Asterix: Operation Getafix

One of the most obscure Coktel Vision games ever, Asterix: Operation Getafix is a decent action/adventure similar to Infogrames' Tintin games, starring one of France's best-known comic book character.

The plot is as wacky as a real Asterix episode: Getafix, the Gaul's resident druid, has fallen victim to lunacy, thanks to Obelix who accidentally threw a menhir on his head. Getafix is the only one who can make the beverage which could cure him, but he cannot ever remember his own name. Worse than that, he no longer knows how to make the magic potion that gives superhuman strength to the Gauls. Without it, they would definitely be defeated by the Romans who are a hundred times as many and much better armed. It's therefore up to you, as Asterix, to find the ingredients that will help Getafix recover.

Gameplay follows for the most part a typical platform formula: fight the Romans and hunt the wild boars, etc. But as with most Coktel games, Asterix also contains non-action sequences, such as the fun part where you mix the ingredients and test the potion on either Getafix or a captive Roman, and dice game you can play against the soothsayer or Romans in the camp. The money you win from the game is necessary to buy items and potion ingredients.

For all the non-action parts that add variety to the game, the novelty wears out pretty quickly. By the time you meet a twentieth boar or Roman, it all gets very tiring, and you won't feel the urge to find that last ingredient.

If you're a fan of the comic, you might find the game enjoyable. For others, it's just another standard platform game with little variation. Infogrames does it much better with Tintin games.

Review By HOTUD