MacFormat España 19/macformat_19.iso/Shareware/Info/Inside Games Update/Inside Games Update.rsrc/TEXT_129.txt

Text File | 1996-06-30 | 33KB | 613 lines

writing skills. The young folk learn how to keep a diary and phone
directory, expand their vocabulary through creative writing projects and
build communciation skills by writing and sending e-mail messages.



Fox Interactive: HOW DID THEY GET THE WHITE HOUSE TO BLOW UP?
Not only is Fox Interactive offering a multimedia game, Independence Day,
about the movie of the same name, but the movie making process will be
covered in Inside ID4: The Making of Independence Day CD-ROM for Windows
and Macintosh CD-ROM, that shows the how-tos of making this movie. This
comprehensive interactive look, scheduled to be released in July, allows
folks to see how a big budget motion picture is made with over 500
exclusive photos, 150 pieces of artwork and over 650 electronic storyboard
illustrations, film clips, video interviews with key characters and a
complete behind-the-scenes look.




FutureWave: VECTOR-BASED WEB MOTION
With 2D animations once again becoming the rage of WWW page designers, a
new program designed to assist in this creative effort is scheduled for
release in July. Called CelAnimator, this new offering is a vector-based
app that will, allegedly, create animations with much smaller file sizes
than any of the bitmap methods. You'll also be able to zoom with no quality
loss. The program will be bundled with the FutureSplash player which will
embed the finished animations into your WWW pages and then allow you to
view the results. More than 20 Mac and Windows format animation formats can
be handled by FutureWave products and these two new programs will enable
interactive buttons without need of image maps. That could be really cool!
A beta version is available for download at http://www.futurewave.com.



Gamelan: JAVA SOURCE
The craze for anything Java-related continues unimpeded. To help everyone
decipher the multitude of products now available, and those coming down the
Web, EarthWeb as introduced Gamelan Direct(TM). This is a new, online store
that features all manner of Java apps, applets, tools and other related
products. This site is linked to EarthWeb's Gamelan Sites, viewable at
http://www.gamelan.com and will also offer a variety of secure, online
transaction methods so you can purchase those Java tools you so desperately
seem to require. Companies such as Advanced Web Training, Cadis Corp.,
DimensionX, KL Group, Macmillan, MindQ Publishing and Spider Technologies
have already committed product to this online Java supply center.



Graphix Zone: SOMETHING TO CROW ABOUT
Huge success met the release of the film The Crow and great attention is
being developed for the sequel, The Crow: City of Angels. Leveraging
consumer interest in these titles is Graphix Zone who are now developing a
new CD-ROM that's based on the feature films plus an enhanced single CD
based on the James O'Barr comic book series. The title of the new CD-ROM
offering will be The Crow Complete Interactive Collection and the disc will
release simultaneously with the upcoming movie. Included will be
behind-the-scenes footage, Crow filmclips, cast and crew member interviews,
previously unreleased film footage, trailers and even unpublished drawings
from O'Barris' sketchbook. The enhanced music CD single is playable on
either a computer or a CD player and is the result of a collaboration
between Graphix Zone and Miramax/Hollywood Records. The alternative band,
Hole, is the featured musical content and there's a demo of the upcoming
Acclaim Entertainment interactive game on this disc, as well.



GOP: AN ELEPHANT ON THE WEB
The technology of the World Wide Web (WWW) will be used at the Republican
National Convention. The Republican National Committee will set up a WWW
page for live audio and video feeds from the San Diego Convention Center
during the August 12-15 event. Coverage will include live feeds that will
bring pictures, speeches and forums wherein the convention may be analyzed
and discussed. Technology from AT&T is the backbone of this operation,
which is expected to go on-line in July.




Ground Zero: IMITATION, THE SINCEREST FORM OF FLATTERY
Or so they say. This being the case, Terror T.R.A.X., Ground Zero
Productions' CD-ROM game, will now evolve to prime-time TV from Viacom
Entertainment Group, a unit of Viacom, Inc.([e-mail].) Terror
T.R.A.X. gets the expertise from such biggies as producer and director,
Renny Harlin, of Die Hard II and Nightmare On Elm Street fame and Geena
Davis as executive producer for the pilot episode. The game version has
players dictating the characters' actions whereas the TV version feature
T.R.A.X. officers responding to emergency calls that involve vampires,
ghouls and undead characters.



Henson Pictures: BEARLY HENSON'S MOVIE
This is the story about a bear who finds an unpublished manuscript and his
claims that he is the author as he travels to New York. Once there, money
hungry marketing type folk see the bear as a media-perfect nature guy who
just might turn out to be the next Hemingway. The Bear Went Over The
Mountain, by William Kotzwinkle, will be produced for Jim Henson Pictures
as a collaborative effort between Jim Henson Productions and Sandollar
Productions.



IBM: MORE COFFEE ATTRIBUTES
Initiatives drive language specs. One of the newest Java language
initiatives is called Java Beans which, eventually, will enable developers
to increase the usability of reusable software components for the authoring
of Java applets and apps. This means that Java apps will operate together,
no matter how diverse their environments, through OpenDoc. Apps can also be
connect to enterprise sites on the Internet. To facilitate this initiative,
IBM has now demonstrated their Arabica product which combines OpenDoc and
Java. More info is available at http://www.software.ibm.com.



Infotainment World: CRYSTAL BALL'S REVELATIONS
38 entertainment analysts and key executives were surveyed by Infotainment
World regarding the future of this $12 billion global industry and its
evolution through the end of the decade. Opinions were taken from such
folks as Howard Lincoln, Chairman of Nintendo of America; Thomas Kalinske,
President and CEO of Sega of America; Jim Whims, Executive VP of Sony
Computer Entertainment of America; Jan Gullet of Broderbund; and Charlotte
Guyman of Microsoft.

Here goeth the Revelations of the Survey: After a shaky year in '95,
recovery will take place in second half of '96-97, due in part to
transitioning development from one platform to another, new formats, and
technology to revitalize the handheld machines. There will be more
mass-market penetration by the decade's end in the PC world as opposed to
the dedicated console market. Also, some determinations regarding the
16-bit machines indicate these carts may not be finished, but their future
is probably only with first-party developers. There's also a dramatic
change underway for on-line gaming and digital video disk (DVD) impact will
start to be felt this year.


Innovative Desktop: SERVING JAVA
A new stand-alone Web server written entirely in Java is enroute to eager
consumers as Innovative Desktop inc. preps Express0 for delivery. This new
server will run on Macintosh, Unix, OS/2 and Windows 95/NT platforms. To
create this new app, the company extended the Java class library and full
HTTP 1.0 support and image-map handling are totally supported. The server
will also create CERN- and NCSA-compliant logs with security to be handled
via a graphic interface. Remote admin, caching, interoperation of Express0
servers through a server-to-server protocol and URL redirect are all
features of this new offering. More info is available at
http://www.capitalcity.com:4321.



Interplay: INTO N64 TERRITORY
Nintendo has been extremely proprietary about who may become a developer of
titles for their Nintendo 64 (N64)next-generation, 64-bit video game
machine. In fact, one might state that Nintendo has established a
super-class of developer, folk who can meet the costly R&D monetary fees to
produce games for the new machine. Interplay Productions has now been
elected to this elite club and have been granted a license to develop and
publish software for the N64. In the past, Interplay has produced such
titles as Lost Vikings(R), Rock N' Roll Racing(R) and Clay Fighter(R) for
Nintendo platforms.


Interplay: ATMOSPHERE CHANGES DUE TO BRAINSTORM
Positive news from Interplay reveals they have taken a serious step in the
edutainment market with the scheduled release of five titles this fall.
Packaged under the BrainStorm(TM) line are three new releases;
ChessMates(TM), Learn To Draw(TM) and Flipper(TM), as well as two upgrades,
Mario Teaches Typing 2O and Mario's FUNdamentals(TM). The concept of the
BrainStorm line is to provide products that build life skills such as
self-esteem, logic, problem-solving capability, creativity and and
curiosity. BrainStorm will be the only sponsor of the United States Chess
Federation's annual Charity CHESSathon to be held June 1, 1996 in New York
City in which nearly 2,000 children will participate.
Interplay:



Mac Music: MUSIC OF THE WORLD
Due to its great success last year, the Macintosh New York Music Festival
is expanding its online presence by creating The Global Internet Gathering
(The GIG), scheduled for July 14-20. The NY Music Festival will go
international and join with other music festivals and clubs around the
world. What debuted last year as a limited, local, online presence has been
transformed into a global experience at http://www.thegig.com. In addition
to a number of live music clubs in New York, other clubs around the world,
in such cities as London, Tokyo, Dublin, Paris, Amsterdam, San Francisco,
Chicago, Koln, and Singapore, will also take part.


MacPlay: TAKING ON TOP PRODUCTS
One of the leading titles within the past couple of years was Alone in the
Dark from I*Motion, the software publisher in the U.S. and Canada for
Infogrames Entertainment of France. Despite some discussion to the
contrary, Macintosh games continue to sell impressively and the number of
Mac gamers continues to rise. With such a spirited environment, the natural
thing for MacPlay to accomplish was to reach an agreement with I*Motion to
become an exclusive publisher and handle the distribution of Mac-based
products for that company. MacPlay will release several titles from
I*Motion, including Alone In The Dark 1, 2, and the never-before-released
Alone In The Dark 3, all bundled together in a single offering entitled
Alone In The Dark: The Trilogy. This combo set will be available this
month. MacPlay will also distribute Knight's Chase and Prisoner Of Ice.



Macromedia: GRAPHIC WONDERS FOR WINDOWS DESIGNERS
As Windows increases its share of users who are primarily in the graphics
arts industry, Macromedia is now making available their 32-bit, Macromedia
xRes version 2 for all Windows-based machines. xRes is a tool that edits,
paints and composites digital images. You'll be able to manipulate hi-res
images in near, real-time without requiring an overdose of RAM for your PC.
This means fewer delays as you complete your projects. Included is a full
set of color crx and art filters, such as pressure sensitive artistic
brushes, textures, a gradient designer, and image compositing objects.
There's also support for PNG, GIF89a and progressive JPEG to assist with
your WWW creative needs.



MetaTools: MAKING GAMES OF CREATIVITY
A highly popular company, especially to those involved in the graphics arts
and desktop publishing, is MetaTools. Their Kai's Power Tools, Bryce and
other products lead the way in enhancing graphics, whether for print or
online consumption. Now MetaTools has designed interactive games for
America Online's Gaming Channel. The games are MetaSquares, MetaGo and
MetaHex. These offerings enhacne creativity and really work on improving a
gamers strategic skills, no matter one's age. These games will appear next
month for Windows machines, with Macintosh products available later this
year when America Online releases the Mac client. Best of all, these games
are free to subscribers of this commserv and will be available for download
or may be accessed via CD-ROMs released by AOL during the year.

MetaSquares was created by Scott Kim who also developed Heaven and Earth.
You must place the game pieces on a chessboard to create square formations.
Points are awarded for the size of the squares created and the player with
the most points wins. This square creation requires a great deal of
strategy, especially as the board fills with objects. MetaHex was invented
by Piet Hein and is played on a rhombus-shaped honeycomb board. The first
player to form an unbroken chain of Hexes that connect one side of the
board to the other side is the winner. The second player is attempting to
form an unbroken chain that connect the other two sides at the same time.
MetaGo is a board game that originated in China some 3,000 years ago. You
must surround and capture your opponent's stones and control as much board
territory as possible. More info on these games may be found at
http://www.metatools.com/go/go.html where you can also find some nifty
strat tips.



MetaTools: GOO IS FUN
As were are already speaking of MetaTools, why not present the info on
their new Kai's Power GOO? This is the first, true "consumer" product from
the company and lets you manipulate images in real-time. You can animate,
fuse one to another, grow, stretch, and apply tons more special effects to
your pictures in unique ways. This product is for Macintosh and Windows
machines and will be available next month. You can work with the images
that'll come on the CD-ROM disc, or work on images you input via your
scanner, digital camera, whatever. You can smudge, nudge, smear, move,
grow, shrink, smooth and mirror the image and change it in real-time. And
for top-notch animations, why not "film" the progressive transformations of
your image and make movie-like videos? The included Fusion Palette lets you
GOO together different images. You can create a truly slick, composite
picture quite easily and these can then be printed or saved for other uses.



Microsoft: EXPLORATION ENHANCED
With the war of the browsers settling between Microsoft Corporation and
Netscape Communications, both companies are releasing upgraded versions of
their WWW-access software. Microsoft(R) has now released beta of version
3.0 of their Internet Explorer. This is the first browser that supports
ActiveX(TM) technologies. And why should you care about ActiveX? If you
enjoy richly formatted files, such as Excel spreadsheets, you can now view
them directly online. Plus, the thousands of ActiveX controls, formerly
known as OLE controls, increase your ability to perform over the WWW and
use such goodies as ActiveMovie(TM) files. Additionally, the new browser
also supports HTML 3.2 (which means you can now view frames that float and
are borderless, tables and style sheets), extensions Java, JavaScript, and
Netscape(TM) plug-ins. Explorer also offers support for such scripting
languages as REXX, CGI and Perl. You may obtain Explorer, at no charge from
http://microsoft.com/ie/. The next beta version, expected sometime in July,
will contain the Java Virtual Machine with Microsoft Just-In-Time Java
compiler!



Microsoft: WILLIAMS NAMED TO 24-HOUR NEWS
The 24-hour news, talk, and information cable and interactive service from
NBC and Microsoft will debut on July 15 with Brian Williams as anchor and
managing editor. Williams will conduct news and interviews in an hour
program slotted for Monday-Friday at 9 p.m. Williams will begin at MSNBC at
launch, and continue to serve as the primary replacement anchor for Tom
Brokaw on NBC Nightly News as well as anchor the Saturday edition of NBC's
Nightly News.



Microsoft: ENGAGED IN EDUCATION ENHANCEMENT
There is no better way to facilitate sales of your products than to
"incline" students to consider your brand name one of high purpose by
providing those in college with free software with which to conduct
education. Ahhh, yes, the high-sounding element of contributing to
educational purposes certainly does any company well. There can be no doubt
that the Microsoft action of offering 10,000 copies of their Internet Jump
Start CD for Education contains elements of both educational and company
interest at heart. This CD packs in the Windows NT(R) Server network OS and
the brand new Microsoft(R) Internet Information Server. This CD will be
heading for colleges and universities around the world. Microsoft is also
running a contest wherein those students develop and demonstrate innovative
uses of the software. The top 50 entries will receive a one-year
subscription to Microsoft TechNet, which is worth $699. Plus, they'll
obtain a link to the Microsoft higher education WWW site. To obtain your
free copy, simply call 800-867-6824.



MTV: SEAL BALANCES ACT
Seal is the solo artist for an upcoming MTV Unplugged program. The concert
was taped in April of '96 but will be shown on June 4 from 10:00PM-11:00PM
(ET/PT) and repeated on Sunday, June 9 from 9:00PM - 10:00PM (ET/PT). The
show will also include such songs as Prayer for the Dying, Crazy, Kiss From
A Rose and more.



MTV: AWARD FOR BEST KISSER
High profile singers such as the Fugees, Whitney Houston, Garbage and
Adam Sandler, are set to perform at the 1996 MTV Movie Awards which will air
Thursday, June 13 at 9:00 p.m. (ET/PT). The MTV Movie Awards is an
alternative to the traditional movie award shows--unconventional categories
are awarded, all  geared to the movie-going audience, such as most
desirable male, best villain, best kiss, and more. Other famous folk to
present awards will be Laurence Fishburne, Jamie Lee Curtis, Patricia
Arquette, David Duchovny, Lela Rochon, Natalie Portman, Samantha Mathis and
Vanessa Williams.



NBA FINALS ARE SHOCKED!
Some of the highest cable and television ratings are bouncing around the
NBA Championship series. For those who tend to spend a great deal of time
on the World Wide Web, the likes of ESPN Enterprises, the NBA, NBC TV
network and Starwave Corporation are going to bring the best-of-seven
series to your local Internet access machine! That's correct--head for
http://www.finals.com or to http://espnet.sportszone.com and you'll find
super, comprehensive coverage of the championship games. You'll find
in-game cybercasts, live chats, post-game audio interviews plus a whole
slew of info on the current, and past, NBA finals. On May 30th at 6:00 pm,
David Stern (the NBA Commissioner) is going to initiate the live chats by
appearing online. Plus, there'll be email capabilities to the likes of the
NBC on-screen personalities for the games. Folk like Bob Costs, Marv
Albert, Bill Walton and Julius Erving, with questions not on printed at
this site, but answered, as well. You'll also be able to glom onto the
stats coverage by Elliot Kalb, the network's master statistician. Plus, key
play diagrams and scouting reports round out this online offering. And,
yes, official NBA and NBC merchandise will be "made available" for purchase
(as though that wasn't the plan all along, folks!) If you're into the NBA,
then you should definitely visit finals.com.



NBC: POTATO OLYMPICS
In case you were concerned that there won't be enough TV coverage of the
Atlanta Olympics--worry no more. NBC will provide 171.5 hours of
coverage--up 10.5 hours from the 1992 Barcelona Games! Yep, most everything
will be covered: aquatics, gymnastics and all of the U.S. basketball games.
Black belts aren't going to appreciate learning that the only sport NOT
covered will be Judo.



Neilsen: TOP RATINGS GO TO NBC
NBC was the victor in the prime-time ratings for the 95-96 season with its
Thursday night lineup. For the 36-week season, September 18, 1995, to May
22, NBC won with an 11.7 average rating and a 19 percent share of the
audience, Nielsen Media Research reported Thursday.



Nielsen: TOP TEN TV LISTINGS
From Nielsen Media Research for May 20-26:
 1. Home Improvement, ABC, 14.1 million homes
 2. Seinfeld, NBC, 13.7 million homes
 3. (TIE) Coach, ABC, 12.8 million homes
 3. (TIE) NYPD Blue, ABC, 12.8 million homes
 5. Roseanne, ABC, 12.7 million homes
 6. Fresh Prince of Bel Air, NBC, 12.6 million homes
 7. ER, NBC, 12.5 million homes
 8. Caroline in the City, NBC, 12.1 million homes
 9. Frazier NBC, 11.7 million homes
10. Friends, NBC, 11.6 million homes




O'Reilly: WEBS WITHIN WEBS
The internet has gone through a major assessment in which it was concluded
(by O'Reilly and Associates WebSite (TM) users) that the Internet isn't a
mass-market fantasyland. Rather, business users are found to be creating
web sites that must meet specific needs via the Intranet.
Business-to-business, multi-homing and database-driven web sites are the
newbies in applications.
O'Reilly's WebSite is an award-winning 32-bit web server which enables
customers to implement such applications using Windows NT or 95.

Statistics indicate that more businesses are using Intranets (internal,
private web sites) than public Internet sites and that 37% of large and 23%
of medium businesses have at least one internal web site. For example,
instead of limiting communication to e-mail with documents being mailed to
multiple recipients, documents are posted to an Intranet web site and just
the universal resource locator (URL) is circulated to key individuals
thereby avoiding overloading the networks.



PBS: YOU MAY HAVE VALUABLE JUNK
Did you ever wonder...if you had a priceless something-or-other that was
gathering dust in your attic? This PBS series, an American version of one
of the BBC's most highly rated television programs, Antiques Roadshow, will
consist of 13 one-hour broadcasts, each from a different city on the tour,
and will showcase the best finds in those cities and the unique stories
behind them.  Described as part history, part mystery and part drama, this
series is made possible by the corporate sponsorship of the Chubb Group of
Insurance Companies.



Price Waterhouse: BREATH OF LIFE FOR SOFTWARE
The software industry is experiencing a re-surge as a result of the new
synergy on the Internet. This was the conclusion of a survey conducted by
Price Waterhouse LLP in association with the Massachusetts Software
Council, the Software Publishers Association, and the Information
Technology Association of America. Tons of opportunities for software
companies exist in the creation of new products and inventing innovative
ways of doing business on the Internet




PSYGNOSIS, HEAVY ON THE TITLES
Game titles are planned, and will arrive in great quantities--numbers that
will truly amaze. For example, Psygnosis will release 50 titles in the
96-97 year and plans are for 70 titles in 97-98! For example, Myst is
coming to Sony's PlayStation. Originally developed by Cyan Inc., Myst is
now published under license by Psygnosis. The game opens as the player
discovers and thumbs through a book, Myst. As folk read through the book an
island world is revealed. Just as the gamer reaches the last page of the
book, the world as the player knows it, disappears. Now the object is to
find your way home solving puzzles and riddles that will lead to the
completion of this journey. Using a notebook the gamer inspects and gathers
information throughout the island. And remember, this is Myst, so players
don't die.



Sanctuary Woods: SEEKING SANCTUARY IN THE WOODS
As of June 3rd, Sanctuary Woods Multimedia Corporation will trade stock on
the Nasdaq Small Cap Market rather than the Nasdaq National Market System,
sometimes called the Big Cap market. This is a result of the company's
financial requirements falling below a certain number required for Big Cap
listings. Sanctuary Woods has gone through a reorganization that includes a
new CEO, elimination of its entertainment division, sale of a development
studio to Disney, and reduction of staff. Earlier this month, the company
announced an agreement with creditors to extend their debt obligation and a
refocus on the development, marketing and distribution of educational
software created in-house.



Sega: PLENTY O' PITCH
Advertising agencies are all in the hunt for the best-of-the-crop as far as
obtaining exclusive deals with high-tech companies to handle their
promotional needs</B>. One of the latest winners in this all-out pitch
battle is <B>Ingalls Moranville Advertising</B> who have just been selected
by <B>Sega of America</B> to handle their broadcast advertising. A total of
six ad agencies presented their best case scenarios to Sega last week with
IM winning due to a "fresh approach and thinking" pitch.



Sega: SATURN HAS MULTIMILLIONS IN SALES
As the video game console market starts to heat up, once again, Sega has
announced their 32-bit machine, the Saturn, has now reached over 3 million
unit sales, as of May 28th. According to the company, oversea sales of the
Saturn reached 900,000 units, with Japanese sales reaching 2.7 million
units as of May 15th. Total U.S. sales are 1.3 million units, and the
European total is 1 million units. Watch for a new machine that'll debut
July 5th that'll combine flight action and multicontrol features!



Sega Gaming: WILL CHURCHES PLAY THIS AUTOBHAN OF BINGOS?
A new electronic Bingo game called Super Bingo, which is a fast action,
Class II Speed Bingo, is of interest to Sega Gaming Technology. Why the
high speed, you may well ask? This particular game is so fast that 300
cards can be played simultaneously in 60 second intervals and can
accommodate from four to 50 custom designed stations. Reports are that this
form of Bingo will attract traditional bingo players and also the folk that
spend the big bucks. Up to 300 cards can be played simultaneously and the
game can be networked throughout gaming halls. A long wayfrom covering up
your bingo card numbers with beans, remember?



SIERRA TITLE BARRAGE
Our E3 visit with Sierra proved most fruitful as we learned of a number of
new titles heading your way over the next few months. Sierra continues to
prove they are one of the most competent and capable entertainment and
edutainment publishers in the business and we sincerely hope the company's
recent acquisition by CUC, Inc., does not impair the company's historic
successes in this market. Let's dig into the new goodies . . .

One of the most successful titles in the horror genre for Sierra was
Phantasmagoria. The second installment, Phantasmagoria 2: A Puzzle of
Flesh, will be released this fall for Windows 3.1/95 and DOS machines. This
is not a continuation of the storyline initiated with the first title.
Rather, this is a new plot, one that offers madness, murder, and
psychological horror as you prove the blackest depths of the human soul.
You become Curtis Craig who, after experiencing strange and inexplicable
events, is visited by the Hecatomb. This inhuman entity speaks of Curtis'
tormented childhood, causing a loss of belief in reality itself. More than
30 actors performed against true movie sets and there are over 30 hours of
game play.

On a lighter note, Leisure Suit Larry 7: Yank Hers Away is set to also
arrive at your retailer this fall. From designer Al Lowe, this next title
in the Larry series finds our hero on the world's gaudiest cruise ship, the
HMS Bouncy. He finds the ship to be filled with beautiful women--er, they
happen to be cooler, smarter, stronger and more clever than he. This should
be the funniest Larry adventure yet developed by Al Lowe and is being
released for Windows 3.1/95 and DOS machines.

Certainly one of our favorite fantasy role-playing games over the last few
years was Betrayal at Krondor, released in 1993 by now-Sierra-incorporated
company Dynamix. The highly anticipated follow-up title is now set for
release this fall and is entitled Betrayal in Antara. The story unfolds in
the Antaran Empire, created generations ago by a king who gathered mages to
his side and united provinces under his banner. Over time, though, the
empire has become corrupt and is decaying. Abduction, assassination,
bribery, intrigue, and nepotism run rampant. You become one of four main
characters and you'll become embroiled in various plots and sub-plots.
Adventuring above and below ground, you'll move through 3D cities, caves,
dungeons, taverns, temples and more. You'll travel through the eastern
realms of Antara and have thousands of square miles to explore. The story
itself has been developed into interconnecting chapters and you'll receive
visual progress markers and sub goal identification. There's also a new
automap feature and you'll be able to keep your records simple, thanks to a
flashback inclusion. There's a cast of some 50 speaking characters,
customizable difficulty levels, a turn-based 3D combat system, plus a new
magic system.

Also coming this fall from Sierra is Birthright, based upon TSR Inc.'s
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons(R) (AD&D(R)) product line. This is both a FRPG
and a strat/war game. Offering a 3D environment and a rich game universe,
you'll enter a world wherein rulers are bound to the land by ties of blood.
If a ruler dies, the land itself also suffers, and when a prince is born,
the land blossoms. A character's bloodline is his heritage of divine power.
The abilities so granted by that heritage may be good or evil, physical or
mental, active or passive. However, this strength can be stolen . . .this
title is for MPC compliant computer systems.

Here's a two CD-bagger for you, especially if you enjoy first-person
adventures. Entitled Lighthouse, this title offers all a sophisticated
story set in a universe where technology and mature combine to create an
unsettling morality play. This is science-fiction fantasy that has you
searching for clues as to the disappearance of Dr. Krick only to witness
the kidnapping of his baby Armanda by a humanoid creature who then vanishes
into a portal. You must follow and unravel the story, entering an
intriguing plot that will have you engaged in over 50 hours of game play.
Sophisticated motion capture techniques were used to create realistic
character movement, all fully modeled in 3D. The puzzles are based on a
pseudo-scientific technology that is completely integrated with the game's
environment. You must solve puzzles by interacting with tools and machines,
unravel diabolic inventions, and operate strange vehicles (such as an
ornithopter--a mechanical bird). The game will release this summer for
Windows 3.1/95 machines.

If you enjoy Hitchcock-like suspense adventures, odds are you will enjoy
Urban Runner which will debut next month. You assume one of two different
characters: Adda, a mysterious German economist, or Max, an American
journalist. If you play Max, you uncover a law enforcement corruption case
and end up being charged for the murder of a deputy. If you play as Adda,
you become an insider who will try to help Max prove his innocence. As a
wronged-man-on-the-run action game, you'll have to survive fast car chases,
lethal shootouts, and murder. The game was filmed in Paris and contains
more than 20 hours of video footage and a cast of more than 30 characters.
This title is also for Windows 3.1/95 machines.

For racing sim'ers, Sierra is preparing the Windows 95 and Macintosh
release of IndyCar Racing II. This is an enhanced version of the company's
IndyCar Racing that released in 1993. Developed by Papyrus (yet another
Sierra division), the game's 15 tracks accurately represent the 1995 racing
season's cars, drivers, sponsors, tracks and track-side scenery and
billboards.  Cars behave more realistically, thanks to an enhanced
artificial intelligence (AI), plus there are SVGA graphics, increased frame
rate, digitized, stereo sound effects and the ability to customize your
cars. This title will release this summer.

The company's Front Page Sports Line has always garnered grand reviews. Now
Sierra is preparing for a November 1996 release of Front Page Sports: Golf.
This is a complete golf sim wherein a novice player will learn what it
takes to succeed at this game, or experienced players may take full control
of the game to play in their own style. There's a new golf-swing technique
wherein you use the mouse moving backwards or forwards to actually hit the
ball with your club, even using complete follow-through. You'll be able to
actually hit draws, fades, chips and pitch-and-runs. Two courses are
included in the game: The Prince in Kuai and Pete Dye Golf Club in
Bridgeport, W.V. Wind speed and direction, grass dampness all affect game
play. Plus you'll get 3D players which swing and react in real-time. This
title will be for Windows 95 computers.