Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
Sony PlayStation 2 £39.99 Rockstar/Take Two *****
Not every game has vocal work from Ray Liotta, Dennis Hopper and Burt Reynolds. It's similarly rare to find a game soundtrack containing 80s music from the likes of Michael Jackson and Blondie. But then GTA: Vice City is no ordinary game.
This semi-sequel to the 7m-selling Grand Theft Auto 3 further blurs the demarcation lines between gaming and popular culture to produce another marvellous experience. Set in a 1980s version of Miami - all neon and loud shirts - the aim is to rise through the criminal ranks to become the big Daddy. Keep the peace during a mob deal, assassinate gang leaders and do as you're told, and you're on the road to glory. Or you can just jack a car, dodge the cops and generally act the low-level crook. It's the fact that you can undertake missions or decide to go freestyle that makes GTA: Vice City so compelling.
Well, that and pulling a wheelie while speeding up a sidestreet to the strains of Billie Jean. As well as the new vehicles - motorbikes and helicopters -there is also the ability to own and go inside property, giving players the chance to build an empire and live out their Tony Soprano fantasies.
Then there are the touches that litter proceedings. From the breeze block-sized mobile phones to the pastel suits and rolled-up sleeves, Vice City is as gloriously retro as any Atari compilation. Downsides? The graphics are still blurry and the loading delays excessive. And Judas Priest has no place in the 21st century. But GTA: Vice City shines like the finest 80s tracksuit and proves that even if crime doesn't pay, it certainly plays well. (GH)
Iron Storm
PC £29.99 4x Studio/ Wanadoo ***
Iron Storm puts an interesting spin on the post-apocalyptic back story that underpins so many first-person shoot-'em-ups: it is set in 1964, but the Great War has been raging for 50 years. You play Lieutenant James Anderson, part of a European force fighting the Russo-Mongolians.
This bizarre premise sets up trench-style warfare with modern technology weaponry, which proves to be fun. Anderson is sent on various missions behind enemy lines, mixing a modicum of Metal Gear Solid-style stealth play with sniping and close quarters combat - both in first and third-person mode. But while Iron Storm is pretty competent - it looks good, has plenty of atmosphere and the weaponry is well thought out - it lacks that elusive X-factor.
Since you perform missions solo, the thrill of participating in huge assaults, as seen in Battlefield 1942 and Medal Of Honour, is absent. The artificial intelligence controlling the computer players is serviceable at best. And the multiplayer side of the game is extremely basic - it will never wrest the hardcore multiplayer gaming fraternity away from Unreal Tournament 2003.
It is a game that provides enjoyment without threatening to change your life. However, it does suggest that hitherto unfancied French publisher Wanadoo is moving in the right direction. (SB)
Age of Mythology
PC £39.99 Ensemble/ Microsoft ****
Despite fashionable resentment of Bill Gates and everything he turns his hand to, Microsoft is one of the top games publishers, with nearly every release boasting high production values and thoughtful design. Xbox has diverted some of the attention, but with Dungeon Siege already out, this is a solid contender for game of the year.
Age of Mythology may only be an evolution of the popular Age of Empires series, but once again, it oozes stability and attention to detail. By picking three cultures (Greek, Egyptian and Norse) with a particularly strong religious iconography, the classic real time strategy (RTS) formula is enriched with more than your usual foot-soldiers and battering rams.
With more than 30 levels and three campaigns, AOM constantly surprises you with new units to explore - in particular the "myth" units that justify the title. Hero units have featured in such games before, most recently in Warcraft 3, but AOM's are more impressive due to our familiarity with the likes of Odysseus. The single-player campaign is also brilliantly constructed, linking the three cultures seamlessly as you pursue the evil Cyclops Gargarensus from Greece to Hades and beyond.
AOM is not as memorable as its prequels; however, it is supremely playable and keeps Ensemble at the top of the RTS tree - which is more than you can say for former pace-setters Westwood. This is a game to enjoy, rather than place in any pantheon of landmark achievements. (MA)
