Medieval: Total War
PC £29.99 Creative Assembly/ Activision ****
The PC as a gaming platform has been much maligned recently. Cheap and powerful consoles have narrowed the technological gap, while a reliance on established genres has stifled creativity. Nevertheless, there are games that only a PC can do properly, such as Medieval: Total War. This strategy game covers 400 years of political and religious combat, from the crusades of 1095 to the fall of Constantinople in 1453.
The action is split into two main sections, a turn-based Risk-style map view, where players move armies, train recruits and indulge in diplomatic manoeuvrings, and the 3D battle scenes, where all hell breaks loose. Both sections have enough depth and subtlety to be games in themselves, but it is the combat scenes that impress. More than 10,000 troops can be seen in battle at once, and tactics and terrain awareness are essential. The temptation may be to charge straight into the enemy, but tactical nous is nearly always more successful.
Whether it's laying siege to a castle in France or fighting across an Asian desert, there is immense variety, although it can be overwhelming. Commanding so many troops can be difficult, and keeping track of diplomatic faux pas while building up military supplies can be hard work for gamers more used to Quake or Mario. But persevere, as commanding a victorious military campaign is undeniably satisfying. Throw in the stack of historical information - which is genuinely educational - and you have a game that will last years. (GH)
The Thing
PC £29.99 PS2 £39.99 Xbox £44.99 Computer Artworks/ Vivendi Universal ****
Games of films have become an extension of the Hollywood merchandising machine, but The Thing restores some faith. It is based on a cult John Carpenter horror classic, which can only be a good sign, and it becomes clear that this UK-developed game uses its movie theme as a means of generating a new method of gameplay.
Although it adheres to the action-adventure genre, The Thing throws up new ideas, cleverly cribbed from the movie. You start off as commander of a military mission to a hostile, sub-zero environment. Before long, you become aware that your multi-skilled team is prey to human emotions such as fear and panic, which makes sense in the context of stalking aliens that can take on human form. Thus, you must work out how to kill the aliens while keeping your men from descending into hysteria.
The result is an unusually believable, deeply immersive game that replicates the spine-tingling provided by the best horror films. In other words, it takes on the likes of Resident Evil and shows them the way forward. Carpenter has given it his seal of approval. A must for all adult gamers who prefer their digital fodder more cerebral than the norm, yet it is packed with wall-to-wall action. Like the film, it is a cult classic. (SB)
Divine Divinity
PC £29.99 CDV/ Larian Studios ****
With "3D" being the watchword of PC role-playing games, it would seem that isometric role-playing adventures such as Baldur's Gate have become almost retro, relegated to the shelf of "games we used to play". Enter Divine Divinity.
Its name may be a tautology but the game itself is an epic RPG, rich in storyline, immersive in gameplay and long in playing hours. That's not to say that bigger is necessarily better but, as Morrowind proved, gamers are prepared to put much of their life on hold to indulge in a world that is well crafted.
In some ways, Divine Divinity is a 2D equivalent of that aforementioned game, with a seamless enviroment where you can literally walk - somewhat laboriously - from farmland to forest to cavern without having to worry about abrupt loading times between areas. Graphically, the world is beautifully detailed and anything that is not nailed down can be used in some way.
Household objects can become weapons, boulders can be thrown at enemies, herbs can be picked to make potions and even rubbish or rotting food can be turned into poison and used to enhance your weaponry.
The games that dress themselves up in flashy technology, while trying to hide the fact that gameplay and story-wise they are naked, should take heed. Although it does little that hasn't been done before, everything that it does do is done with conviction and a desire to create a great gaming experience. (RP)
