<!--
	Title: (PRODUCT REVIEWS) Starcross
	Author: Harvey Bernstein
	Source: Antic, v2(5)
	Date: August 1983
	Transcription by Steve Derby
-->

Infocom, Inc.
55 Wheeler St.
Cambridge, MA 02138
(617) 492-1031
$39.95, 32K -- diskette

The first in the INTERLOGIC, text-only, adventure-game series from Infocom,
**Starcross** is one of the most engrossing and engaging adventures I
have experienced in a long time. This game was released just after the popular
ZORK trilogy and it has been a favorite of mine for a while now. As a
prose adventure, it is one of the great science fiction "interactive novels."

Starcross transports you to the year 2186, launching you headlong into the
depths of space. As commander of the M.C.S. Starcross, your mission is to
find and harness the energy of a black hole. Your ship is equipped with a
computer that has taken over the functions of navigation and routine maintenance.
A mass detector aids your search, along with powerful magnets.
With such competent mechanical help, you relax and doze off into a deep
sleep.

Suddenly, the alarm in the mass detector awakens you, and you head
for the control room. Just outside the ship you spot an alien artifact and are
presented with several challenging puzzles. How do you get inside it?
How do you operate the device? You will also meet various inhabitants of
the artifact. Zork players may even meet some old friends.

Starcross takes some surprising turns at this point and I wouldn't want
to ruin the "plot" by saying any more.

Unlike most adventures, the text-only format here enhances the experience
for me. No graphics could match the descriptions provided by the rich
prose of the game. Adventurers new to the Infocom series should be forewarned,
however. Room descriptions may refer to items previously undescribed.
This proves to be the most frustrating aspect of the game.

About Starcross vocabulary: In no other adventure have I found such a
wide range of commands that can be "understood" by the program. This
program accepts almost all the words you type, and in plain English. Not
everything you try will be effective, but that is the nature of the game.

Starcross is a welcome addition to any adventurer's collection. Next time
someone asks you why you like all-text adventures, show them Starcross.
