Critical Mass

Here's another infotainment CD-ROM that proves that it's possible to produce a multimedia title that's intriguing as well as informative. Critical Mass is centred around the first atomic bomb test at the Trinity site near Los Alamos. Although this is a technical subject, there's a strong focus on people, with biographies of four of the main players, including polymath Richard Feynmann, and more information on others involved. Probably the most exciting part is the exploration of the site itself. From a number of vantage points you can look around through 360 degrees at a (drawn) view of the location. A number of buildings have an information marker - clicking on one of these opens into a short documentary section linked to that particular aspect of the site.

It would have been good if all the named buildings could have at least had a fact sheet when clicked on, but the overall feel, complete with eerie music, is very effective. Supporting these main threads are snippets of information on topics as diverse as popular culture and (now de-)classified letters between significant protagonists. I find it difficult to get excited about war documentaries, but this location and event was so significant in so many fields that it makes for great watching. Attention to detail is good - for example music plays during installation - and though the package recommends 256 colours, I haven't had any trouble running it at a higher setting.

Overall - One of the key developments of the twentieth century chronicled in a fascinating Windows CD-ROM. Priced around ú49.95 in the UK. Produced by Corbis, web site: http://www.corbis.com