The Dink Network

Legend of the Pillbug (The)

Dink gets his vacation at last. From the COTPATD project.
July 23rd, 2006
v2.00
Score : 6.8 fair
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A D-Mod that could be missed on one's list of those to download, and an average fair at best. Despite its sortcomings, this is a D-Mod that will change your mind about squishing pillbugs- maybe.

***Plot***
The story is interesting, but I found it overly ambitious and contrived. Dink's home is set on fire by pillbugs(???). That may seem nigh impossible, but nothing seems to be TOO impossible for this D-Mod. Pillbugs - which in this are sentient beings that not only talk, but build houses and even run their own shops - are really the main focus here- and although there seemed nothing at all legendary about them, you will spend way too much time trying to figure out whether the pillbugs on your screen are friendly or hostile (the golems in The Secret of Parizaya posed the same problem). I really like the twists and workings of intrigue, and when I played this one the first time I disregarded many of the impossibilities and took the time to enjoy the odd and whimsical story. I like the characters- I don't know why, but something about talking pillbugs seems mildly appealing- perhaps because I do not consider them something that shouldn't be able to talk in any NORMAL enviroment. While I found the story to be anusing, not everyone will find this appealing, and may be rather annoyed with the fact that it is hard to swallow, even in a game.
***8.0***

***Map***
The map is definitly one of the low points in this D-Mod- though not necessarily bad, It bothered me. What is bad about this map? The map for Legend of the Pillbug is completetly linear, with no real secrets or dungeons to enjoy. While it tries to hide this by turning to one side or the other every once and a while, the map really seems more like a straight path- even when you are supposedly lost in the middle of the forest- meaning that really it is useful only to get you from one area to another. The straight and uneventful map persuaded me to try and get to the next town as fast as I could, which is a bad thing.
***7.2***

***Graphics***
Nothing new, not even any especially original uses for the old ones- at least not every screen used the fence graphic as a wall... almost every sprite in this D-Mod has a purpose, and there seems to be very little effort that was devoted to the eclesiatic.
***5.0***

***Gameplay***
The monsters were all pretty easy... but then again they were mostly pillbugs- which are pretty easy to squish anyway.
***6.8***

FINAL SCORE:
***6.8***

So really not the best D-Mod, but it is still entertaining and delightful with only a few bugs. While there are definitely many much better D-Mods available for download, there are also many that are much worse. If your browsing through the D-Mod page looking for something short, entertaining, and by no means gut-wrenching hard, this one's worth a look- I feel it has a unique touch unattained by but a few other D-Mods, and is one of only a few that I forgive many of the problems that bring down its score, just because I found it quite entertaining.
June 9th, 2003
v2.00
Score : 5.0 fair
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Binirit
Peasant She/Her
 
Storyline: Dink is on vacation in his summerhouse on the beach. For unknown reasons, his house sets fire. Then he gets lost in a forest and while wandering there he discovers that part of the land is ruled by pillbugs. There are good pillbugs and evil pillbugs and the Evil Pill has taken over control. Dink sets out to kill the Evil Pill.

Map and graphics: The map is not that big. It has fences for borders. The map is not that much decorated. There are no new graphics, except for the doors to the castle that I also saw in some other D-mod.

Music: The music to this D-mod is fair.

Good: The fallen trees are done real realistic. Doors inside houses give a realistic touch. The shrinking pillbug is done nicely. There is some humour in this game, such as the pillbug that collects barrels.

Not so good: There is not much of a story, nor any adventure. You just follow the path and that is it. There is nothing to explore, nor can you just wander a bit. There is not much conversation either. All of these things make that it is just not much fun playing. There is no excitement, nor are you anxious to know what is going to happen next.
The first time you see Dink’s terrace it is adjacent to the beach, but the next time you see it, it is adjacent to grass. Most doorwarps move in the wrong direction. Sprites that should move just wobble since they have got hardness. Four screenlocks after each other with bonca's is way too much if there are no ways to heal and no savebots in-between. A lot of sprites have got the wrong hardness. Stairs that lead to a tunnel you just came out of, do not warp back.

Overall: A very easy to finish D-mod. You can almost just walk through it (if it was not for the bonca’s and the end-boss).

Fit for: If you want to play an easy D-mod.
September 5th, 2005
v2.00
Score : 8.9 good
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Connie
Peasant She/Her
 
I really like the dmod. Different screens, lots of trees and land (I really hate those cave mazes in other mods)very few screen locks which is good for a non fighter like me. Also you can kill the boncas with the fireball. The only thing I found was a problem is that getting from one screen to another in some areas. The one going from his house that is burnt to taking a detour because the road is blocked is tricky. You have to go all the way to the top of the screen where the screens join to enter the next screen. It is a invisible wall with an opening. Well I liked it.
August 13th, 2002
v2.00
Score : 4.0 tolerable
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While this certainly isn't a great dmod, it isn't as bad as some. There IS a plot unlike some recent submissions and the mod is beatable...with those features alone, there is enough proof that thought and work went into the game. Legend of the Pillbug is a very short romp, but also obviously an initial release from the author. There were a few annoying bugs, but the mod had a fair degree of difficulty. No new gfx really, and nothing gameplay-wise that really stands out.

I think this deserves at least a 4 though, because of the thought and time put into it. With a recent rash of bad romps, at least this one has proof of effort.

Not really a replayability factor on this one, but unlike a previous review, I think this is worth the few minutes of download time for a few minutes of gameplay.

August 11th, 2002
v2.00
Score : 2.2 horrible
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This is a bad Dmod. You just running a one-way-road, defeating monsters. Everything looks very artificial. There way to much monsters. The story is funny but not very detailed. Everyone is Pillbug because of the EvilPill. The Door-animation is not where it should be (looks buggy). Some parts are funny because they weird but there isn't really fun for playing this mod for long time.