Conquest: Frontier Wars
PC £29.99 Digital Anvil/ Ubi Soft ****
What feels like a souped-up version of Masters of Orion, proves to be considerably more ambitious, with a grand real-time strategy (RTS) played around star systems rather than terrains and a curious visual style featuring 3D ships moving across 2D maps. These levels are great to watch, as the impressive nebulae, asteroid belts, and planets all have a direct effect on the ships moving between them.
Because of the length and complexity of the 16 or so sin gle-player missions, conquering territory is all important, first for providing strategic outposts where shipyards and weapons can be constructed, second to act as supply points.
Frontier Wars enforces a strict and realistic logic to its battles, with all ships and defensive units running out of ammo, requiring constant re-supply from planetary bases or supply ships. This greatly affects how you play some of the longer levels, with wormholes and jumpgates also needing protection to ensure your supply routes.
But the interface still looks clunky, the graphics engine is far from perfect and the micro-management of constantly re-supplying a large fleet very tedious. Despite this, there is much to enjoy for RTS fans, with some levels taking several hours.
All in all, it is a huge single player game with two more playable races for online gamers. Still, it is a shame this took quite so long to reach the shelves. (MA)
Mystery of the Druids
PC £34.99 CDV ***
Once upon a time - round about 1991 - point-and-click adventures were the only games that mattered. Titles such as Monkey Island were characterised by satisfying puzzles, well-written dialogue and cerebral gameplay that appealed to a wide audience.
Unfortunately, powerful graphics cards and increased processing power have seen the genre wane, with gamers seemingly more tempted by 3D epics and strategy games. Even LucasArts has disappointed purists by taking such games as Monkey Island into the third dimension. It seems mainland Europe is the last remaining bastion of traditional adventures.
The latest export is Mystery of the Druids, a time-travelling murder story taking in locations from Scotland Yard to coastal France. You control Halligan, the reluctant detective, as he works his way through a stereotyped England full of bobbies and cads. As in allsuch games, the basic idea is to whizz the mouse around the screen and find items or characters to interact with. You can then solve puzzles by placing improbable objects together.
While not state of the art, the visuals are impressive. But the dubious translations, which lead to some unintentionally hilarious conversations, don't help.
Mystery of the Druids is an anachronism, and suffers from the faults that have always bedevilled the genre, particularly the emphasis on progression dependent on choosing the correct conversation.
Nevertheless, it has an above-average plot, and a lack of similar titles on the horizon, means adventure fans should investigate. (GH)
