Sink or Swim
Encyclopedia
Sink or Swim is a video game that was released in 1993 for the PC under the DOS
environment. Developed by Zeppelin Games Limited, it was an action/puzzle game very similar in style to Lemmings. Versions also made their way onto the Amiga
and the SNES
. The Mega Drive/Genesis and Game Gear versions are known as S.S. Lucifer: Man Overboard!. The game is notable for being the first demo disk attached to PC Gamer
magazine.
Kevin has explosives at his disposal, allowing him to blast open doors or blast apart cargo crates that are blocking the way. There may be gaps that the passengers need to cross to reach their exit. These may be covered by pulling a simple lever and activating the bridge, but other times Kevin will have to build a bridge from cargo crates.
There are conveyor belts and magnetic hoists to help in this task - but the conveyor belts may prevent the passengers from reaching their destination also. Kevin will have to find the correct levers to switch the direction of the belts.
The passengers are very stupid - they will walk into fires or off platforms and get themselves killed. Kevin can use his life-boat to give them a little time in the water - but it will not last forever, and if they have not reached a ladder by the time it deflates, they are back where they started - in the freezing water. If they stay there too long, they will die. There are a few jetpacks that passengers can use for instant escape, but never enough.
The player must patch up burst pipes spraying scalding steam, prevent passengers from falling into pools of acid, and cover up fires with cargo crates.
and Atari ST
versions of the game ran on two floppy disks, and utilized any extra memory the system may have.
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
environment. Developed by Zeppelin Games Limited, it was an action/puzzle game very similar in style to Lemmings. Versions also made their way onto the Amiga
Amiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
and the SNES
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
. The Mega Drive/Genesis and Game Gear versions are known as S.S. Lucifer: Man Overboard!. The game is notable for being the first demo disk attached to PC Gamer
PC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
magazine.
Story
You play Kevin Codner, our aquatic hero. You hear that the SS Lucifer has suffered some sort of mishap (the exact nature of the incident is not made clear in the game. Somehow the captain is shown pulling the plug from his bath, and a fountain of water shoots up and starts flooding the ship.). Kevin gets into a yellow submarine and begin saving the passengers.Gameplay
Each level has a certain number of passengers on it, and a certain quota to save to pass. Kevin must guide the passengers to their level exit, and then make his way to his own exit. There may be obstacles in the way, and there may also be water pouring into the ship's compartment, forcing the player to play quickly.There are conveyor belts and magnetic hoists to help in this task - but the conveyor belts may prevent the passengers from reaching their destination also. Kevin will have to find the correct levers to switch the direction of the belts.
The passengers are very stupid - they will walk into fires or off platforms and get themselves killed. Kevin can use his life-boat to give them a little time in the water - but it will not last forever, and if they have not reached a ladder by the time it deflates, they are back where they started - in the freezing water. If they stay there too long, they will die. There are a few jetpacks that passengers can use for instant escape, but never enough.
The player must patch up burst pipes spraying scalding steam, prevent passengers from falling into pools of acid, and cover up fires with cargo crates.
Technical details
The AmigaAmiga
The Amiga is a family of personal computers that was sold by Commodore in the 1980s and 1990s. The first model was launched in 1985 as a high-end home computer and became popular for its graphical, audio and multi-tasking abilities...
and Atari ST
Atari ST
The Atari ST is a home/personal computer that was released by Atari Corporation in 1985 and commercially available from that summer into the early 1990s. The "ST" officially stands for "Sixteen/Thirty-two", which referred to the Motorola 68000's 16-bit external bus and 32-bit internals...
versions of the game ran on two floppy disks, and utilized any extra memory the system may have.
External links
- SS Lucifer - Man Overboard! on Gamefabrique