This is an English translation of a review of Uplink, origionally featured on Baboom.co.il.

The origional article can be found here.

This translation was kindly supplied by Roman "Dasher" Levin.

Baboom Review

Does crime pay? Well it depends, but in Uplink you are hacker who's trying (and you better succeed, or you'll get heavily fined) to hack into other computers under the assignment of Uplink, the agency in which you work, where you will learn the basics of hacking, from password breaking to covering your tracks.

Actually, the game looks and sounds so realistic the I was afraid to sign on as an agent, fearing that the agency will actually expect me to hack. For example, after you sign on you get 3,000 credits, and your working through a remote gateway. After I "connected" to the gateway, with the game's wonderful interface, I learned the principles of hacking through a tutorial, and went on to the real thing - hacking into another computer…

For anyone who had trouble following me, I was about to explain how I hacked into tens of computers around the world, earned millions, and was the credited as Most Wanted Hacker by the police. Okay, other than the last part it all sounds trippy. I wish. At first, I got an assignment to delete a file of a server, which I successfully accomplished at last moment and quickly disconnected, or I would have been detected and fined. Later, it gets more complex as you'll have to steal files, conceal evidence against yourself, and by what I was told, I could become of the guardian of their server in the future…

Gameplay:
The gameplay is very fun, and personally, I rather enjoyed hacking, and the stress that accompanies it, while buying new tools, and doing things more and more illegal. But the enjoyment maybe dependent on your idea of fun, but anyone who ever dreamt of robbing a bank should enjoy Uplink.

Graphics:
The graphics aren't impressive, and there's little attention to detail, but… I think that some games in which graphics aren't important, and the interface is very comfortable and easy to understand, so I won't consider graphics in my final score.

Difficulty:
The game is comfortably difficult, forcing you to think while driving you insane with frustration. The game may be even too easy.

Sound:
The sound is of very high quality, and perfectly fits the theme of the game, like the stressing beeps of tracer detector when you near getting caught.

Tactics:
You should let the trace detector go over 70%, and you should always disconnect as soon as possible, and always bounce you calls.

Summary:
A very good game but not for the impatient.

Overall Score 8 / 10