VIDEO GAMES
“The conquest of the earth is not a pretty thing when you look into it too much,” wrote Joseph Conrad, but then Conrad never had the chance to wage war on a computer screen, where stunning graphics have helped make global domination a pretty thing-and a pretty fun thing as well.
Computerized games of world conquest fall into two categories: clones of Civilization, the classic Microprose game that has players guide a nation from the Stone Age to the Modern Era and which emphasizes economics, culture and diplomacy along with military might; and clones of Command and Conquer, the Westwood Studios slugfest where players duke it out in a series of tactical battles.
Here’s a roundup of some of the most notable recent releases that let you fulfill your secret yearning to take over the planet.
Age of Empires (Microsoft; Windows 95; $55) is to Civilization what Microsoft Windows was to the Macintosh operating system: an imitation that shamelessly copies the original. While it may be true that there’s nothing new under the sun, the way that Age of Empires so slavishly mirrors Civilization is unconscionable. Though Bruce Shelley, a co-designer of Civilization, was hired to design Age of Empires, that in no way excuses Microsoft’s stunning lack of originality.
NO RATING.
Total Annihilation (GT Interactive; Win 95; $50) at least acknowledges its debt to Command and Conquer, and like that title, it’s a real-time game of fast and furious combat. However, it adds some intriguing new gimmicks, such as 3-D terrain that your unit climbs to gain a strategic advantage. It also forces you to deal with natural elements such as forest fires, wind and water currents.
Rating: (star) (star) (star) (star)
Panzer General II (SSI; Win 95: $50) is a game of WWII combat that epitomizes how to do everything right in a computer game. It offers a series of short scenarios of increasing difficulty that allow beginners to jump right in; a longer campaign mode that challenges experienced players; computerized opponents that can hold their own; a handsome and thorough manual and a simple yet elegant user interface that keeps players glued to the screen.
Rating: (star) (star) (star) (star)
The Great Battles of Hannibal (Interactive Magic; Win 95; $50) is a painstakingly researched game of world conquest, or at least the conquest of what the ancients knew as the world. You command Carthage’s favorite son-and his elephants-in 11 battles ranging from the plains of Spain to the Alps to the gates of Rome. Educational as well as entertaining, this turn-based game requires careful strategy rather than quick mouse movements.
Rating: (star) (star) (star) 1/2
Civilization II Scenarios and Civ II Fantastic Worlds (Microprose; Windows; $30) are two add-on disks that both require Civilization II to run. The Scenarios disk offers 20 new challenges, -some historical, some not-such as the American Civil War, Alien Invasion and After the Apocalypse, a post-nuclear war simulation. Fantastic Worlds offers 15 scenarios with science fiction or fantasy world settings and units.
Rating: (star) (star) (star)
SOLE SURVIVOR.
INTERNET
Conquering the world is even more satisfying when defeating human opponents rather than computer-controlled players. Most of the games mentioned here, such as Panzer General II and Civilization II, offer options that allow you to play online against one or more human opponents.
– So far, though, relatively few war games are specifically designed for Internet play. One of the best is the just-released Sole Survivor (Westwood Studios; Windows 95; $49.95).
– Here you control just a single unit, and you choose from one of more than 20 types, from the speedy but undergunned Recon Bike to the lumbering but powerful Mammoth Tank. You compete in various scenarios, such as King of the Hill, a demolition derby where dozens of units fight it out until just one is left alive; or Capture the Flag, where you’ll have the best success coordinating your actions with teammates.
– With new units and options being added regularly, and the ability to play either offline in practice mode or online on the company’s free gaming network, Sole Survivor looks like a big winner in the computer gaming wars.
Rating: (star) (star) (star) (star)
