Enter the Cave of Wonders… With the hit Disney’s Aladdin was in theatres, it was not surprising to see video games based on the film released to various home systems by several publishers. It was Virgin Games who brought life to Aladdin on the Genesis/MD and they did so with great mastery.
The game follows the story of the movie where you play as Aladdin as he traverses the streets of Agrabah, the desert, the Sultan’s dungeon, and the Cave of Wonders on his way to get the Genie’s lamp so he may face Jafar in battle. Aladdin must use his skills with the sword, jumping, and tricks in order to avoid all the enemies along the way while also picking up apples and other helpful objects/power ups. These power ups include Genie hearts (to restore health), Aladdin golden charms (extra tries), and gems (to buy items), among others. Aladdin boasts some really gorgeous graphics and the musical score takes several tunes from the movie itself to make you feel like you are indeed in the movie. The visuals owe their quality to Virgin involving folks from Disney in the development of the game, something that makes the game really look very much like the movie. The game action itself is lots of fun and, though easy to learn, it does offer a good challenge. Besides the regular game areas, there’s the Genie Bonus Machine which you play at the end of levels once you get Genie tokens within said levels. The more Genie tokens you have, the more times you get to play in the Bonus Machine. This machine gives you random prizes unless you end up with a picture of Jafar, in which case you’ll lose any Genie tokens you have collected. Overall, Aladdin is an excellent title that should not be missed.
