Loom Review

Game: Loom
System: PC
Genre: Adventure
Developer: Lucasfilm Games (LucasArts)
Release date: January, 1990


Pros: Involving fantasy story, bewitching music
Cons: Short duration, cliffhanger ending

Evan

Set in a fantasy world with a substantial mythology, Loom is something of an aberration for LucasArts games. Most of its point-and-click adventure games were short on story but heavy on puzzle-solving. Loom could be described as the complete opposite. In Loom, the storytellers at LucasArts (then Lucasfilm Games) weave an elaborate tale of fantasy, swords, and sorcery and plug in some puzzles along the way. It's not nearly as challenging as The Secret of Monkey Island or Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Neither is it as long. Loom could easily be finished in a single sitting; it lasts somewhere between two and three hours. Yet, despite its brevity and its straightforwardness, Loom is an enjoyable adventure game with some bold and interesting ideas about the interaction between game and player.

Loom is the story of Bobbin Threadbare, a magic adept who lives apart from the community of "weavers," masters of spell-casting. The game begins on Bobbin's birthday, when things on Loom Island go horribly wrong. All of a sudden, Bobbin, who has lived under a dark cloud of prophecy his entire life, is thrust into a cataclysmic battle between the forces of order and chaos.

The beginning of a deep, fantastical story of revenge, death, redemption, and sacrifice.

The dark, sinister, and fantastical story of Loom is only one element of the game's strangeness. The mechanics of Loom are quite unlike other adventure games of the period. Instead of a typical interface, in which players solve puzzles by manipulating the game environment with a variety of tools, weapons, and items, Loom opts for an interface where all puzzles are solved with a single, magical item: a distaff. Bobbin's distaff is capable of playing "drafts," which are four-note spells. If Bobbin plays ECED, for example, he will "open" whichever item he is facing. It's an unorthodox system, but it works nicely in Loom. Players learn spells by "finding" them in the game world, and then use them to move forward in the game. The challenge is knowing which spell to use, in which order, and at what time.

As Bobbin learns new notes, he can weave more "drafts."

As in most LucasArts games, sound in Loom is an important element. Music is used sparingly, but effectively, and sound effects create a believable atmosphere. A sequence inside a giant forge is especially impressive. But the best auditory part of Loom is the voice acting. The actors who lent their voices to the game's characters obviously put great energy and conviction into their performances. Sure, it has a weird hodgepodge of stereotypical fantasy voices -- why are all the shepherds Scottish? -- but there is realness to the production.

So there's a lot to like in Loom. Is it too short? Definitely. Are its puzzles easy to conquer? Again, yes. But there is something very ambitious, very satisfying about Loom. One wonders how far it could have pushed the genre forward had it been allowed to evolve. Meanwhile, its players are left to wonder.

Loom Review -- Second Opinion

Beth

As many of you know, I had very little exposure to video games as a child. What I did play a lot of though, were Lucasarts adventure games. The first was The Secret of Monkey Island, and if any of you have played it you'll know that there's a little plug for "Loom" in it. Starved for more Monkey Island games in the early nineties, my parents bought Loom for me. To be honest, I don't remember much about it, except that we got frustrated (I played it with my mom) and gave up.

LucasArts teases Loom in The Secret of Monkey Island.

Recently I thought I'd give it another try, and was pleasantly surprised! In Loom, players step into the world of the Great Guilds and follow the story of Bobbin Threadbare, a weaver who is coming of age at a time of uncertainty. Loom is a standard Lucasarts point-and-click adventure, but instead of revolving around puzzles that require certain items, Loom is based on learning and using spells called "drafts" on your distaff. Bobbin makes his way through his world on a quest to follow the elders who have left Loom Island, and along the way learns new drafts and gains the ability to play higher notes, to help him on his journey.

Loom has a few stand-out features including music, which is a hallmark of The Secret of Monkey Island as well. Most interesting though, is Loom's story, which has an almost Tolkienesque depth to it. Apparently original copies of the game came with a 30 minute audio tape story that gave the history of the world of Loom and the formation of the Great Guilds.

Bobbin stands before the Great Loom.

Unfortunately I long ago lost my original game copy, but I would be curious to find a version of it online.Regrettably, Loom is a bit on the short side, and has a cliffhanger ending. There are conflicting reports, but the consensus seems to be that Loom was meant to be part of a trilogy which never came to fruition. Perhaps, now that Disney owns the rights to Lucasarts games, we might see a sequel... Doubtful however, so in the meantime the ending of Loom remains a bit frustrating.

Overall, Loom is a fun way to spend an afternoon and a worthy title in the Lucasarts catalogue of adventure games.