Keep the Balance
- — 06 December, 2001 13:25
You don't have to be into weights and measures to play this simple brainteaser, which requires the player to balance a set of giant scales using a succession of strange items. In a fashion oddly reminiscent of the Generation Game, objects and figures of different weights move along the bottom of the screen on conveyor belts, while players propel them onto each of the scale pans to keep the weight even on both sides.
A monkey and small girl take it in turns to sit atop the scales, frantically waving and showing you which side needs more weight to obtain balance by moving away from the fulcrum.
Depending on the game's level, the objects can be anything from circus characters and animals to playing cards and toys. However, some of the objects need to be avoided. For example, the crocodile will eat other animals, the fan blows away all the objects on its side of the scale, and the vacuum cleaner sucks up everything near it. And just when you think you've defeated all these malevolent household appliances and are poised to achieve equilibrium, the joker appears and upsets the scales.
The game can be quite slow in the earlier stages, and with 10 levels in each zone it may become tedious. However, the bizarre and incredibly detailed animation makes it lively and it should particularly appeal to children, who may well find the Game Boy Color version of Keep the Balance more to their liking.
Publisher: JoWood Productions/MacMillan Digital Publishing
Developer: JoWood Productions
URL: www.jowood.com/en; www.keepthebalance.com
