Captain Comic is a game the lays the foundation for great games such as Duke Nukem, Cosmo, Crystal Caves, Realms of Chaos, and other awesome sidescrollers. However, it is harder than most. The controls simple enough, you even can customize them. Controlling the timing of his jumps so that he doesn't fall into a huge chasm in the middle of the level is very difficult, making this game more difficult than your run of the mill side scrolling adventure.
The graphics of the game aren't that great.
Your basic VGA graphic engine is the basis of this game. Your character has a very basic design, with very basic animation, but he's probably the most disappointing facet of the graphics. As you progress through the game, the scenery just keeps getting more and more impressive. It's a rather old title, but some of the screens on show here still look good in my eyes. This game's sprites are very original, and they even act much more sophisticated than some of the AI engines in latter games. This game also has a recursive format, meaning that you need to go back to earlier parts of the world to complete the game.
The sound is definitely the worst part of Captain Comic. The same song
is repeated throughout the game (and being the Halls of Montezuma it gets a little annoying at times). The basic noises for jumping and shooting are also very annoying, so the sounds in this game are the worst aspect to it.
Captain Comic is without a doubt on the top of my list of awesome DOS games I played as a youngster. It is easy enough to play for a child to enjoy it, but it is more than challenging enough for an adult to enjoy the challenge of beating the game. This game is so great that it can easily be defined as a DOS classic. My brother and I spent countless hours of time playing this game when we were younger, but nowadays it takes an experienced gamer half an hour to an hour to complete Captain Comic. Disregarding the shortness of the game, it is very fun and easily a half an hour of mindless fun. Remember that the corkscrew is the key to beating Captain Comic, and also remember to kill EVERYTHING otherwise it comes right back at you. Have fun and enjoy the Captain as much as I did!
