Review by Raphie on 29 Jun 2009 (Rating: 3)
Quite a good quiz show game this actually, in fact one of the better ones for the Spectrum. I don't actually remember seeing the actually game show itself so I won't know for defs wether the game retains all of the game show's features but it plays pretty well. The only thing that prevents it from getting a 4 is that it gets very repetitive, sometimes you can be asked the same question twice in the one game. Another problem back in the day was its £7.95 pricetag, of course nowadays all you need is an emulator to play these games with the roms coming free of charge (aren't you lucky!) but eight quid for a game such as Bob's Full House was not good markerting at all, certainly wasn't worth its price anyway. Still it beats the Krypton Factor and Countdown any day, its a TV licence game actually worth playing.
Bob's Full House was a quiz show aired on the BBC from 1984 to 1990 and was hosted by the late Bob Monkhouse. It was played like bingo where players answered questions correctly to fill their card in seperate rounds that I will explain in this review. I do remember seeing the programme with my dad years ago and re-runs are being shown today. So I can answer the question "Does this follow the TV show?" The answer? It doesn't completely but for the most part it actually does.
The rounds are accurate for a start, the first round being Four Corners. Here you have to light up all four corners of your card with each correct answer. Bob will give you a general knowledge question and if you know the answer you have to buzz in and type the correct answer. If you are right you are given the option of which corner you'd like to light up, if you are wrong then you are wallied, which means you are not allowed to answer the next question. The first person to light all four corners wins the round and a prize.
The second round is the Monkhouse Mastercard and the aim of this round is to fill your middle line. Here you are given a choice of six categories of questions, so in bingo lingo clickety-clicks, it's time to take your pick of the six as Bob would have said. To select a category you need to type in a number from your middle row, an example would be 22 being Cookery, these change with each game. You do not need to buzz in on your turn, you simply type in the correct answer if you know it. If you are right your chosen number is lit up and if you are wrong you are wallied and the other players can buzz in and attempt the question. The winner of the round is the one who fills their middle line first. The lucky number element from the show which would win you a prize is missing in this version.
The third round is Full House, and the aim here is self-explanatory. It's played exactly like the first round only this time you have to fill the remaining numbers on your card to win the game. Regardless of who has won what from the previous two rounds, the first person to fill their card wins, so you can lose both rounds and still win the game, this gave everyone a chance no matter what. Losing contestants keep their prizes but unlike the show where those who won nothing won a hamper, if you win nothing, it's nothing.
The final round is the Gold Card and the chance to win a holiday. Here you have to answer questions correctly to select a number on the card, say as an example 20, the number can reveal a letter of the holiday destination, if it's not a letter you win that number in cash, meaning you win £20. Your aim is to reveal all the letters on the card to win the holiday. But you only have sixty seconds to do so, with every correct answer the timer stops. If you don't win the holiday you still win whatever cash you have accumulated. You can also lose if Bob runs out of questions, which I don't recall ever happening in the show and is quite an unfair way to lose.
So yes, this follows the show quite well. Its rounds and gameplay are accurate and true to the show, almost completely. But, there is a major flaw in the game that ruins its fun and joy, in that the questions are repeated throughout the game far too much, in one game I was asked the same question about the first man to orbit the earth eight times.
Another quite disappointing part for me personally was no music. Bob's Full House has a wonderful intro tune that is missing in the Spectrum version. Luckily for me I do get my AY version of this classic theme tune in the Amstrad version, so it's not all bad. The sound is minimal, only being heard in a buzz in, correct answer and wrong answer, apart from that it's silent.
The graphics are interesting to say the least. The question screen features the Bob's Full House logo, the four players' faces, the question scrolling at the bottom of the screen, and an amusing potrait of Bob Monkhouse asking the question. Then when a question is being answered we have the four players with their grids true to form with the show. So I will say the graphics aren't too bad at all.
Bob's Full House isn't a bad game really, it's quite good and pretty accurate, but it's just a pity the questions are far too repetitive, otherwise this would have had a higher mark. A lot of quiz show conversions didn't work in computer game form, Bob's Full House has potential to be considered a success, if only they polished up those questions.
