Quake 3: Arena is multiplayer mayhem

Let me start this review of Quake 3: Arena by saying that comparing this game with Unreal Tournament is inevitable. They are both superior in their own ways. Both involve hard-core deathmatches set on a grand scale, but where UT specializes in both single play and multiplay with all new tweaks, Quake 3: Arena (Q3A) sticks with the classic deathmatch engine, and in essence, this is not a bad idea. Now we know that the Quake series has never been well known for plot, and Q3A is no exception. The manual does explain about an alien race called the Vadrigar … Continue reading Quake 3: Arena is multiplayer mayhem

Unreal Tournament blows away the competition

I’ll admit to everyone right now, I wasn’t really a big fan of the original Unreal. Though I liked many of Epic Games’ previous shareware titles (Jazz Jackrabbit, One Must Fall 2097, and Zone 66 to name a few), the long awaited Unreal just didn’t cut it for me. It did feature a gorgeous 3-D engine, and some really impressive music, but I just couldn’t really get into the game mechanics. Even worse, the multiplayer over the Internet was unplayable. Patch after patch came out, but still there was no help, and the original claimed dust in my CD carrying … Continue reading Unreal Tournament blows away the competition

Hoyle Board Games will leave users anything but bored

Nothing can bring a family together like a board game. Especially the really well made ones like Yahtzee, Parchesi and checkers. But although the computer has a world of multimedia to tap into, games originally built for group fun never really successfully made the transition. The computer until very recently was a stationary object, and only so many people could crowd around the screen at a time. Plus, people who are fantastic board game players are not necessarily computer gamers. So they have been slow to catch on. On final reason for the lull in popularity could be much more … Continue reading Hoyle Board Games will leave users anything but bored

Homeworld will keep gamers’ fires burning

Sierra finally adds a new dimension to real time strategy games…the third dimension. Their new release, Homeworld takes strategy from the flat battlefield and shoots it into the darkness of space. Forget about battles for the high ground, in space, you have to defend and attack in all directions at once. The plot of the game involves colonists from a barren wasteland planet called Kharak. The colonist have recently uncovered a mysterious guidestone mentioning their race, and a single word…Hiigara…home. It seems that their past has turned out to be a lie, they thought they were from their barren world, … Continue reading Homeworld will keep gamers’ fires burning

Shadow Company: Left for Dead is a stealthy hit

Shadow Company: Left for Dead is a good attempt at marrying realtime strategy gaming with actual man to man combat. When I first got the Shadow Company box, I thought UBI was going to try to piggyback on the success of one of my favorite turn-based strategy games, Jagged Alliance 2 by Sir-Tech. The plot was similar enough, with the player being in charge of a band of mercenaries going out on a series of difficult missions in return for large paychecks. But whereas Jagged Alliance is turn-based, Shadow Company is a realtime game. My interest rising, I loaded the … Continue reading Shadow Company: Left for Dead is a stealthy hit

Button up for action with Gulf War: Operation Desert Hammer

The army has just finished the first production version of their latest mobile destruction center (better known as a main battle tank), the M12 Hammer, and they have put YOU in the commanders seat! Where you go from here is completely up to you! The setting is the desert of the Middle East and "It is up to you to finally eliminate the desert dictator and his terrorist army, now known as the Federation of Militant Equal Nationalists (FMEN). Good luck." With these words Gulf War, the latest tank simulation from 3DO and Military Channel, send you off into the … Continue reading Button up for action with Gulf War: Operation Desert Hammer

Darkstone is Diablo’s Happier Twin

So I wanted to play Darkstone again to reacquaint myself with the game after all the time I’ve spent on Ever Quest lately. Sure, spend maybe an hour or two romping through the dungeons, busting a few monster heads and generally remembering all the ins and outs. Problem: those couple of hours turned into a couple of days and I thought to myself, "Hey…didn’t I have a review to write?" Aw, nuts… I remember back when I first started playing Darkstone that I was slightly disappointed. "Great," I thought, "a Diablo clone." Sure, Darkstone plays a helluva lot like Diablo, … Continue reading Darkstone is Diablo’s Happier Twin

Pandora’s addictive box is worth opening

Jigsaw puzzles never had an equivalent on the PC until Pandora’s Box. With an understated environment and compelling puzzles, Pandora’s Box might be nirvana for those with obsessions for visual brainteasers. In Pandora’s Box, seven mythical tricksters have escaped to wreck havoc on the world. The player must capture the seven one at a time by solving many of the 350-plus puzzles. Puzzles fall into ten different types, each somehow shuffling or screwing up photos, paintings, sculptures or other miscellaneous art. Ultimately, your job is to put the art right. It occurred to me that this may just be another … Continue reading Pandora’s addictive box is worth opening

Panther DX is one mean stick

With a street price of around 50 dollars, proprietary digital circuitry, solid construction, a hair-pin trigger and 17 programmable buttons, this baby is sweet. My first impression was that the Panther DX is a big stick. After I opened the box, I immediately wanted to take it out for a spin to see what this baby could do. From opening the box, it took only a couple minutes to get things moving. I quickly plugged it into my USB port [requires Windows 98 or NT 5] and installed the software. Then I installed Red Barron 3D, by Sierra, which comes … Continue reading Panther DX is one mean stick

Links Extreme is below par

Microsoft has its good and bad points. Both in the gaming world and throughout the rest of computing, the behemoth can’t help but have an impact — ask any federal judge if this is true. With that power comes responsibility, which in the case of Links Extreme, the company evidently chose to ignore. Flat out, I can’t imagine what was going through the collective minds of those wacky Redmondians when they released this game. Built on the Links LS game engine, Links Extreme is an enigma. While Links LS and the latest Microsoft Golf are fine golf games, Links Extreme … Continue reading Links Extreme is below par