Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: August 4, 1997

In this age of Quake clones and Command & Conquer wannabes, it sometimes seems next to impossible to find an original idea in computer gaming. Strangely enough, Parroty Interactive has managed to produce games that are completely original simply by capitalizing on unoriginality. Beginning with Pyst, a takeoff on the enormously successful graphic adventure Myst, the company has begun creating parodies of popular computer games. Their latest release, Star Warped, pokes fun at just about every Star Wars game ever made, and the entire Star Wars universe in general. ( read more… )

Review by: Pete Hines
Published: August 1, 1997

Aren Cordelaine thought it was going to be another simple day fishing — little did he know how his life would change by the end of the day. After helping save William, a noble from the house of Escobar, from a hideous beast, Aren receives an invitation to accompany William to his home, where Aren can learn more about his apparent gift of magic. After a quick goodbye to his parents, Aren joins William on a lengthy adventure that covers the expansive realm of Antara. Let me be sure to mention that this is NOT a sequel to Betrayal at Krondor, but it does have some similarities and looks somewhat the same. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 31, 1997

As a computer game reviewer, there is one situation you pray to avoid, but eventually you must face the inevitable. Nothing is worse than writing a praising preview of a very promising game, only to find that the full version is a complete and utter disappointment. Unfortunately, such is the case with NovaLogic’s latest entry into the helicopter sim genre, Comanche 3. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 31, 1997

I have kind of an embarrassing computer game confession. To this day, I still remember the theme song from Ultima III, and even hum it occasionally. There’s a good reason, though. I can’t remember any other computer role-playing game that held my interest for so long, and kept me so thoroughly entertained, as that priceless gem. By today’s standards, the older Ultima games are almost laughable. They had very limited graphics, no digitized speech, and none of the visual flash or FMV that is so prominent in today’s market. What was it, then, that made these games so damned good? The answer is simple, and can be summed up in one word: playability. In the Ultima games, you could explore vast continents, solve challenging puzzles, battle fantastic monsters, and cast powerful magic spells. You never knew what was going to happen next, and that was the driving motivation to keep playing, even into the wee hours of the morning. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 31, 1997

Strangely enough, the opening movie of Imperium Galactica is perfectly analogous to the game itself; both are long, have stale voice acting and cheesy full-motion video sequences, but ultimately end up being engaging and fun to experience. In short, both are better than you’d expect. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 31, 1997

With all the fuss lately over the two big Build engine heavy hitters, Blood and Shadow Warrior, Redneck Rampage seemed to come out of nowhere. As one of the biggest and most successful publishers in the software industry, Interplay has given the world tons of great games, from the recently released Jetfighter III to the classic Star Trek: 25th Anniversary. And God knows their upcoming releases, like Fallout and Starfleet Academy, have kept gamers waiting in anticipation for months. So it seems kind of strange that Redneck Rampage, the company’s first entry into the 3D game genre, should appear on the scene without all the usual Interplay fanfare. What’s even more surprising is that under all the low-brow comedy and bathroom humor, there actually lies a solid action game. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 31, 1997

Every once in a while a game comes out of nowhere, rips its claws into you, and draws you into its depths so deeply that the hours slip by like minutes. This is precisely the experience I’ve had lately playing Shadows over Riva, Sirtech’s latest entry into the Realms of Arkania series of computer role-playing games. Shadows over Riva — based on Germany’s most popular role-playing game, Das Schwarze Auge (The Black Eye) — takes place after the events of 1994′s Star Trail. The magical Salamander Stone has been recovered, and peace has finally been secured between the Dwarves and the Elves, but the bloody war against the Orcs continues to rage on. ( read more… )

Review by: Shawn Quigley
Published: July 31, 1997

In the past decade there have been only a few tennis titles to hit the PC market. The only one worth remembering would have been Jimmy Connor’s Tennis, which came out a number of years back and would most likely be considered the only one worth playing. This year, out of nowhere, a company called GOTO has released a tennis game called Tennis Elbow. GOTO is a software company located in France and has released some other titles such as online backgammon. ( read more… )

Review by: Brian Pipa
Published: July 30, 1997

Capitalism Plus is the latest in the not-so-crowded world of business simulations and is the sequel to the award-winning Capitalism. Cap Plus is much more than a game; it could more accurately be called a business simulation. It covers every conceivable aspect of business, including purchasing, hiring, advertising, stocks, product quality, and lots more. I couldn’t come up with a single aspect of business that wasn’t covered in Cap Plus. I wouldn’t be surprised if this game is used as an instructional aid in business and finance classes somewhere. Therein lies one its major flaw — it seems too much like learning and not enough like fun. ( read more… )

Review by: Jim Brumbaugh
Published: July 28, 1997

There have been many a kingdom rise and fall throughout the progress of mankind. Some had risen to power and remained for many years, while others appeared briefly and were swept away with the sands of time. In Avalon Hill’s History of the World, the player is given the opportunity to command the forces of seven of the world’s Empires which have appeared through the course of history, in an effort to dominate the world by the end of each game. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 24, 1997

Sit back, relax, and try to follow this truly idiotic Fable . . . A long time ago, in some wacky cartoon galaxy far, far away, a race of aliens known as the Mecubarz landed on a planet with the intention of creating the perfect civilization. They took on human form in order to build their beautiful world, which would end up looking a lot like medieval Germany. Anyway, in the village of Balkane there lived a high priest of the Cult of Mecubarz named Ismael. Ismael was a little power hungry, and he devised a devious plan to deceive the Mecubarz and steal their power (But wait a minute, I thought the Mecubarz were the humans? Hmmm . . .). Needless to say, Ismael didn’t get away with his dirty deed, and he and his four accomplices found themselves in a whole heap of trouble. The Mecubarz tore the planet into four separate worlds — here’s where the story gets really original — one of Ice, one of Mist, one of Water, and one of Fire. Each of the conspirators was sentenced to his own private Hell in one of the different worlds. Apparently there were precious gems involved too, because each of the condemned became the guardian of one. ( read more… )

Review by: Brian Clair
Published: July 23, 1997

From the creators of Blood comes a new game based on a genre we don’t see very often — the side-scroller. Claw from Monolith Studios is the second game from the highly talented group which looks like it could be the surprise hit of the year. Based roughly during the 15th century, Claw takes us to an almost parallel earth where the known world is ruled by the Cocker Spaniard Kingdom. However, instead of playing a human, cyborg, or mushroom like in other popular side-scrolling adventures, you get to play a part in one of the classic rivalries — cats against dogs! Your role in this monumental adventure is that of Captain Nathaniel J. Claw, a feline pirate of the seven seas, infamous to all. The King, tired of your exploits, has put a rich bounty on your head of one million gold pieces, dead or alive. ( read more… )

Review by: Pete Hines
Published: July 23, 1997

Following in the footsteps of his father, Phillip, Alexander III was a great and masterful military strategist. In the thirteen years he reigned as ruler of Macedonia, he extended his reach far and wide and created an expansive empire. In Great Battles of Alexander (GBoA), you have the opportunity to assume the role of this great military leader, or attempt to dethrone him by playing as one of the commanders of an opposing army. The game features a campaign mode, which allows you to attempt to duplicate Alexander’s conquests, or a battle mode, which enables you to play as Alexander or one of his nemeses in one of ten historic battles. ( read more… )

Review by: Emil Pagliarulo
Published: July 21, 1997

You thought the nightmare was over. Ophelia has been properly lain to rest, the Chosen have been avenged, and Tchernobog has been sent back to the Hell that spawned him. But the forces of evil are everywhere. Members of the Cult of Tchernobog have stolen a mystical scroll of great power, the use of which could upset the very balance of the Otherworld. It is up to you as Caleb, still in detestable human form, to travel to the darkest reaches of Europe, into the legendary Carpathian Mountains, and retrieve that which is rightfully yours. So begins your Cryptic Passage.

( read more… )

Review by: Jim Brumbaugh
Published: July 18, 1997

The aliens have returned with a vengeance in X-COM: Apocalypse from MicroProse. The previous alien encounter had left Earth contaminated, and had forced dramatic climactic changes which made the planet uninhabitable. We discover that a majority of Earthlings decided to venture out into space to colonize other worlds. Even so, a self-contained, self-sustaining city was constructed on the Earth’s surface, designed to provide living space under the toxic cloud which surrounds the Earth. This achievement was called Mega-Primus, and it was a huge success for many years. ( read more… )