Game Review: Red Alert 2

Well its time for another review: This time in the red corner the Soviets, aannnd in the blue corner we have the Allies!

Yes, that's right, we are back to the Cold War days with Red Alert 2! Although, admittedly, I don't think they had attack dolphins or Tesla troops the first time 'round. Red aleart 2 is a Real Time Strategy (RTS) set in a world on the brink or war, it follows on from the first Red Alert, though is vastly superior in the graphics, game-play and, well... pretty much every other department as well.

RA2 was released October 2000 and because of its age require only the most basic of system requirements. A 266 MHz Processor, 64 Mb of RAM and a tiny 2 Mb graphics card. This means that even I can run it.. and run it well. While the graphics and interfaces may not be as smooth or as shiny as modern games RA2 still gives a decent account of itself.

The game focuses on the two campaign branches; Allies and Soviets. They each have the same basic units and structures, though with differing power, build time and cost. The units begin to differ then more advanced units and structures begin to be built. After a Battle Lab is built the Allies can obtain such units as the Prism Tank or Aircraft Carrier, while the Soviets get the Apocalypse Tank and Kirov Airship.

Each side has its own pros and cons; the allies seem have have more technologically advanced, though not necessarily more powerful than the soviets, while the soviets seem to go for the brute force method. While each are powerful in their own way it is up to the user to decide what they like best. (Personally I just cant resist the temptation of trying to get capture the enemy buildings and get Apocalypse tanks AND Prism tanks.)

There are a number of ways of earning money to purchase units and buildings; the most common method is simply using Miner trucks to collect the resources so wantonly scattered around the map. You can also capture Oil Rigs, which produce a constant supply of money, at least until the enemy get tired of you throwing tanks at him and bombs it into oblivion. You can also find power-up crates which will give various bonuses, sometimes a unit promotion, sometimes a speed upgrade, and of course, sometimes money.

This is a well built game, which still holds its appeal for those who cant run top of the line games (or the new Command & Conquer). Its graphics are well designed and the intermittent live-acting film clips give great breaks in the combat.

I'm giving it 91/100.

Game Review: Evony

I have decided to do a couple of reviews for games I play.

This week we go to one I only started recently: Evony

www.evony.com

Evony is a MMO, a massive multiplayer online game. The aim is to build your empire and bring more land under your control. There are, at the moment 82 servers, most of them pretty full, however new servers are being brought out, literally, every day.

The game can run on PCs with quite low specifications, as I can attest. I have a Pentium 3.0GHz processor, 440Mb RAM, 58Mb Graphics and a 56k Internet connection. Evony plays quite well, though with a little lag when I give multiple commands at once.

It is reasonably easy to get started, you just sign up with an email address and you are playing. You begin the game under ‘beginner protection’, a wonderful construct designed to stop you getting raided the moment you appear. It gives you 7 days protection from enemy attacks, meaning you have time to get some basic defences set up. Even for those who are completely new to the game it is fairly easy to pick up, with a few easy quest chains helping you to set up your town straight away.

The actual game play is fairly simple, though can get quite challenging as you build up your town. It gives you the opportunity to attack NPC (non-player character) controlled valleys which will earn you certain bonuses depending on their type; deserts will raise stone production while forests will raise lumber production. This brings a new element into the game: strategy. Should you attack a low level grassland, or a slightly higher level desert, you may get a better reward with the desert, but you may also lose the battle. Another NPC controlled area are the plains: capture these and, if you have enough resources and workers, you can build yourself another city. This is a great opportunity, but can result in difficult decisions: eg. which town to upgrade?

Like most MMOs you can join guilds or ‘alliances’. Personally, I highly recommend getting into an alliance quickly. These alliances are generally helpful and will give plenty of advice to newcomers. Alliances can also become allies, or even declare ‘war’ on each other.

There are only a few points against this game, mostly the long waiting times once you have established your basic town. Level three walls, for instance, take two or three hours to build, and some of the technologies will take just as long. This waiting time is offset by ‘speedup’ scrolls, which cut build time off a structure. These scrolls can be purchased with real world money, or by winning them in the daily lottery.

This game is great for those who can't be playing constantly: you can start building something, shut down your computer and come back in a few hours when it's finished. Those who like more action in their games should perhaps avoid Evony, but this game is perfect for the casual gamer or those fond of strategy.

Rating: 87/100

If anyone else is on Evony visit me at: server 82 (465,416) ROMAGNA, DarthLuke