Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: July 1, 2002

For centuries Sheherazade’s famous tales of the 1001 Nights, told to keep the interest of an Arabian potentate so as to avert her demise, have entranced lovers of intrigue. The setting was so colorful, lush, and romantic that countless movies — and more than a few computer games — have emerged as a result. Despite many stabs, including the classic Prince of Persia series, the mystique of the sensuous atmosphere in the ancient Middle East has never been adequately captured on the virtual screen. Now Visiware/Wanadoo has developed a new release for Dreamcatcher Interactive, Arabian Nights, that attempts to rekindle the excitement of the revered classic. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: June 25, 2002

Even with all the advances in science, there is an awful lot about the way the world works that we do not understand. Among the many enigmas is the fundamental question of exactly how energy can be generated. In a novel blend of science fiction and mystery, the Italian company Trecision (best known for Ark of Time and Nightlong) has developed The Watchmaker, recently published by Got Game Entertainment. As a 3D real-time puzzle-based adventure whose design process began way back in 1997, this title has the potential to breathe life into a clearly struggling genre. But does it succeed in this aspiration? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: June 17, 2002

Some of the most enduring historical legends surround King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. If you think about it, we really do not learn much else at all about sixth century Britain, when traditions were so different from today; in the Arthurian world, honor was well worth the sacrifice of one’s life, and chivalrous deeds abounded. Now the French company Cryo Interactive has developed for Dreamcatcher Interactive an epic-length 3D adventure based on this era, Arthur’s Knights II: The Secret of Merlin. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: June 10, 2002

Few things are more fun to contemplate than building robots and setting them loose to fight against other user-created robots in colorful arenas. Combining the advantages of construction simulation, arcade action, and combat games, such a computer title would seem to appeal to a huge audience. Well, Climax Development has taken a stab at satisfying this desire by creating, for BBC Multimedia, Robot Wars: Arenas of Destruction. Released on the PlayStation 2 as well as the PC, will this release fulfill this mechanized combat fantasy? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: June 3, 2002

Jules Verne has written some of the most magnificent adventures of all time, from Around the World in Eighty Days, to From the Earth to the Moon, to Mysterious Island, to Journey to the Center of the Earth. All of them combine science, exploration, and tense drama in an absolutely enthralling way. Yet none compares to his greatest classic, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Finally, after an earlier aborted effort by Southpeak Interactive, this epic novel has come to the computer screen — T-Bot Interactive has developed The Mystery of the Nautilus for Dreamcatcher Interactive. But can the game match the famous classic tale? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: May 29, 2002

Ever since playing Blue Byte’s Extreme Assault years ago, I have loved helicopter shooters. They generally involve broad scope, fast action, and a premium on dexterity to use every aspect of chopper maneuverability to achieve designated goals. Despite recent evidence demonstrated through Reality Pump’s excellent HeliHeroes that this niche is alive and well, there have been few releases along these lines in the last few years. Noticeably distinct from flight simulators, these more action-oriented arcade titles allow you to fly overhead and shoot everything that moves. Now that G5 Software has developed for the Russian company Buka Entertainment the new release Red Shark, will the fans of this kind of offering be satisfied? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: May 20, 2002

Computer pinball has been a bit dormant lately, after significant spurts of quality in the last several years represented by Digital Extremes’ Adventure Pinball, Wildfire’s Balls of Steel, and Dynamix’s 3-D Ultra Pinball Thrillride. But one of the originators of excellence in this niche, the Japanese company LittleWing, just keeps on plugging. Building on a legacy of quality PC pinball releases, including Tristan, Crystal Caliburn, Loony Labyrinth, Angel Egg, and Golden Logres, the company has just released Jinni Zeala, a title two years in the making. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: May 14, 2002

Disney Interactive’s Ultimate Ride Coaster Deluxe, a new roller coaster design simulation developed by Gigawatt Studios, has just emerged on the computer scene. This is a sequel to the highly successful release of Ultimate Ride in October 2001. Unlike Microprose’s RollerCoaster Tycoon and Electronic Arts’ SimCoaster, this is not a theme park management game, so you do not have to worry about such fluff as keeping customers happy or designing sideshows or booths. Instead, you can just focus on experiencing the absolute exhilaration of the most thrilling rides imaginable. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: May 10, 2002

Nothing is harder to replicate than international relations. With no bounds in time or space, tons of different kinds of players interacting with each other in myriad ways, and changing patterns of cooperation and conflict emerging, it’s a real challenge to incorporate all the relevant variables or to make intelligent stabs at their interrelationships. On the personal computer scene, the most well known attempt to capture the global system was Chris Crawford’s Balance of Power, initially released in the mid-1980s with a full depiction of the tense Cold War global competition between the two dominant superpowers. Now GolemLabs has developed for Dreamcatcher Interactive SuperPower, the first attempt to portray the far more complicated post-Cold War global environment. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: April 30, 2002

Many of us in our youth played with little plastic green army men, of the type contained in a bucket of toy soldiers. 3DO has been involved quite successfully in the release of many titles bringing this concept to the virtual screen, on console platforms such as the PlayStation 2 and GameBoy as well as the personal computer. But up until now what has been missing has been a true real-time strategy release featuring broad squad-level controls. Now, with the development help of Pandemic Studios, developers of Dark Reign 2 and Battlezone 2, 3DO is releasing Army Men RTS, fully incorporating the intricacies of resource and military unit management.

( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: April 23, 2002

Nobody scared me to death when I was young the way Alfred Hitchcock did. I still remember seeing a rerun of an episode of the television show Alfred Hitchcock Presents, called “The Glass Eye,” and it was so jolting that I had nonstop nightmares for over a month. Rather than using monsters to create fear, Hitchcock was the master of suspense, twisting seemingly routine situations into bizarre unnerving surprises. So when I had a chance to review Alfred Hitchcock Presents: The Final Cut, developed by Arxel Tribe and published by Ubi Soft, I jumped at the chance. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: April 16, 2002

Ever since the release of the blockbuster RollerCoaster Tycoon back in 1999, the world of virtual thrill rides has exploded. Perhaps most notably Bullfrog and Electronic Arts responded with SimCoaster, Reactor Software released Ultra Coaster, and even Disney Studios entered the picture with Ultimate Ride. So is there room for another player in the field? Mad Data from Germany has recently introduced No Limits Roller Coaster Simulation, trying in the process to accelerate still further your ability to experience the rush of excitement when designing and riding these magnificent structures. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: April 8, 2002

I understand success breeds imitators, but enough is enough. What with the issuing of RollerCoaster Tycoon, Car Tycoon, Mall Tycoon, Monopoly Tycoon, Oil Tycoon, Railroad Tycoon, Zoo Tycoon and countless others I’ve failed to mention, the market is saturated. Now Monte Cristo has published yet another construction simulation, Casino Mogul, developed by Cat Daddy Games and distributed by Dreamcatcher Interactive. Can this new release show us anything new and exciting, and is it “the next evolution in tycoon games” as proclaimed on its box? ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: March 25, 2002

When a game release accomplishes its goals successfully and is widely accepted by the public, it is sometimes difficult to know what to do with a sequel. Such a dilemma was faced by the British company Rage in deciding what to do with the Incoming franchise after its incredibly successful debut in early 1998. This release was so far ahead of its competition in its gorgeous stunning graphics that several 3D accelerated video cards chose it to show off their new features. Aside from an underpublicized add-on pack — Subversion — released through a third-party, the millions of people who bought and enjoyed this breakthrough offering have been waiting an awfully long time to see what would come next. Now at long last, four years later, Rage has developed and released a sequel named Incoming Forces, a more refined futuristic arcade shooter. ( read more… )

Review by: Bob Mandel
Published: March 19, 2002

In the latter part of 2001, a few key top-notch first-person shooters were released, including Return to Castle Wolfenstein and Serious Sam: The Second Encounter. Both received rave reviews. Now Electronic Arts and 2015 have come to the party, following a great deal of hype and eager anticipation, issuing Medal of Honor: Allied Assault. In many ways Medal of Honor represents the crest of a wave of interest in the Second World War, and it is no coincidence that the same company responsible for the movie Saving Private Ryan — Steven Spielberg’s Dreamworks Interactive — originally conceived this PC title. The movie and the computer game have many highly similar scenarios, including a detailed replication of the traumatic Omaha Beach invasion. So with this backdrop, is this the cream of the first-person shooter crop? ( read more… )