Risky Woods Download (1992 Arcade action Game)

Unusually for Electronic Arts in the early 90s, this was a platform -shooter game with little or no adventuring or strategy elements. The game scrolls sideways, and has sections where precision jumps are required, either to clear rivers or collect bonuses. You carry a dagger to deal with the enemies, and must avoid contact with them. When killed, they leave coins to be collected - these are spent in the shop sections. Death loses you most of your coins, but they can usually be retrieved if they land on solid ground - making it better to be killed in combat than by drowning.

It is a rare thing to see on the computer nowadays, an action-packed arcade platformer that forms a challenge for even experienced gamers and looks like a crossing between a cartoon and a video game; especially when they don't give an attempt for a story and base themselves purely on challenge and fun. Risky Woods is one of these rarities. Don't let the looks of this game distract you too much, for you'll have to pay close attention to what happens around you.

In Risky Woods you take the role of a young adventurer, seeking to free monks who are confined within stone statues. You'll have to cross the land in order to free them all. This is all easier said than done. Each level will have enough obstacles to keep you busy for quite awhile. There's the endlessly respawning enemies closing in from both sides, and sometimes from above as well. As if that's not enough yet, you will have to look for eye keys in order to open up the eye pillars that block your path. There are also explosive, fake monk-statues scattered across the land with the sole purpose of misleading you. To top it all off, each level has its time limit too. So, to free these monks will prove quite a challenge.

The game itself looks like a perfect blend of cartoony graphics and traditional game graphics. Its bright colors and well-drawn sprites are bound to keep you to the game, especially as each level looks different, so there's always something new to explore and new things to see.

There isn't really any music in the game, but there are a lot of sound effects, which are so recognizable that they are a great aid in reacting in time towards certain situations. This doesn't mean they sound realistical, though. It has the quality of the digital sound from the early nineties but is especially well-done.

The controls are so self-explanatory that even a monkey would be able to play the game. All you have to do is use the cursors and the spacebar, just like in those good old arcade games. The rest of the gameplay is mostly timing. Jump against an enemy and you'll drop down like a brick, so time your moves well, or you won't live to see the end of the game.

Although the game can be insanely difficult, there is something that will definitely help you out. At the end of a level, you can encounter a shop, in which you can buy new weapons, replenish your energy or power up your current weapon. Along with this, you don't immediately lose a life, but can lose some coins, or some energy and be placed a bit back in the level. You can also collect powerups and items that refill your lifebar. These're scattered around the levels in chests. Some are good, some can make things even harder, like turning the screen upside-down. Yet others are a blend of good and bad, like the potions that make you fall asleep, restoring some energy, but losing some time and, if enemies run into you, also your coins.

All in all, Risky Woods is an odd game. It looks awesome and it plays awesome, but it's terribly, terribly hard. Then again, the game just wouldn't be half as much fun if it were easier. It's definitely worth checking out, if not for the game itself, then at least for this peculiarity.

Risky Woods is a better-than-average side-scrolling platformer that is better known on the Amiga than PC. Your goal: rescue a guardian and kill all the enemies on each level to get to the next level. One nice feature is the larger-than-average character sprite, which allows a greater range of animations and detail, although it makes it difficult to get enough space between you and the monster before it hits you first, or enough time to react to their attacks.

The game is similar to Rastan in graphical style and gameplay, except here your default weapon are throwing knives, not a sword. Dead enemies drop coins, which you can collect to buy better weapons with - usually at shops near the end of each level. If you get killed, most of your loot is lost. Although it is a very straightforward hack 'n slash, there is a modicum of strategy involved in the use of coins: do you use them to replenish your energy, or save them in hopes of buing weapons down the road?

There are four worlds in the game, each with 2-3 levels. The graphics are very well drawn, the worlds well-designed, and the action very smooth and frantic (although I feel this is much easier than Dinamic's average game). The larger-than-average sprites can be frustrating as mentioned above, but that is a minor gripe. Originally programmed for the Amiga by Zeus Software, this PC version was converted by Spanish developer Dinamic Multimedia. Not as good as Rastan, but well worth finishing.

A lot of people compare this game to Amiga classic Rastan. Some say it's better, some disagree, but they all agree that this is a good game. Is it? If you are an action game lover + you played a lot of games on Amiga then you will probably like Risky Woods. Otherwise, this game might bore you soon.

This typical side scrolling game offers a lot of action. Your weapon in the beginning are throwing knifes but you can collect coins and buy better weapons later. Not much to say about this game, just kill anything you see, jump a lot and try to stay alive.

How to run this game on modern Windows PC?

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