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Alter Ego (Life Simulation/Adventure)
Compatibility: 64K Apple II series
Requirements: One disk drive; joystick optional
While most entertainment software transports the player to exotic settings and bizaar circumstances, a few packages traffic in the mundane, familiar world of everyday experience. One such is Activision's "Alter Ego", a life simulation which invites you to play "what if". What if you were a more (or less) adventurous teenager? Suppose you had chosen a different career? or a different spouse? ... In "Alter Ego" your goal is to experience, grow, and be true to yourself-- whoever that may be!
Unless continuing from a saved position, you begin with a questionnaire to define a personality; or you may have the program create one 'at random'. The resulting profile outlines tendencies in twelve areas (confidence, intelligence, social skills, etc.). Updated throughout the life of your character, the profile is the major factor in deciding which experiences are available and whether any responses are 'out of character' and thus rejected by the program.
Play may commence at any of seven life stages from birth and infancy through adolescence, adulthood, and old age. In each stage you seek out experiences by moving along the scrollable "life map" onto tokens representing various types of episodes. A heart, for instance, equates with emotionally charged situations; a man with ladder indicates work experiences, etc..
Unless a selected episode is too advanced for your current level of development, it will be presented along with response options. A brief discussion of results follows your choice and the profile is automatically updated. (You can check your progress at any time by 'clicking' the "status" token.)
Every stage includes many non-replayable "life experiences" with repeatable "life choices" (those concerning dating, college, marriage, etc.) available as appropriate. Assuming you don't fall out of a window, get yourself shot, or otherwise push your luck too far, when you reach a given age-- ready or not-- it's onward to the next stage.
Offered in separate, three-diskette, male and female versions, "Alter Ego" is an attractive, smooth-running production; though not one entirely free of psychological glitches and contradictions. I doubt, for instance, that many children have ever viewed a dog as a "hairy man". Nor does it seem correct to characterize a teenager's decision not to interfer in an armed holdup as "fearful"; whereas intervention is labeled "brave".
Why does the personality questionnaire ask if the player is going to respond truthfully?-- you couldn't generate much of an "alter" ego if you did-- and why is the player warned beforehand of sexually explicit episodes but not violent, life-threatening ones?
Perhaps players should simply be 'warned' that, while the episodes can be interesting, even a bit spicy, this is, after all, supposed to be a 'real life' simulation. Play it straight and you can expect most experiences to end up as "Father Knows Best" reruns.
If you're looking for a vacation from Swords and Sorcery fantasy, this smooth-running, attractive simulation could be your ticket to mundanesville. If you want fantasy, look forward to a tough challenge.
Available from Activision: P.O. Box 7286, Mountain View, CA 94039. (415) 960-0410. $49.95 (Male or Female version)
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