"USS Ticonderoga" from Mindscape is a naval combat/simulator using the latest actual technology found on the Ticonderoga class ships. There are features of combat, strategy and action in Tico. Taken all together they form a thoroughly fun, playable game with a few minor design flaws.
The game play in Tico consists of a set of screens that you can access to issue commands or gain information. You get to the screens by walking around the ship in a Myst-like interface until you find the screen you want and then click on it. There are shortcut keys for all of the monitors but there are a small number of screens that don't have this function. Why these screens were denied a short cut key I couldn't tell ya.
Tico is a game that is set in the world of electronic combat. This means that battle takes place on screens (sonar, radar, etc.) instead of seeing the ships and firing. There are little rendered animation sequences that play in response to certain actions. For example, when you fire a missile a sequence comes up in the corner of the screen showing a missile firing. If this gets tiresome you can turn it off but it does add a nice touch by showing you what is actually supposed to be happening on the deck while you're locked into all of the screens.
The designers have also created different rooms on the ship that you can walk around in like Myst. If you want to turn left or right, you put the cursor on the respective side of the screen and if you want to go forward you put the cursor in the middle of the screen. The rooms are represented by still pictures that have items in them that you can click on and have things happen. When you click the coffee on the bridge, you hear a satisfied "Ahhhhh" sound as you drink it. It's kind of strange to have these things around but Mindscape seems to know not to take itself too seriously.
But that's not to say that the game itself is silly. No, no, no. In spite of its flaws (more on these following), Tico is a fun game to play. Some simulations get so mired down in the actual simulation of the game that they forget how to be fun. Tico has managed to get a pretty good blend of simulation, combat and entertainment. One scenario doesn't take place on the screens at all. It's all decision making by receiving information from your first officer, the Admiral, and whoever else, and then issuing orders to them from the communication screen. You're then presented with a small rendered video of how the situation came out. It's fun. It's not the main portion of the game but it's kinda cool to have something like that thrown in the middle of all the combat situations.
Tico does have some faults, such as the jumpy mouse control and the screens that don't have shortcut keys. The main problem I had with it is that it takes a second to switch between screens. This may not sound like a big deal, but when you're in combat and need to switch screens very quickly, it gets a little frustrating to have to wait for one screen to switch to the next. You don't have to wait but a second or so but with the amount of switching in this game it gets annoying. Most of these faults are minor and there aren't really any pure design flaws in the game itself (except perhaps the shortcuts). The game itself is put together pretty well and if you can get around these minor problems you'll enjoy Ticonderoga for what it is.
And what Tico is at its heart is a good game. It is a simulation of battle but it doesn't get too intensive on the simulation side of things. It's not the greatest game ever, but for people who don't want to get too mired down in the minutiae of battle, but just want to "move the ship here" and "shoot that there," this game will be a fun addition to the library.
