Category Archives: Game Review

PS2 Sportsboard for Experts Only

A controller is like a security blanket that you get to know and love; without it, I am helpless. Even when it comes to racing titles, I feel more comfortable with a Dual Shock in my hand than a steering wheel. There are some exceptions of course. I will always favor the use of a light gun over doing point-and-shoot on Time Crisis, and when it comes to my Dance Dance Revolution addiction, I absolutely refuse to play with a Dual Shock or my computer keyboard; only a floor mat will suffice. Still, new controls come out that attempt to … Continue reading PS2 Sportsboard for Experts Only

Steel Soldiers Metallic Eye Candy

Two global corporations that had been locked in battle for 500 years are on the brink of a negotiated peace agreement. On a distant out post, Captain Zod of the Mega Com Corporation learns that perhaps the enemy, the Trans Global Empire, may be preparing a devastating, final assault. This is the opening of Steel Soldiers, a real time strategy game for the PC. In Steel Soldiers you control an army of robots. Like most RTS games, there are mission goals that must be met in order to win and progress to the next mission. You must build factories and … Continue reading Steel Soldiers Metallic Eye Candy

Sea-Monkeys Ride Again

Remember those ads in the back of comic books flogging the likes of x-ray specs, whoopee cushions to ‘wow your friends at parties,’ the fly-in-an-ice-cube (and other memorable gags) and of course The Amazing Sea-monkeys? Some poor kid bought those sea-monkeys, only to find they weren’t monkeys at all, just tiny shrimp in stasis until they are put in a tank of water and fed. I bet there were tears before bedtime that sad day. To celebrate 50 years (yes, they’ve been going that long) of these aquatic dwellers, Just Play is bringing us The Amazing Virtual Sea-Monkeys, and this … Continue reading Sea-Monkeys Ride Again

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is a Quest You Can’t

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance takes the monster-hit PC role-playing series into new territory – the console platform. And thankfully, the game is more than worthy of its namesake. Hardcore PC role-players should note that Dark Alliance is at its core, a console game. While not every quest is solved with combat, for more than 90 percent of the game you will probably be slaying something. But where other console ports like Diablo failed, Dark Alliance really shines. The flavor of the Forgotten Realms comes through perfectly. People you chat with look realistic, even when zoomed in, and all the voice … Continue reading Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is a Quest You Can’t

Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a Long-Awaited Hit

It’s lucky for first-person shooter fans that some things never change. It’s precisely this principle that’s persuaded Activision to release a sequel to the legendary Wolfenstein 3D, the first-person action packed game that many argue put shooter games on the map. Nine years later, Return to Castle Wolfenstein (obviously in 3D) does it again only this time offering multiplayer capabilities of Axis versus Allies and greatly improving on the now feeble graphics of the original Wolfentstein, which at the time were nonetheless cutting edge. The Return’s graphics are like Activision’s other big first person shooter, Soldier of Fortune. RTCW is … Continue reading Return to Castle Wolfenstein is a Long-Awaited Hit

Civilization III: Yet Another Wonder of the World

Sid Meier’s Civilization III is the latest strategy game from Sid Meier (what, you were expecting Dani Bunting?) and which, in the grand style of its predecessors Civilization, Civilization II, and Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri, calls upon the player to take control of some poor group of villagers and turn them into a nation-state that will change the fate of the world. If you’re interested in turn-based strategy games, but have never played a Sid Meier game, then don’t bother reading beyond this paragraph- just get a copy of Civ III. Sid Meier is a legend in his field because … Continue reading Civilization III: Yet Another Wonder of the World

Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II

When Nintendo unveiled their Rogue Leader demo at Spaceworld 2000, I was a skeptic. I could not believe how realistic the X-Wings appeared as they flew across the screen. The detail of every paint scratch, every bolt, every R2 unit and every pilot almost resembled what could be seen in a theater 20 years ago. That skepticism came to an end at E3 when I went hands-on. This time, I wasn’t playing the Battle of Yavin as I have before in countless Star Wars titles (X-Wing, Rebel Assault, Star Wars Arcade, and many others), I was actually living it. It … Continue reading Rogue Leader: Rogue Squadron II

The Secret World of Santa Claus

The Secret World of Santa Claus is big Christmas fun for little ones. It’s nothing miraculous, but it’s worth having if you have children 3 to 8 years old that you’re trying to keep entertained during those long December nights before or just after Christmas. This CD-ROM will conveniently run on just about any PC or Mac under seven years old. That’s pretty amazing in these days of high-speed Megahertz and RAM hogging games, but The Secret World of Santa Claus isn’t really a game. It’s an interactive entertainment CD-ROM for kids. The opening screen is a table of contents … Continue reading The Secret World of Santa Claus

CycleFX marries exercise and gaming

When I first ran into Neil Nusbaum, the president of CycleFX, at E3 in 2000 he was showing off an interface he’d developed that would feed into a PC running software that would track mileage, speed, etc. Like I imagine others had, I said, "You should really make it so you can play games on it." Well, the next year, sure enough, he was showing us the GameRider. The GameRider is an exercise bike attached to an interface for the Sony Playstation. With it, you can play virtually any Playstation racing game, just by peddling and steering. In order to … Continue reading CycleFX marries exercise and gaming

Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising is unique warfare

So, you have to save the world again. This time all war has been abolished (or so they thought). The world is a place where you can get whatever you want at the nanoreplicator on the corner. Piece reigns and all is well because nobody needs anything. Enter the bad guys. A small group of would be dictators are not happy with the current situation, as they are not in charge. They have been secretly keeping old weapons systems alive and have been updating them with new technology. The unsuspecting world knows nothing of this until missiles start dropping. No, … Continue reading Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising is unique warfare