You're
probably gonna look at this and think, "Wow, is that all there is to it? Looks like it
was designed in Powerpoint, or something." You'll have this dismissive attitude right
away. I know this...because I did the same thing. See, gamers have a tendency to focus
so much on the technology that makes a game...that we lose sight of the game.
The basic interaction that is...a video game.
Even without the elaborate graphics, and fancy music, and all the other stuff that tends
to distract us...there's something about this game, that made me keep playing this game.
Might be Regis Philbin.
That's right. It's the Third Edition. And if you go back in time and look closely, you'll
see that it's pretty much the same edition, as the Second Edition. They just added new
questions, had Regis record some new lines and called it a day. Not much effort, obviously.
And based on the things we usually talk about in reviews...yeah, this game kind of sucks.
That didn't change the fact that I wanted to keep playing it. It might not be a very
good video game—at least, not by the usual standards of good video games. But it's still
a good game.
Even if...you don't actually win any money.
So obviously, that's the one caveat with any video game based on a game show. The whole
draw of these shows is that...the stakes are huge, right? There's, like, thousands of dollars
on the line. And we can feel that pressure, because we can relate to that pressure. We
imagine how that money would change our lives, and it makes the tension more genuine.
Obviously, that's missing from the game. If you lose, you just...start over. So there's
just, inherently, a limitation here...something that instantly puts the game at a disadvantage.
But even so, there's still something fun about this. And I think it's, just...the simple,
timeless appeal of testing your wits. Humans love that sh*t, and this game offers it. In
fact, it's virtually identical to the show. You get a series of progressively more difficult
trivia questions, each answer earning you more money. Well, not real money, but...you
get the idea.
You also have three lifelines, which are basically clues. One polls the audience, giving you
percentages of their answers...another takes away two of the wrong answers, leaving you
with two to choose from...and the last, and maybe the dumbest when applied to video games,
has you phoning a friend for advice. Only, in this case, it's not your friend.
It's, just...a f*cking idiot.
That's where we can start to make some criticisms. It's why, even though this is a good game,
it's not a good video game. For starters, when there are no people to poll, the lifelines
are totally arbitrary. Unless there's some kind of online component there, which obviously
wasn't the case on the original PlayStation...the concept of lifelines doesn't really work in
a video game.
And actually, as a video game, there's plenty to criticize here. There's a lot of load times,
the game is really slow...and the presentation is minimal. You get some generic lines from
Regis, some music from the show...Powerpoint graphics. I mean, minimalism is a very good
thing, except for when it's ugly.
This is just ugly.
But, knowing full well that it's a lousy video game, I really enjoyed playing Who Wants to
be a Millionaire: Third Edition. Even with the lack of options, even with the awful presentation...even
with Regis. That basic interaction of...answer this question. There's something pure, and
fair about that...and appealing. It's something universal and addictive.
Even if it's in an otherwise sh*t video game.
Big thanks to our friend Dylan, from Nashville, Tennessee, for sending us...