Spy vs. Spy review - Nintendo Entertainment System

Spy vs. Spy box art Those dirty rotten scoundrels of MAD magazine have appeared in three different games on umpteen different games systems, and now the original classic game of underhand dirty tricks and cunning finally makes it to the Nintendo!

There are eight missions-worth of espionage terror on offer in the NES conversion. In all of them the object is remarkably simple. A selection of top secret items have been secreted around a complex and it's the player's job to get in there and retrieve them. Each mission has a different map layout to conquer and the size of the complex increases on each level.

The task of spying sounds pretty simple and indeed it is. The problem is, there's another spy in the complex with exactly the same mission in mind. It's a good thing you packed your trapulator in your spying trousers, and you can use the traps it contains to keep your opposite number at bay.

Each level has a strict time limit, so you have to retrieve those items and find the getaway plane before the complex goes the way of the dodo. There's only one winner (and one getaway vehicle) in this game, so make sure it's your spy who has the last snigger as you leave the opposition to their doom!

What the Mean Machines staff thought

Spy vs Spy is a truly terrific game of lethal cunning. It doesn't really stand out that much as a one-player game, but get your mates to join in and watch those hours literally burn away! The graphics aren't really much cop, but at least they're well animated and the Spys' dastardly sniggers have been captured perfectly! But it's the fun of springing one of the hilarious traps on an unsuspecting spy that really makes this game. A great little number and no mistake.

Spy vs Spy is one of the finest two-player games I've ever seen, and allows the combatants to pull the lowest, sneakiest, meanest tricks and stunts ever devised in a computer game. There's nothing more satisfying than letting your opponent think he's about to escape with all the goodies when in fact you've secretly booby-trapped the door to freedom a few minutes earlier. Watch him frazzle as he opens the door, and then grab the goodies yourself and make a getaway! Brilliant! Even with one player it's fun (the computer opponent is no dummy), but to really appreciate the game it's best to have a human opponent. Spy vs Spy might not have the best graphics and sound in the world, but if you have another gamer at hand willing to play you, this is a must.