PC Answers 1995 September/DISK19.iso/games/csheet/c/cd-roms.txt

Text File | 1995-04-30 | 51KB | 1,188 lines

~CD-ROM Games

Written By Wayne Roberts  (Original artciles have been edited)

With the recent increase of purchases towards the area
of multimedia and the CD-ROM, what is the PC game scene
going to be like in a year or so time.  Will we see the
use of CD-ROM writers as backup systems, who knows but
the PC game scene has certainly started to change.....

A lot of people are sitting there wondering what to do
with their hard earned cash, shall I buy a CD-ROM or
shall I buy something else to upgrade my machine ??
Well over the next few pages I will be delving into the
world of CD games and giving you my views on the advantage
or disadvantages of CD-ROM games.

Many of the earlier CD-ROM games titles where thought of as
shovelware.  In other words the disk based game shovelled
onto CD with very little or no enhancements.  Many titles
were selling for over twice the price as disk versions.  OK,
some of the titles were good but many a complete con.  The
only good titles were normally the Compilations and probably
the best that is still around is the Ultima Underworld pack.

The Underworld pack contains both parts of the game and is
no different from the disk version.  What's so good about
this then, you may ask.  For one it costs the same price
as just one of the games and for another you don't need to
wait for them to install all those long and time consuming
data files !!!  If you have a CD-ROM and like RPG's but
have never sought into the Ultima Underworlds then this is
the pack for you.  Available from Origin/Electronic Arts for
around 40 quid.

Recently there has also been a big boom on Shareware CD's.
Yes, CD's full to the brim with a variety of that FREEBY
software.  Well paying between 10 and 25 pounds for such
a CD may seem to be a good deal.  You are getting over
600 Mbytes of software, which would otherwise cost you one
pound plus for just 1Mbyte.  I've been caught out to !!  I
recently bought two Shareware game CD's, Deathstar Arcade
Battles and Games Arena.  Both had a nice selection of games
on them but the only problem being with them is, if you have
a VGA monitor and Soundcard, only a very small amount of
them support your the bigger capabilities of your machine.
If your a lover of OLD CGA/EGA games then there a good deal
but otherwise a hunk of junk.  Always try before you buy !!!

Still on the subject of Shareware CD's.  There are also some
very good Shareware CD's out there.  One in particular that
springs to mind is the Hot Sound & Vision CD.  Costing about
25 pounds from UNICA, it contains over 600 Mbytes of pure
delight.  If you have a Soundblaster and a SVGA card then you
have some added extras.  This CD was totally compiled from the
SOUND & VISION Bulletin Board and contains a variety of programs,
including many .JPG and .GIF pictures, Graphic/Sound Demos, a
selection of recent shareware games/utils, but probably the
highlight of this CD is the content of .MOD files (over 1500)
and companioned music util software.  This is what a Shareware
CD SHOULD look like !!!

Commercial games are now being released on CD's just as much
as disk.  Most games, especially adventures are being released
on both formats.  The main difference in almost all being the
fact the disk version is limited, due to disk space etc., so
doesn't (often) contain the full stereo soundtrack, speech
and extra animation that the CD version may contain.

Also due to the increasing size of games and their complexity
many games are being released on CD ONLY.  Examples of these
are Rebel Assault, 7th Guest, Dracula Unleashed, & Mad Dog
McCree.  Due to their complex graphics and game style they
would be impossible to even think of producing a disk version.
Probably the most heard of CD-ROM game must be 7th Guest,
coming on TWO CD's costing anything from 40 pounds, is the
disk players dream game, but to me it's all graphics and
little gameplay, like most of these CD-ROM only games !!!

When considering buying a CD-ROM, you have to sum up a few
things.  How much you want to spend is the biggest problem,
if you have only 150 pounds to spend you won't have much of
a choice, just single speed CD-ROMS, like the most popular
Mitsumi.  If you have 200 pound + to spend then its a
different story.

The Panasonic CR562/563 are the most popular choice for the
medium ranged, DOUBLE SPEED CD-ROM drives.  Make sure that
you aren't offered a cheaper older model as these are only
single speed and will not be as fast.

Why DOUBLE SPEED you may ask, well a CD-ROM has two specific
speeds given to it, ACCESS TIME and TRANSFER RATE.  These are
very important pieces of information.  If your wanting to play
a fast action game then you'll need a drive that is of a speed
of around 300 Kbytes/sec rather a slower speed of
150+Kbytes/sec, given by many single speed drives.  The access
time is the amount of time it takes for the drive to locate
the requested information on the CD and the Transfer rate is
the amount of time it takes to transfer a file from the CD.

Another consideration, which is just as important is whether
you buy a Soundcard, if you already have one then don't worry
as long as it has a CD-ROM interface, most Soundblaster PRO
and 16-bit cards do but many older ones don't.  Why do I need
a soundcard ???  Well as CD-ROM is classed as a multimedia
product, if your going to get the FULL benefits of CD-ROM,
then a Soundblaster PRO or 16-BIT card is essential, if you
wanting to hear speech, stereo music etc. ....

Of course there are other uses for the CD-ROM besides
games but as this is article is based on CD games, then
I won't go into them in detail but briefly say :-  The
CD-ROM can also be used for graphics (KODAK-CD),  graphic
& sound demos, Multi Volume Encylopedia's (Encarta), and
probably the most popular use Reference.

I've gone on for a while, now I'll go on for a little longer,
this time I'll go into more specific CD-ROM releases and
try and show their advantages/disadvantages including any
comparisons with the disk version.

~7th Guest, 40 pounds +, Virgin.

This as mentioned before is probably the most well known
of CD-ROM games.  The graphics to the game are well drawn
and best seen (obviously) in SVGA mode, the eery soundtrack
adds a bit of life to the game but other than that nothing
special !!  The game itself comprises of various puzzles that
you have to solve around the house to escape from all the
horrors.  Little gameplay but worth having a look at.

~Blue Force, 39.99 from Tsunami/Accolade.

This game has taken all it ideas from the Police Quest series
but hasn't hit interest of the PC player as well as the PQ
games.  The difference between the disk and CD versions being
the normal stereo soundtrack, plus an interview with Jim the
policeman himself.  Really not much difference when compared
to the disk version.

~Day Of The Tentacle - Maniac Mansion II, Lucas Arts.

I played this comical adventure first on the disk
version and then bought the CD version.  As it was my
first ever game I played on CD, I was impressed.
Basically the only difference between the two is the
Speech on the CD version, but what a difference it makes
to the gameplay !!!  No more having to read the screen to
pick up valuable info etc. it's all spoken !!

~Dracula Unleashed

This CD is basically a movie on computer.  The cast of
American actors try and make this game exciting but put
it down from there poor acting and crummy English accents.
In general its a detective style game roughly based on the
film, contains some nice movie style graphics, speech and
nice soundtrack, but isn't too exciting.  I've got a
running demo of the game which takes up over 100Mbytes and
last about 20 minutes, which only introduces the game and
story.  So it looks to be a biggy but is it worth the money ?
Again a CD-ROM only game taking full advantage of the CD
technology.

~Dune, 49.99 from Virgin.

This game had a disk release many years ago and was a very
popular game.  It's basis on the film brings a mixture of
strategy and adventure to the PC.  The CD version is a big
enhancement of the disk version, with upgraded graphics
and sound.  I'm sure there are a few extra animation thrown
in there also.  Only buy if you don't own the original or
the sequel, Dune 2.

~Eric The Unready, 34.99, Legend/Accolade.

This is another example of Shovelware.  No visible differences
over the disk version.  It's a graphic adventure in the style
of other Legend adventures, e.g.. the Spellcasting series, but
not up to standards of other graphic adventures on both CD
and disk.

~Indiana Jones & Fate Of Atlantis, Lucas Arts/US Gold.

Lucas Arts are probably the fore runners in present times in
both disk and CD based adventures.  Sierra held this for a
long time but the humour and imagination put into their games
is excellent.  This was one of their better disk adventures,
with Monkey Island 2 being the best and contains heaps of
puzzles to solve.  The disk and CD versions are almost
identical but the normal CD soundtrack and speech makes the
game twice as good to play.  No more reading the hideous
text, that spurts along the screen.

~King's Quest VI, 39.99, Sierra.

Sierra have led the way in adventures for a long while
until Lucas Arts brought out Monkey Island II, but this
CD adds a new touch to CD gaming.  As well as having
the usual Soundtrack and Speech enhancements over the
disk version, it also contains a nice voice which narrates
the story as time passes and also tells you about your
surrounding area, including which objects are/aren't of use.
A few nice touches put to the CD version and adds to a little
more life to the adventure.

~Legend Of Kyrandia, Westwood Studios/Virgin.

This is a well constructed graphic adventure which was
released on disk a couple of years ago, and now been
released on CD.  The game is identical to the disk version
in format and gameplay but has the added extra of a full
stereo soundtrack and speech, not text !!

~Mad Dog McCree

This game you may have seen in the arcades.  It's a game
based in the time of cowboys, yes a Western based game.  It's
basically a shoot-em up game which involves you taking out a
clan of bandits to get to and finally shoot hell out of,
Mad Dog.  The game makes full use of LaserDisc which gives
full motion picture style graphics accompanied with digitised
sound effects and speech.  Nice game but has very little
lasting interest as the game is slightly random and positions
of the enemy can be learnt and beaten !!   This is another
CD ONLY game but you may be better off paying the cash on
having a bash at the arcade version !!

~Rebel Assault, Lucas Arts.

Continuing their great Star Wars series (X-Wing etc.), they
bring a game which is totally crud.  It's a CD ONLY game
containing excellent graphics and soundtrack but what makes
the game so crud is the actual gameplay.  Throughout your
mission to destroy the Death Star, you spend most of your time
being faster than the enemy.  Quick reactions and a double
speed drive are all you need for this game.  Try this before
you buy !!!  Also don't but if you have a single speed drive
as you will be straight back to the shop to get a refund !!

~Return To Zork, Infocom.

This is one of the first CD games that I played and my thought
was very open.  I've never tried any of the old text ZORK, so
I couldn't tell you whether the style of puzzles where the
same but the game definitely isn't the same as the oldies !!!
Using a fairly new system, RTZ brings your PC to life with
full motion picture style animation, accompanied by a full
soundtrack and speech.  Unfortunately this is one of those
games you need a fast CD-ROM and machine to gain full benefit
of the graphics and animation.  Though such a good game on
CD, the disk version is just as good, but lacks some of the
speech, the soundtrack, some animation and the graphics in
places are better !!

~Sam & Max - Hit The Road, Lucas Arts.

Yet another great comical adventure from Lucas Arts.  Its
based in a very similar style as Day Of The Tentacle and
contains all the humour plus a little more.  I've seen
the disk version but as yet not seen the CD version.  As
with most I'm sure the enhanced CD version contains FULL
speech and no text to read.

This is a very small selection of some of the CD titles,
that are available.  As with disk version, I advise you
to try before you buy !!  The graphics and sound maybe
excellent but often the game isn't !!!


~PART TWO
~--------

Ok, you may have seen enough about CD-ROM's in the high street
mags but let me look at it in another context.  No jargon, no
bias opinions, just simple and brief look into future and
current CD-ROM releases.....

I left you earlier, looking into games like Day Of The
Tentacle and Return To Zork, which had been chucked onto
CD from the disk versions with some worthwhile enhancements.
I'll continue with a look into some more of these CD-ROM
games, with notes on the differences between the two....


~Alone In The Dark II - Infogrames

Well I'm sure many of you have played the first game.  Well
the much awaited release of AITD2 was brought to an end in
January and now it's available on CD.  The CD version needs
to be installed to Hard Drive as before but has a much
enhanced soundtrack and also comes with a FREE game, which I
believe is Jack In The Dark, a game using the same style
interface.  This is a game that is a must in your collection,
will give you hours of enjoyment and keep you pulling your
hair out for weeks !!  So, if you haven't the disk version
then buy it !!

~Castles II Enhanced - Interplay

As the title suggests this is an enhanced version of the
popular strategy game of a year or two ago.  It boasts a
large amount of improvements over the disk version including
informative video sequences, speech and many mono pictures
to add a bit of life to the game.

If you like a strategy game with a lot of gameplay and
plenty of action and haven't already got the disk version
then keep this one in mind as a purchase next time you
go and buy yourself a CD-ROM game.

~City 2000 - Aditus

I won't go into detail with this game as it's simply a game
that brings video pictures together to give a cross between
a brief guide to London and a detective game.  Ok, the
graphics have been put to good use, with the game but this
sort of game often looses the players interest.  Try this
before you buy.

~Conspiracy - Virgin

Remember KGB ??  Well this is the CD version of that exact
game.  Why the name change ?  Well how many of you bought
KGB and how many of you then enjoyed playing it ??  How
many ??  Well not many, I reckon !!!

To cut this short it's simply the same game with an neat
intro sequence, some speech and Donald Sutherland making
some appearances throughout the game to give you a few
tips...  This is definitely one to try before you buy !!

~Dragonsphere - Microprose

This RPG adventure uses the same style interface as the
graphical Return Of The Phantom and looks good.  The price
of the disk versions and CD are identical, so you would
obviously go for the CD version if you have a CD-ROM, but
what enhancements does the CD version offer ??  Well simply,
full speech !!  Unfortunately this speech is often drowned by
the music and may need to be toggled on/off if it gets on
your nerves, but other than this the versions are almost
identical.

~Gabriel Knight - Sierra

Well the CD-ROM version has been released with the normal
CD enhancements, better soundtrack and speech.  Graphics
are the same, game the same, price a little higher, the
choice is yours !!

~Goblins 3 - Sierra (Group)

Very little difference to the disk version, including
added animation and speech, which can often be quite
amusing.  To round off buy the CD version over the disk
version.

~Great Naval Battles - US Gold

The CD-ROM version of this game is basically the same as
the disk version but it includes the Scenario Builder and
expansion disks which would otherwise cost you an extra
twenty quid.  You will still need to install the game to
the hard drive, which will take up twenty Mbytes of space
plus you'll need to keep the CD in to actually run the game.
So basically you've the only enhancements are the three
FREE enhancement programs...  Maybe it'll be better to wait
until GNB2 comes out on CD or even buy GNB2 on disk.

~Inca II - Sierra/Coktel Vision

This game was looked into in a recent issue of CHEET SHEETS,
and came out with some reasonable remarks.  It's a much
enhanced style of game than it counterpart which everybody
hated due to it's lack of gameplay.   They've added a touch
more digitized graphics and animations and added to make the
gameplay better..   Other than that the same old puzzle based
graphic arcade/adventure.

Well what difference is there in the Disk and CD versions ??
Well not a lot, simply extra speech, extra music and a few
more animation sequences.  No enhanced gameplay or puzzles,
simply the same game with the normal CD enhancements.

~Might & Magic, World Of Xeen - New World Computing

This twin CD pack contains the last two XEEN games with
enhanced speech, cinematic scenes and loads more extras.
The games themselves are good quality RPG's and if you
haven't any of them then this will be a good purchase if
your looking for an RPG CD-ROM.  Two games for almost the
price of one.

~Sam & Max, Hit The Road - US Gold/Lucas Arts

I've got to mention this one again, it's finally been released
on CD-ROM and follows in the footsteps of Day Of The Tentacle.
Yes, a big hit !!  The main enhancements over the disk version
is simply the added speech, which makes the game 100% better
and easier to play !!

~Star Trek 25th Anniversary - Interplay

The disk version of this game was released back in 1992, and
many people had an opened mind about it.  Many thought it was
a hunk of rubbish and others thought it was brill.  I
suppose it all depends on your taste and whether you like
Star Trek or no.  Anyhow the CD-ROM brings speech and added
video clips to the game, not much to make it worth it's
50 quid price tag, when you can probably get the disk version
for less than half the price.  Also with the recent release of
Judgment Rites, wouldn't it be a better idea to buy the latter
as you'll bound to get more out of it !!!

~Strike Commander - Electronic Arts/Origin

This was a much awaited game from Origin which was finally
released in the Summer of '93.  With over three years of
development in the game we had an excellent flight simulator
that takes up over 40 Mbytes of hard disk space with great
graphics, sound and gameplay.  Well what difference can there
be in the CD version you may ask ??  Well simple you save
yourself 40Mbytes + of hard disk space, with the ability of
running the game from CD plus you get FULL speech of all the
conversation carried out throughout the game.

You may well say, well you could make the characters speech
if you bought the speech pack !!  Ye, you could but the
animation that went with the speech wasn't realistic, it
is on the CD version !!!

Also you'll save yourself an hour of precious game playing
time, which is how long it takes (on average) to install the
disk version !!  Yes, one hour !!!!  With the CD-ROM version
it's simply slip it in and off you go with the need to
install between 1Mbyte and 2Mbyte of data to Hard disc...

So to round off, if you have a CD-ROM player and haven't yet
got the disk version of this game, buy it !!!  You'll have
a great deal of life out of this Flight Sim......

~Ultima VIII : The Pagan - Electronic Arts

Well we've all heard of the Ultima series, of you who, haven't
were have you been ????  Anyhow this is probably the leading
RPG series of games available for the PC and this is the long
awaited sequel to Ultima VII which had so many add-ons....
It's bound to be a hit because the series has grabbed a large
percentage of PC RPG players already and almost all of these
will want another challenge.

Anyhow enough yap.  What differences are there in the disk
and CD versions ??  Well as far as I can see not much, but
you will save yourself a few quid, as the CD version comes
with the SPEECH disks, of which are a seperate package in the
disk version, costing an extra 20 quid or more.  So basically
if your buying this, buy the CD version just for the cheap
speech, which makes an obvious improvement in your enjoyment
in the game.


CD-ROM ONLY games are gradually becoming more and more common
with over 50% of todays releases being CD based.  The
publishers like it, as it cuts costs, allows programmers
600 Mbytes to play with rather than 20Mbyte - 40Mbytes, cuts
down on Piracy and simply 9 times out of ten makes a better
product !!  Detailed below are a few games that can only
be bought on CD-ROM, as putting them on disk would be an
almost impossible task !!


~Critical Path - Media Vision

I'll cover this one briefly, as I haven't seen this one in
action.  It boasts to be a action packed game with brill
sound effects and graphics.  Well two out of three, this
is another CD game, that has nice SFX and GFX but absolutely
rubbish gameplay.  Try before you buy !!!


~Eleventh Hour (XIth Hour) - Virgin

Not yet available, but this is the sequel to 7th Guest.
Gameplay is almost identical to 7th Guest with more great
graphics, plenty of gore, load of puzzles and video footage.
Looking to be a great success like 7th Guest has been, you
may have to wait a month or two for release but I'm sure it's
going to be a great hit.


~Hell Cab - Time Warner

This is another one of those interactive adventure games,
it has some neat animation sequences and the normal helping
of speech.  Couldn't tell you anything about the plot of the
game as I haven't seen or played it.  But I've been told its
a witty humoured game with spurts of action.  The only let
down being it's long delays during access to the CD or
Hard Disc...


~Iron Helix - Microprose/Spectrum Holobyte

This game boasts to break the long wanted gameplay aspect of
CD-ROM games.  As you'll find out from most CD-ROM games, they
have excellent soundtracks, smooth high quality graphics but
often have no or very little gameplay.  Well this Futuristic
SCi-Fi game looks to change all that.

The game itself looks to be a Alien/Doom style game with 7th
Guest quality graphics, running smoothly and efficiently.
Before I can judge the game for myself, I'll need to see it in
action but the screen dumps look good and other reviews give
it nice marks.  So we'll have to try it out and see for
ourselves !!


~Lawnmower Man - Sales Curve

This is one game I honestly thought was going to be great,
with some neat effects, but no.  The cover is flashy and
bulky with some neatly disguised screen pics of the game.
Magazines have also used these lovely graphics to boost
the look of the game but beware, these screen shots have
been taken from the version which hasn't been released yet.
The version you'll get if you go into the shop is the
16 colour version.  So make sure you look into which version
your buying.

Anyhow back to the plot of the game, it's gameplay is closely
centered around the plot of the film, which sees you floating
around a Virtual Reality world.  You'll be doing allsorts of
things but nothing exciting.  The game has some nice music
and smooth animations but that's about it...  Yet another
game that needs to be played before purchase..


~Microcosm - Psygnosis

This is a game that brings the arcade theme to CD-ROM, rather
than the same old interactive video adventures.  Ok, there
are loads of great video animations throughout the game but the
gameplay is fast and furious.  This is basically a futuristic
shoot-em up taking place inside the body of a president, which
at first is exciting but the lasting interest soon becomes nil.
Doesn't brake many new grounds and won't impress many CD-ROM
users.  Even though gameplay is fast and furious this is
another game that fails to please in this department !!


~Outpost - Sierra

Running Demos of this game have been floating around on
Cover CD's for months but has yet seen its way to the
high street.  The game at present is planned for CD-ROM
release with a disk version to follow.  The current date
for release is May, but as most games this often increases
as more and more problems occur during the writing of the
game.

The style of game, looks to be along the lines of a futuristic
SIM City with superb SVGA graphics.  The animation sequences
which are shown off in the DEMO of the game are smooth, precise
and almost real to life.  I can say much more than this as
I've only seen a running DEMO and a few mag previews, but if
your a Sim City fan, I'm sure this will be the next title to
appear in your collection.


~Stonekeep - Interplay

This long awaited high quality RPG game, looks to be further
and further away from release.  It has recently been decided
it is now going to be a CD only game due to its great graphics
and complexity.  Screen shots of the game look good, but don't
they always !!  We'll have to wait a while before this one
arrives on the shelves, XMAS ???


~The Journeyman Project - Media Vision

Another game from Media Vision that has excellent GFX and SFX.
Many of the graphics being raytraced and rendered but again the
whole thing let down by the gameplay !!  Maybe they'll write
a game in the future which has good SFX, GFX and gameplay, it
will be an enormous hit if they do. Both this and Critical Path
would be good games if they had some decent gameplay.  Come
on Media Vision, pull your socks up !!!


~The Lost Treasures of Infocom - Activision

This CD is only for the folk who don't mind playing games
that look dated and enjoy a good adventure.  This pack
contains 20 adventures, almost all being text.  Ok, good
for a challenge but you might be better off buying three
Shareware CD's that contain a load of adventures at least
you'll have some other games to play off them if you get
bored.  Old game, no sound, little graphics, lots of
puzzling and long evenings, a 30 quid price tag.....


Also discussed in my article in issue 28 was the term
"Shovelware", you know the disk version of the game chucked
onto CD with very little or no enhancements at all, but with
an extra charge of fiver or more.  Well I'll go through some
more that I have come across recently...

~Carnage - Zeppelin Platinum

A budget CD selling for 12.99, great, I'll buy it.  I went
and bought this game, realising after that I wasted my
money.  On the case it said ENHANCED CD-ROM VERSION.  Um,
I'd liked to see the disk version which incidentally sells
for 3 quid less.  Ok, it was a good game but where were the
enhancements I ask ??  Could it be that it was bundled with
demos of Sink Or Swim & Arnie 2 or was it simply because it
came on a CD rather than a disk ??  So I ventured into the
CD, upon doing a listing of the whole CD, I discovered it
contained 5Mybtes of files, yes 5, not 50, or 500, 5 !!!
What a waste of a good CD !!!  I recommend buying the disk
version and save the three quid for something else, well
unless you want demos of Arnie 2 and Sink Or Swim !!

This also goes for the rest of this Budget CD-ROM range,
buy the disk version, if any.  The titles in this range
include Stack Up, Arnie 2, Graham Souness Soccer, Carnage
and of course Sink Or Swim (which costs 21.99/24.99).


~Dark Sun, Shattered Lands - US Gold

Well this isn't exactly 100% shovelware as you get a
DEMO of other CD products from US GOLD, probably the
same ones as found on almost every FREEBIE mag CD.
Even though the game comes on CD, you will still have
to install it to your hard drive, so your probably
better off buying the disk version and saving yourself
a fiver !!


~Dungeon Hack - US Gold

It's a shame this has been copied straight to CD with no
enhancements as this is one RPG that I actually sat down
and played with enjoyment.  Anyhow US Gold, have chucked
it on CD, with you still needing to install it to the
hard drive.  Disappointing, think what could have been
done with the extra CD space.   Anyhow a game to buy
on CD only if you haven't got the disk version and can
get it for a cheaper price on CD than on disk.


~Lemmings CD Limited Edition Double Pack - Psygnosis

Well this is simply Lemmings and Oh No More Lemmings,
chucked onto CD.  A waste of space if you ask me,
because I'm sure almost 99% of PC users have these games
in their collection.  If not it would be cheaper to buy
them both separate on disk, with Lemmings selling for
around ten quid, and Oh No...  selling for not much more,
save your pennies buy Lemmings 2 - The Tribes, you will
have the best of all worlds and some varied levels to !!


~Spellcasting Party Pak - Accolade

Well you may not call this shovelware but don't expect
an enhancements in the games, as they are simply the disks
versions plonked onto CD.  If you like the Spellcasting
series but have one or even none and like to get all three
then this would be a good pack to get hold of.  Three games
on one CD, Spellcasting 101, 201 and 301.


~PART THREE
~----------
I have had a great response to my past brief guides to CD-ROM's,
so I have decided to write yet another.  If you have read the
past articles, you will know that the info I give is short and
sweet, giving info on what differences there are between
the disk and CD's versions.

The cost of a CD game is normally a fraction more than that
of the disk version, is this extra fiver/tenner worth it ??
Read on and find out.

~DOOM      (ID Software)

Don't bother buying this as a stand-alone CD.  It only contains
Version 1.2 of the game, nothing else.  You don't even get the
full blown game, just the first episode (Shareware version).
You'll be better off paying out a fiver to get a back issue
of a mag like PC HOME, that contains the same version on one
of their Cover CD's.  Waste of money buying separately !!!

The FULL Three Episode Version is Now Available in the shops.


~DRAGON'S LAIR     (Readysoft)

How old ???  I was playing this game when I was in primary
school !!!  I was surprised to see this game released on CD
after its poor quality on disk.  Fair enough the cartoon
style animations are brill, but there's no gameplay !!
Throughout the WHOLE of the game there is only the need to
press the keyboard about twenty times, with a simple choice
of five to press (UP, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT or FIRE).  Get the
right sequence and you go on to the next animation.  Well
exciting (NOT), your better off paying 40 quid in the
arcades that still have this old classic, it'll probably
only cost you about a tenner before you complete it !!
Well unless you take the CHEET SHEETS solve with you and then
it'll probably cost you about 50p !!!!  TOO OLD !!

~LANDS OF LORE         (Virgin)

Upon playing the disk version of the game, I was impressed by
the great intro and the great style of gameplay.  Guess what
they've done to the CD version ??  They've enhanced the intro
even more !!!  It's a great intro with full digitised speech
by one of the character off Star Trek and a few of famous voices.
Other additions to the CD version is the fully spoken quest and
a short digitized story.  If you haven't got the disk version
and want a good RPG, with nice gameplay, graphics and sound, this
ones for you.

~SPACE HULK      (Electronic Arts)

What a great gory game, well you can now buy it on CD !  Not
much difference though on the CD, over the disk version.  A
few extra animation sequences, enhanced sound with digitized
dialogue throughout and an extra nine missions.  If you haven't
seen the original disk version, then this might be a worthy
purchase, but if you have a fast machine don't bother as you
won't stand a chance against the enemy !!!  I've got a 386
running at 30Mhz, and they are just the right speed anything
faster is a nightmare, take it from me !!  There has been
a long gap between the two versions, so it may seem a bit
dated, try it out first !!


~STELLAR 7 (Dynamix/Sierra)

You would have to be an old hand, if you remember this game.
It was released in the arcades in the late 80's and then produced
for the PC in early 90's.  What else can I say about it, not up
to todays standards, its simply the disk version of the game slung
onto CD with extra animations and a nice soundtrack.  Only buy
this if you get it in a pack of CD's, buying it onb it's own isn't
worth the cash, buy something newer !!


~SUMMER/WINTER CHALLENGE     (Accolade)

When these games were released a few years ago, they were probably
the best in their class, since then not much has been released
in this area of key tapping sports games.  Fair enough these
are good games, but this CD is simply the two games chucked
onto CD, no enhancements (well I couldn't see any).  It might
be cheaper to buy the games on disk either as budget products
or even second-hand.  This CD is only worth the purchase if you
are a keen sporting fan.


~CD ONLY Games
~=============

~CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE     (Ocean)

This game I haven't personally seen in action, but from looking at
other reviews and articles on it, I've put together my short
judgement.  Its a strategic spying game with some nicely drawn
graphics and some nice video quality pics.  The gameplay is
slighly different to that of other strategy games in this area,
with no one way to play the game.  As I can't place my judgement
on it, I would recommend you play it first, but if you like
strategy games then this is probably your only choice at the
moment.

~MEGARACE

We've all played (or seen), the best of the racing games like
Indy Car Racing and Formula One Grand Prix, but this game is
bigger, and better.  Being a CD Only game, you can imagine the
big difference.  It's a futuristic racing game that takes full
advantage of the CD Format, with excellent fast and colourful
graphics with the neat Sound FX to go with it.  It one of
few CD games that has a good gameplay factor.  If you have a
CD-ROM and like racing games, this is one for you !!


~PLUMBERS DON'T WEAR TIES     (Unica)

Well what can I say ??  It's a video love story put onto your
PC screen.  Your better of spending a couple of quid on those
girly photo-story mags !!  All you seem to do is watch a few
video clips and make a few decisions that will decide the
outcome of the next clip.  Once you have decided correct on
all accounts your not going to bother playing this again !!!
Don't waste 40 quid on this CD !!!


~PART FOUR
~---------
Let me continue into the world of CD-Roms.  This section will
breifly look into some of the CD-ROM games available for the
PC, with short views and information upon them.


~Disk to CD-ROM titles
~=====================

The CD-ROM version of disk games are often simply the original
chucked onto CD with little or no enhancements on the game.  I
will give you a breif idea on what extras you do and don't
get from buying the CD Version....


~Battle Of Time
~--------------
This is a Strategy Wargame compilation of three games, Battle
Isle, Mega Lo Mania and The Perfect General and for some
unknown reason beat-em up as a forth game (First Samurai).
The three strategy games maybe a few years old but will give
hours of gameplay and will keep your brain active.  First
Samurai is a beat-em up in which you'll need less brain power
but better reactions.  This CD compilation contains four games
that were hits of the times simply chucked onto CD, no
enhancements have been made to any of them.  A good compilation
but it maybe an idea to look around for these titles as stand
alone purchases they may cost you less than 40 quid to buy
seperately !!


~Companions of Xanth
~-------------------
This graphical adventure was released on disk earlier this year,
but didn't make much impact on its competitors.  The CD-ROM
version will probably be in the same boat, the only enhancements
to the game being the use of speech.  Other than that the same
old game but on a CD.  This is one of those Try Before You Buy
titles.


~Darkseed
~--------
Released back in later half of 1992, it brought the artistic work
of H R Giger to the computer screen in a graphical adventure.
The realease onto CD sees the usual additional didgitised speech
and moody soundtrack.  If you haven't bought the original disk
version then this maybe a good choice if your looking for a
graphic adventure with some weird but wonderful artwork.


~Flight Sim Toolkit
~------------------
Well this is a definate piece of shovelware, its simply the
disk version slung onto CD.  No enhancements simply the ability
to run straight from CD with no or little Hard disc space needed.
If your thinking of buying this only buy the CD version if your
either stuck for disk space or the CD version is cheaper.


~Interplay 10 Year Classics
~--------------------------
What do we have here then ??  A collection of ten golden oldy
games chucked on CD, costing around 40 pounds.  Well what a
waste of money, well some of it is.  The games included on the
CD are Mindshadow (TEXT ONLY Adventure), TTIT (CGA Graphic
Adventure), Battlechess (Average EGA bard game), Bard's Tale
(EGA and dated RPG), Lord Of The Ring's (EGA and OK RPG),
Wasteland, Dragon Wars, Star Trek 25th (OK Trekky adventure),
Castles (good Strategy game), and the best of the bunch Another
World.  Not a very varied collection but shame that all
games to come up with the goods.  It would have been nice to see
some newer and better games here.   A package only to be bought
if you have been after one or two of the games and never been
able to find them in the shops.


~Jack Nicklaus Golf
~------------------
Well this is definately a Shovelware title.  It is simply the
disk version plonked onto CD.  It still carries the course
designer and 17 courses (most being of unknown courses).  The
only good thing about it is its 20 pound price tag.  This
game is good but only purchase if you don't already own a good
golfing game, as it doesn't break any new grounds.


~Power Games II
~--------------
This CD compilation contains three old games, Gunship 2000,
Jetfighter II and Indy 500 for an overpriced 30 quid.  This
package is only worth purchasing if you have a 286 or a 386
that doesn't let you play a large amount of todays games.
The games show their age and none are rulers in their field,
Indy 500 being overpowered by Indycar, Gunship by Commanche,
and Jetfighter II by a long list of excellent but demanding
games !!!   Indy 500 is probably the biggest rip-off as almost
50% of sound cards are sold with this bundled with it, so
in my mind this is a waste of thirty quid, simply three very
old games (good ones though) chucked onto CD.


~Quest and Fun
~-------------
Two or three years ago Sierra were probably the top software
company for the PC and this package contains Three of there
more popular games.  Though a bit dated this package is a
worth buy if you would like to play some games that were at
the introduction of the CD-ROM.  The games included in the
package are Leisure Suit Larry V, King's Quest V and Red
Baron.  The first two being full enhanced CD versions with
Red Baron being a nice fast action packed Flight Sim.
Good package but at 40 quid, it maybe an idea to look around
to buy the games seperate if you only want one or two of them,
as King's Quest V can be obtained on its own for 20 pound and
Red Baron could probably be found for less !


~Sherlock Holmes
~---------------
We already seen three Sherlock Holmes adventures on CD but do you
remember the adventure released back in 1992 ??  Well this has
now been converted to CD.  Enhancements are very few, no extra
animation, no enhanced sounds, just a few sections of speech.
If speech throughout was added then it would be a good enhancement
over the disk version but no, another piece of Shovelware I'm
afraid.


~Syndicate Plus
~--------------
This is a nice bundle for those who haven't bought the original
Syndicate or even the American Revolt Data Disks.  The game
itself has a few enhancements in the sound department with the
support of Soundblaster 16 and 10 new levels specifically for
network players.  With both the original and the data disks, this
is a good package for those of you who like a good fast, furious
and action packed game.


~The Patrician
~-------------
Released in 1993, this game didn't really make an impression on
the strategic game market.  It did though boast some good
gameplay, that is more often enough lacking in most games.  The
enhancements in the CD version include a small collection of
animation sequences and a accompanying soundtrack.  Some
enhanced graphics and sounds wouldn't have gone amiss here but
it's the same old story an average game stuck onto CD with
a few extra animations and a CD Soundtrack.  Buy only if you are
a keen strategy fan, like collecting titles and have 40 quid to
spend.


~Tornado
~-------
This flight simulator isn't one for the beginner's amongst us,
due to this you'll have a game that has a lot of in depth
gameplay with great graphics and sound.  Being on CD you'd
expect some great enhancements but how can you enhance a game
that already is of high quality ??  With the CD version you'll
get the normally seperate Operation Desert Storm Missions.
Any extra enhancements I couldn't tell you about as I haven't
actually seen the CD version in action.  If your going to buy
this then buy it on CD, simply for the extra missions that
would normally cost you an extra 20 quid or so.


~UFO : Enemy Unknown
~-------------------
No enhancements whatsoever over the disk version but at least
they have both been released at the same time !!   If you prefer
to have games on CD, then the CD-ROM version is your obvious
choice with a price tag exactly the same as the disk version.
Nice to see a CD Version that maybe shovelware but at least the
CD version wasn't a delayed release, like it usually is.


~Wolfpack
~--------
Do any of you Submarine sim fans remember this game ?? Probably
not as it dates back years.  This has been released on CD with
quite a few enhancements including having 70 missions and some
updated graphics.  No way up to the standards of Subwar or
Seawolf, at 30 quid it's a game that should be tested out aside
Subwar and Seawolf.  Personally I would pay an extra tenner or
so towards one of the latter two titles.  A good game that won't
make an impact due to it's competition.


~CD-ROM Only Games
~=================

~Aegis
~-----
Packaged with a nice huge manual this game will see you flicking
through the pages more than once.  Yep, this is a very un-
friendly game, where your spend just as much time working out how
to play the game, than actually playing it !!  It's a strategic
ship game with average style graphics and the need to have loads
of knowledge about the game.  To round things off, just make
sure you have a long good look at it before you decide to
purchase it.


~Sim City Enhanced
~-----------------
With the great success of Sim City 2000, I thought they might
have given up on the old style of the game, but nope.  The
difference being the fancy introduction, animation and film
sequences throughout and digitised sound.  It boasts over
45 minutes of video footage but it doesn't boast anything new
over the gameplay.  If Sim City 2000 is to complex for you
then this should be your second choice but if you have the
original Sim City, then enhancements are worth the pennies you
pay.


~Spaceship Warlock
~-----------------
Well unfortunately it wasn't worth waiting for. Its a
futuristic game with a comic book style storyline.  The graphics,
animation and sound are of good quality but as always the
gameplay lets it down.  The other thing that lets it down is
also due to the use of Windows, animations and action are very
slow unless you have an accelerator card and 8Mbytes of memory !


~PART FIVE
~---------
Well here I am again with another look into CD games, available
for the PC.  As usual I will give you a breif idea of what the
game is about and whether its worth purchasing.  In the case of
games that have been released on both medias, then I'll give a
breif insight into the enhancements in the CD version (if any).


~CD Conversions.
~===============
These are the games that have had disk versions released and at
either the same time or later date, a CD Version has been released.
This section of the article will briefly tell you the main
differences between the two.


~Battle Isle 2 (Blue Byte, 39.99)

The gameplay is identical to the disk version, the main difference
being the additional animation sequences plus a bit more speech.
No extra missions or nothing, just simply the same game spiced up
with the small extras.  If you like strategic games, then this is
a very good choice, it will keep you active for hours.


~Beneath A Steel Sky (Virgin, 44.99)

Identical to the disk version excepting the FULL voice over, so
you'll no longer have to read the caption is all spoken !  Shame
the soundtrack and effects weren't also enhanced as this would
have given this adventure a little more atmosphere.


~Gremlin's CD 3 (Gremlin Graphics, 29.99)

Three disk games chucked onto CD for the price of one, not bad.
A weird mixture though, two racing games, Nigel Mansell's
World Championship and Lotus Challenge, plus a platforming game,
Zool.  Zool is probably the best of the bunch with Lotus a
near second but NMWC is a pure waste of time.  Zool being probably
one of the best platformers for the PC and Lotus offering a two-
player split screen racing mode.  Good buy, but shame they didn't
stick another game on instead of Nigel Mansell.....


~Shadow Of The Comet (Infogrames, 39.99)

Another old game having the enhanced CD treatment.  Extra
animations, especially to the opening sequences plus a full
three hours of spoken dialogue.  A good horrific adventure
made that much better with the CD enhancements.  Worth the
purchase.


~Simon The Sorceror (PDQ, 44.99)

The CD version is a FULL talkie version with voices of actors
like Chris Barrie (Red Dwarf) and Roger Blake (Spitting Image).
If you haven't got the disk version, and you like a good fun
adventure then this would be well worth purchasing.


~Star Control CD (Accolade, 19.99)

This compendium includes both episodes of this great action
strategy game.  A good buy at 20 quid !  Will keep you amused
for hours and with the two-player melee battle, you can put
aside all the serious stuff within the game and have a good
old laff.

~Theme Park (Electronic Arts, 34.99)

This is currently the top selling CD-ROM, even out selling CDi and
Mega-CD's !!  With the long awaited release this game is well worth
the purchase.   The cost of the CD version is five pounds less than
the disk version, so I've no need to tell you to buy the CD version.
Not many enhancements within the CD version, just a few extra
animations, the ability to view rides once complete, plus a few
other enhancements that I may not have realised.  If you like a
challenge and a good time then you'll love this !

~Ultima Underworld I & II (Electronic Arts, 49.99)

This compilation is simply the disk version chucked onto CD, but
if your a fan of RPG games, and love the Ultima series, this one
is well worth the purchase.  Two excellent RPG's for the price of
one, even though a few years old now, they are still a BIG challenge
compared to some of todays RPG games.  I'm not too sure whether
there are any enhancements, I very much doubt it, how can you spice
up a game that is already as good as UUW ??  The main advantage in
buying this, as well as having two games for the price of one,
you'll save a fair bit of Hard Disk space....


~Ultima VII (Electronic Arts, 49.99)

Again another bit of shovelware but this is also a good buy, as
with the Ultima Underworld pack.  You'll get all four episodes
of the game, Ultima VII Parts 1 & 2 plus the two expansion disks.
If your a keen Role Player then this will definitely keep you
glued to your PC for months, not days or weeks !!  A huge amount
of puzzles etc.. to get through, definitely worth buying.
Probably no enhancements over the disk versions but no need to
use up any precious Hard Disk space.


~CD ONLY games.
~==============

~International Tennis Open (Philips, 44.99)

This is a straight conversion from the CDi version.  Almost
identical in all its content.  As the PC doesn't boast many
good Tennis games this hasn't much in the way of competition.
The graphics are fully rendered and digitised sound, the game
plays well.  If your a Tennis fan then this is a definite to
add to your collection.  Well produced game.

~Mad Dog McRee II

Well the saga continues, as promised at the end of the first game.
Same style game, same characters, just a few slight enhancements
and a new story.  If you liked the first, then buy the second.
Unfortunately though this is one of those games that once completed
you'll never go back to.

~Millenium Auction (Not available in UK, yet, Electronic Arts)

What a weird and original idea for a game.  Yep, you can pit
your skill and intelligence against up to four players within
the auction room.  The idea of the game is to simply bid, bluff,
buy and sell items within futuristic art auctions.  The graphics
are to fully rendered 3D and add a little spice to the game.
Nice to see an original game for a change, but I'm sure if you
useless at betting at auctions then this game will enhance your
problems.

~Under A Killing Moon (Access/US Gold)

This game fills all the gaps that 7th Guest didn't fill.  Yeah,
another fully movie like game with excellent graphics and sound.
Most of the characters are well known actors and the gameplay
is a high standard.  This game will show you whats to come in the
world of CD-ROM.  A game that should be in your CD collection.

~Who Shot Johnny Rock ? (39.99)

This is one of those games that has, nice movie quality graphics
and plays in a vague similarity to Mad Dog.  Lots of action but
gets a little boring after a while as the game is the same
every time you play it, with the exception of the clue locations.
Definite try before you buy.  It lacks on the lasting interest !