the control panel on level 3 we had blocked the doors). But it's just a small detail.
As well as fantastic gameplay and extremely clever puzzles that will take us many hours to solve, the scenery is also magnificent. The profusion of colours is astounding, there's not a hint of colour clash, but you don't lose the feeling that you're playing a ZX Spectrum game. Graphically, as with everything else, it is excellent, and the sound is on the same wavelength. The programming team hasn't overlooked a single detail and sometimes you just stop and stare in awe at the scenery unfolding in front of you.
El Bigotudo is a ZX Spectrum masterpiece, going straight into the restricted gallery of the best games of all time. It's totally absorbing and addictive, and we can guarantee that anyone who tries it won't rest until they've finished. Without a doubt, it's the game of the year so far, and the only reason we can't go so far as to say that it's going to be the leading contender for the GOTY is because we're going to have some very tasty surprises before the end of the year that are still under wraps (our mouth is a tomb).
The game costs 3 euros. What we can say is that it's a bargain. It's been a long time since we've spent so much money on a game...
Review #3 for EL BIGOTUDO by Black Cat / Era CG
This game is awesome. Interesting. But not easy. Even with straight hands (not like mine), you can hardly run through it quickly. You'll have to wander around, think, solve puzzles. The gameplay is addictive. I also liked the fact that there is almost no text in the game (in the gameplay itself), NPCs tell us what they need with the help of icons of items. For some reason I remember such a feature only in Terramex. I was also pleased with the design of the manual: beautiful, multicoloured and... confusing :) In general, I was waiting for the game (as I played previous games of the authors), I waited for it and was not disappointed! I have almost 12 hours of game play under my belt, but so far I've only got the worst possible ending. Let's wander further!
Review #2 for EL BIGOTUDO by Epsilon
Surprisingly cute and interesting game, compared to tonnes of casual games, which only waste your time, burning dopamine. It has everything that a demanding retrophile needs: the classic Spectrum graphonium, the spirit of exploration, and the coolest AY music combined with the sounds of the environment! The smoothness of animation is simply impressive. Definitely, the game deserves the highest rating and I would recommend everyone to have it in their collection. Thanks to the authors for their hard work, let's have the second part :)))
Review #1 for EL BIGOTUDO by Михаил Гамаев
This is how a modern product should look like, made with love for the little things. I hope the authors will give many more games like this. With kvation and thanks for the product.
For games of this level you can easily put the price three times higher - absolutely no pity for such a wonderful work, which is undoubtedly a jewel in the world of games for zx spectrum.
I will separately note the title music track. Despite the fact that it is quite short, the theme is very catchy. Little son with pleasure dances to this music.
The authors thank you very much! Burn more!