The Arsenal Files 6/The Arsenal Files 6 (Arsenal Computer).ISO/epub/cgw1.zip/ART1.DAT

Text File | 1996-01-11 | 15KB | 262 lines

┌───────────────────────────┐
│ F E A T U R E D   G A M E │
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║ ORIGIN SYSTEM'S "CRUSADER: NO REMORSE" ║
╚════════════════════════════════════════╝

        Note: screen shots of this game are available in this magazine; file-
name is CRUSADER.EXE.  To view, simply type CRUSADER at the DOS prompt.  You
will need a VESA-compatible Super VGA monitor.  All the shots are taken from
the actual, final PC-CD version of Crusader, NOT the demo.

CRUSADER: NO REMORSE - REVIEW
─────────────────────────────
        In Crusader: No Remorse, the future is, as in all games of this type,
bleak.  The bad guys are terrorizing the good guys.  In a rare twist to this
mundane plot, you are a former bad guy who has realized his sins, and has turned
to the good side.  Of course, they don't trust you very much, so you must prove
yourself through missions against your former allies.

        These missions are the heart of Crusader, a dynamite new action adven-
ture game from Origin, the famed creators of Wing Commander, Ultima, and count-
less other classics.  You control your character in a perspective that resem-
bles the action/strategy game Syndicate, but on a much smaller scale.  The char-
acters are vivid and larger than those in the more recent Ultimas, and as such
are very detailed.  Speaking of detail, the graphics in the game are truly amaz-
ing.  From your oblique overhead perspective, you can see every little thing
about the environment surrounding you.  The walls and floors are textured beau-
tifully, the objects are all over the place and are painstakingly detailed, and
the explosions are simply beautiful.  There must be literally hundreds, if not
thousands, of frames of animation.  Depending on how they got hit, enemies die
in many different ways, all carefully and lovingly graphically rendered.

        The other half of Crusader's glitz, the audio, is just as well done.
Torched enemies scream dreadfully; destroyed robots short out with satisfying
crackles; explosions (by the way, I've yet to see two identical explosions) make
predictably jolting noises; and the music is great.  Some of the tracks are a
bit inappropriate, but by and large the music is some of the best I've heard in
any game.

        Everything is dynamic in the game.  Objects can be moved, shot, etc.
Switches can be flipped (as a matter of fact, there are some of those irritating
lever puzzles here, where you have to flip a series of levers to disable some
obstacle), objects can be jumped, everything can be blown up.  However, many
items are needed to complete a task, so it isn't wise to go around shooting ev-
erything.  "If it moves, kill it.  If it doesn't move, kill it anyway." is not
an appropriate axiom in this game, however action-oriented it may be.

        Speaking of which, Crusader is not a pure action/arcade game.  There are
puzzles to be solved (not the least of which are those lever ones), alternate
paths to take, money to be used, and a lot of other things not commonly found in
your average arcade game.  This is a hybrid game, one of the best ever made.
Your brain needs to be working in order to get past the devilish security de-
vices scattered throughout the various complexes you explore during the game's
15 missions.  These complexes include refineries, office buildings (these are
really cool), security outposts, labs, and even a space station.

        An excellent example of the interactivity of the game are the scanners.
These are basically objects that will detect you and send hordes of enemies aft-
er you.  But if you can destroy them, you will avoid all that combat.  If you
set them off but are able to deactivate them by finding a control panel, you
will avoid the combat.  Otherwise, you're in for a hot firefight.

        Control is always important in a real-time action-packed game.  Control
is accomplished either with mouse and keyboard or keyboard only.  Your character
has a full range of fascinating moves - running, jumping, rolling, sidestepping,
and any combination of them.  Inventing your own complex moves is an integral,
though not absolutely necessary, part of successfully maneuvering around the
beautiful scenery.  Joystick support is included with the new v1.21 update, a-
vailable on the Origin BBS.

        All the action in the 15 missions is tied together by a wide range of
video clips.  For instance, back at the rebel base you can talk to your com-
rades, receive video mail, watch the news, and get a new mission, all by click-
ing on a character or screen and watching the video clip that ensues.  The act-
ing is generally quite good, and the video is not overdone.  Everything ties
together nicely; the video doesn't intrude on the full experience of the game;
rather, it adds to it.  The storyline that is carried on by the hour and a half
of video is great; filled with treachery, lots of plot twists, and enough sus-
pense to keep you going through the entire game.  Shades of Wing Commander...

        The AI is one of the few weak points of the game.  Enemies never take
cover or use the terrain wisely, and they will often pace uselessly or get stuck
behind a door, or accidentally shoot one another.  In some ways, it's reminis-
cent of DOOM: the enemies wander around in the open, just waiting to get shot.
However, unlike those idiot troopers in DOOM, the enemies in Crusader will shoot
back constantly, rather than firing once, wandering for a few seconds, and fir-
ing again.  But even this AI doesn't really mar the sheer _fun_ the Crusader
offers.

        The only other downside to Crusader is (no surprise, this being an Ori-
gin game) its hardware requirements.  Its hard drive preferences are large, even
though it is a CD-ROM only game - 55 megs for a full install, 30 megs for a par-
tial; 16 megs of RAM isn't as much as we all thought after all; and video RAM
is very important as well.  With a full install, the game will run fine on a
90-Mhz Pentium.  With a partial install, loading the game takes forever, but on
the same system the game itself is fairly smooth.  But anything less, and...

        The bottom line: Crusader is a hot game, and for anyone who enjoyed Syn-
dicate, or anyone who is a fan of action, puzzle, or adventure games, this is a
great buy.  Make sure you've got the hardware, though.  If you don't, Crusader
is yet another excuse to upgrade.

                ╔═══════════════╡ Summary ╞═══════════════╗
                ║ C R U S A D E R :   N O   R E M O R S E ║
                ║ ORIGIN SYSTEMS                          ║
                ║ Overall review: EXCELLENT               ║
                ║ Suggested retail price: $50             ║
                ║ Platforms: MS-DOS CD-ROM                ║
                ╚═════════════════════════════════════════╝


CRUSADER: NO REMORSE - PRESS RELEASE
────────────────────────────────────
Contact: David Swofford or Eileen McKeon Butt
ORIGIN Media Relations

        Enter the Future Armed and Dangerous in ORIGIN's

                    Crusader: No Remorse

  (AUSTIN, TX)_It's 200 years in the future, and the world
labors under the oppressive rule of the World Economic
Consortium, a conglomeration of all the world's governments
dedicated to imposing its own brand of order without any
regard for the will of the people. Free thought and action
are ruthlessly put down by an elite military corps, the
Silencers, of which you are one. But your role as a defender
of the Consortium has begun to torment you; the screams of
your victims ring out in your every thought. Finally, in an
effort to exorcise your dark deeds from your conscience and
right the wrongs you once fought for, you become a fighter
for the Resistance.

   Thus begins Crusader: No Remorse, a totally non-stop,
mission-based action game, where you must slowly win the
loyalty of your rebel comrades by succeeding at a series of
increasingly difficult combat and sabotage missions against
the Consortium. Along the way you must also uncover an enemy
in your midst before the Resistance is fatally compromised.

   Scheduled for fall release on PCCD, Crusader: No Remorse
features unparalleled SVGA graphics, 3D rendered foes, 1½
hours of live-action video, advanced character control and
fighting tactics (e.g., run, crouch, walk, jump and roll), a
vast array of weaponry, full speech, and 16-bit digital
sound. The live-action video sequences act as a link between
you in the field and your rebel comrades back at the base,
and you'll receive mission updates and feedback along the
way. There are over a dozen multilevel missions with
multiple objectives, which offer a variety of ways to solve
any particular situation or puzzle. And there's nothing to
slow you down as you race from one pulse-pounding mission to
the next. Just be sure to watch your back - the enemies are
all around you!

   Current System Requirements* for Crusader: No Remorse are:
   IBM-PC, 486/50+, Pentium or 100% compatible
   8 MB RAM
   20 MB hard disk space
   MS-DOS 5.0 or higher
   Double speed or faster CD-ROM drive
   GRAPHICS: SVGA (640x480, 256 color)
   INTERFACES SUPPORTED: keyboard, mouse
   MUSIC: Sound Blaster, General MIDI+MPU-401 or 100% compatible
   SPEECH/SOUND EFFECTS: Sound Blaster
   RECOMMENDED: 486/66+
   EXPECTED RETAIL PRICE: $50-60
   *System Requirements subject to change at ship

                             ###

ORIGIN, We create worlds and Ultima are registered
trademarks of ORIGIN Systems, Inc.
Crusader: No Remorse is a trademark of ORIGIN Systems, Inc.
Electronic Arts is a registered trademark of Electronic Arts.
All other products and trademarks are property of their
respective owners.

ORIGIN Systems develops and publishes state-of-the-art
entertainment software. To date, the company has released
more than 45 titles, including the award-winning Ultima and
Commander series of games. ORIGIN is based in Austin, Texas,
and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:
ERTS).


CRUSADER: NO REMORSE - HINTS, TIPS, & CHEATS
────────────────────────────────────────────
        Crusader being such a big game, we will not even try to write a walk-
through for any of the missions.  Instead, this is just going to be a quick
overview of some basic tactics.
        First of all, your first priority when in a mission is to remain un-
detected.  This doesn't mean that you have to sneak past all the guards with-
out shooting; rather, it means that you'll need to destroy _all_ security cam-
eras, and kill anyone who is close to an alarm panel.  If an alarm does sound,
find a panel or computer where you can shut it off.  If you take too long to
deactivate the alarm, you may find yourself in some pretty vicious firefights.
        Prioritize your targets.  If you're getting rockets shoved down your
throat by a Vetron and also getting shot at by an executive with a pistol, for
God's sake take out the Vetron first!  The exec may look like an easy target,
but a rocket-armed Vetron can kill you in just one or two shots.
        Some equipment tips - use weapons appropriate for your situation.  Don't
waste grenade launched ammo on an unarmed worker; instead, just wax him with the
pistol.  Similarly, don't try to kill an Enforcer with a pistol.  Haul out that
riot gun!  Personally, throughout the entire game my favorite weapon remained
the trusty RP-32 assault rifle.  It's got a ton of ammo (60 shots per clip), it
does a fair amount of damage, and it fires pretty fast (which is why I favor it
over the shotgun).  For heavy duty work, the AR-7 can't be beat.  Its spread of
three grenades lets you take out multiple targets, and those grenades pack a
punch that is enough to take out a Vetron in one or two shots, or a door in two
or three.
        If you're faced with a Thresher cannon, a spider bomb or two will do
the trick nicely if you're out of its line of sight.  Detpacs will work too, but
you'll have to run!  Detpacs or limpet mines are great to put on transporters
where you suspect enemies will be teleporting in.  Spider bombs are good for
killing off enemies you don't want to confront directly.
        Be nosy.  Open every footlocker you find.  Check every computer screen
you see.  Flip every switch and lever you can reach (with a few exceptions).
Look carefully for small items, mainly keycards, which sometimes are hidden
devilishly under other items.  Also look carefully for those irritating elec-
tric eyes, which are just a few square pixels large, but will set off alarms,
turn on laser fields, and do lots of other bad things you don't want to happen.
If you find one, destroy it immediately!
        When all else fails, Crusader has several built-in cheats.  Anytime dur-
ing play, type JASSICA16.  A window will appear and a voice will say "Crusader:
No Remorse."  Get rid of the window, then press F10 for a stockpile of hot gad-
gets.  CTRL-F10 will make you invulnerable.
        Or, from the DOS prompt, you can run Crusader with the following switch-
es: -warp X, where X is the mission you want to play; -skill X, where X is the
skill level you want, or -egg 250, which takes to you a room filled with all
kinds of goodies.  Note that -egg 250 must be used with -warp X, which in turn
must be used with -skill X.
        That should get you through the game, at least on the easiest level.
If you still need help, Origin has published a hint book for $19.95, and they
also have a hint line at 1-800-288-4468, which costs 95 cents for the first
minute and 75 cents for each minute thereafter.
        Good hunting!


CRUSADER: NO REMORSE - UPDATES
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        A patch has been issued for owners of Crusader: No Remorse v1.01.  It
is available as CRU121P.EXE on the Origin BBS (512-346-2227), or on Origin's
anonymous FTP site (ftp://ftp.ea.com).  The patch fixes or adds the following
features:

        Joystick and Gravis Gamepad support has been added.
        Three levels of frame skipping have been added.
        The game will supposedly perform better on machines with "only" 8 megs
           of RAM.
        Some map bugs have been fixed.
        Teleporter and elevator bugs have been fixed.

*IMPORTANT**IMPORTANT**IMPORTANT**IMPORTANT**IMPORTANT**IMPORTANT**IMPORTANT*

        Before installing this patch, realize that it will NOT work with your
saved games, and the game may hang if you try to load them.

-=≡<CGW1>≡=-