Jan 232014
 

ColecoVision™ - Logo (Small)Looping™ by Venture Line, Inc. was a pretty good flying and shooting game for ColecoVision™. I did not own this game as a kid, but played it quite a bit at my friend Eric Connolly’s house because he had it. I purchased my copy as an adult and I’m so glad I did! This is a great game and I ended up with a great example in very good condition.

From the inside of the instruction manual:

Strap on your goggles, rev up the engines and take off! Your LOOPING™ plane soars over a world unlike any you’ve ever imagined. Fire bullets into a rocket station to open the gate. Beware of launched balloons! Test your flying accuracy and sense of direction by steering your plane through a maze of pipes. You survived? Stranger perils await. There are rooms full of green drops, twinkle monsters and bouncing balls. Can you outsmart them all and reach The End?

Review:

This is a game I have fond memories of as a kid, because, as mentioned I played it with one of my friends quite a bit. As an adult, going back and playing this one just isn’t the same. The game offers challenge to be sure, but really only has one level. Cosmic Avenger to me is a much better game than this one. The first time you play the level, you need to shoot a rocket that is to your left, so you have to turn around and shoot it. That opens the gate to the next section of the level which is a maze of pipes that can be tricky to navigate. Once you get through the maze, there is a small room with a twinkle monster in it that you must shoot and then enter the room with the finish line (called The End) and you must shoot or avoid 4 bouncing balls and then touch the line and you complete the level. That’s it, repeat, repeat, repeat. So I’m being a bit rough I know, but somehow this game feels much shorter to me than other ColecoVision™ games even though it’s probably not that big of a difference. Challenge is added on the second time through the level because you now have to shoot two rockets to open the gate and the second rocket is inside of a structure that you must shoot a hole in that you can then fly through and shoot the rocket. The maze has some green drops of liquid that drip out of one of the pipes too and there are more twinkle monsters. The third time through, there are three rockets that need to be shot and more twinkle monsters to shoot before reaching the end. All of this doesn’t make me feel like there is any more content. So, all of this being said, I do like this game, but the replay value is just not there for me. There isn’t much of a story either as you can see from the game description from the inside of the instruction manual above. The graphics are great and so is the music though. And the play control is there too, so don’t let my review discourage you from trying this one. If you love ColecoVision™ games and never tried this one, then it’s definitely worth a try. For me I’m glad I have a decent example of the box art and instructions/cartridge because let’s face it, how many Venture Line, Inc. games are there in existence? Not too many I don’t think…. yup, I just googled it and didn’t find anything about the history of the company, so there you go.

My Rating:

Play Control: 8.0
Graphics: 7.0
Sound/Music: 7.0
Story: 3.0
Level Design: 7.0
Replay Value: 5.0
Overall: 6.0 (Overall ratings are rounded to the nearest half point.)

Cosmetic Condition of my copy of this game:

Overall, I rate my copy: 7.0 – It is in great condition. But the cartridge label has some wear and the instruction booklet had some sort of sticker removed from the outside back page. The box is an 8.5. The photos don’t do the box justice.

Details:

System: ColecoVision™
Year: 1982
Developer: Venture Line, Inc.
Publisher: Coleco
Price I paid: $17.34
Retail Price: Around $39
Purchased from: atari2600.com
Game is complete?: YES, including receipt.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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