Computer Corner

Age of Empires
Buccaneer
Civil War Generals 2
A Bridge Too Far

Games Editor - Graham Empson

As you will see in this edition the review situation has improved, though more are always welcome. I had a trawl through the junk mail I kept in a box during 1997, prior to its final disposal, and found a couple of items I think are worthy of a look at least but didn't make it into the column first time round. If you have any money left after Christmas then have a scout around the sales. This is where they sell those games that didn't quite sell out in the Christmas rush, at a much more amenable price. My letter to Santa was answered and I am now the proud owner of Sid Meier's Gettysburg so look out for the review.

Age of Empires published by Microsoft. This game is said to combine the historic and strategic concepts of Civilization with the real-time action of Command and Conquer. As the guiding light of your tribe you have to find the path that will make you the greatest civilization on Earth. There are twelve civilizations to choose from, random map generation, dozens of units, military technology, naval technology etc. All you have to do is direct the research path which results in achieving the ultimate goal. {Late news from the editor, a well known Civilization fan, indicates that he now has this game in his possession so a review will arrive in the future no doubt}. [I really am taken with this game. Excellent value for money, highly recommended and a full review will be in Lone Warrior 123, if I can drag myself away from the game long enough to do one! Kenn]

Buccaneer published by SSI. Set in the 17th Century this game offers high-seas action with some land combat and resource management thrown in. You can either enter the world of the buccaneer with the campaign option or choose combat only. The combat operates in real-time and is said to be fast and furious, fighting ship-to-ship, boarding actions, hand-to-hand actions the goal being to destroy the enemy and survive yourself. The campaign option has six story lines for variety with the object being to get bigger and better ships, retain crew loyalty, have loads of adventures in the Caribbean ending up with wealth and amnesty. It a fully rendered 3D environment, multi-player option and a realistic sailing model. It appears to be a new slant on the recent Naval games so could be well worth a look.

My thanks to Sandy 'Destroyer' Weaver for the following:-

Close Combat 2 - A Bridge Too Far published by Microsoft. This caught my eye mainly because I had seen some blurb when the original working title of this game was Close Combat - Operation Market Garden. Obviously someone thought A Bridge Too Far would be better known, especially as Cornelius Ryan wrote a book which turned into a film by that name. This is a real-time, strategy game which puts you in command of either the Allies or Axis forces during Operation Market Garden with the objective to control the five bridges across the Waal, Maas and the Rhine. It features tactical combat and a new added strategic layer for the armchair Generals. There is a customiser called 'Battlemaker' which permits the editing of numerous settings including deployment zones, force mix, victory locations. With the same engine base as the original Close Combat, it must merit at least a cursory investigation.

My thanks to Andy 'Flight Sim' Midgely for this ACW snippet which I had missed but now have duly noted.

Civil War Generals 2 by Impressions {now part of Sierra}. I spotted this and thought of you. In this game you get to relive or re-write history of the whole American Civil War. You can be Lee, Sherman, Grant or Jackson, plan whole campaigns or individual battles. You have to consider the morale of your troops, supply capabilities, best use of terrain, what weapons you have and when and how to employ them. You have to set up your headquarters, command your units, build pontoon bridges, allocate their weaponry from a choice of 60, so the think time could be at a premium. It has film footage, multimedia history, map editor and 40 battles included so there should be enough to keep you busy for a good while, anyway its got to be worth a look.

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