During my wonder years, I fantasized about a vehicle that could burrow, mole-like, underground. It could also navigate underwater, cruise the ocean's surface, and - naturally - fly. Two-thirds of the way through Gadget, Haruhiko Shono's latest epic CD-ROM, I saw my childhood dream machine. In Gadget, the Ark is either a prototype pod to escape earth's impending collision with a comet, or a hallucination in a macabre mind-control experiment called Sensorama.
Most of Gadget's action takes place aboard a train - and in train stations - where you click your cursor over cadaverous figures who range from escaped mental patients to Messianic scientists. As with all of Shono's work, the production values are high, with evocative sound and fabulous visuals.
Though Gadget spends a bit too much time shuttling back and forth on trains, much of this adventure - particularly its climax - is riveting and spooky.
Gadget for Mac and Windows: ¥9,800 (US$79.99). Synergy Inc.: fax +81 (3) 5272 9610. Books Nippan: (800) 427 6100, +1 (213) 891 9636, fax +1 (213) 891 9631, e-mail nippan@netcom.com.
STREET CRED
How Buildings LearnCinemania '94
The Graphic Language of Neville Brody 2
Gadget
