Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: July 29, 2005

Many feel that there cannot be a full 3D first-person shooter on handhelds, unless they are primitive clones of early Wolfenstein, Doom, or Quake releases. If you look at what has by and large emerged on handhelds up to this point, that pessimistic perspective is decidedly confirmed. But the incredible power of the Sony PSP opens the door to blasting through this limitation, and — sure enough — now there is an original 3D first-person shooter, developed specifically for this platform and not cloned from another one. Konami Digital Entertainment has taken the risk and released Coded Arms to fill this void. But is this novel venture a success? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: July 4, 2005

Quite a lot of lore surrounds Area 51, the fabled secret military installation where secret experiments are conducted and mysterious alien technologies are housed. You see references to it in science-fiction novels and movies all the time, and few know for sure whether such a place really exists. Now Midway has released a new title called Area 51 to allow gamers to explore the legend still further. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: June 22, 2005

Ridge Racer is a venerable console arcade racing franchise that has delighted fans for years. Both the PlayStation and the PlayStation 2 used this series to demonstrate their vast gameplay capabilities. Developed by Namco, an old pro at this kind of release, it has always been a blast. From the beginning, it sported state-of-the-art visuals, riveting head-to-head driving competition, exciting tracks, and great music. Can it maintain its stellar qualities for the Sony PSP? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: May 18, 2005

I have to admit it — I have always loved games involving moving balls around obstacles and traps across ramps and bridges to get to a special target location. I have played Nintendo’s Super Monkey Ball, Monster Studios’ Marble Blast, Raptisoft’s Hamsterball, and Atari’s Ballance, not to mention the classic wooden labyrinth toy with a steel ball you roll around it. Solid physics and tight controls make this kind pastime a real addiction. Now into this fun entertainment niche Archer Maclean of Awesome Studios has released Archer Maclean’s Mercury for the Sony PSP. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: May 4, 2005

With all of the incredible power of Sony’s new handheld PSP, it is astonishing that perhaps the most ballyhooed of the release titles is a simple puzzle game that on the surface does not take full advantage of the dazzling hardware capabilities. Lumines is a strightforward diversion whose graphics and sound could easily run on non-state-of-the-art rigs from over a decade and a half ago. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: April 18, 2005

Last summer id software released the long-awaited Doom 3, revolutionizing the visuals thought possible in computerized first-person shooters. Although some complained about its “old-school” play style, none questioned its advancement of the technology in this genre. Combining simple shooting action with terrifying horror, for many fans this release was an unmitigated success. Now, around eight months later, id has combined forces with Nerve to deliver another installment of this epic release, Doom 3: Resurrection of Evil. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: December 13, 2004

Many of us have dreamt of being stranded on a remote island. From book classics like Robinson Crusoe, Swiss Family Robinson, and The Island of Doctor Moreau to modern reincarnations like the movie Castaway, plus the television series Lost and Survivor, the sense of uncertain adventure, with the urgency of survival, makes for riveting possibilities. Perhaps the most compelling story of all along these lines was presented in Jules Verne’s fabulous novel The Mysterious Island, a sequel first published in 1875 to his more famous 20,000 Leagues under the Sea. Now the French developer Kheops Studio has fashioned a new version of this tale entitled Return to Mysterious Island. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: November 30, 2004

Simulations of rollercoasters on the computer have followed one of two distinct directions. One approach, reflected by RollerCoaster Tycoon and RollerCoaster Tycoon 2, emphasized strategy and management, with little ability to experience the rides you built. A second approach, reflected by Ultimate Ride Coaster Deluxe and No Limits Roller Coaster, emphasized the thrills of actually riding coasters, but didn’t permit the full complexity of strategic management. Now Frontier Developments has created RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, which attempts to combine the capabilities of these two design approaches. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: November 15, 2004

One of my favorite genres of all time is the 2D space shooter. Whether vertically or horizontally scrolling, these exciting arcade action games give you an incredible adrenaline rush. Despite being technologically retarded by modern standards, classic retro software of this kind can be amazingly appealing. Unfortunately, this type of release has largely vanished from the retail world, at least in terms of personal computer offerings. Now, however, an Italian developer, Atlanteq, has taken the plunge and published through SR-71 Games, Steel Saviour.

( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: November 1, 2004

In every international spy thriller, the utterly loathsome arch-villain has always been a major center of attention, with power many of us secretly aspire to possess. From movie franchises like James Bond to television series like Get Smart and computer games such as No One Lives Forever, the megalomaniac seeking to dominate the world has been consistently fascinating. Now Elixir Studios, through the release of Evil Genius, gives us each a chance to fulfill our darkest fantasy, to become that criminal nemesis ourselves. Harkening back to Bullfrog’s Dungeon Keeper, this hybrid combining strategy, management, construction, and combat attempts to bring us back to the pure joy of 1960s spy-versus-spy confrontations. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: October 18, 2004

The Myst franchise has defined the adventure / puzzle genre, and for a decade has served as a gold standard for releases of this type. However, after the release of Riven and Myst III Exile, developer Cyan Worlds undertook a largely unsuccessful deviation from the established path in releasing Uru: Ages Beyond Myst and Uru: The Path of the Shell, replacing pre-rendered visuals with 3D polygons and a default first-person view with a third-person viewpoint. Now Cyan and Ubisoft Montreal return to the series’ roots and core characters, publishing Myst IV: Revelation. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: October 5, 2004

When Chris Sawyer transformed the construction simulation genre with the introduction of the fabulously successful RollerCoaster Tycoon, the gaming world was absolutely stunned, and imitators sprung up like weeds as a result. However, few remembered that prior to this blockbuster he developed Transport Tycoon (published by Microprose), in which you built a variety of transportation networks linking cities and industries together. So as soon as he had spare time on his hands, this talented designer returned to his original love, updating and spiffing it up in a manner that resulted in the recent release ten years later of Chris Sawyer’s Locomotion (published by Atari). Can this new management strategy title where you construct and run transport networks fulfill modern tastes? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: September 20, 2004

In these times of increasingly complex computer gaming, usually new releases are the product of huge teams of skilled designers. Many companies even brag about the thousands of man-hours of work it took to fashion the final release. It seems as if the days of the lone garage developer are permanently over. So it is quite surprising that independent Australian developer Cos Russo of Déjàvu Worlds has created by himself a new adventure-puzzle title, Alida, published and distributed by Got Game Entertainment. This offering, inspired by Cyan’s Riven, involves a mysterious quest situated on a strange island. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: September 6, 2004

Cyan Worlds, the developer of the classic Myst, experimented last year with a significant deviation from this successful series by releasing Uru: Ages Beyond Myst. This title featured a third-person perspective (along with the traditional first-person view) with full 3D movement, a different kind of story, required running and jumping, and the promise – never fulfilled – of massive multiplayer online play. Although this risky set of innovations generated mixed reactions, the company has persisted and now released Uru: The Path of the Shell, an expansion pack incorporating an earlier free add-on named To D’Ni. The Path of the Shell apparently consists of ages which might have been eventually integrated into the online version. Can this release cement the value of this new approach? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: August 16, 2004

No computer game in recent memory has received more pre-release hype than id Software’s Doom 3. Lovers of first-person shooters from all over the world have been salivating for months to get their hands on this release. Some players have been anticipating the technological breakthroughs; others, the adrenaline-pumping action. Although it’s difficult for a title to live up to such longstanding, sky-high expectations, some observers have gone even further, saddling Doom 3 with the responsibility of single-handedly saving the slumping personal computer gaming industry. So, what’s the final verdict on this landmark offering? ( read more… )