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NEW! August 8, 1997 Review of Origins, the National Gaming Convention by award-winning games designer Ken St. Andre
REVIEWS for YOUSE: 1997 Science Fiction Games
Abyss Aliens vs. Predator Archimedean Dynasty Conquest Earth The Crow: City of Angels The Dark Half Dark Vengeance Discworld Disney's Hercules Galactic Conquest Independence Day The Lost World: Jurassic Park Marvel Super Heroes PowerSlave Resident Evil 2 Shadows of the Empire The Space Bar Space Jam Suikoden The Tick Time Warrior: The Armageddon DeviceWhim Disclaimer
GAMES/SOFTWARE/COMPANIES
: 262 links, Alphabetically NEW! Review of Origins, the National Gaming Convention by award-winning games designer Ken St. AndreIt's in the Cards . . . and how you play them!
I always love to attend Origins, the National Gaming Convention. It is the second-biggest game con in the country (The largest is Gen-Con, which has always been sponsored by TSR and held in Milwaukee every August.) The various small gaming companies of the U.S,. and sometimes England, often try to bring new products to Origins, and it's a good place to pick up the latest things in gaming. You can also see prototypes that haven't made it to market yet. This year (and for the next five years through 2002) Origins was held at the Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio from July 17 through the 20th. Two of my most pleasant gaming experiences at the con involved playing card games that were totally new to me, and so I thought I'd review those games for the benefit of others who may not have seen them yet. In my opinion, these two games are winners, and worthy of YOUR time and money. Which two? I'll tell you now...No Board. No Boundaries. No Limits. Express Chess!
Paul Lidberg is one of the great characters in gaming, and a friend of mine. Right now he is a sales rep for a game distributor, but in the past he was Crunchy Frog Games (in the same sense that Rick Loomis is Flying Buffalo, Inc.-- he owns, operates, and controls the company in addition to being a sometime game designer. Rick designed Starweb and Heroic Fantasy. Paul designed Critter Commandos and Fuzzy Heroes). He foisted a deck of Express Chess on me, and then got me to sit down and play it on Saturday Night after the Origins awards. It was the perfect game to play in one of the quieter corners of a busy, noisy, well-lighted hotel bar. Basically, it's chess. Everyone plays chess, right? But sometimes chess bogs down into long, slow, boring contests where the winner is the one who can look farthest ahead on the greatest number of possible lines of development. Express Chess does away with the long slow boring part of the game by simplifying. In regular chess you have an 8 by 8 square chessboard marked in alternating colors--usually black and white, but any two colors will do. In Express Chess (Blitz version) you have a 5 by 4 grid laid out by the players as they set up the game, with a card in every position. In regular chess, each player has 16 pieces set up symmetrically, and the object is to checkmate the King. In Express Chess (Blitz version) each player has 10 pieces (cards) placed face down on the board so that the other player doesn't know what you have where. The King is hidden. The object is to locate or deduce where the enemy King is, then smash through his defenders, and capture him. In regular chess the number of pieces in play continually decreases as pieces are captured and taken off the board. In Express Chess, pieces are continually taken, but then replaced from the players reserve. There is almost never an empty space on the board. A player cant build up a big advantage in power and then crush his opponent--he can only take advantage of a temporarily fluctuation of cards (pieces) in play. And in regular chess you use stylized playing pieces made of wood, plastic, pewter, or some other substance while in Express Chess you use playing cards with a chessboard pattern on the back and a famous, full-color Renaissance painting on the front. For example, one of the white queens (there are two) in the beginning deck is a reproduction of The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli-- that's the picture commonly known as "Venus on the Clam Shell." Wow! Sexy chess! Not only do you get to see all these famous medieval nudes, but you also learn to identify some of the great masterpieces of world painting. By the way, I won my game, capturing Paul's king just one move before he could get to mine. So far I've only mentioned the Blitz Game, the easiest, fastest version of Express Chess, but there are two other variants--Match Chess where each player builds a custom deck of 50 cards, and The Big Game where your deck can be of unlimited size, but can only use one of each special card. Did I mention that there are special cards? For example, the other white queen card shows The Birth of Venus by Ettore Tito. Written in half-point type on the side of the card is: "During Replacement, play this card from your hand onto the table. Then (1) pick up this card along with your King and one other card and then (2) place all three cards face down in the three vacant spaces." The effect is that your king gets to hide his location, and you may get a more powerful piece into play on the board. There are special cards for Bishop, Knight, and Rook as well. Express Chess comes in two starter decks (A and B) of 50 cards for $5.99. That's fairly steep for a deck of cards, although these are handsome full-color cards, but very cheap for a great game. Each deck contains 25 red and 25 white cards--all that you need to get two players started, and a folded sheet of paper with the rules on it. Yes, there are a few rules, regardless of what the box says, but you can read and understand them in about two minutes and start playing during the third minute. Right now only the two starter decks exist, but the potential exists for expansion packs--there are plenty of great old paintings whose reproduction rights are in the public domain. If the game catches on at all, then expansion modules are inevitable. Regular chess is for deep and powerful thinkers. Express Chess is for sneaky and resourceful players. This is a fast little game, and I highly recommend it.Clive Barker's Imajica (tm) versus Magic the Gathering (tm)
Those yo-yos at Wizards of the Coast changed the world four years ago when they came out with Magic the Gathering (tm)--the first really successful collectible card game. They combined the fun and fantasy of role-playing with the speed and ease of cardplaying and the thrill and avarice of card collecting into a single great product that conquered the gaming world. It didnt take long for the imitators to appear. There are now more collectible card games than I can name. A very few of them [Legend of Five Rings (tm), for example] are just as good as Magic the Gathering (tm) in terms of gameplay, but none have attained the world-wide popularity of the original. That doesn't mean that the imitators wont keep trying. There is big money to be made in the collectible card game field, and that always attracts the big players. HarperPrism is a big publisher, international in scope, boasting many best-selling authors as their clients. They have decided to enter the collectible card game market in a big way. This year they are bringing out at least two new collectible card games. One will be Aliens vs. Predators, developed for them by Precedence Games of Tempe, Arizona. Aliens vs. Predators was still in prototype form when I tried it at Origins, and so I won't talk about it except to say that if you liked the movies, you should like the game. The other is Clive Barker's Imajica (tm), and it has already gone to market. Note: the suits at HarperPrism didnt actually create either game--they hired smaller companies that actually have some creative talent to do the work--but they have the money and the distribution channels to get their new games into bookstores everywhere. It seems that the products that have done best in competing with Magic (tm) are those based on popular licenses like Star Wars (tm), Star Trek (tm), Lord of the Rings (tm) and now Imajica (tm). (If its okay with the lawyers in the audience, Im going to drop the (tm)s from here on and just imply their existence. Everyone knows these products are trademarked.) Clive Barker is one of the top-selling horror/fantasy authors in the world. Not only can he be just as gross as Stephen King when it comes to arousing revulsion, but hes also a great world-builder. He likes to create whole alternate planes of existence, and has done so twice: once in WEAVEWORLD and once in IMAJICA. He makes an excellent source for a new game design, because he gives the designers plenty to work with. The card game is a struggle to control the five dominions mentioned in Barker's book. Players use magic, and weapons, and allies to gain control of different worlds, and the player who can control all five first wins. It's a complex game--at least as complex as Magic--and the number of strategies are infinite. Based on the game I played, I would say the game is well balanced, and it's possible to swing from defeat to victory (and vice-versa) very quickly. Imajica comes in a starter package containing two 60-card beginner decks and a 48-page rules booklet printed in full color for $15. That's enough to get two players started immediately, or at least as soon as one of them has read and understood the rules. This is a very good value at a time when a 60 card beginning deck for most card games costs $8.95. It is by far the classiest introductory package for a collectible card game that I've seen yet. The cards are beautifully produced with full color paintings of the many people, places, and things in Barker's novel. Most of the cards are dark and suggestive, although a few of them are bright and colorful. It should be remembered that Barker writes horror, and the mood intended is one of fear and foreboding instead of gaiety and triumph. It is difficult to evoke the darker emotions, but the many artists for the cards have certainly given it their best efforts. Some of the images are quite realistic, while others are vague to the pointof caricature. The player is subtly encouraged to use his imagination on these nightmares, because most of the images are dreamlike, soft, fuzzy, blurring out of existence at the edges. Play of the game is based on magic numbers, mostly seven and five. Each player may keep seven cards in his hand, and it takes seven points of magic to capture and hold a domain card. Those players with any history and background in the occult arts will notice all kinds of clever magical references that the designers have worked into the game. They add resonance--an appropriate trick, because that is what Barker does in his books--he adds resonance to our own daily reality, making it deeper, wilder, and stranger than we ever imagined. Here's a note for card collectors: First printings of Magic cards have black borders. Reprintings have white borders. Black bordered cards are worth a lot more to the card collectors and dealers--their numbers are limited and hence truly collectible whereas the white-bordered cards can be reprinted any number of times. This first release of Imajica has black borders also. It's a good trick from a publishers point of view--easy to do, and it adds artificial value to what are basically worthless pieces of cardboard, . . . and it helps sell out the first edition real fast. Magic's first edition appreciated in value tremendously. Imajica has that same potential. Despite what the rules say, Imajica is not a simple game, quick to learn and easy to play. I had one of the designers working with me, and it took us nearly an hour to go through a simple, scaled-down version of the game. (Of course, that may have been because I insisted on knowing why things worked the way they did--as a game designer myself, I like to understand the whole system, not just follow the rules. On the other hand, since I do know a lot about game systems, magic in general, Barker's books, and various game design techniques, we could go through such explanations much faster than if he were explaining the same thing to a neophyte.) There are four phases of the game in each round, and they must be played in the right sequence to make sense. Each phase may have many actions played. A complex Ally phase could easily take 15 minutes to resolve. But, Imajica IS a deep and rich game, well worthy of your study and effort. Clive Barker wrote a short introduction to the game, in which he expresses himself very pleased with it. He says, "The telling of a story is or course a game. The writer plays out on the page scenarios which spring from whatever characters and ideas are dropped into his hands by God. . . . For a year and a half I struggled to play my best game, and thought when the book [i.e. Imajica] was written, it was all it could be. Not so; not remotely so. In your hands is the beginning of a new Imajica journey; a game very different from that which I played writing the novel. In fact, it is in one sense, a glorious undoing of my labors. For here the words have been returned to images and ideas, and the roads which I chose not to take in the book are once more available for the traveling." If anyone can play IBM to Wizards of The Coast's Apple, it may well be HarperPrism. They have the resources to do great games, and they have a terrific product in Clive Barker's Imajica. It remains to be seen if the gaming/book buying public has the necessary wit and dedication to enjoy this game. Imajica, the novel, was a bestseller. Let's hope the card game can do equally well. Express Chess. $5.99/deck from Black Box, LLC. c. 1996. Available in larger gaming stores everywhere or by special order from the distributor. Clive Barker's Imajica. $15.00 for a 2 person starter set. $2.00 per booster pack of 15 cards. HarperPrism. c. 1997. Available in book stores and gaming stores by late 1997. Reviewed by Ken St. Andre, Aug. 8, 1997. e-mail to Ken St. Andre "Just another guy lost in the jungle" RETURN to top of GAMES page
GAMES/SOFTWARE/COMPANIES
: 77 links, AlphabeticallyREVIEWS for YOUSE: 1997 Science Fiction Games
ABYSS
ABYSS: Twentieth Century Fox has reportedly inked a licensing deal with Sound Source Interactive for an upcoming (late 1997) title based on the hit SF film "The Abyss." The game title is expected to be "Return to the Abyss." Sound Source Interactive is known for creating computer/videogame products spun-off from "Star Wars", "Star Trek", and Babylon 5." State-of-the-art 3D rendering is supposedly on NT workstations running Softimage. The game is planned to be in the action adventure role playing category. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Aliens vs. Predator
Aliens vs. Predator: Fox Interactive is the developer, Saturn is the platform, 2nd Quarter 1997 is the estimated shipping date. You've seen the movies, you've seen the other movies, and you've read the comic book. What else is left but to play the game? Maybe it all started when I asked people at the World Science Fiction Convention in Glasgow, Scotland "who would win a fight between Alien, Predator, and O.J. Simpson? Alien's got the long neck, but O.J.'s got the long knife hidden in the golf-club-bag. You know, mount a rocket-rack on a White Ford Bronco, bring Kato Kaelin along for the ride and ... but none of the Croatian sci-fi fans had the slightest idea what I was talking about as those party animals drank me under the table... So now I'm kicking myself with my Bruno Magli shoes. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Archimedean Dynasty
Archimedean Dynasty: Blue Byte Software Inc. is the publisher, Massive is the developer, CD is the format, $59.95 the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. Released in December 1996, this PC CD-Rom action/simulation game is a cool blend of Tie-Fighter-type battles with a complex story-line submarine simulation. Heavy on dialog for interactions with over 100 characters, you gather data needed for missions in 60 different underwater cities. You've got to make a selection from 30 types of submarine weapons, stay out of the way of deep-water pirates, keep from getting lost (perhaps a problem given the intricity of the environments and the, well, diluteness of clues) while you save the world, or at least the wet part of the world. Very attractive for the eyes, slightly weak for those with itchy trigger fingers, this game will certainly surprise you several times. RETURN to top of GAMES page
The Crow: City of Angels
The Crow: City of Angels: Acclaim is the manufacturer, PlayStation is the platform,and Spring 1997 the estimated shipping date. Based on the movie (a sequel to "The Crow", itself based on a comic book), this dark fantasy 3-D movie-based fighting game has gotten poor reviews. The backgrounds are rated "way cool", the character animation is "slick", but the audio and playability are thought to be mediocre. Moreso, the third-person point-of-view changes perspective as often as an MTV video, and the combination of ho-hum fighting and brain-scrambling camer-angle changes has given this a bad buzz. On the other hand, some "Crow" fanatics can't get enough of it. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Conquest Earth
Eidos Interactive Developer: "From the people who brought you 'Tomb Raider', brace yourself for another big hit! 'Conquest Earth' comes to life in a savage intergalactic world with ten times the graphic resolution of any previous strategy game. Instantly morph into a human, alien, or killer battle weapon to waste opponents in real time. With intense graphics and ground-breaking features, no gamer will be spared from the Invasion." RETURN to top of GAMES page
Dark Half
The Dark Half: Orion Interactive is the manufacturer, THQ Inc. is the co-developer/co-publisher, Bus Studios (GReat Britain) is the developer, Sony PlayStation and PC CD-ROM are the platforms, Winter 1997/98 the estimated shipping date. Based on the bestselling Stephen King novel, in which writer Thad Beaumont struggles for the life of himself, his wife, and his friends against the evil alter-ego George Stark. Police think Thad is the crazed killer, but there is something supernatural going on after all... This is announced as a 3-D horror game with stunning graphics and a third-person perspective. THQ Inc.'s President/CEO speaks highly of Stephen King and of the teamwork with Orion. Your Humble Webmaster first met Stephen King in 1979 or 1980 at a NorWesCon in Seattle, where he was already a big name in Horror ("Carrie") but was literally unknown to the hardcore aerospace science fiction crowd. I had to pretend to be a fan (only later did I come to appreciate what a great writer he was) and have him autograph some books I'd borrowed, so he wouldn't feel unappreciated. The next year he arrived at the same Con in a $1,000 Italian silk suit and surrounded by satellites and flunkies and fans. The book was a thrill. If the game captures a fraction of its atmosphere and plot ingenuity, it'll be a smash hit. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Dark Vengeance
Dark Vengeance: Reality Bytes is the manufacturer, Macintosh is the platform, and Spring 1997 the estimated shipping date. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Discworld
Discworld: Psygnosis is the publisher, Saturn is the platform, and some unknown time in 1997 the estimated shipping date. They say it will be the ultimate funny Quest game of all time, and if they can really capture the unique atmosphere and warped humor of Terry Pratchett's best-selling fantasy-cliches-turned-on-their-heads novels, then I'll be the first in line to buy one... RETURN to top of GAMES page
Disney's Hercules
Disney's Hercules: EuroCom is the Developer, Disney Interactive is the Publisher, PlayStation is the Platform, June 1997 is the estimated shipping date. Scheduled for release the same day as the animated movie Hercules this unusually well-conceived Action genre adaptations includes original dialogue from the film actors (Danny DeVito, Matt Frewer, Bobcat Goldthwait, Paul Shaffer, Tate Donovan). The game is then stuffed with jokes and sight-gags, is hand-animated, and uses digitized music from the film. Feature Animation is by the team that brought you "Aladdin" and "The Little Mermaid", trying to cash in on the Hercules/Xena craze in the studio's 35th animated feature. Herc, the awesomely strong but (in the myths) anger-prone, selfish, and very stupid son of God-King Zeus is taken from his home on Mount Olympus via a plot by Hades, God of the Underworld (in the myth, of course, it's Pluto, God of the Underworld, but that might be confusing to Disney fans). As Hades tries to conquer the universe, Hercules and his sidekick Phil have to stop him. They do. This is a relatively non-violent game, aimed at younger players, and will be massively promoted at kiosks in malls across America. It cannot help but be a hit, if Disney Interactive (not exactly the Happiest Place On Earth after laying off a couple of hundred employees recently) has learned the dangers of premature release from their "Lion King" fiasco. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Galactic Conquest Galactic Conquest: 3DO is the manufacturer/Publisher, PlayStation is the platform, Space Strategy is the genre, and June 1997 is the estimate shipping date RETURN to top of GAMES page
Independence Day
Independence Day: Fox Interactive is the publisher, PlayStation is the platform, and Spring 1997 the estimated shipping date. Based on the super-blockbuster movie of 1996, the great movie graphics have been at least partly captured. Fly an oddball multinational airforce of 10 jets, including a Russian Sukhoi Su-72, an F-15 Eagle, and an A-10 Warthog (like the one just lost this early-April week in Colorado). Fight flying saucers over Paris (fly under the Eiffel Tower), Tokyo, New York (watch out for the Statue of Liberty), Moscow, or 9 other locations. Look for Warp Tubes to max up your power. Save a couple of missiles for the City Destroyer. Don't bash into the buildings below you or the Mother Ship above you. In the final level, fly a captured UFO. This game is lots of fun, the graphics and sound are quite nicely lifted from the movie, and the controls (unfortunately) are less than state-of-the-art. Over all, this game is a winner. Especially if you liked the movie. Me, I thought the movie was slick but stupid. RETURN to top of GAMES page
The Lost World: Jurassic Park
The Lost World: Jurassic Park: Appaloosa Interactive is the Developer, Dream Works Interactive and Sega of America are the publishers, PlayStation and Sega Saturn CD and Sega Gensis and Sega Game Gear are the platforms, and July (slipped from June) 1997 the estimated shipping date. Based on a movie which is certain to be a box-office smash-hit, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, itself based on the novel by Michael Crichton,the game (like the Spielberg movie) is set four years after the dinosaur playpen off the coast of Costa Rica (Nublar Isla). Before the dinosaurs were shipped to Jurassic Park on that island, they were supposedly bred on another secret location, known here only as Site B. The film's character played by Jeff Goldblum, the Chaos Theory mathematician named Ian Malcolm, plus a zoologist, a big-game hunter, and the quota of two stowaway children, all head for Site B to see what's what. In the game, you start as a dinosaur: Compsognathus, where you must deal with obstacles such as predators, cliffs, and the hunter. If you survive, you jump to level 2, and become that hunter. You stay in the hunter character until you get to the end of the next level, where you run into the deadly Velociraptors, at which point you turn into a Raptor. At each successive level, you become another species of dinosaur, until at last you become the King of Dinos, the awesome Tyrannosaurus Rex. "GamePro" magazine (April 1997) interviewed the Executive Producer, Patrick Gilmore. Mr.Gilmore is already famous in the gaming world for having produced "Aladdin for Genesis" (Disney) and two dozen other Disney Interactive games. "The Lost World could have been just another game where you kill dinosaurs," he said, "but instead we created an ambiance that enables you to feel what the hunters and the hunted are going through." Lead Engineer Matt Brown reports that the dinosaur movements are meticulously researched from the movement of lizards, birds, and a nerd with a backpack running to catch a bus. As a result, players will be amazed by the realism of the Compsognathus rolling over, bobbing their heads, and scurrying; and the Tyrannosaurus Rex rolling, snapping, and lunging. Similarly, the backgrounds (jungle and underwater) are visually stunning. There are said to be 20 levels, over 20 species of dinosaurs, and Sega is boasting about the "Morf-x" technology used to animate the dinos on the game CD. They claim that the skin of the creatures seems to strech realistically as the critters walk, run, pounce, or roll over -- making a stunningly life-like effect. Some experts think that this will be THE hot game of the year. We'll tell you more when we get a hands-on sneak preview. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Marvel Super Heroes Marvel Super Heroes: The developer is Capcom, the publisher is capcom, the platform is PlayStation. This is a personal retail version of the arcade game, using the favorite comic book characters as presented by the dominant fighting game software publisher. Unfortunately, as with the arcade version, the animation is silly, the characters have been redrawn as if on steroids, their super powers are different from what they sahould have been according to their comic book selves, and the gameplay is jerky and frustrating. Come on, Capcom, call this a beta test, put some new animators and some big bucks in, fix this up and have a real winner! RETURN to top of GAMES page
PowerSlave
PowerSlave: Playmates is the publisher, Lobotomy Software is the developer, CD is the format, $49.95 the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. Released in December 1996, this PlayStation/Saturn/PC game is not YADDAYADDA (yet another damned Doom adventure you aren't dying daily about), PowerSlave is a first-person three-dimensional armed-combat shoot-the-bad-guys game, true, but it has a science fiction/fantasy feel based on more than mere monsters. You are quickly gripped by a plot, with the ghost of the pharoah Ramses rather ticked-off about his mummy having been stolen by aliens. Follow the main map, climb up the levels (as with Super Mario World), and save the world. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 2: Capcom is the publisher, Capcom is the developer, PlayStation is the platform, and June 1997 the estimated shipping date. If this keeps up the story line and playability where Resident Evil 1 ended, it's likely to be a contender for the best Horror/Adventure title of 1997. The story so far: Outside Raccoon City, some covert bio-engineering has left us dazed from "The Umbrella Incident." Now the S.T.A.R.S. Swat Team has two new characters: stunt motorcyclist/university student Eliza Walker and rookie policeman Leon Kennedy. Some sort of allegedly minor skin rashes have begun to spread, and maybe beauty is less than skin deep. The whole town starts to get nasty, and the police station may not be the safest place to hide. With a splatter-punk feel, 1,500,000 unit sales, and 20 consecutive weeks as the #1 PlayStation Title, Resident Evil 1 looks like a hard act to follow. But if the dialog is closer to comprehensible American English, and the budget is any indicator, this game can't lose. Stay tuned. And stock up on antibiotics and bullets. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Shadows of the Empire
Shadows of the Empire: Lucas Arts is the publisher, Lucas Arts is the developer, 64-bit Cartridge is the format, $74.95 the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. Released in December 1996, this Nintendo 64 game is the biggest hit in my son's 3rd grade peer group, and an outstanding cinematic adventure game by anybody's standard. Sometime in between "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi" in fictional chronology, Luke Skywalker's hitherto-unknown protector Dash Rendar (another likeable interstellar mercenary smuggler who probably cheats on his taxes) is tireless over 10 levels of gameplay, whether you dive into campaign or arcade mode. Start by trying to trip-up Imperial Walkers in a cable-towing flying simulation battle over a snowy alien landscape, and then sudenly you're whisked into first-person perspective and are strongly motvated to get out of and away from the Rebel base. Thrill to the laser-gun turret battle, gasp as you race landspeeders through a dry canyon, and then finish the day with a leisurely dive through to the Death Star's reactor core, and never mind that most of the casualties will be harmless computer nerds and support personnel working for that first-rate manager Darth Vader, who knows how to get the job done on time and under budget... The films that earned about $30,000,000 in the first weekend of re-release 20-years after they hit the big screen have a real impact here on the little screen. But what a gas when you have a big-screen TV monitor! RETURN to top of GAMES page
The Space Bar
The Space Bar: Rocket Science is the developer, PlayStation is the platform, SegaSoft is the publiusher, and I know almost nothing except the title, which is a cute blend of computer-keyboard jargon and that scene in Star Wars, you know, with all the aliens in the bar way out in space... But on the other hand Rocket Science says that it will be an Action/Mystery, so what do I know? Maybe less than nothing. However... Steven (Steve) Meretzky: has a web presence via his game company's site:boffo.com The company was founded in February 1994 and the site has a bio page for Steve, as well as other info. Sometime soon, it will be expanded to even greater depths. More importantly, he has a new Sci-Fi game coming out, "The Space Bar" (published by SegaSoft), which will be on shelves June 1997. For more info, check the boffo.com site RETURN to top of GAMES page
Space Jam
Space Jam: Acclaim is the publisher, Sculptured Software is the developer, CD is the format, $49.00 the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. Released in December 1996, this PlayStation Sports Game is conclusive proof that some nominally science fictional films were created purely to sell product. Don't get me wrong, I can lie on the living room floor for hours on end laughing at Looney Tunes cartoon with my son, and Michael Jordan certainly looks like a better role model than Dennis Rodman, but what's the point into turning a notoriously stupid big-budget FX movie into a simple-minded arcade-style kiddy game with intermissions, oversized blue baddies, the Tazmanian Devil doing a cyclone/slam dunk, and my wife telling me not to spill any more popcorn on the rug? Yeah, I know. More profits for guys who are already rich. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Suikoden
Suikoden: Konami is the publisher, Konami is the developer, CD is the format, $44.95 the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price. Released in December 1996, this PlayStation Role Playing Game is a good example of the under-represented RPG genre. The video arcade version in Japan generated a lot of buzz here in California, and it hit the markets here as one of a very few PlayStation RPGS -- and there will be many more if this is where we start in 1997. The player's character, and those of the companions, really do change noticeably in attitude and action, based on the events that have transpired in play. RETURN to top of GAMES page
The Tick
The Tick: Fox Interactive is the publisher, Saturn is the platform, and 1st Quarter 1997 the estimated shipping date. They say it'll be action/adventure, but if it has the same gung-ho self-referential post-modern ironic silly-serious sophistication of the animated TV show, this will be a surprise hit. You heard it here first.Time Warrior: The Armageddon Device
Time Warrior: Stock's Eye is the Developer/Publisher, PC-CD is the platform, Cinematic Adventure is the genre, and July 1997 is the estimated shipping date. This game is previewed at E3 (the Electronic Entertainment Expo) with $4.95 retail demos available, shipped free (call 413-467-2761, ask for Jeff" and tell him you heard of Time Warriors from the Magic Dragon Multimedia web site). Set in the year 2328, archaeologists discover an ancient gadget, the "Armageddon Device", which can suck the life force out of a complete solar system. It starts doing just that in nearby star-systems, working its destructive way towards Earth. One heroic scientist, aboard a space station, invents a time machine and uses it to grab you, the player, as a person from the past, to help find the Time Warrior, who is a person travelling through time and from an alternate reality. Together, you must stop the Armageddon Device before we are all doomed. Robert Stock created the characters, the stock footage, and hired the folks who set up the point-and-click play system. It has a bunch of cinematic sequences, and a bunch of outer space battles. You get to explore five different areas, each subdivided into sections and rooms. In the process, you operate a space shuttle, a time ship, and a railway. By so doing, you find clues to the location of the Time Warrior. More about the game is available at Time Warrior. Robert Stock was the developer, through "Stock's Eye." Your Humble Webmaster especially likes the detailed 3-D spaceship exteriors and interiors which, combined with planets and aliens, gives a science fiction movie look to this game. More about gameplay when I've been hands-on. Watch for the ads bradcast on "Star Trek Voyager" and "Bablylon 5", which I'm convinced represents a brilliant stroke of marketing for this start-up company with visual insight and ambition. RETURN to top of GAMES page
Whim Disclaimer:
CONTENT on this page is, at the webmaster's whim, restricted to the science fiction and fantasy field, and the mere presence of spaceships, robots, pseudo-medieval settings, Blade-Runner-type backgrounds or nasty monsters is utterly insufficient to qualify. My 8-year-old thinks I'm being arbitrary, but hey, he's only the 3rd generation science fiction professional in my family! RETURN to top of GAMES page
GAMES/SOFTWARE/COMPANIES
: 219 links, Alphabetically About Time, Inc.: Wholesale Distributor Warning: this site is STILL under construction (as on 14 April 97) Abstract Software: Software Manufacturer Web Review {To Be Done} Access Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Acclaim Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Acclaim (Japan), Inc.: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Accolade: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Activision: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Actual Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Acuris Inc.: Software Web Review {To Be Done} A.D.A.M. Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Adrenalin Entertainment: Developer The Software Division of Western Technologies, Adrenalin Entertainment has been in the electronic entertainment/toy biz since 1980. Past hits: * Spider-Man: The Animated Series (Sega Genesis & SNES) * Mutant Chronicles: Doom Troopers (Sega Genesis & SNES) * Mathblaster (Sega Genesis & SNES) * X-Men (Sega Genesis) * Trivial Pursuit (CD-ROM) They specialize in turning books, TV, and film content into interactve media. So why is their page unchanged since May 1996??? Youth wants to know... Adobe: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Advanced Primate Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Advanced Productions, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Adventure Online Gaming: On-Line Gaming Multiplayer RPG and Strategy games, specializing in the subgenres of: * Swords & Sorcery Epic Adventure * Cyberpunk * Superhero * Gothic Horror Located at 607 North Holliston Suite C, Pasadena, California 91106 They are ony 2 miles from where I do my webmastering, so I'll be checking them out for an EXCLUSIVE interview any day now... AHA! Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} The Aldridge Company: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} ALF Engineering: Developer Creators of games since 1985, ALF Engineering is best known for having assembled personnel whose joint credits include: * Stocks & Bonds (Atari ST; Avalon Hill) * Rehearsal (DOS; ALF Engineering) * AD&D-Base (DOS; Strategic Simulations, Inc./TSR) * Mario's Time Machine (DOS/Windows; MindScape, Inc.) * GeoStrike! (Windows; MindScape, Inc.) * Eagle Eye Mysteries in London (DOS; Stormfront Studios, Inc./Electronmic Arts) * Spectre VR-CD (Windows; Velocity, Inc.) * Battle Bugs (DOS; Epyx, Inc./Sierra) * Pardon? (Windows; Green Dream, Inc.) * Geo-Chem Interactive (Windows; ALF Engineering) * Jorune: Alien Logic (DOS; Strategic Simulations, Inc.) * Tony LaRussa Baseball 3 (DOS; Stormfront Studios, Inc./Electronmic Arts) * NFL Math (Windows; Sanctuary Woods) * Allied General (Windows 95/Mac; Strategic Simulations, Inc./MindScape, Inc.) * Panzer General (Windows 95/Mac; Strategic Simulations, Inc./MindScape, Inc.) * Elmo's Preschool (Windows 95; Creative Wonders) Alias/Wavefront: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Alien Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Alive Software Games and Education: Software Web Review {To Be Done} All Games Network: On-Line Gaming Keeps yur ears twitching to RealAudio while you play... Alligator Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Altec Lansing: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Ambrosia Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} American Interactive Pictures: Software Web Review {To Be Done} American Laser Games: Software Web Review {To Be Done} American Sammy: Software Web Review {To Be Done} American Softworks Corporation: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Anarchy Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Animatek International: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Any Channel: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Anychannel On-line: Software Web Review {To Be Done} AOL/Imagination Network: On-Line Gaming Chats, Reviews, Newsgroups, F.A.Q.; Indexes radio shows, runs ads in 61 countries "News Express" is one heck of an on-line column! Apogee: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Apple: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Apple PPC Games: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Arcanium Productions: Gaming Software Developer Arcanium Productions: [old address] Gaming Software Developer Stylish Canadian company, has weekly updated reports on a Rune Warriors fantasy game Argonaut: Software/Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Aries Online Games: On-Line Gaming Best known for "Air Warrior", with multiplayer combat between Spitfires, Messerschmitts, Mustangs, Zeros and the like. Propellors were never this much fun before; Harpoon Online (superior submarine stragey/combat multiplayer); Legends of Kesmai (Swords, Sorcery, and Dungeons); and BattleTech: Solaris Aristo International: On-Line Gaming Just changed their name to "PlayNet Technologies, Inc." -- Location-based multi-player pay-per-play tournament games, at hospitality sites linked by Internet; based in New York City; and under the guidance of the one-and-only Nolan Bushness, founder of Atarim, and the man who put the first two videogames on the market (Pong and Computer Space, the latter then mutating into Asteroids). With artists and programmers in California and Virginia, they hope to almost single-handedly revive and sluggish/declining genre... Ars Magica Home Page: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Art Data Interactive: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Ascii Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Associated Venture Investors III: said to provide significant capital to videogame companies They're throwing another $50,000,000 into New Media and Electronic Entertainment, and have had some successes so far in more mundane areas of high-tech. Hey, I could use some of those megabucks, but then, I have this craving for Creative Control, too. If you have a super-duper Business Plan, you can reach these guys on-line pretty easily.... Asylum Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Atari Corporation: Manufacturer/Software Web Review {To Be Done} Atlantis Interactive: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Atlus Software, Inc.: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Atomic Software, Inc.: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Auran: Software Australian company. Web Review {To Be Done} AutoDesk: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Automaton 2000: Software Russian company. Web Review {To Be Done} Avalon Hill Game Company: Software/Board Games Web Review {To Be Done} Aztec Labs: Software Web Review {To Be Done}
BAO Publishing: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Battlefield Earth -- amazing graphics, RealAudio, and Shockwave L. Ron Hubbard's blockbuster novel turned into a slick multimedia site. Check it out. But be sure to look over your shoulder if you happen to be in Germany... Berkeley Systems Online: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bethesda: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bevelstone Productions I/S: Software Danish company. Web Review {To Be Done} BFD Productions: Software Web Review {To Be Done}. BFD sort of stands for "Big Freaking Deal"... Big Time Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Big Top Productions: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bioware: Developer/Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bitmap Brothers: Software British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Black Dragon Productions: Developer/Software Web Review {To Be Done} Blam: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Blizzard Entertainment: On-Line Gaming, also Blizzard Entertainment: On-Line Gaming, also First you need to buy the PC version of their cool game Diablo, and once you have that at home and have gotten good at playing, you can get to the on-line version free of charge. Diablo is a deep Role Playing Game, in which you can be a warrior, rogue, or wizard. "Starcraft", due to debut this summer, is said to be a fairly sophisticated science fiction strategy game. Minimum System Requirements: * Pentium 60 PC with Windows 95 * 2X CD-ROM drive * SGA Video Card * 14.4 Kbps modem (although 28.8 is preferred for shooters such as Descent) Bloodlust Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} BlueByte: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Blue Tongue: Software Australian company. Web Review {To Be Done} BMG Interactive: Developer Australian company. See "Countries" page for more on science fiction in Australia. Web Review {To Be Done} BOLDer Multimedia: Software Web Review {To Be Done} BopLive: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Borland: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Boss Game Studios: Software Web Review {To Be Done} The Box: Developer Singapore company? Web Review {To Be Done} Brady Game Studios: Software Web Review {To Be Done} BrainTainment Center: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Brainware: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Brisoft: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Broderbund Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bullfrog Productions: Software British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Bullseye Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bumblebee: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Bungie Intergalactic Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Buggysoft: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Byron Preiss Multimedia: Software/Publisher Web Review {To Be Done}
Callaos & Associates: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Capcom Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Capcom Coin-Up: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Capstone Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Card/Dice Games: Science Fiction: Ultimate Combat Lots and lots of games, site updates at least once a week. Unfortunately, nothing to see if you have nothing more than Netscape 2.1 Carr Software: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Casady & Greene, Inc.: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cascoly Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Catapult Entertainment: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Caution Games: Software Cave Logic Studios: Developer/Software Web Review {To Be Done} CD-ROM Multimedia Access: Software Web Review {To Be Done} CEB Internetworked Games: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Champions FAQ Charanga: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Charybdis Enterprises, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Chaosium, Inc. This company is best known for BOOKS including * Castle of Eyes (pseudo-medieval dark fantasy) * The Hastur Cycle (Lovecraft and his circle: the stories from which the game "Call of Cthulhu" are based) * Mysteries of the Worm (16 stories by Robert Bloch) * Cthulhu's Heirs * The Shub-Niggurath Cycle * Azathoth Cycle (16 horrifying stories linked together) * Encyclopedia Cthulhiana * Henry Kuttner's "The Book of Iod" * Made in Goatswood (in honor of Ramsey Campbell) * The Dunwich Cycle (by the Lovecraft Circle) and Card games including: * Credo! (all about schism and heresy in the early Catholic Church) Plus the ever-popular * Nephilim Roleplaying Games (based on Genesis 6:4) * Dark Fantasy based on the "Elric" stories and books of Michael Moorcock * The "Call of Cthulhu" 1920's Lovecraftian Horror RPGs * various 1890's Victorean London adventure RPGs * Horror games based on B-Movie themes * RPGs based on King Arthur and that chivalric genre * "Nexus" -- where secret agents converge on a science fiction convention for nefarious purposes too bizarre for me to mention * Miskatonic University T-Shirts, and other such items Chaos Overlords Macintosh RPG Chatham Hill Games: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cherrystone Kids Club: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Chessmen Hmmm... looks like I've made a typo, or there's been link-rot {to be done} Class 6 Interactive: Software Web Review {To Be Done} CLENET (Creative Labs): Software British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Codehammer: On-Line Gaming These two are available in ever-newer version for multiplayer experience: * Battle City (PC) * Speed (PC) ConJelCo: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Corel: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Coryphaeus: Software Manufacturer Comprehensive range of commercial real-time 3-D graphics software for Silicon Graphics workstations. You've seen their renderings and terrain simulations and vehicle/instrumentation stuff and * "Activation" real-time software to prototype 3-D interactive games Crack Dot Com: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cross Products: Developer British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Crunchy Frog Enterprises New AOL address Crunchy Frog Enterprises Old address * "humorous adventure games" such as "Hidden Invasion" Crystal Dynamics On-Line: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Curse of Dragor Macintosh RPG As of 9 Feb 97, this has link-rotted into the neverland of defunct cyberspace Cyan, Inc.: Software Web Review {To Be Done} CyberCents "Kali" and other multiplayer internet games paid for by "micropayment technology" CyberCorps: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cyberdreams: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cyberflix: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cyberforge: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cyberpuppy: Software Web Review {To Be Done} Cyberwarrior Network: On-Line Gaming "Rubies of Eventide" and some youth-oriented BBS and RPG networking Cybra Productions: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Deadly Games: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Destiny Software Productions, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} DigiFX Interactive, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Draper Fisher Associates: said to provide significant capital to videogame companies The Dreamer's Guild: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} dub Media, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Dungeon Master II: The Legend of Skull Keep Macintosh RPG Dwango: On-Line Gaming "Chips & Bits Online Game Superstore" -- this home page starts out taking 250 kilobytes to load, then has some pointless animation... I'll check it out again when the Web Weather is better, or I lease a T1 line... Dynamic Animation Systems: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Eidos Interactive Developer "From the people who brought you 'Tomb Raider', brace yourself for another big hit! 'Conquest Earth' comes to life in a savage intergalactic world with ten times the graphic resolution of any previous strategy game. Instantly morph into a human, alien, or killer battle weapon to waste opponents in real time. With intense graphics and ground-breaking features, no gamer will be spared from the Invasion." Electric Image: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Electric Paving: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Electronaut: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Electronic Arts One of the giants of the electronic entertainment industry, on platforms including: * PC, Macintosh, Sega Genesis, Sega Saturn, Super Nintendo Sony PlayStation and with (to pick one corner of their empire) Affiliated Labels Macintosh games such as: * Shockwave Assault * Total Distortion * Werewolf vs. Comanche 2.0 * WolfPack * Top 10 Mac Pak II * Bears at Work * Madeline Thinking Games * Nine Worlds hosted by Patrick Stewart * Schoolhouse Rock: American Rock * Schoolhouse Rock: Grammar Rock * Schoolhouse Rock: Math Rock * Wishbone and the Amazing Odyssey * Sesame Street: Let's Make a Word * 3-D Atlas 97 Late this Spring, Electronic Arts is due to release its big-budget online game, under the name "Ultima Online." Let's keep an eye out for it... Engage Games Online: On-Line Gaming Owned and run by Interplay, this web site features an assortment of links to various PC and console games. Cool live music nightclub called "Billboard Live!" There are several multiplayer games for you to download, such as "Castles II" and "Descent Online", free of charge. Since 15 March 1997, on the other hand, you've got to pay an hourly fee for multiplayer gaming. True, they tens of thousands of satsified players who rave about the games, many of which are exclusive to this web site, and say the playability is worth every penny. Other games include: * Warcraft II * Splatterball * Rolemaster: Magestorm Minimum System Requirements: * Pentium 60 PC with Windows 95 * 16 Megabytes RAM * 256-color monitor * 14.4 Kbps modem (although 28.8 is preferred for shooters such as Descent) Ensemble Studios: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Entertainment Online: On-Line Gaming Ethosoft: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Fenris Wolf: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
GAMA -- key game-related organization Game Tek: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Game World: Retailer Game Pro Online: Magazine Let's be honest: this is the online version of a very good magazine, and since they have a paid staff and a big budget and contacts at many of the top gaming companies, they have a more thorough set of reviews and previews than does Your Humble Webmaster. Of course, I know WAY more science fiction than they do, and considerably more science, so go with the big-time pro magazine, or go with the niche-market here, and you'll be a winner either way. I must admit, they do a good job of updating their game news every single day. 800 hotlinks is plenty! Game World: The Other Retailer Gaming Enthusiast Online: On-Line Gaming Zine Gazillionaire: On-Line Gaming Gearheads Macintosh RPG Gold Rush Games Grey Ghost Press, Inc. Ground Up: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} GTE Entertainment: On-Line Gaming Just about ready to introduce the online game "Siege."
Haiku Studios Video Game Site: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Hasbro Interactive: Manufacturer Headland Digital Media: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Hero Games Herozine High Voltage Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Hollis Research: Developer British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Hot Rod Games: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Hummer Winblad Venture Partners: said to provide significant capital to videogame companies
ICI Games: On-Line Gaming Igames: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Imagination Network: On-Line Gaming Infinite Monkey Systems: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Insomniac: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Interactive Broadcasting: On-Line Gaming Interactive Creations: On-Line Gaming Interactive Magic: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Internet Gaming Zone: Microsoft's On-Line Gaming News, 9 May 1997: LucasArts Entertainment Company will use Microsoft's Internet Gaming Zone for its soon-to-be-released internet multiplayer titles. The first such title is the first-person old-west shooter "Outlaws", followed by "X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter", "Jedi Knight", and Rebellion." This will be done through a special multiplayer game launch area "Rebel HQ" directly linked to LucasArts' home page with tips and hints for gameplay. Interwest Partners: said to provide significant capital to videogame companies
JAM Studios: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Kesmai: On-Line Gaming Kinetix: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Koei Corporation: Software Manufacturer Konami Developer Available March 1997: "Broken Helix", said to be a pretty good Science Fiction action/adventure game (sort of a cross between a Doom shooter and a Resident Evil mystery): * Trouble at Area 51 (what, again?) * You're the hero, Jake * You're a Marine -- or -- * You've got some scientists to lead -- or -- * You can save an alien race -- or -- * You're half-alien yourself * Depending which of these tracks you choose, there will be between 13 and 16 levels, and 5 alternative endings.
Lamorte Burns & Co., Inc.: said to provide significant capital to videogame companies Lavamind: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} L'Avventura Games Leaping Lizard Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Legacy Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Liquid Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Looking Glass Technologies: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} LucasArts Developer/Publisher News, 9 May 1997: LucasArts Entertainment Company will use Microsoft's Internet Gaming Zone for its soon-to-be-released internet multiplayer titles. The first such title is the first-person old-west shooter "Outlaws", followed by "X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter", "Jedi Knight", and Rebellion." This will be done through a special multiplayer game launch area "Rebel HQ" directly linked to LucasArts' home page with tips and hints for gameplay. New 3/4 overhead action game for Saturn or PlayStation: "Herc's Adventures": * based on Greek mythology * Play as Jason, Hercules, or Atlanta * Each character has own unique weapon * collect power-ups and other goodies to win * Saturday-morning-style cartoon animation * Vast landscape of play area Lyriq International: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Masque Publishing: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Master of Orion Macintosh RPG Megatech Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Metrowerks: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Micro Central: Wholesale Distributor Microsoft Internet Gaming Zone: You know, Bill Gates and associates Watch over the shoulders of card players to to see how they do it, and chat with them to learn even more. Card games are free, and so are board games. But if you want to play action games such as "Hellbender" or "Monster Truck Madness", you've got to buy the home version first. Games available include: * Checkers * Chess * Close Combat * Reversi Minimum System Requirements: * 486 PC with Windows 95 * 8 Megabytes RAM * Explorer 3.0 browser * 14.4 Kbps modem * SVGA Video Card strongly recommended Microsoft: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Millennium Interactive: Developer British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Mindscape: On-Line Gaming Well, there's only one game -- Chessmaster 5000 -- but it is the best on-line chess program I know about. But why ask me? My 8-year-old just beat me twice in a row. I am a satisfied customer of Chessmaster 2100, and I feel that Mindscape just keeps making their product better and better. CHECK it out! Minimum System Requirements: * 486 PC with Windows 95 * 8 Megabytes RAM * 14.4 Kbps modem * Mouse recommended Mpath Online: On-Line Gaming MPG-Net: On-Line Gaming Mplayer: On-Line Gaming Multigen: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Naughty Dog: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Newtek: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Nichimen: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Nikita: Developer Russian company. Web Review {To Be Done} Nintendo 64: Manufacturer
On-Line Entertainment: On-Line Gaming Origin Systems: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Outland: On-Line Gaming
Pegasus Technologies, Ltd.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Platinum Ventures Partners, Inc.: said to provide significant capital to videogame companies Portable Graphics: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Powersoft: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Presto Studios, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Prima Publishing: Hints & Strategies in Books PRIMUS Home Page Pulse Entertainment: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Rainbow Studios: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Raven Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Realtime Associates, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Realimation: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Riedel Software Productions: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Riverhillsoft Developer (for Publisher Electronic Arts) New thinking-dude's action thriller "OverBlood" (translated from Japanese): * One cool puzzle after another * You start as "Raz" * Raz has amnesia * You're locked underground * Someone has been experimenting on you for a long time * You've got to escape ... and remember who you are * You can acquire two sidekicks * You're in a full 3-D environment * You can switch between 3 camera angles
Scitech Software: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Screaming Pink: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Shiny Entertainment: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Silicon Graphics: Manufacturer/Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Silicon Graphics Europe: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Simutronics: On-Line Gaming SN Systems: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} SoftImage: Developer Part of the Microsoft empire? Web Review {To Be Done} Sony: Manufacturer In March 1997 the giant Sony corporation released an astonishing system called "Yaroze" (pronounced yah-roh-zay) for only (!) $750. What you get for your 3/4 kilobuck is the ability to hook up to either a Macintosh or a PC and develop your own games, just as professionals do, but at a tiny fraction of their cost and time (and, of course, at what is likely to be a lower level of sophistication). You get for your modest investment: * a modified PlayStation that can play any PlayStation game from any developer (US or Japan or elsewhere) * Two controllers * PC interface cable * Programming tools CD-ROMs * Private Web Site access And right away you can download data from their web site onto your PC or Mac, start programming, save your programming efforts (assuming you know a little of the programming language C), and show the world exactly how much an amateur can do -- and every great game developer started as an amateur! Minimum System Requirements (Mac): * PowerPC 601 processor or higher * Motorola 68020 processor or higher * 16 Megabytes RAM * System 7.1 or later * 60 Megabytes free hard Disk space * Development environment "Code-Warrior" by Metrowerks Corp. * 28.8 Kbps modem or faster Minimum System Requirements (PC): * P486 DX2 or higher * 66 Megahertz CPU * Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0 or higher * 2X CD-ROM drive * 4 Megabytes RAM free * 10 Megabytes Hard Disk space free * SVGA monitor * Mouse * 28.8 Kbps modem or faster This offer comes direct from Sony, they are not (in America) selling the Yaroze system in any stores The way they do in Japan). Sony is planning on some of you becoming the great game-makers of tomorrow. Ready to find out? Let me know how you do... Spaceward Ho! Macintosh RPG Spartech: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Stardock Systems: Manufacturer Steve Jackson Games and GURPS StormFront Studios, Inc.: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Swap U.S.A.: Retailer 3DO: On-Line Gaming by a Platform manufacturer As of 14 April 1997, the only on-line game here is Meridian 59, but it is very well programmed and very playable. Recommended. Tens of thousands of games flock to this site, after having paid $40 each to buy the home retail version, plus a $10/month subscription fee. You get what you pay for, and at 3DO, that's quality. Minimum System Requirements: * 486 PC with Windows 95 * 8 Megabytes RAM * 2X CD-ROM drive * SGA Video Card * 256-color monitor * 14.4 Kbps modem
Telstar: Developer British company. Web Review {To Be Done} Tesae: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} TimeView: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Total Entertainment Network: On-Line Gaming ((hotlink to be done)) Totally Games: Developer Lawrence Holland, games designer for 13 years, has worked with LucasArts to develop "X-Wing", "TIE Fighter", and the soon-to-be-released "X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter", and announced in May 1997 that he incorporated as Totally Games. He told Reilly Brennan [Videogame Advisor, May 1997, p.12] "Our priorities are to create a stimulating game with excellent gameplay. Stunning graphics are vitally important, as they engage the player's imagination, mind and emotions." Trilobyte: Developer/On-Line Gaming
Ultima Info Page USA One Stop: Wholesale Distributor Utopia: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
Veritest: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} ViewPoint Datalabs: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} VR1: On-Line Gaming Vulcan Software: Developer British company. Web Review {To Be Done}
Watcom C/C++: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} We Do 3D: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Westwood Studios: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Wizardry Gold Macintosh RPG
Xband: On-Line Gaming
Zapitalism: On-Line Gaming Zombie Games: Developer Web Review {To Be Done} Zygote Media Group: Developer Web Review {To Be Done}
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