Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: March 30, 1998

Access Software is a company known mainly for two things, golf and adventures. One would wonder why they have two very different product lines. One thing is for certain, though — they don’t take either of them lightly. Their golf titles in the Links family have always been “best of breed,” and year after year set the mark for golfing simulations. Their other titles are a far cry from the golf course. The Tex Murphy adventure titles, with Under the Killing Moon and The Pandora Directive stealing the show, are also known as top titles in their respective category. This time around, Access is continuing the Tex Murphy series by taking gamers on a ride back to the beginnings of Tex’s private investigator career. The title is known as Tex Murphy: Overseer. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: March 27, 1998

Spring means a lot of things to people. For some, it is a time to get rid of snow and welcome in the cool breezes and warm summer nights. For others, it means baseball. It is very simple. Spring and baseball go hand in hand. After having treaded through the different betas during this sports game spring season, it was nice to see one finalize and hit the store shelves. EA Sports has jumped out of the gate first with Triple Play ’99, their yearly installment in the popular baseball series. Tons of sports fanatics have been patiently waiting to get their hands on this new version, along with all the other titles coming out. Does Triple Play ’99 have anything to offer this year? That decision is going to be up to each gamer, but I’ll lay the details of Triple Play ’99 out on the table, to help you. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: March 15, 1998

“The wind is blowing in your face as you fly across the water…,” Anyone who has ever been on a speedboat knows the feeling you get while cruising around. There is nothing quite like the sounds of water splashing as your boat carves its way through the waves, the smell of the lake or ocean, and the pure exhilaration and sense of speed boating gives you. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: March 3, 1998

Can one of the most successful console games be brought over to the PC and made a success? Acclaim has made the attempt with their hugely successful N64 title Turok Dinosaur Hunter. On the N64 this game was a huge success. At the time of the release, there were slim pickings for good titles, but Turok Dinosaur Hunter offered a whole new experience most console gamers had never had. The lush graphics, awesome sounds, and amazing weapons drew them into the polyganized jungle of this title. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: February 22, 1998

The Sim City games from Maxis have come a long way since they were first released. Over the years we saw enhancements to the graphics and the gameplay of the Sim titles. We also saw the introduction of new Sim titles that are built around the core idea of cities. Last year we took to the skies in Sim Copter. Although the title was a great idea and had a lot of potential, it simply lacked in gameplay. Well, this time Maxis is bringing us to the streets of our beloved cities in Streets of Sim City. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: February 11, 1998

25 cents is all it takes — that is, to play a game of pinball. Throughout the history of computer gaming, we have seen pinball games come and go. There have been different attempts to bring the true feeling of playing pinball to the PC. First, it was making the graphics look right. Should the screen scroll or not scroll? Then came the adventure pinball games. Now comes Pro Pinball: Timeshock! from Empire Interactive. The Pro Pinball series is about bringing total realism to the PC screen. Timeshock! does just that. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: February 3, 1998

Chess is a game that has been around longer than most people can remember. Since the very dawn of computers, chess games have been a part of them. These games not only tested the power of computers but of the power humans had in creating computers that could think and predict. Empire Interactive has released a title by the name of Combat Chess. By combining high-resolution graphics and animated sequences, the game of chess is brought to a different level. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: January 29, 1998

In the history of gaming there is one type of game that has always stayed standing and that is the flight simulator. Although Microsoft may not have been the first to introduce the flight simulator, they were definitely the first to make a mark in this genre in the IBM PC world. Over the years, other titles have come and gone, with more notable games such as Flight Unlimited appearing on the horizon. Now Sierra is taking to the skies with their attempt to replicate the art of flying. Pro Pilot is a bold attempt at bringing a new level of realism to the PC world. The Adrenaline Vault took Pro Pilot for a spin around the world to see how it stands up to the competition. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: January 26, 1998

When you think of on-line games, you probably think of titles like Quake or Jedi Knight. This all changed in the past year with the bold release of Ultima Online. Sony has released their own game to compete in this world, but has made it a requirement to play online, much like Origin did with their title. Tanarus brings players into a futuristic battlefield filled with tanks roaming around trying to destroy each other. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: January 19, 1998

Unfortunately for gamers and ski fans, there has never really been a top-notch ski simulation released for the PC. This past year, we did see the release of Winter Race 3D, but Winter Race 3D was more of an arcade skiing title than a true simulation. Sierra hopes to change that with the release of Front Page Sports Ski Racing. FPS: Ski Racing offers a variety of races along with sponsorships from some of skiing’s leading equipment manufacturers. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: January 15, 1998

EA Sports has always been known for their Madden Football, NHL Hockey, and basketball games. Until now, they really have not entered into the racing simulation market on the PC platform with an old title. This year EA Sports has brought out Andretti Racing. Andretti Racing represents a unique combination by offering both Indy and stock car racing under the same hood. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: January 7, 1998

How many quarters have you pumped into the arcades over the years? If you answer “too many” to this question, then chances are you have seen Sega’s Daytona Racing in the arcades. Daytona USA Deluxe represents the PC child of this arcade hit. This version offers some new features along with an updated ability to make modifications to your car before races. This is an arcade game that does not even try to cross the line into a simulation title. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: December 23, 1997

When Twisted Metal came out for the Playstation a year ago, it became one of the most successful titles for the platform. This fall Twisted Metal 2 was released and picks up where the last title left off. The story revolves around a battle or a contest to see who can be the last one standing. In the original Twisted Metal, the contest took place in LA, but this time around the action has moved to a worldwide venue. So, the contest begins to see who can win and survive the battle. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: December 17, 1997

Sony Entertainment of America is starting to bring hit titles over from the Playstation platform to the PC. One of Sony’s hottest games this past year has been the wildly successful Jet Moto. Jet Moto was developed by Sony as competition for the Nintendo 64′s Waverace jetski game. Even though both titles are similar in nature, Jet Moto offered greater gameplay and a more varied level of difficulty, thanks to the multitude of opponents and varied terrain that you race over. Can Sony successfully take this hit Playstation title and sell it to the PC gaming world? ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: December 16, 1997

It was a long time ago since the first screenshots appeared for VR Baseball HWA (Hardware Accelerated). If you can remember back that far, the screenshots blew away anything that was out or coming out on the market. With the promise of being the best looking and playing baseball title ever, VR Sports Baseball was setting a high mark to achieve for itself. Well the time has come when the game has finally been released. The Adrenaline Vault has taken a look to see if VR Baseball has met up to the hype it set a long time ago. ( read more… )