November 28th, 2000
Stephen King's F13 Blue Byte Software has teamed with master of the macabre, Stephen King, to create F13, an all encompassing horror experience for your computer. F13 combines sound effects, "deathtop" backgrounds, mini games, "Screamsavers™," and even a novella to create a whole new feel for your computer. Although being a Stephen King fan may increase your interest in this product, it is certainly not a requirement for enjoying it. Installation F13 comes with one CD that is both Mac and Windows compatible. Installation was as simple as putting the CD in the drive, double-clicking the F13 icon, and double-clicking the installer. The enclosed instructions are brief, but well written. The software is fairly self-explanatory. The mini games don’t have instructions, but a quick look at Help when you first start the game is enough to get you going. The Software
F13 is a great time waster, and we mean that in the nicest way possible.
Seven screamsavers (screensavers) are included with the F13 package to frighten and amuse you. They are quite entertaining and you may find yourself spending some time watching the different scenes unfold. Themes include "The Works" which highlights published titles by Stephen King, "Terror Eyes" that watch your every move, and my personal favorite, "Evil Genius at Work" which shows a caricature of Stephen King typing away while a random story is created on your screen. Another cool one displays Stephen King trivia questions and answers. My only complaint about the Screamsavers is that the action can be a little slow if you are just zoning out and watching them. A speed control on these would allow the user to decide whether or not they would "watch" them, or just let them sit idly while away from your desk. Bumps and Thumps The enclosed sound effects are collectively called "Bumps and Thumps," and include the standard horror movie kinds of sounds like screams and ripping flesh. You can preview demos of all the sounds, and install them to use them as your system sounds for differing events. Everything's Eventual Everything’s Eventual is a Stephen King novella never released in book form. I was concerned about reading a novella on a computer monitor, but it is very well designed making it amazingly readable. The story is typical King, and is entertaining, although I would like it a little longer and more detailed. Unfortunately, I found Everything’s Eventual to be the most disappointing part of the software. I didn’t feel that it took advantage of the media. Instead of the included illustrations, movies would have been great. The background music (which can be turned off and on) is well done, but it would have been outstanding if the music changed with the scenes in the text or maybe included sound effects.
A variety of backgrounds are included that feature cockroaches, gargoyles, and creepy eyes. The graphics are clear and well done. Like the sounds, they can be previewed from the F13 Main Menu and then installed with the System software to be your permanent desktop. Conclusion With the variety of things included in this package, you get a lot for the money. The "screamsavers" are fun and well done, the graphics throughout the CD are great, and the Mini Games are a fun diversion. Everything’s Eventual is worth a read, but a little disappointing for not taking full advantage of the chosen media.
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F13 contains three little arcade-style games. The graphics are great, especially in "No swimming," a virtual fish tank full of piranhas with a supply of livestock to feed them. This one is certainly entertaining, but it isn’t really a "game" in that there are no points to be won, you just keep the fish well fed.
"Bug Splat" also features great graphics and engaging sound effects. You must kill off the cockroaches as they 
scurry across the screen. If you have a cockroach phobia, this may not be the game for you. As you squash the roaches on the screen, more and more appear and the levels get progressively harder. The game gets more challenging by adding more roaches, and also by having your implement of destruction change - you don’t get to keep the big fly swatter forever!
"Whack-A-Zombie" is very similar to the old arcade favorite, Whack-a-Mole. Unlike Whack-A-Mole with its passive rodents, the zombies strike back. If you don’t hit them fast enough, they throw things at you, causing you to loose health and eventually die. As with everything else, graphics here are well done, and the game play is addicting. It is a perfect game for a Friday afternoon, or whenever you need to kill some time.
