nteractive entertainment's new world standard i

printed in the UK

W I N T E R 1 9 9 4 £ 4 . 9 9 wi t h C o v e r d i s c

EA’s Wing
Commander III
The $6 M illion Game A rrives
Reviewed Inside: FIFA,
Super Street Fighter IIX,
Seed For Speed, Slayer.
Samurai Shodown, Theme
Park, World Cup Golf &
every other UK 3DO game.
Previews include: Gex,
Cyber Clash, Space Hulk,
Flying Nightmares, Rebel
Assault & more.

i j j i

i3D O
TM

SAMPLER DISC: To be distributed solely with th

3DO magazine and not for resole interactive

The Horde Total Eclipse

Defend your village Blistering arcade action
against monsters in this with this stunning 3D
hilarious playable demo. shoot-’em-up.

Sewer Shark
Claustrophobic blaster
Pebble Beach
Supremely realistic golf
O f f - W o T I M T t-| t p v p p n t n r
? T UI 1 1 1X X J. 1 /vJ X
W IN A 3 D 0
with superb FMV and simulation - one playable O ne o r tw o -p la y e r a c tio n in th is fa n t a s t ic sc i-fi r o a d r a c e r
addictive gameplay. hole to negotiate! fr o m C r y s ta l D yn a m ics. U n m iss a b le p la y a b le dem o. & World Cup
PLUS: G rinders, D ragon's Lair, D r axon s Revenge & Way O f The W arrior from U.S. Gold
E L E C T R O N IC ARTS
No. 2 in a Series: EA LARD
p re se n ts its nutritiou s! i t s delicious! A m ) i t s spreadable!
I'bat ’s right, H CiV E jA L a r d ^^ is the an sw er to a l l y o u r

3 D 0 g a m in g problems.
A ()ess e r t spoon fu l o f

FA L a rd ™
An has a l l the v ita l

EXCLUSIVE n u trien ts am )

m ore th an enough
range
energy to keep
yO ll Clt it forh

3D 0

GAMING

accessories

For more information about EA's range of software for the 3DO,M Interactive Multiplayer’** system, call 0753 546 465 or write to Electronic Arts, PO
Box 835, Slough, Berkshire SL3 8XU. Unless indicated otherwise, all software is ©1994. Electronic Arts Ltd. • FIFA International Soccer is an official licensed FIFA
product. • All Road Rash music courtesy of and available on A&M Records Inc. • Road Rash, Need For Speed, EA SPORTS and the EA SPORTS logo aie trademarks
of Electronic Arts Ltd. • Electronic Arts is a registered trademark of Electronic Arts. • 3D0, the 3D0 logo and Interactive Multiplayer are trademarks of The 3D0 Company.
But dual- purpose EA L a r d rM u aU>

excellent in su lation . A.* the night.* 3 DO

©
m ea r y o u rse lf with ROAD RASH™
Motorcycle mania on the lawless
s tr e e ts of to m o rro w . Race
EA L a rd ™ to keep out the against Am erica's most vicio us
bikers, speeding through photo­
re a listic c ity sc a p e s at a fram e
rate unim aginable on anything
(hiring thooe but 3D 0. T h e in te n se ro ck
soundtrack features cutting-edge
indie rock from So u ndg arden ,
Therapy?, Swervedriver, Monster
M agnet, Paw and Ham m erbox,
and there's nearly 30 minutes of
video footage.

sessions. ©
ROAD & TRA CK® p resen ts

N EED FO R S P EED ™
G e t b e h in d th e w h e e l of $6
m illion worth of super-charged
super-cars. Choose from eight of
the world's most awesom e feats
of high-performance engineering,
re c re a te d fo r 3D 0 and 3-D
re n d e re d d o w n to th e fin e s t
detail. From the gleaming exterior
to the upholstered interior, every
spark plug and cockpit dial's in
place. Race through 65 miles of
photo realistic land scapes, but
d o n ’t p la y c h ic k e n on th e se
roads - head-on crashes register
on the Richter scale.

©
FIFA
IN TERN A TIO N AL
SO CCER
You've never seen football like
th is b e fo re . T h o u s a n d s of
fram es of anim ation have gone
into each player, and there are
over 1,000 featured players from
50 international teams! View the
action from 7 different TV-style
roving cam eras, and replay your
b e st m o m e n ts w ith N etC am ,
BallCam and FreeCam. Six of you
can battle it out sim ultaneously
a c c o m p a n ie d by C D -q u a lity
m usic and chants, and there are
dozens of full-screen video clips
fro m c la s s ic in te rn a tio n a ls to
e n jo y . It ’s th e m o st r e a lis t ic
soccer sim ever created.

WITH I Wm J -J
SALVIStS Us
U 4 i U U i U ' n 'JiW J E L E C T R O N I C ART S
 Club 3D0:
Station Invasion...

Introducing the first truly interactive kids' TV show that

never be the
en rich es and entertains. You've never se e n anything like
this. An e d u catio n al title that's actu a lly fun.
Kids have taken over a lo ca l TV station and you have
been hired a s the producer. You will com e fa c e to fa c e with
the television stars - real life video ch a ra cte rs - a n unusual bunch who need your help.
same again.
But beware, the better you get. the harder the gam e becom es. Even when you have a sm ash hit on your hands, you may find
your friends have been hired to se e if they c a n do a better job.
The content is d esig n ed by te a ch e rs to e n h a n ce the understanding of the arts and sc ie n c e s, and the gam e even
adjusts to match your ability.
Station Invasion d evelo p s thinking and memory, a s well a s problem solving capabilities.
Station Invasion ■Kids' TV will never be the sam e again.

The 3D0 system and 300 software are available from Game Limited, selected HMV stores. Virgin Megastores
and all good independent dealers. Call: 0800 444000 for your local dealer. 300 ond the 300 logos ond Stotion Invosion ore trodemorks of The 300
Company. © 1994 The 300 Company. All rights reserved. 3 DO
 ED ITO R
stuart w ynne

D E S IG N E R
m ark w ynne

W R IT E R S
stuart w ynne
m ark w ynne o
C O N T R IB U T O R S
ryan butt
dino boni
3DO
PR E-PR ESS

magazine
M AN AG ER
alan russell
SCAN N ER
O PERATO R
suzzane ryan

GRO U P AD
M AN AG ER
ian kenyon
S E N IO R
A D SA LES
diana monteiro

♦aoi
A D SA LES N ew s ...................................................................................................................................... 06
alan walton A new 3DO system , 3DO D oom a n d a g a m e s ta r rin g D en n is H opper
A D D E S IG N
christa fairchild
alex tilbury
PC 3DO? 08
C reative L abs h a ve a vision o f th e fu tu r e fo r PCs: th e 3DO B la ste r
P R O D U C T IO N
D IR E C TO R
di tavener
Interview Trip H aw kin s 11
In te ra c tiv e d re a m s by th e CEO a n d P resid en t o f T he 3DO C om pany
PU BLISH ER
richard monteiro
Interview R J M ical 12
A SST. PU BLISH ER D eveloping a 64bit 3DO fu tu r e w ith th e sy stem ’s co-designer
stuart w ynne

R E C E P T IO N IS T
Interview R ich a rd M armoy 13
G ettin g R E A L in th e UK w ith P a n a so n ic
p a u la w o o d
SU B S
karen sharrock Inside 3D O ................................................................................................................... 14
c 0202 299900
A com prehensive look a t th e 3DO sy ste m ’s p a st, p re se n t & fu tu re...
COVER ARTWORK
© 1 9 9 4 O rig in R eturn O f The J ed i 17
M ark H a m ill sta rs in th e $6 m illio n videogam e: W ing C o m m a n d er I II
PRINTED IN U K BY
Duncon Webb Offset ltd.
Gam ers E xtraordin aire 22
D ISTR IBU TO R H ow to becom e th e w o rld ’s fir s t in te ra c tiv e stu d io o f th e fu tu r e
Seymour
int. press,
W indsor house, Even B etter Than The R eal Thing 24
12 7 0 london ro ad F lyin g h ig h w ith th e 3D O ’s fir s t rea l flig h t sim
norbury, london
s w l 6 4dh
r 08 1 6 7 9 1 8 9 9 R eview s ............................................................................................................................... 29
IS S N : 1 3 5 5 9 6 2 1
E very a v a ila b le UK 3DO release review ed in fu ll, in c lu d in g
IMPORTANT NOTICES N eed For Speed, Sam urai Shodown, Super SFII X, Them e Park <6 m ore
• "3DO" is a trademark of
The 3D O Company,
Redwood City, California,
94063, U S A ., and is used U. S. Gold C om petition 63
...................................................................
by Paragon Publishing Ltd
under license from the W in a 3DO S ystem fro m th e p u b lis h e rs o f World Cup Golf
owner
"3DO,M M agazine” is an
independent
publication and is not P review s .............................................................................................................................65
affiliated with The 3DO
Company The 3DO 3DO experiences to com e w ith O peration JumpGate, P ow er Slide,
Company is not responsible
in any way for the editorial Space Hulk, Syndicate, Time2Die, V irtuoso & more...
policy or other contents of
this publication
• The "3D O ,M Interactive
Sampler” 3D O disc will run
in letterbox format on PAL
systems
 news
ioa*

3 DO STRIKES GO LD PEARSON G O FOR

31
)0 3DO's campaign to conquer America has received a pressure Panasonic over its prices. GoldStar is one of BLOOD
major boost with the recent launch of GoldStar's 3DO the world's largest electronics manufacturers, operating
system. Properly referred to as a GoldStar GPA101M , in 180 countries with gross sales exceeding $6 billion, The Pearson group, who diverse interests include the
its spec is essentially identical to Panasonic's FZ-1 and and has a reputation for being very price competitive. Financial Times, continues with its multimedia crusade.
will initially retail at the same $399 pricepoint. As for aesthetics, the GPA101M is a much more con­ After acquiring Mindscape earlier in the year, it has
However, the presence of a second manufacturer is ventionally styled, hifi-style system than the FZ-1 while helped fund the company's $11.5 million take over of
bound to further increase pressure on a price which has its Sega-style joypad feels better than it looks. SSI, America's premier software developer for RPGs and
already fallen by over 50% from the its 1993 launch. wargames. SSI already has one 3DO game on the mar­
The more reasonable price, and a deluge of great 3DO ket called Slayer (see page 47). Also joining the group
games, has helped build the US market to some 70,000 is Atreid Concept, a French company whose software
units and the new ad campaign aims to increase the tools caught Mindscape's eye. O f particular interest are
numbers even further. The president of Schwarz, a LibSys and 3DBioMotion - cross-platform and animation
major US toy chain, claimed the videogame market was packages respectively. The latter is the prime attraction
set to boom over Xmas and no system would be "hotter of Warriors, an SFII clone with ten warriors from around
or brighter" than GoldStar's. the world meeting in one-on-one combat. Hyper-realistic
The Korean-based company became a 3DO partner animation, and of course plenty of gore, make this one
in March 1994, and first shipped their system there in to watch out for. Also slated for 3DO release is AMAZE,
September. A European launch in Spring 1995 is a unique first-person perspective SF sports sim for up to
expected, but not yet confirmed, and will again act to eight players.

grow with them over time."

CENTURY FIFA__________ Underneath the hype, the company had some sub­
stantial achievements to announce with that 1(X) titles
Due to either an amazing stroke of luck, or clever sched­ being undoubtedly the most important. Hawkins' claim
uling, The 3DO Company not only managed to that it's a real milestone is incontrovertible: "W e believe
announce 100 software releases on the anniversary of that we've shattered the record for the amount of time
its October launch, but also that the magical 100th it's taken for a new format to reach 100 titles. Atari's
release was none other than Electronic Art's European Jaguar has only a handful of titles after nearly a year on
hype-monster, FIFA International Soccer. 3DO CEO Trip the market." Such a broad software base has been criti­
Hawkins claimed the past year "has brought about a cal in its sales success, 3DO estimating over 250,000
remarkable change in the way that people look at inter­ units have already been sold globally.
active entertainment. Consumers are no longer satisfied
with outdated, limited interactive technology. They have
made it clear that they want an advanced, sophisticated WYLLIE PROM OTIONS
system that is supported by a wide selection of the very
best software available. And they want that system to 3DO's European agency, Fodor-Wyllie, is busily devel­
oping a very special club for 3DO owners. Included in
every single FZ-1 box is a form for owners to fill in and
send off. After Christmas, members will get a monthly
mailshot from the company to keep them up-to-date on
various happenings and special offers. The club is free
for the first six months, so make sure you get your appli­
cation off - there'll be lots of exclusive merchandising
available for the true 3DO devotee, and the promotional
artwork alone is apparently a masterpiece. The overall
4- *■ concept is "great balls of fire" according to rising media
star Grace 'in your face' Fodor.

graphics are even more impressive with backgrounds

DEMOLITION JO B and sprites actually digitised from the movie.
Unlike the dreadful Jurassic Park, the real actors have
While cynics have dubbed the synergy between been used and actually agreed to several
Hollywood and Silicon Valley as Sillywood, Virgin's days extra shooting just to provide
Demolition Man looks set to explode people's contempt extra footage for the game. While
for multimedia gaming. As with old, classic movie con­ gameplay was still being tweaked
versions such as RoboCop or Batman, Demolition Man as we went to press, there can
tries to recreate its movie licence with a variety of appro­ be no doubting Demolition Man
priate sub-games. Car chases, hand-to-hand combat is a technological milestone
and Op Wo/Tstyle first-person blasting provide the pre­ which finally makes interactive
dictable game genres, but the 3DO system raises this movies live up to their name with
tired format to a whole new level. Intro and interlevel no-stop arcade action. In fact,
FMV sequences are so extensive and tightly integrated there's actually a coin-op version
that you need hardly buy the videotape. In-game on the way!
THE ART O F DOOM
California-based Art Data Interactive have stunned the
3DO community by grabbing probably the most lucra­
new s I
tive licenses of them all. Early next year ADI will be W HO LE N EW W ORLD
releasing conversions of both Doom and Doom II: Hell
On Earth, iD Software's enormously successful 3D Welcome to the very first issue of 3DO magazine. It's meant
shoot-'em-ups. a lot of late nights getting it out in time, but it's also been fun
with the Christmas marlcet bringing a deluge of excellent
ADI have already been given iD's original source titles to bolster established classics such as Madden and
code and are hard at work converting it to 3DO. While Road Rash. Need For Speed has led to an almost endless
company president Randy Scott was insistent the game- occupation of our offices by writers from other magazines.
play would be identical: "there's no way we would The long-anticipated next generation of videogaming
has finally arrived. Over a year after its US launch, 3DO
touch that, it's just go out and shoot everything!", the
has picked up an exceptional list of titles to make its
game's presentation will be massively upgraded. 24bit interactive 3DO movie. As yet the title and design is European debut. EC regulations on the type of Japanese
Cinepak film sequences will provide in-game links, being kept tightly under wraps, but we expect to hear import mean it's still an expensive system, at £400 it's very
while actual game graphics are being entirely over­ more soon. Overall, Art Data plans to release at least much a machine for the elite gamesplayer, but no longer is
there an agonising wait between quality releases. What's
hauled. Rather than using 8bit colour bitmaps, ADI will five 3DO titles during 1995.
there is good, and games such as Wing Commander III,
be using hi-res, full colour sprites. The audio is also like­ To celebrate their mega-mogul status, Art Data have Flying Nightmares and Space Hulk illustrate how the system
ly to be totally redone, and there's even plans for new no less than five copies of their brilliant Rise O f The just keeps getting better.
monsters, weapons and levels. Robots conversion to give away. If you know the name Exactly what the future holds in the market as a whole is
difficult to predict. Will the latest wave of new superconsoles
ADI were previously best known for their relation­ of the game's developer simply write it on the back of a
live up to their hype? Maybe, but new generation games are
ship with Mirage, from whom they've licensed their just postcard or sealed envelope, and send it the Rise Of increasingly sophisticated and wading through Japanese
finished conversion of Rise O f The Robots. Another The 3DO competition, 3DO magazine, 124 Old text is no way to play an RPG. For at least another six
Mirage conversion seems likely, but in the meantime Christchurch Road, Bournemouth, BH1 IN F . The closing months, 3DO effectively has the English-speaking world to
they're hard at work on Hollywood sets filming for an date for the competition is the January 30th, 1995. itself and by year end it promises an upgrade to comfort­
ably exceed any other machine on the market. If 3DO suc­
ceed in their vision of a future-proof machine, then gamers
everywhere will be grateful ana maybe that world standard
isn't so far off.
This, however, is only my view and I'd very much like to
make clear 3DO magazine is an entirely independent publi­
cation. Our views are our own, and should in no way be
presumed to be those of the 3DO Company. Nevertheless
we'd very much like to thank the 3DO Company, particular­
ly Bob Faber and John Edelson for their co-operation.
Thanks also go to Jean, Grace and Melanie at Fodor-
Wyllie, all our interview subjects (who often contributed
many hours of their time), Marcus and Robin at TORC soft­
ware and all those PR people who've gone out of their way
566 1 : : 3 S

m i„,(M
2 uUn/ to support us.
rtM M u | H t r t L lH jS E ?
r t .t M b

HELL IS 3 DO
Dennis Hopper is heading up a cast of no less than fifty actors for
Gametek's epic 'interactive movie', Hell. While most games of its ilk
are nightmares of the less than pleasurable variety, Hell promises to
make damnation fun. Its developers, Take Two, have already pro­
duced one brilliantly original game, the vampire-cyberpunks hybrid
Bloodnet, and Hell is even more ambitious with a plot inspired by
Anne Rice, Poppy Z. Brite and a host of more academic writers on
Satan's cosy little retreat.
In the year 2094, the government is just a puppet of a money-
grubbing capitalist consortium who, in turn, have their strings being
pulled by Old Nick himself. Dennis Hopper and Grace Jones are
his agents on Earth, while the forces of good are represented by
Stephanie Seymour and Geoffrey Holder (Live and Let Die). All the
characters are represented by 3D rendered graphics except,
strangely, Seymour who's digitised because she's
a hologram (and not at all because she's a
supermodel). As with BloodNet, the game allows
for plenty of cyberpunk-style detective work hack­
ing into computers and jury-rigging special hard­
ware, but the plot is even more vividly imagina­
tive and provides a welcome break from all those
comedy adventure LucasArts have made so fash­
ionable. While the PC version is due out any day
now, the just announced 3DO version is set for a
March release.
 featur
ioa*

JD O

3DO's ambitions for creating a world standard for interactive entertainment are perfectly encapsulated
by the 3DO Blaster card. According to Creative Labs, it's the future of PC gaming.

he PC is a constant battleground for w ar­

ring stand ard s, so when a com pany
announces yet another one people don't
usually pay much attention. Creative Labs
aren't just any company though, their
Sound Blaster system is an industry standard for PC
audio and last year their turnover was in excess of half
a billion dollars. The company's commitment to 3DO
isn't on a whim either, they're a full partner and hard­
ware licensee of The 3DO Company.
Creative chairman Sim Wong Hoo sees the partner­
ship as merging "the consumer entertainment gaming
community with the multimedia marketplace. W e believe
that the relationship between Creative and 3DO will
allow us to drive new PC standards by offering high per­
formance, interactive products with a broad range of
appeal."
Ian Skelton, UK technical marketing manager, puts
the same message in more direct fashion: "I've been in
the computer business for over ten years, from ZX81 to
the BBC Micro and on, but I've never seen anything so
easy to use. Creative have been pioneering how to
make multimedia applications hassle-free on PCs, but
with games you're still alw ays having to go in and
reconfigure to suit your latest buy. With a 3DO Blaster, they're confident w ill exceed anything else that's In action, the system works just like any other
you just put in a CD and play the game. It's as simple as planned. Skelton is particularly emphasises its appeal Windows program; you can size the window from a
that. That's why we want to make it the standard for PC for people who are reluctant to splash out a couple of postage stamp to full screen and, because all the pro­
games. W e believe it's the way to go for the future, par­ grand for a Pentium 90 just to play the latest games. The cessing power is on the card, you can continue to run
ticularly on the PC." 3DO Blaster happily works on anything above a 386 at your favourite application. It also includes a VoiceAssist
While other PC companies are trying to develop their exactly the same speed as on a Pentium machine. There speech recognition engine designed to turn spoken key­
own custom graphics chips, Creative are currently solely are also no memory problems since it has its own words into commands, so that theoretically you could
committed to 3DO due to it being already established as onboard RAM, while an expansion port allows for an play a 3DO system game by saying "left", "right", "fire"
a standard. M2 provides a natural upgrade path which MPEG upgrade to play VideoCD titles. or whatever. A fun addition which might have some util­
ity for disabled people, if the system really can handle
Program Manager the numerous combination moves many games require.
p tc Options Window Help Inevitably a key question is going to be price and at
the time of going to press, this hadn't been decided.
3 0 0 B la ster M am
Jane Gibson insisted it would be "very competitive." At
various shows, the 3DO Blaster had caused "tremendous
interest... a fantastic response" and she expected it to be
300 Blast?* 300 Play*?* 300 Play*?* I F4e Manage* Control Panel Pint Manage* Qpboard
ReadMe ReadMe I Vtewa a big product this Christmas.
The first batch of 3DO Blasters will ship with the card
3D 0 P la y e r accompanied by a joypad and the games ShockWave
Eilc View Emulation Control Help and Cridders. To get it working you also need a Sound
30 0 Blaster 3D 0V k* »
Blaster Pro card, around £50 to buy but pretty much
Corfeguabort Overlay Setvp
standard with PCs, and a 563 CD-ROM drive, £110
new but as the bestselling CD-ROM Drive for the past
year many people will already own one. Hopefully the
all-in price will at least match, or even undercut the
•*
AT t AT t £399 FZ-1. However, in many ways the systems aren't
really competitive. If you want a 3DO systemunder your
Adobe
Prem?*e living room TV, a standalone console fits the bill. If, on
the other hand, you want red-hot videogaming as a has­
sle-free option on your PC, the 3DO Blaster is essential.
Either way the world of 3DO entertainment continues to
expand. □ ssw

3DO m agazine

Creative Labs can be contacted direct on 0 0 7 3 4 344322. j

AND IT PLAYS ROCK AND ROLL
AVAILABLE FOR: RELEASE DATE: 9th DECEMBER 1994
Virtuoso™ © 1994, Motivetime Ltd. Used under licence by Elite Systems Ltd. All rights reserved.

PC Elite' is a registered trademark of Elite Systems Ltd.

3DO, the 3DO logos and Interactive

Multiplayer are trademarks
3 . 5" of The 3DO Company.

D IS K

tt
E lite System s Lim ited , A n c h o r H o u se, A n c h o r R o ad , A ld rid g e , W a lsa ll, W est M id lan d s, W S9 8PW, E n g la n d .
T e le p h o n e : 0 1 0 4 4 9 2 2 5 5 8 5 2 Fax: 010 44 922 743 0 2 9
 TM

EXPERIENCE

Disaster! Seconds before the World Cup

final was due to begin an alien of the cup-collectin
kind swoops down and steals the World Cup troph

Double disaster!! The careless alien

collided with an orbiting asteroid and the top
trophy was smashed into five pieces which are now
scattered around the globe. Join football crazy
Soccer Kid in his quest to recover and reassemble
the World Cup. His un-ball-ievable soccer skills,
including dribbling, shooting,overhead kicks and
headers, are put to the test like never before.
Prepare to meet all manner of madcap characters \
in dozens of lush detailed locations ranging from \
England’s green and pleasant pastures, to the Italian' \
riviera, through Russia’s frozen forests. Take a ride on ^
Japan’s bullet train and end up on the rough and tough ci
streets of the U.S.A. It’s an awesome arcade action all the
way with a blistering soundtrack to match.

An action packed side-scrolling adventure game on

* the 3-DO platform!

More than 25 levels

s of gameplay!

* Vividly presented in
32,000 colours

Over 30 minutes of
original CD quality
stereo music

^ ^ ^ S t u n n in g
and in-game
animation

Teque House. Masons Yard. Downs Row.

M o o rg ate , R o t h e r h a m S 6 0 2 HD
Phone 0709 372290 Fax 0709 368403
 interview

31)0 Trip Hawking Interactive M essiah ?

Since stepping down from heading EA in December 1990, 3DO CEO
Trip Hawkins has been working to produce not just the first
'superconsole', but also establishing a worldwide standard for
interactive hardware. Stuart W ynne asked him about progress so far.

How long did it take for you to decide to become head chance in this business. Atari is w ay
of 3DO? short of that even with their recent settle­
"I've worked for over 20 years toward this goal of ment, and it is not yet clear what level
establishing interactive media as a new mass market. In of commitment that Sony will have once
a way, everything I've done before has culminated in they realise how much money they are
3DO. More specifically, back in 1990 I thought actively going to have to lose to hang in there.
about 3D O 's strategy for a year before I realised it Sega and Nintendo are the market
would be necessary for me to leave EA to run it." lead ers to d ay, but they a re losing
What have been the best and worst parts of 3DO. Has momentum and moving slow ly into
it been more difficult than expected? higher technologies that may be out of
"Most things in life are more difficult than you expected. their depth. Philips have done an am az­
Entrepreneurs are optimists otherwise they'd never try to ing job with a technology that w as
accomplish anything! I believe nonetheless that the key designed a decade ago. It would be
to success is determination and that if you stick with it nice if there were more collaboration to
you can resolve any obstacles that you run into. The create an industry standard instead of
hardest part has been waiting for the great software so many companies doing their own
titles like Road Rash that really show that the 3DO is as thing. W e're trying very hard to build a
good as we always said it was. The best part is now that multi-brand family and we now have
we have the great software titles. They're fun to play and four manufacturers in mass production
they blow people away!" (P a n a s o n ic , S a n y o , G o ld s ta r and
How did you negotiate such pow erful support for Creative Labs).
3DO? "Our technology strategy is unique
"It's an ongoing process. W e have tried to figure out compared to the videogame companies
how to make the business a win-win proposition for the in four respects. First, in our total com­
various participants. There are a lot of companies that mitment to price/performance leader­
believe the world deserves an interactive standard and ship. Second, in our belief that the cus­
we're trying to make it happen for them." tomer should be able to upgrade to the next generation. "We'd like to see modems become available in 1995. In
How do you see Studio 3DO developing? Third, because our architecture allows us to be back­ the long-run modems are important. I'm a big fan of
"Studio 3DO will focus on building a small library of ward compatible, software can migrate to the new gen­ multiple player games like Doom. Doom was not the first
unique software titles that are only available for the eration. And fourth, to scalability for developers so they point-of-view corridor game, but has popularised a
3DO format. W e will focus on doing original titles in can use what they already know about 3DO to make genre which is also very easy to put on the 3DO format
areas we think are critical to establishing the 3DO hard­ M2 products in the future. By contrast, the videogame because of our fast texture-mapping."
ware or which are complementary to what our third- companies have a history of substandard hardware per­ Will there be a 3DO computer?
party software suppliers are doing. Unlike them, we will formance, no upgrade path, no backward compatibility, "Our transition to the PowerPC in the next few years will
only make 3DO titles, and not be distracted by other for­ and no scalability." certainly open up some new possibilities."
mats, so I hope that we can become pretty darn good at How would you com pare a Pentium PC to a 3DO Timothy Leary has compared cyberspace to psyche­
making good 3DO titles." system? delia. What's your opinion?
What do you think of rival hardware which has sprung "A PC is still a PC. A Pentium is still a CISC processor "For me, cyberspace is an innerspace. It's dipping inside
up since 3DO's launch? with the wrong architecture for multimedia at low cost, your brain and getting you to use it under your own
"You need about $500 million in capital to have a good and it is still part of the PC which has the wrong bus control. It's a real life in a box. I love Tim but that's not
architecture for multimedia performance at reasonable exactly how I'd describe psychedelia, where you aren't
cost. A Pentium costs more but still cannot do many of really much in control, and it's more like unreal life
Profile the things that a 3DO system can already do." unleashed from the box. O f course one of the things you
Trip Hawkins has been in the computer business for How important do you see 3DO's MEPG upgrade? can do with 3DO is simulate psychedelia..."
20 years, starting out at Apple Computer. He left in "In the long-run, MPEG will get to be so cheap that it will W hat are your favourite 3DO games?
1982 to found Electronic Arts and, from an initial $2 be an automatic. In the short-run, it is for video aficiona­ "Twisted, because I love the family entertainment and
million investment, turned the company into the dos. For gamers, we can do pretty darn good video universality of it. Burning Soldier because it is simple
world's largest independent software publisher. In without MPEG simply because 3DO is a powerful system and entertaining and can be played co-operatively.
1990, Hawkins formed The 3DO Company, winning with a double-speed CD drive. As a gamer, I am happy Road Rash because it kicks butt. FIFA Soccer because I
early support from partners such as Matsushita, the with the video in titles like Road Rash, Shock Wave, The have never seen anything like getting six people over for
world's largest consumer electronics company, enter­ Horde and Sewer Shark." dinner and watching them scream and yell and raise the
tainm ent g ian ts M C A and T im e -W a rn e r and When will a 3DO modem arrive? Do you like network roof playinq that qame." □ _____
a 3DO magazine
Electronic Arts. games like Doom?
 interview
♦■ Ol

H ) 0
leal
Architect Of The Future
RJ Mical is one of the most influential men in videogaming history. Working with as much as possible to keep the price down."
What about memory? The chips keep getting more
David Needle, he's designed a revolutionary computer, handheld and most recently,
powerful, but RAM is limited.
the 3DO system itself. Currently he's hard at work engineering 3DO's next step. "Right, and that's why we've tried to at all time to create
a machine that does as much of the work in hardware
According to legend 3DO was originally designed on a What's it like working with Trip Hawkins? as possible. Especially in having a lot of different for­
napkin... 'Trip is one of the most brilliant persons I've ever known. mats for data compression built into the system, so that
"Yes, the 3DO was first sketched out on a napkin while He regularly astonishes me with his intelligence and data itself can take up less RAM and you can therefore
we [RJ, Needle and David Morse] were having lunch in cleverness... It's delightful to work with him. It's also have that much more rich detail both for graphics and
a restaurant in September 1989. The final system is hard, because Trip is very demanding, very particular, audio. We have a lot, a lot of compression algorithms to
more or less exactly what we sketched out.... W e've critical, and frank. Trip expects the very best. That's one handle the graphics, but also with audio. We have a lot
been inventing things together for many years now and of the key reasons why 3DO has been so successful." of different convenient ways for you to handle audio
the way we work together is quite special. Dave does What is the most impressive thing you've seen on 3DO data, so that you can have compression and lower reso­
hardware, I do software, but when we first set out to so far? lution audio that's handled automatically by the system,
design a thing we make no real distinction between "Well, that's a hard one - there's a lot of them. Probably with the audio track spiffed up to sound as good is it can
hardware and software, instead we treat it as an amor­ the single most coolest thing would be the visual and with the data it has. Memory is always going to be real
phous concept that will get teased apart into hardware audio realism of FIFA International Soccer. This game a big concern. PC owners do have 8 and 16Mb systems,
and software components over time. Once we under­ looks and feels so real that the players feel they're really they pay thousands of pounds for them. They won't be
stand (more or less) the nature of what we're creating, in the game!" paying thousands of pounds for our rig."
then we go off to work on our respective parts. And All your previous designs have centred on sprite It must be interesting developing software for it.
that's when the real magic begins, because that's when graphics. Do you think 3D has become overrated? "It's a lot of fun creating those tools. One of the things
the real brains get involved, engineers who take our "I think 3D realism is extremely important. That's why we we're going to see a lot of on the M2 are applications
basic ideas and flesh them out into systems that always designed the 3D O system to have the horsepower that will use actual human forms. People acting out ani­
do more than we originally imagined." required to create 3D games such as Off-World or Road mal shapes and things like that, where you will actually
When did you decide to adopt the Operating System Rash. Furthermore, the M2 Accelerator will add the next record the movement that that human form is going
approach and what are its advantages? generation of 3D graphics capabilities and audio that's through. They call it Motion Capture. It's the art of
"Before we linked up with Trip and his grand plan to the next step beyond today's 3DO system." putting sensors on a body, so if you were going to do a
create a standard, we had no intention of requiring M2 is said to offer at least five times the performance tennis game, you would put sensors on the body of a
developers to use the Operating System. But the stan­ of Sony's PlayStation. How will you achieve this? tennis player and record him. The end result is anima­
dard meant we needed to allow the hardware system to "When we set out to design the M2 Accelerator, we tion that is extraordinarily realistic."
evolve and expand over time, and also that all software decided to build a development team with a broad When will it be finished?
would always run on all versions of the hardware. So it range of experience, some from the games industry, "ITs coming along nicely, software is being developed
was essential to create an impenetrable layer of system some with high-end graphics engine hardware and soft­ already based on early versions of the system. I don't
software between the application and the hardware. ware experience, some of the best 3DO people and know what the exact release dates are, I know that we're
"Trip was actually strongly opposed to my plan for some very special new people hired in. Then we took talking about having the system and software available
OS in the very beginning because of EA's experiences our time and evolved the technology in a way that satis­ by Christmas next year."
with the Amiga's O S. But I convinced Trip that an OS fied everyone's design criteria. The result: M2 is a blind­ How would you compare the existing 3DO to a PC?
was essential. He wanted the standard and this was the ingly fast 3D engine with a multitasking O S, it will do "Not only do programs run faster on 3DO, but they also
only way that I could conceive of that would allow us to incredible games, will continue the 3DO standard, and look much better, too, giving the user a more rich and
create it. But even when he became convinced, he still is expandable... I've been involved recently in several satisfying experience. The 3DO has so many powerful
gave me the evil eye as a threat that if my OS was horri­ demonstrations of M2's performance, including demos features that it's taken time for developers to understand
ble and buggy and people hated it, that it would mean I've written myself, and the results are very exciting!" and take advantage of them all. But it's happening now.
my doom. Quote me on that! [Laughs] Delightfully the Will it be 64bit? Look at titles such as Road Rash, Off-World Interceptor
OS is bugfree. I'm sure if you talk to developers they "It's a real 64bit system, throughout the whole of the sys­ or FIFA International So ccer. These are superb 3D
generally have very favourable comments." tem. A lot of the other systems that talk about being games with lots of depth and detail. 3DO games will
64bit don't quite live up to it, because there are certain always look more natural and realistic than PC games
lower bit data widths which will ultimately be their real because the 3DO was designed to work with a televi­
Profile bottlenecks and limit their performance. One of the other sion, not a computer monitor. People turn to computers
RJ Mical began his career at Williams, programming things that we've done is our whole system architecture, when they want crisp numbers, and they turn to their TVs
coin-op special effects before moving to Am iga the way the memory and the DMA devices and every­ when they want real-life entertainment."
Computer where he developed the machine's revolu­ thing else is laid out is designed for maximum perfor­ What would you like to say to sum up 3DO?
tionary multitasking operating system. His partner mance. A lot of the other people that put these systems 'The thing I'd emphasise most about 3DO is the quality
there was David Needle, with whom he subsequently together lack this overall system architecture approach, of the employees. The overall company spirit, the excite­
designed the world's most powerful handheld, the which gives us inherent performance advantages." ment and passion and drive that we still have around
Atari Lynx, before dreaming up the 3DO system. Will the M2 basically drive the 3DO system? here. The company is already 400 strong but it still has
Today he is a vice-president and fellow of The 3DO "ITs more accurate to say they co-exist because we're the quality of a start-up in the commitment people bring
Company, heavily involved in supporting software going to be able to use a lot of the resources of the here. It's an exhilarating place to work, I love working
developers, designing the M2 upgrade and further 3D O ; the CD Drive, power supply - things like that. here!" □
3DO magazine
evolving the 3DO system's architecture. W e're going to be able leverage off the existing system
 interview
♦
s
D O
R ic h a rd M a rm o y
Getting REAL in the UK
For the past year, Richard Marmoy has been masterminding the UK
campaign to get a 3DO into your home. Panasonic's REAL branded 3DO
system, the FZ-1, has a predominant role in the UK market likely to last
well into 1995. Stuart W ynne asked him about his plans for the future.

How pleased are you with the FZ -l's progress so far? than the FZ-l's motorised drawer. In part
"Very. There were a lot of people who doubted us, but because of the ridiculous EC 14% levy,
we always knew we'd do it. Now the machine's selling imposed because since they classify it as
through and software houses are finding their 3DO titles a video recorder, we don't expect to
keep selling out - many have had to re-order two or bring the price down on its UK release -
three times to keep up demand. I'm confident we'll com­ around June. However, because it's easi­
fortably exceed our targets." er to build we do expect to be bringing
How do you see Panasonic's 3DO software side devel­ in a lot more units and that will be the
oping? start of a new promotional push. W e
"W e expect to have at least half-a-dozen releases for think this is the unit which is best suited
next year, probably more. W e've got plenty of people to the big multiples."
coming to us, asking for us to publish their titles over There seems a lot happening with 3DO
here, so we'll see - because of the economics of it they'll peripherals...
all have to be high quality titles, it doesn't make sense "There's a whole bunch of stuff coming
for us otherwise. W e're also involved in developing our out in Japan and we're deciding now
own titles... as for buying a software house, we've what w e're going to take. There's a
looked at it. There are cost advantages in getting in mouse, a kaoroke unit (I think w e're
there early with a game, but from what we've seen you going to decline that one!), a mouse and
can have ten titles in development and only have three a storage box add-on which gives a few
come out, with just one - hopefully - being a big extra features, including extra memory
enough hit to cover your costs. It's something we're con­ for saving games."
sidering though." Are there any other developments of
SSFIIX is obviously your biggest release so far. 3DO technology in the w o rk s . Like
"It's a cracking title, arcade perfect. Capcom have even building the 3DO system into normal
designed and built their own special six-button pad to CD players?
go with it and w ell get that out at the same time as the "Currently we're concentrating on get­
game. After all, it's pretty much essential to get the most ting a high installed base, but there are
out of the game and makes it play beautifully." plenty of plans for the future with mobile 3DOs, set-top closer. One of the fastest growing markets is the PC CD-
What's happening with the MPEG upgrade so people boxes with video-on-demand (as in 3D O trials in ROM and a large part of that is PC games, they're not
can play VideoCDs? America and Japan). W e're also looking at a PCMCIA as good as 3D O games I have to sa y, but games
"The NTSC version has just been released and it'll take a modem add-on so you could play games like Doom over nonetheless. But rather than having the PC moving from
few months to redesign it for PAL. W e also might update the network - there's plenty of ideas for the future. You the study to the living room for games, you could have
the control menus, but that's not decided yet. A release can be certain of that." the 3 DO system make the opposite move. When you
date of around May with a target price tag of £150 W hat about turning the 3DO system into a computer? have IBM, Motorola and Matsushita all getting together
seems most likely." "Yes, that's a definite possibility. Once the M2 arrives on something that's a very powerful alliance. It's this
What precisely is the FZ-10? with its PowerPC chip [the same as used by Apple and expandability which makes the 3DO system much more
"It has exactly the same features as the FZ-1, but it's IBM PCs] that possibility is obviously getting closer and than just another superconsole."
been redesigned so it can be manufactured even more W hat do you think of the M2 3DO upgrade?
efficiently. For example, if s got a fliptop CD Drive rather "Great stuff, extremely powerful, yet again us and 3DO
are developing the next step for interactive entertain­
ment. It's 64bit, packed with features and very, very
Profile powerful. It'll also be price competitive. It'll have to be,
Richard Marmoy has been in the computer industry after all. It"s still early to be talking about a release date
for twelve years, working for some of the industry's though, we're hoping for late '95 but it might slip to very
biggest names including Intel, Frontline Distribution early 1996. W e won't announce a specific release date
and Video7. After joining Panasonic, he was respon­ until we're sure we can hit it, but it obviously gives us a
sible for growing their share of the monitor market to very good selling point. People can buy a 3DO system
15% from nothing. As P a n a so n ic's M arketing now, enjoy all the great games already out for it, and
Manager for 3DO, he's responsible for one of the not worry about any other superconsoles because their
biggest marketing campaigns ever launched by the 3DO has a 64bit upgrade on the way. I guess the mes­
Taking in some 30 venues, the centrepiece of
company, including the Showliner Juggernaut tour sage is: buy one now! - you don't have to wait for any­
Panasonic's 'End Of The World Tour' w as the
which, including staffing and venue fees, cost over Showliner Juggernaut which opened up into the thing else." □
3DO magazine
half a million pounds. shape of an FZ-1.
feature

In sid e 3DO
The 3DO system isn't simply another games console, it's an ambitious
attempt to define a worldwide standard for interactive technology
backed by some of the world's biggest corporations. Below we
review its history, the inside story on its technology and look ahead
to the coming peripherals.

w hy 3DO? Because we wanted some­

thing like stereo or radio. Something
ubiquitous, explains 3DO CEO Trip
Hawkins. It's a new name for a new
machine: not just another console, but
a multiplayer which not only plays games, but also
music CDs, PhotoCDs and - with imminent MPEG
upgrade - VideoCDs. Even more importantly, it's also
the name of a standard which, like VHS for video
recorders, means anyone can build a 3DO machine as
long as they pay a modest fee to the standard's cre­
ators. In 1995 various 3DO systems will be in produc­
tion by Creative Labs, GoldStar, Panasonic, Samsung,
Sanyo and Toshiba. Different shapes, different colours established electronics companies who'd license the no coincidence that both MCA and Time-Warner soon
- but all 3DO systems. If the plan works, 3DO hard­ technology like they would an audio CD player or VHS set about establishing formidable games divisions. As
ware really could be just as much as part of every video recorder. It w as an idea which w as instantly the hype spread, movie mogul Strauss Zelnick left Fox
one's furniture as stereos or videos. popular with the giant corporations who know how to head 3DO supporters Crystal Dynamics.
The man behind the plan is Trip Hawkins, a vision­ important standards are for reassuring consumers their
ary character much like Bill Gates or Clive Sinclair. His machine isn't about to become obsolete.
life story is a TV movie: after a childhood obsessed Besides EA, 3DO won the backing of giant manu­ HARD TRUTHS
with games he went to Harvard, designed his own facturers such as AT&T, Sanyo and Matsushita (the 3DO's October 1994 American launch surprised many
course in game theory, and planned how he would world's largest electronics group with Panasonic being who believed the original hardware could never meet
found a games company in seven years time. After a one of their many brandnames). It also pulled in the its deadline. The fact that it did was a powerful
highly successful career with Apple Computer, he left it mainstream entertainment business with MCA (the demonstration of 3DO's development work, and its
right on schedule, in 1982, and formed Electronic Arts. makers of ET and Jurassic Park) and Time W arner (the partners' manufacturing muscle. Unfortunately, there
A decade later EA w as the world's biggest indepen­ world's largest entertainment group). This dream team was little sign of its 500+ software licensees and sales
dent software company with a $300 million turnover. provided an initial investment of $300 million, with a were disappointing. It w as a hard lesson, but it had
Time for a new challenge. further $50 million raised in a shares issue on W all equal relevance to 3DO's scoffing competitors.
The idea behind 3DO w as formed after EA's experi­ Street which saw prices double in a day. It's said EA Basically, the more powerful machines become, the
ences with Nintendo and Sega. Originally EA had con­ alone made enough money to fund its 3DO software longer and more costly it becomes to develop software
centrated on PCs which, with their vast memories and development for years. which exploits it. Company insiders describe this as the
hard disks, were vastly superior to the archaic technol­ Trip Hawkins' genius was in positioning 3DO at the most difficult time, they knew great games were on the
ogy of Japanese consoles. Unfortunately, it turned out apex of the coming interactive revolution. Hollywood w ay and were confident about Japan - but the ribbing
that most people couldn't afford PCs or didn't want to saw the possibility of interactive movies which could from outsiders was relentless. Nevertheless, just ten
play on machines they spent so much time working on. earn more than the films themselves. America's vast days before the March 20th launch of the first 3DO
When EA finally entered the console market they were cable TV network saw the potential for a powerful set­ system in Japan, Panasonic's FZ-1, GoldStar and
inevitably enormously successful, but Hawkins still top interface and US West soon put the machine into a Samsung became 3DO partners in order to build their
chaffed against the outdated technology and the costly test launch. AT&T announced a modem so gamers own 3DO units, while Creative Labs joined so it could
licensing agreements demanded by Sega and could play and talk with each over the phone lines. develop a 3DO card for PCs.
Nintendo. Everyone wanted a piece of 3DO technology and it's The real success story, however, was on the >
The 3DO system is the answer to the question: what
if there were a console even more powerful than a PC,
one with a fair licensing system and built-in 3DO System Technical Specifications
upgradeability?
CPU: 32bit RISC processor ARM60 (12.5MHz) fullscreen. NTSC versions run in letterbox format.
Custom Chips: Twin graphics animation engines Screen Resolution: 768x576 pixels
W IZA R D S Direct Memory Access engine (50Mb/sec) Colours: 16.7 million maximum, 32,000 standard.
3DO's technology w as designed by two of videogam­ 16bit custom DSP (audio) Audio: Stereo 16bit PCM (sampling 44.1kHz
ing's hottest talents: RJ Mical and David Needle (see Memory: 3MB (2MB DRAM, 1MB VRAM) Storage: Double-speed CD-ROM Drive
Tech box). They approached Hawkins in 1990 and, 1MB ROM Control ports: One low-speed, Dsub-p pin port.
within a year, their old friend had formed the 3DO Save Game Facility: 32Kb NVRAM (battery back-up). Additional ports on joypads allow for daisychaining
Company. While EA alone lacked the resources to Included CD sampler provides memory editing pro­ up to eight joypads.
properly promote the hardware, that w as never the gram. Expansion Port: One high speed I/O : 30 pin x 1.
intention anyway. Hawkins wanted the company to Video Output: Composite video, S-Video, RF Video AV Expansion Port: High speed AV-I/O (MPEG
devote itself purely to developing the technology, while Unless otherwise stated PAL versions run VideoCD adaptor): 68 pin x 1
the actual manufacturing would be taken care of by
 o a *
taneously, tweaking each other's designs to ensure the Once such a graphic has been digitised as cell, the
HARDCORE TECHNO best possible synthesis. Most consoles have at best a graphic engines and O S provide a wide range of cus­
rudimentary O S, the programmers writing directly to tom effects. Tricks such as the warping of a bouncing
While The 3D O Company was only estab­ the hardware. This is technically efficient, but means ball, the transparency of fog, varying lighting effects
lished in September 1991, the men behind its that if you upgrade the hardware all the old games will and texture mapping are all handled automatically.
technology are responsible for the world's first become incompatible. By contrast 3DO was designed While a conventional system can produce these effects, 3 DO
multimedia home computer and the most to be future-proof and all software has to use the OS. the programmer would have to write the code for them
advanced handheld console ever. This means the hardware can easily be upgraded. and the CPU painstakingly put them into effect. For the
Another reason why the 3DO is future-proof is the 3DO system these effects are simply called up by
RJ Mical and Dave Needle have been labelled the actual hardware. Unlike the ancient mess of standards accessing the O S. Texture mapping is a particularly
'Rogers and Hammerstein' of videogaming, characters which make up a PC, the 3DO is a very open, clean impressive effect. For example, a programmer could
as colourful and influential as any in the world of enter­ design. The motherboard boasts a full 32bit databus input a rough, volcanic surface and the 3DO system
tainment. They met ten years ago at one of Silicon with full width expansions allowing any upgrade full would automatically wrap this around a wireframe
Valley's hottest start-ups. Mical was head of software access to the hardware. It also has a high speed Direct landscape or sprite. The stunning detail and speed of
development, while Needle was the hotshot tech-head Memory Access engine. This enables the various cus- games like Road Rash and Total Eclipse is the perfect
who started as cleaner and ended up senior hardware
architect.
In 1985 their reputation was made with a revolu­
tionary computer. At a time when most computers were
silent, monochromatic monsters the Amiga A 1000 was
unbelievable. It had custom chips for full colour graph­
ics and stereo sound, plus a multitasking operating sys­
tem which has yet to be equalled by either the PC or
Macintosh. The Amiga was a multimedia computer
before the term had been invented. Besides still being a
hugely popular home computer in Europe, souped up
Amigas are at the core of Hollywood special effects ■O. r- v O G O
work for shows like DSV SeaOuest and Babylon 5.
However, judged by the Amiga's potential this is
almost a failure. World-beating ambitions were sadly
___________ I______________________________
lost when the Amiga Company was taken over by
Commodore, a company which lacked the resources to Expansion Port RF Output---- Composite Video 1 Right/Left AC Power Cord
properly promote it. Needle and Mical left a year after (M2 will use this) SVHS Output — Output Audio Output
its launch, Needle freelancing on Amiga software
applications while Needle joined Apple. But in 1987
they were brought back together by David Morse, ex­ tom chips to read data from the memory chips without demonstration of the system's power.
president of the Amiga Company. Over lunch Morse using the central processor unit (CPU). At normal speed The Hollywood effect also comes to the fore with
watched as Mical and Needle designed a radical new up to 6Mb of data can be moved per second, but digital video. Like other machines the 3DO system can
console. Built into the hardware were arcade-style fea­ there's also a Sport DMA mode which ups this to no be upgraded to play VideoCD movies via an upgrade
tures such as sprite rotation and zooming. The system less than 50Mb a second. This sort of high-speed data cartridge. However, for most games the 3DO
also supported linking up to eight machines for multi­ handling is perfect for multimedia applications and a Multiplayer can deliver FMV clips which are little less
player games - not bad for a handheld! Originally key part of the Cinepak video compression. effective just through the system's sheer power. Due to
called the Handy, it was bought up by Atari and On top of this very open, high-speed architecture the double-speed CD-ROM drive and high-speed
renamed the Lynx. Seven years later it's still the most there's some powerful processors. The heart of the sys­ graphics processing the 3DO system can handle full­
powerful handheld on the market, but again Atari tem is the 32bit ARM60 CPU. This uses RISC technolo­ screen, full-frame video at 30 frames per second.
lacked the resources to exploit it. gy which is a relatively new approach. Unlike a stan­ As for sound, of course the 3DO system can spool
dard PC CPU, a RISC chip is a lot less complex and music and sound effects at will off the CD. But it also
NTG uses a Reduced Instruction Set Construction. While this has its own sound generator, a high-speed Digital
Mical and Needle left the Lynx project in 1989 and means less built-in functions, in operation a RISC chip Signal Processor (DSP) which is capable of CD quality
once more ended up in a restaurant having lunch with runs a great deal faster with more complex instructions music. It also boasts a proprietary technique called 3D
David Morse. This time the sketch on a napkin was being quickly built up out of the simpler ones. So Audio Imaging which means if you listen with head­
3DO and Morse instantly set up the New Technologies although the ARM60 only runs at 12.5MHz, it's effec­ phones, sounds come not just from the left and right but
Group to foster it. NTG was the nucleus around which tively equivalent to a much faster 486. Also, while any forward and backward too. Try it some time!
the 3DO Company was formed. Morse was determined PC CPU has electronics dating back from its original The CD-ROM Drive providing the game data is dou­
this technology would get the backing it deserved. Trip 1985 design, the ARM60 is completely uninhibited by ble-speed, capable of transferring 300k per second.
Hawkins was first on board, and giant multinationals such requirements. The storage potential of a CD is unbelievable, at
such as Matsushita soon followed. This time Mical and The ARM60 alone would be able to give a PC tough 650Mb it's about 225 times bigger than your average
Needle had world class support like no other console in competition, but in fact many of the 3DO system's most 8Megabit cartridge. And when it's time to finally leave
history. impressive tricks never even enter the CPU. Instead a game for the night, the 3DO unit has 32K of Non
While Hawkins had the marketing saavy and the Mical and Needle designed two new processors, a pair Volatile RAM to store numerous save games.
idea about making 3DO technology a world standard, of animation engines capable of manipulating 64 mil­ In short, the 3DO system is unimaginably more
the guts of 3DO's appeal lay in that napkin sketch and lion pixels per second - as compared to 1 million for a powerful than any previous, 16bit console and, just as
the history of its designers. One of the strongest advan­ conventional 16bit system and 3 million for a 32bit importantly, is designed so that can be continually
tages of Mical and Needle is that it's a partnership of one. Inspired by the example of traditional Hollywood updated. While the current crop of games seem amaz­
the two sides of a computer. While everyone under­ animation techniques, these chips organise graphics ing, these are just a hint of what programmers can do
stands the importance of hardware, the software which into high-resolution 'animation cells'. once they really to get to grips with its power. The com­
links it together is often forgotten. Most machines begin When Mical and Needle first began developing the bination of the 3DO system's processing power and
with the hardware, then wrap the operating system hardware in Mical's workshop, they filmed a model CD storage make possible games which haven't even
(OS) around it. Mical and Needle work on both simul­ plane against a bluescreen just like a Hollywood movie. been dreamt of before.
 feature
io a *

>Japanese high street. Bolstered by a healthy supply and even reworked for new functions: like set-top
of games and Matsushita's excellent retail network, the boxes for video-on-demand. That's why despite having
launch w as a roaring success building up to around
100,000 sales by the end of the year. Japanese soft­
the first 'superconsole' to be launched, with an ever
growing range of great games to prove it, 3DO is still
Global 3DO
3 1 )0 ware producers, already drenched in cash from 3DO's confident of keeping its technological edge. The M2
manufacturers, ensured fast-growing software base upgrade due for late '95 is claimed to offer five times
and less than a month later Toshiba became the latest the performance of its most powerful competitor. As
partner with plans for another 3DO multiplayer, and long as the Company continues, 3DO systems could be
even a portable unit for in car use. It w as this almost infinitely upgraded. For Trip, at least, the future
Japanese success the European launch in September is clear with 3DO on course for entering the English
w as designed to emulate and first reports suggest Dictionary: "dominant interactive standard, multiple
they've succeeded. Great games such as John Madden applications, especially ultra-cool gam es..." □ ssw
and Road Rash had 3DO systems moving better than 3DO m agazine
many software houses expected, their titles often sell-

Above, the brand new FZ-10 by Panasonic. A PAL

version is due in the UK this Spring.

AV Expansion Port. This is where the FZ-FV1 Adaptor will fit, more commonly known as 3DO's MPEG
upgrade allowing it to play the same VideoCD titles as CDi or CD32. VideoCD has higher resolution than
VHS, but can break up during big, dramatic movements. Coding advances may solve this eventually.

Above, the snappily titled GPA101M 3DO system

ing out two or three times.
by GoldStar - expect a PAL version soon-ish.
For the future 3DO faces strong competition. Its
headline making share issue w as, in many w ays, the Peripherals
starting gun for the race to establish next generation
Besides the add-ons illustrated below, there is a
system. Nintendo rushed to make a deal with Silicon GameGun from American Laser Games which is
Graphics over its own console, while Sega turned to supported not only by their titles, but also other
JVC and Hitachi as partners. Sony, traditionally a publisher's games such as Demolition Man. Even
more well supported is CH Products Flightstick
strong rival of the much larger Matsushita, has its own
Pro, a precision analog joystick developed from
console on the w ay, while Atari's ambitious Jaguar hit their acclaimed PC product. This features more
the market early on to flounder over software support. buttons than a standard joypad with a four-way
All these systems have their own advantages and dis­ viewing switch, three firebuttons, trigger and
throttle control plus an additional four push but­
advantages, but all conform to the standard console
tons. Domark regard it as by far the best w ay to
approach with the emphasis very much on hardware play Flying Nightmares, and the stick is also
and closed standards. supported by the Wing Commander series and
The 3DO system, by contrast, is a standard many more games. The Flightstick should be
released by the end of 1994 and the UK division
designed to be licensed by anyone and, like a PC or Above, the IMP-21 J TRY 3DO system from Sanyo.
can be contacted on 0844 345406.
Macintosh, runs a genuine Operating System (OS). The Only recently launched in Japan.
reason why these computers have lasted over for a TDK's memory
expansion allows
decade is that programs are written to the OS software you to save games
rather than the hardware. This allows manufacturers to onto a removeable
change the hardware so it can be more cheaply made, memory card instead
upgraded as more powerful chips become available of the internal
NVRAM. As yet no
price or UK release
date has been
announced.

This kaoroke add-on

should be on sale in
Japan by the time
you read this.
Thankfully,
Panasonic have no
plans for a UK
release. Above, Panasonic's original FZ-1 3DO system
complete with FZ-FV1 MPEG upgrade for VideoCD
and a mouse (not yet confirmed for UK release).
 feature

8
3DO
R etu rn Jedi W i t h W i n g C o m m a n d e r III
he original Wing Commander is one of The Wing Commander series has become one of the biggest money-
the most influential games ever, not only
spinners in gaming history. Marrying classic 3D space combat to a
inspiring numerous clones but also forcing
people to take the PC seriously as a
space opera storyline, it's a Star Wars-inspired videogame now
games m achine. In some w ays it w as grown so big it can hire Luke Skyw alker to play its leading role.
beyond even the PC in 198 9, only truly reaching its
potential in the CD-ROM version with its full orchestral
score to accompany the cinematic visuals. The second
game in the series showed how perfectly the design was
suited to CD; besides redesigned graphics there was a
full soundtrack including sampled speech throughout the
game. Two mission disks followed, but in retrospect they
were just marking time while Origin geared themselves
up for the biggest leap yet.
Wing Commander III: Heart O f The Tiger rebuilds the
game from the ground up, pushing the envelope for PC
performance from its incredible 15 minute intro to the
stunning in-game graphics: for the first time fully 3D
polygons, and with texture maps to the max. Like EA's
US Naval Fighters it's a game so power hungry even the
most powerful Pentium will struggle to run it in maximum
detail.
So can a 3DO system really run this sort of game
without an M2? W ell, yes, easily. The lengthy cinematic
sequences are, obviously, no problem at all for 3DO
technology and look absolutely superb. As for the 3D
sequences, when we first saw EA's pre-beta version of
the game we thought Origin had wimped out and gone
for sprites. As the Kilrathi fighters whirled about they
seemed even faster and smoother than Super Wing
Commanders brilliantly detailed sprites. Yet when we
actually got on a Kilrathi's tail it was obvious these were
full 3D objects with the most unbelievable texture-map-
ping yet seen on a 3DO system. Then we discovered the
external views, allowing us to pan about both our own
ship and enemy fighters. As you can see, the detail is
fantastic, the ships not only carrying identification mark­
ings, but also grime and dirt from long service in the
warring fleets.
For the 3DO system, hurling around W C IIfs polygon
spaceships is no problem while the texture mapping a
PC finds so laborious, is an effortless function of its
 feature
io a *

3 1 )0

Below right, M ark Ham ill w ith Wing

Commander mastermind Chris Roberts.
Below, Jennifer MacDonald, Hamill and
Ginger Lynn Allen (l-r).

In a universe far, far away...

It is 2654 and the Galactic W ar has
been raging for decades between the
Terran Confederation and the Kilrathi.
Now its conclusion finally seems near, a
series of strategic successes putting
overall victory w ithin the K ilrath i's
reach.
Colonel Christopher Blair is a combat
veteran widely regarded as one of the
Confederation's best pilots. When the
Kilrathi destroyed his previous carrier,
Blair w as immediately transferred to
another frontline ship. TCS Victory is an
obsolete rustbucket which should have
been scuttled long ag o , but Terran
resources have long been stretched to
breaking point.
Victory's w ar w eary crew include a
Kilrathi warrior who's defected to the
C o n fed eration , a ra w n ew pilot as
liab le to shoot his co-pilots a s the
enemy, a feisty woman flight mechanic
and an icy fem ale pilot. B lair must
inspire this ragtag crew to incredible
b ravery in a last hope cam paign to
avoid humanity's total annihilation.

Above left, the K ilrathi defector

shares information with Blair. Right,
the Victory's control room.
 ' y iT r n

, ;? J i v , .
Al - j * : l ’5/4 •
Above left, your Confederate fighter
with the Victory to starboard. Note
sharktooth design under its nose. Right
and below, more views of your fantastic
fighter.

custom hardware. If anything A Kilrathi fighters in all its textured

mapped glory. Note different views
the version we saw of the game
below, right & below right.
needed slowing down! In terms
of g a m e p la y , one of the
biggest innovations is being
able to skim the su rface of
huge K ilrath i cap ital sh ips,
dodging laser turret fire while
trying to find the ship's weak-
point. Judging by the way your
mothership, the TCS Victory,
zips about the screen these will
be no problem a t a ll and
everyth in g seems set for a
game which will at least match,
and probably exceed the PC
version on even a Pentium 90.

Allen, porn queen turned straight actress with films like

STAR TURNS Young Guns II. Almost fifty Hollywood filmmakers, actors
While Origin have so far been very sparing showing the and production people, worked on the WCIII set creat­
PC version running game graphics - we've probably ing nearly two hours of live action footage. While no
seen more of the 3DO version than most have seen of trade show is now complete without showing the various
the PC one - what has been winning endless showings is uniforms and Kilrathi alien masks, all the sets were cre­
the cinematics. The Wing Commander storyline is one of ated on Silicon Graphics workstations. As with conven­
the most long-running and engrossing yet told on a tional Hollywood special effects, the live action scenes
videogam e, each mission bringing some new plot were shot against blue backgrounds for chroma-key
episode, your various wingmen reacting in their own integration within the game's fake backdrops.
individual ways while Kilrathi taunts come over the On first impression, the footage lacks the 'in-your-
ra d io . Being equal opp o rtunity em p lo yees, the fa c e ,' cyb erp u n k flam b o yan ce of S h o c k W a v e 's
Confederation have a full complement of female pilots sequences, but they're far longer - the game may come entirely dazzling and makes you even more determined
and over the years the lead character, Blair, has won a on more than one disk - and atmosphere is unique. to battle through the entire game. A fabulous end-game
reputation as something of a Don Juan. W hile W ing Commander's shipboard interaction has mission is promised, which reportedly takes you down
Origin's decision to hire a cast of real Hollywood actors never been massively complex, WCIII finally gives you a onto a Kilrathi planet. And as with the other W ing
for Wing Commander episode surprised no-one, but choice of conversational responses as Blair wanders Commander games, the missions change to reflect your
what has caused a stir is the names involved. Mark about the ship. Also unlike previous games, where inter­ success and failure, so that seeing every outcome will
Hamill, Luke Skywalker himself, plays Blair, while his fel­ action was mainly for hints and romance, WCIII gives take ages. Truly, this is an absolute epic game and will
low officers include Malcolm McDowell (A Clockwork you the responsibility of encouraging the crew - make sell 3DO systems by the containerload. □
Orange), John Rhys-Davies (Raiders O f The Lost Ark) the wrong choices and disaster looms. 3DO m agazine
and, for romantic interest, Blair can choose between As an adventure it's obviously very primitive, but as
Jennifer MacDonald ( Terminal Force) and Ginger Lynn an accompaniment to a full-blown space combat sim it's WCIII is due for release in January
 x
o
Demolition Man™ * . *> Another World'" Total Eclipse™ ►. I *
Virgin Interactive Entertainment Studio 3DO/Tetragon Interplay Productions Crystal Dynamics

z z
o o
Star Control II™ Shock Wave: Road Rash™ Off-World t - .i*
Crystal Dynamics Invasion Earth™ Electronic Arts Interceptor™
Electronic Arts Crystal Dynamics

Super Wing PaTaank™ Dragon’s Lair™

Commander™ Crystal Dynamics Elite
Electronic Arts Origin/Electronlc Arts

John Madden The Horde™

Football™ Crystal Dynamics
Electronic Arts Electronic Arts

Night Trap Powers Kingdom™ Mega Race™

Virgin Interactive Entertainment/ Virgin Interactive Entertainment/ Panasonic Software Mindscape International
Digital Pictures Digital Pictures

Pebble B each The Incredible Sesam e

Krisalis Software Oolf Links® Machine™ Numbers
Panasonic Software Sierra On-line Electronic Arts

Introducing the 3DO system

3D0 and the 3D0 logos are trademarks of The 3D0 Company. All other brand names and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. © 1994 The 3D0 Company. All rights reserved.
 ~ I

O
O
Super Street Fighter G£X™ ^ . * Club 3DO:
Bullfrog/Electronlc Arts II Turbo™ Crystal Dynamics Station Invasion™
Panasonic Software Studio 3 DO

H flU jU K s S
o
Samurai Virtuoso™ ° . *
Crystal Dynamics Elite Systems

Wing Commander 111™*

Origin/Electronic Arts

Flashback™
3DO Corpse Killer™
US Gold Acclaim/Digital Pictures

No limits
Shock Wave: ° •*
US Gold Operation Jumpgate™
Electronic Arts

TVisted™ Way of the Warrior™ Kingdom™ Supreme Warrior™

Electronic Arts Interplay Productions Interplay Productions Acclaim/Digital Pictures

Check it out at a store near you

♦ • o i

Rvailabilitq is not guaranteed and is based on information at the time of going to press. But don't believe us. Chech it out at p r local
Game Limited, selected HMV Stores. Virgin Megastores, and all good independent dealers. Call 0800 444200 for pour local dealer. 3 DO
 profile
♦
8 C ry sta l D yn a m ics
3 DO

DO's bid for global domination began Most new companies start slowly and cautiously. Crystal Dynamics is

3
the
with a nuclear shockwave blasting
through the intro of Crystal Dynamic's
Crash 'N ' Burn. Screaming rock guitars,
superfast action and texture mapping to
here was the game to prove the next genera­
different. 'Without Crystal Dynamics, 3DO is just an expensive toy' is
the tagline on their ads, a typically self-confident claim by a company
which regards its employees as the 'best and the brightest'. To find
out the truth behind the hype, Stuart Wynne spoke to International
tion hype. There have been dramatic debuts by software
VP Rob Dyer and Chief Scientist Dr David Kirk.
houses before, but never one so consistently impressive
on so many different fronts. Not only were they just how Computing, oversaw the Lynx handheld at Epyx and The company's confidence also earnt it backing from
good 32bit games should look and sound, they were used to be president of the New Technologies Group TV companies such as Home Box Office and King
also building in some hot gameplay. Only now which originally developed the 3DO system. At World, financing its growth from twenty people to well
are other companies beginning to catch Crystal, Morse was inspired not so much over a hundred. All of them are what Dyer describes as
up. by the 'interactive studio' hype as the the 'best and the brightest'. The company's hiring policy
At the start Crystal's PR focused spectacular growth experienced by is if you want a job, whether as a programmer or an
on the terminally photogenic companies prepared to take a risk artist or whatever, then you must have a track record of
Strauss Zelnick, top movie mogul on new technology. Just as hit games. At the start, heavyweight development man­
at Twentieth Century Fox before Acclaim and EA enjoyed phe­ agers came from Accolade, Acclaim and EA
moving to Crystal. "W e're on the nomenal growth by being in early
cusp of doing something extraor­ with the NES and Mega Drive, so
dinary," he said then, promising Morse expected Crystal to reap INTO THE FIRE
the company was going to be the the benefit of the 3 DO system. The company's first game was, of course, the ominously
first 'interactive studio of the future." In retrospect it was an unbeliev­ titled Crash 'N ' Burn. While 3DO partner EA's game
A stylish, star-studded FMV intro for ably high risk strategy. Games devel­ development dragged on and on, Crystal committed
Horde further underlined the convergence oped to exploit 3DO's radically new, themselves to delivering a game at launch. As the in­
between Hollywood and Silicon Valley. 32bit CD-ROM technology were never going pack game Crash simply couldn't be late, never mind
By 1995, however, it's a future Zelnick will enjoy at to be easily converted to a SNES or Mega Drive - if that for most of its development neither the 3DO system's
BMG, the $11 billion corporate giant which happens to 3DO failed then Crystal would be in big trouble. Still, hardware or operating system were actually finished.
be Crystal's distributor. Now the PR has shifted to the back in 1982 the very fact console technology was so The fact that they met this deadline, and with a good,
real powers behind the company. dated made the 3DO system attractive to a lot of key playable game, is one of the technical accomplishments
players. To head up the marketing department, Crystal Kirk is most proud of.
acquired Madeline Canepa from Sega where she'd Unfortunately, the 3DO system's high pricepoint and
HIGH RISC masterminded their hugely successful PR. Rob Dyer used the inability of other developers to deliver on time,
Chairman David Morse may not make many magazine to be a big player at Disney, while Dr David Kirk was a doomed 3DO's US launch to ignominy. '3DOA' was the
covers, but for technofreaks he's akin to The Beatles' graphics workstation whizz with no less than seven mocking refrain and queues to buy the machine turned
George Martin. He set up the revolutionary Amiga patents to his name. to queues for returning it - so few were the games to

P aT aank The Horde

I

Not only the first 3DO release, but

also one of the most impressive early
releases for gameplay and presenta­
tion. The 32bit revolution began with Crystal Dynamics success on the 3DO
Crash 'N' Burn, but sadly it's unlikely system has made them a valuable
ever to be released in the UK. Coded name with other companies wanting
while the 3DO system w as still in to be published by them as affiliates.
development, it's one of the few NTSC PaTaank w as developed by the San
tides incompatible with PAL and Francisco-based P.F. Magic. The
Crystal are sadly unlikely to convert game's title is pronounced 'puh-tonk'
now it's been superceded by titles - the sound of a puck bouncing off a
like Off-World Interceptor. bumper and smashing into a wall.
Mission Statem ent: To become the w o rld ’s who's perhaps most symbolic of the company's ambi­
tion, heading up a R&D division purely devoted to keep­

first in tera ctive stu d io o f the fu tu re. ing the company's hi-tech cutting edge. Pioneering the
delivery of Red Book audio CD while still drawing game
data may not mean much to most people, but listen
play on it. Crystal Dynamics multi-million dollar invest­ like resurrection. For 1995 Crystal expect to release closely to Total Eclipse and Interceptor and you'll hear
ment began to look shaky and a scramble began for between seven and eleven 3DO titles, they will also the difference with pristine sound quality.
other formats. Unfortunately, only The Horde was capa­ develop for other platforms - to the ire of 3DO who Looking over the new releases Kirk surprisingly points
ble of being converted to the PC, while other supercon­ point out their hardware put Crystal on the map - but to the platformer G ex as one of the most technologically
soles were over a year away. Then came Japan. these games too will be converted for the 3DO system. advanced games. While Total Eclipse's awesome 3D
"Thank God for Japan," says Dyer. A better price "IFs been a very good relationship for us," Kirk says graphics required a lot of work, (Sex's deep, full colour
and more software pushed 3DO sales over 100,000 now. parallax scrolling is an equally big leap away from
units in a few months and Crystal's games were 16bit gaming. Sure, Nintendo's Donkey Kong Country
inevitably among the bestsellers. Japan meant Crystal has caused a sensation with its Silicon Graphics ren­
actually made money on its 3DO system releases and B U R N IN G B R IG H T dered graphics, but Kirk insists Gex did it first and with
the European launch is looking promising too with As the bold new world of 32bit videogaming sells far better effect. Moreover it doesn't just look different,
games such as The Horde regularly selling out. Even in through, Crystal is uniquely placed to exploit it. Dyer unlike DKC it plays different with G ex able to clamber
the States 3DO systems are selling well, sees the new technology doubling the $6 billion over practically every surface giving it a novel feel.
lower prices and better soft­ videogames business within two to three years. Big For the future the company is reworking the Total
ware enabling a Lazarus- Hollywood companies have come calling and it"s only a Eclipse engine for a 3D combat game called Cyber
matter time before a partner will be found. But it's Kirk Clash. This will feature huge robots going head-to-head
with missiles, lasers and much, much more. It promises
to be an awesome game and 3D will also feature in a
sports game, currently looking for a big name license.
Kirk is keen to emphasise the gameplay as much as the
technology though. And iFs this perspective he brings to
bear as much as anything in examining new machines.
"They all have their strengths and weaknesses" he
says. Besides impressive video playback, 3DO's operat­
ing system is "a major advantage allowing for a
nice upgrade with the M 2." While it's difficult to
amaze a man used to working with million
dollar graphics workstations, he sees the M2
as virtually removing graphics as an area of
competition. Like Simis Software, he believes
that soon making a game look fantastic
won't be a problem, which will throw the
emphasis back on gameplay "which I think is
where we're always strong."
The company's early commitment to 32bit technolo­
gy is certainly paying off now, but then again a source
at 3DO rubbishes any notion that they were ever in seri­
ous trouble. "The only question with Crystal was whether
they had to go public early, instantly becoming million­
aires, or whether they had to put in due course and then
go public - becoming even more incredibly rich..." □
3DO m agazine

Off-World Interceptor Cyber Clash (Coming Soon)

Crystal's awesome 3D
engine is set to return
in this battle of the
mega-robots. Armed
with missiles, lasers
and more these huge
machines will provide
a stunning spectacle.
The game is actually
Even the 'best and the brightest' occa­ set inside your body
sionally make mistakes. After several with the robots being
days expensively filming this sci-fi implaneted in your
mini-movie, it slowly dawned on
Crystal Dynamics that it wasn't that
good. In fact, it w as so bad they
decided to send it up before critics
did. Cue the world's first self-satiris­
ing intro, complete with overlaid
Beavis & Butthead-style couch pota­
toes making various sarcastic
remarks - so ultimately it wasn't a
mistake after all.
 pr eview
io a *

3 1 )0
Even Better Than
R eal
he ability to fly - and use heavy firepower After its star turn in Schwarzenegger's True Lies, the Harrier jumpjet
- is always appealing and there are few is about to make its first appearance on the 3DO system. Deep in
aircraft as exciting as the Harrier. Not
only can you scream across the treetops
development in San Mateo, California, Flying Nightmares is set to be
at near supersonic speed, you can also one of the best flight sims on any machine, let alone a console. Stuart
hover like a helicopter. Who can forget the True Lies Wynne talked to Domark VP John Kavanagh about it.
scene where the Harrier rises up outside the skyscraper
window and lets loose with Aden cannons?
Flying Nightmares puts you in the cockpit of the very
latest Harrier with complete control. John Kavanagh is
keen to stress the game will be "the first real flight sim on
3DO. With Shock Wave and games like that you can't
climb above a certain altitude, your freedom is limited.
Flying Nightmares is a true 3D flight game where you
can fly wherever you want, however you want." It"s the
sort of freedom which has made flight sims consistently
top the PC sales charts, along with their ever increasing
realism. It's said that in the Gulf W ar many missions
were first flown on simulators: the perfect complement to
a multimedia war where CNN was as important as TNT
in achieving geopolitical objectives.
According to Simis Software the lag between military
and domestic sims is "around three to four years", a gap
they know well working on both sides of the fence, with
the emphasis squarely on the military side. The team
started out at BAe where they coded weapons control
software for the Harrier, not to mention designing its
MFD (Multi-Function Displays) and simulator. While they
went independent years ago, their main business is still
full scale simulators with leisure titles as a lucrative side­
line. Their first bestseller was M iG-29, presciently includ­
ing a Gulf finale called Desert Strike just a few months
before Desert Storm. With their follow-up, AV-8B, the
main concern over realism was avoiding being too
accurate. The AV-8B is the US version of the Harrier and
the team had to be careful not to official secrets, such as
the exact performance of its radar system...

REAL, REAL , REAL

Flying Nightmares is the latest version of AV-8B, the title
coming from one of the US Marine squadrons which fly
the aircraft. The 3DO conversion is being overseen by
Simis, with about 80% of their core flight model code
reused for 3DO, but the main programming is in
California. Since Domark's offices there are so close to
the 3DO Company, they've been able to work incredibly
closely with them to best exploit the system. The first port rather than plain green planes, hyper-realistic graphics lead singer of Jesus Jones.
over of code was actually done in their offices. As for with the same slate grey, official US Marine colour Such ambitious presentation is directly due to 3DO's
realism, project manager Brian W alker flew Apaches in scheme as in True Lies. The 3DO system's multimedia integrated design. Asked to compare the machine to a
the Gulf W ar, so he certainly knows his stuff. architecture has also meant a thorough reworking of Pentium PC, Kavanagh argues it's an impossible com­
After rave reviews for the screamingly fast PowerMac presentation. Expect 24bit, photorealistic intro screens, parison to make. "It's like comparing a Ferrari to a
version, Kavanagh is looking forward to upgrading it yet plenty of FMV sequences and thoroughly enhanced truck. With 3DO you could have a 50 frames per sec­
further for 3DO. While the 3DO version will use exactly audio. Besides sampled background comms chatter and ond scrolling background with 200 polygons spinning in
the same polygon graphics as the Mac, "they'll be 16bit direct orders, a soundtrack has been composed by front. A PC just couldn't do that, but then again you can
colour rather than 8bit and be fully texture mapped." So Domark's Mike Ash and performed by Mike Edwards, do your accounts on it." He also pointed out how PCs
keep evolving, which is why the 3DO's O S (Operating
System) is so important, allowing the 3DO system to be
upgraded. Kavanagh knows the 3DO Company well
and is confident they can keep pace with their
competition.

12 HOUR DAYS
While Flying Nightmares' presentation makes for a
great showcase for 3DO technology, the actual game-
play is firmly rooted in the depth of the original AV-8B.
Once again the setting is East Timor, were that brutal,
real-life dictatorship has finally attracted the attention of
the US military. Essentially, the invasion takes place over
three 12 hour days, each divided into three offensives
lasting four hours apiece. The offensives reflect the cam­
paign's progress: on Day One, 0800 hours the missions
involve softening up shoreline defences. Later the Above and below left, in-game
emphasis switches to CAP (Combat A ir Patrol) missions shots from the PowerMac ver­
in support of landing craft. And once a beachhead has sion show the same basic poly­
gons as will be used by the
been established, the Harriers are directed to take out
3DO game. The difference is
C&C (Command and Control) sites such as radar that in a month's time, Domark
installations. will begin applying texture
A full wargame lurks under the spectacular visuals, so maps similar to those in Wing
Commander III, not only to the
if you mess-up it has serious consequences. If you suc­
aircraft, but everything includ­
cessfully blitz those fuel dumps then later in the war ing the ground and sky.
enemy forces are much less manoeuvrable. To help you Imagine Need For Speed with
on the various missions you can have up to three wing- aircraft. Above, inset, a Harrier
uses smoke to vector in on a
men in the air simultaneously, on the same or different
target. Translucent smoke will
missions, and switch between them at will. One useful be an easy trick for the
tactic is to send in the computer-controlled Harriers first, amazing 3DO chipset.
then while they're drawing anti-aircraft fire make your
own attack. The game is generally tracking about 1,000
objects simultaneously, from aircraft hangers to C l 30s
dropping tanks to individual bullets.
Despite such sophistication, Kavanagh is confident of
keeping the speed up, quoting figures of 12-20 frames
per second, depending on what's happening on screen.
The average is about 15fps, "which compares well with
industry animation speeds." The superfast PowerMac
version does run "slightly faster" in the same 320x240
resolution, but then again there's no texture mapping. Above, the 3DO system's photorealistic cockpit hints
On the 3DO system Kavanagh believes there'll be no at the treats to come, while below the mission select
limit to the number of aircraft on screen, but "mixing it screen shows some of the FMV added to make the
game more of a 3DO experience.
up with too many bogey's is a sure way to an early
swim to your aircraft carrier. Typically a 'hot spot' might
have three or four FI 6s on patrol, with a few attack heli­
copters thrown in for good measure. You've only got
room for eight or so Sidewinder missiles, so air combat
skills are vital to finish the game."
Currently, the best PC flight sim is probably
MicroProse's 1942 for its mix of in-depth gameplay and
state-of-the-art (for the PC) texture mapping, but
Kavanagh is confident about competing with it, especial­
ly as Nightmares offers such close, Marine-style integra­
tion with the ground forces. There will also be some
spectacular explosions: "as gratuitous as memory
allows... and smoke will linger afterwards so pilots can
use it to pinpoint ground battles, just as in real life."
Asked to sum up the game, Kavanagh doesn't hesi­
tate: "it's what we like to a call a 'thinking man's shoot-
'em-up. In our games you think about things first - then
you kill everything!" □
3DO m agazine
The 3DO arming
Flying Nightmares is out in Spring 1995 and is just the screen, right, is a tad _____
more impressive
first in a series o f 3DO system 3D games which will than the Mac •it
eventually take in attack helicopters and science fiction. version, above.
Remember qour first set of
building
blocks?

They're Gridders™ -
huge crusher blocks
d esig n ed to stop you
from solving this exciting
action strategy gam e for 3DO™ system s.
Nell, you won't
forget these.
Enter the futuristic 3D industrial world known a s
the G ridders Corporation. Using strategy, logic and
skill, you must negotiate over 30 different levels -
e a c h with a new puzzle to solve - to unlock the
secret techno lo g y lo cated in the basem ent of this industrial com plex.
E a c h level in G ridders c a n be solved in more than one way, an d e a c h is more challenging than
the last. The secret is to disrupt the pattern of the Gridders a s they move in
their mysterious patterns a cro ss the factory grid.
You'll encounter Killer Gridders and other hazardous o b jects a s you try to
re le a se the green pyram ids from G enerato r Gridders. T h e se are the key to
moving from o n e level to another. You will a lso n eed to find an d u se life-saving o b jects along the
way. And listen to your cyber-dog, Fidex™ - his bark c a n sa v e your life.
With C D quality music, anim ated plot se q u e n c e s an d incredible 3D effects, y o u ’ll need
i
♦ ■ O l

plenty of the grey matter or very quick feet to b eat the Gridders. O n e wrong m ove...and they'll
be scraping you off the block with a shovel.

The 3D0 system and 300 software are available from Game Limited, selected
HMV stores. Virgin Megastores and all good independent dealers. Tctrogon™, Grklders,M and Fidex,M are trademarks of Tetragon Inc.

Call: 0100 k4!20 for qour local dealer. 3DO

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reviews
A lone In The D ark 40
A noth er W orld 48

B a ttle Chess 59
B urn ing Soldier' 52

D ragon ’s L a ir 52
E scape From
M onstor M anor 50
FIFA In tern a tio n a l
Soccer 36

G ridders 59
John M adden F ootball 37
Mega R ace 51
N ig h t Trap 53
Off-World In tercep to r 42

P aT aan k 56

Pow ers K ingdom 49

REAL P in b a ll 56
R ise O f The R obots 34
R oad R ash 43
S am u rai Shodow n 33
Sew er S h ark 53

Shock Wave 44
S layer 47
Soccer K id 61

S ta r C ontrol II 49
S u per S treetfig h ter I I X 39

S u per Wing C om m ander 45

The H orde 46
The Lost Files O f
Sherlock Holmes 48

Theme P ark 32
ere at 3DO magazine, you can be sure our 3DO m agazine ratings: The N eed For Speed 30
scores are delivered after hours of painful
deliberation, often with experts from other ***** Highly Recommended T otal E clipse 51
m agazines called in to A particularly stunning title, bound to please everyone
help on specialist titles. Hi ★ ★ ★ ★ G enerally Excellent T w isted 61
However, they are only a guide
A very impressive game that most people will love
and w e're not infallib le: other W aiaalae C ountry Club
people may have different opin­
ions. You should also remember
3DO
M agazine c* ft
* * * V ery Good
A solid, playable game which is good within its genre
* * Average
G olf 50
we are a totally independent mag­ Way O f The W arrior 35
M ay appeal to some, but approach with caution
azine and our opinions should in
no way be presumed to reflect those
★ Poor W orld Cup G olf 41
of The 3DO Company. A badly flawed title
review

Publisher: Electronic Arts ® 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: Pioneer Save G am e: 3 SRAM Slots per track Price: £ 4 4 .9 9 Available: N ow

ver the past year or so, the hype for the Forget all those overhyped coin-op games, Need For Speed is king of
superconsoles trailing in the 3DO system's
the road with superlative graphics, sampled sound effects and ultra­
wake has centred on arcade games like
Ridge Racer and Daytona. The proudest realistic car handling.
claim of the PlayStation hype is that only it off the wheels. Then they slam the car
could handle a coin-op perfect conversion, although of into reverse, get it up to about eighty
late the word 'near' is increasingly prefacing those and shift into first for a brilliant
claims. So it's a welcome surprise for 3DO system own­ Sweeney type handbrake turn.
ers to find their machine being graced with a game When they finally venture off the start
which looks just as good, only with gameplay calculated line it's to see if they can get the cars
for home use instead of a quick blast at the I t . to lift off on hilly roads and,
arcades. of course, they can.
Rather than a single car, a single track, Sponsored by C ar &
Need offers no less than seven of the Track, a US magazine
world's most fabulous cars to race on
three fantastic courses - coastal, urban
3DO
M agazine <? cars'
^ which rigorously tests

and mountainous - each split into several mance, Need claims to

massive stages. You can choose to race A s have all the real time to
against the clock, or a computer controlled f) U <1 V V speed figures. The handling
player in a car of your choice. While it doesn't have of the various cars is brilliantly
the immediately frenetic appeal of being in a race with judged, heavy cars like the Diablo
20 identical cars and just 30 seconds to reach the next really wallowing about on corners,
stage, it is overall a much more involving experience. while the Ferrari seems glued to the
Chasing after a Lamborghini Diablo at over a hundred road with its huge fat tyres. The
mph, with traffic coming both ways and police cars in detail really is incredible, a 'for example' being the way same breathtaking speed, but is overall more realistic.
pursuit, is a test of anyone's driving skills. the Supra suddenly surges when its turbos cut in - which Probably the finest graphic flair is on the supercars
Programmed by EA Canada, with many of the same can be hairy if it happens on a tight corner. With so themselves - absolutely, knock dead gorgeous with
people who worked on Accolade's classic Test Drive many fantastic cars to play around with this is a game superb texture mapping recreating every detail of the
series, this is a race game with the emphasis on realism. which no-one seems to grow tired of. cars, even the undersides... Which brings us to crashes.
While this can mean boring - and many people never If you do bother to actually race, then the game There has never been a game with crashes as dra­
did get Test Drive's specialist appeal - with Need this is rewards you with some superb sights such as a fleet of matic as those in Need. Because everything is handled
exactly the opposite. When real drivers get on this game balloons lifting off, numerous bridges, plenty of tunnels by the game as real 3D objects, moving with real physi­
you just can't pry them off. They don't bother about including a deadringer for Daytona's one and an all but cal laws in force, the crashes are different every time.
chasing after the other car, forget that, they practice buried Statue of Liberty taken from Planet O f The Apes. I've seen a Ferrari flipped onto its nose, spin on a comer
doing powerslide turns in a Ferrari 512TR Testarossa, The texturing of the road and the various roadside and then come to a rest pointing downwards. A Diablo
spinning the car around and around with steam glowing objects is just incredible, building on the stunning Road has hit an oncoming car with such force that they both
Rash (whose programmers con­ went into the air, one coming to land balanced on top of
tributed to Need), but adding far the other. Then other cars and trucks come piling in,
more variety. It doesn't have quite the spinning about while your opponent's car invariably

There are no less than

eight supercars: Ferrari
512TR Testarossa, Dodge
Viper, Corvette ZR1,
Lamborghini Diablo VT,
Porsche 911, Mazda RX-7
Toyota Supra Turbo, &
Honda NSX.
 s
3 DO

nips through a gap and into the lead.

All this chaos can be viewed again and
again by either calling an instant replay, or at
the end of the stage when you can review
either the entire stage or just the highlights. As
in the game itself you can choose between in
car, chase and helicopter views, but there's
also extra views from the opponent's car, chas­
ing police cars and more. If the game weren't
so much fun you'd probably spend ages with
this, or even admiring the super slick FMV introducing back to simply to relax, just like cruising a real car down
each of the supercars. You also get FMV of your incredi­ the highway. Given its amazing addictivity, even three
bly smarmy, annoying American opponent who super­ huge, multi-stage courses aren't enough, but data disks
ciliously comments on how you did in the previous stage and a full blown sequel are quite inevitable. In the
- adding real incentive to make him suffer in defeat. meantime anyone who's got any interest at all in real
Without doubt, Need For Speed is going to sell zil­ cars simply can't miss this one. □ ssw
lions of 3DO systems. It's a game which, even when 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
you've beaten every car on every course, you'll come
review

Publisher: Electronic Arts ® 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: Bullfrog Save G am e: 5 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 4 .9 9 Available: N ow

heme Park puts you in the position of a One of the unlikeliest and most original of PC hits of 1994 w as this
wealthy business man (or woman) who
uniquely English concoction, m arrying theme park w him sy to a
has decid ed to open a theme p a rk .
Starting from scratch, you have to choose, sophisticated business sim.
place and arrange rides and shops in food parlours: the price of rides must
your park while keeping your customers happy. Are be set to both d raw customers and
your ticket prices too high? Have you got enough rides? make money, the ticket stations placed
These questions are part of the everyday to ensure maximum custom, you can
life of a Theme Park operator even vary how much sugar goes into
Despite the game's sophistica­ the ice cream. Another example of
tion, it's perfectly set up to draw 1 the game's subtlety - in design, if
you in. An automated tutorial runs
you through the basics of design­
3DO $
—- not taste - is the p lacin g of
restaurants. Place food vendors
ing a park, but really anyone can too close to a particularly d ra­
get building when all it takes is a matic ride and watch the vomit fly.
click of a button to place a Bouncy This can lead to a knock-on effect
Castle or Tree House. Paths must be laid with people becoming sick by watching
so visitors can get to the rides, but it's all beautifully other people.
simple. There's more to the park than just
Opening the park brings on the swarm of people buildings though, your staff are just as
waiting to get in. As they walk around, their thoughts important as your rides, and these little
are shown as speech bubbles, simplistic icons giving you people are there to fix your rides, clean
an idea of how you park is doing (eg beefburger pic­ up after your customers or to just keep them amused All is well in the park, above, with plenty of action
tures mean people are hungry). However, there's a lot while they wait in a queue. All this costs money, howev­ to be had. Except the tea cup ride is breaking
more to running a theme park than just building fast er, and your staff are constantly on the lookout for a pay down, and closing it for repairs will cost money. I'll
repair it next year. It'll be okay 'till then...
The ride sequences are brilliantly atmospheric, and a increase. This has to be settled at the conference table,
great incentive to invest in new ones. The interface or your park will suffer from an all-out strike. sporadic 'ice cream' music - I suppose if every ride's
system, below right, is a doddle to use. All of the PC's sophistication appears to have been effects ran simultaneously it could get a bit wearing!
retained on the 3DO system, but now it looks prettier Overall, Theme Park is a game suitable for players of
with slightly improved graphics and a more user-friendly all ages. The lower difficulty levels can get quite boring
pop-up menu system. Until a mouse is released for the after a prolonged period of play, but they are ideal as
3DO system, I hope all game developers stick to this training grounds for the full game. Constantly improving
kind of point-and-click selection. Another advantage for your park and keeping its customers happy is an addic­
the 3DO version are some brilliant new FMV sequences. tive formula but this can wear off in time unless you get
You can select any of the rides in your park and go on a more involved with the business side of the game. Brain
first-person perspective tour of your attraction. These dead arcade fans should be warned the business really
really do add to the game's appeal and provide a can be quite complex, but most people will find building
strong hook for earning enough money for bet­ their own Theme Park as compulsive as visiting anyone
ter rides. What's the fun of running a theme else's! □ dgmb
park if you can't use the rides yourself? The 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
FMV is also accompanied by some great
audio, although the game proper is surpris­
ing quiet with just the odd sound effect and

the I i i f i i r i cr vtfnrcun
r c c r i» « iC K is ■ i n i^ c u x is

the rcc r is
8E3
T H E f f .I Z E XS
ri«V t M S I S I l E
EfiCicr
Disaster! Everyone seems either very peckish or
very bored. Coffee machines are cheaper than
better rides. You can grow to hate your customers.
 review
IO I*

5 1 )0

Publisher: Crystal Dynamics @ 071 9730011 Developer: In-house Save G am e: 5 SRAM Slots Price: £TBA A vailable: Soon

he Neo Geo has long been renowned for Originally developed on the Neo Geo, this classic sword-fighting coin­
its beat-'em-ups, and Samurai Showdown op has lost none of its blood-splattered ferocity on the 3DO system.
is widely recognised as the best of an
impressive bunch. So when 3DO wizards filling the screen with his huge belly. Yet
Crystal Dynamics announced a conver­ everything moves as quickly as the coin­
sion, expectations skyrocketed with the game instantly op, complete with the screen zooming in
jumping to top of many people's most wanted lists. Now and out as characters wander about.
it's finally arrived, all those expectations There's no slowdown whatsoever, the
have been met. On our preproduction only pauses are those used by the
copy, Crystal haven't even inserted coin-op to emphasise its tactical
their logo - the game boots up with ~ aspects: those swords aren't just
an SN K logo and from then on " for show - a long , sw eeping
this is perfect arcadia. fg attack causes lots of damage with
Although SSFIIX is undoubtedly Z in e o blood splashing everywhere.
a far more sophisticated and faster If opponents lock sw o rd s,
paced beat-'em-up, Samurai makes J/> H there's some frantic button hammer­
for a better conversion in many ways. For ing to come out ahead with the loser
a start, its outrageous graphics make for a much bolder being thrown into the a ir . If you're
impression than SSFX IIX s more muted approach. The unlu cky you can even lose your
various backgrounds are absolutely astonishing, not weapon, which is left standing in the
only in their variety and rich colours, but also the ground, forcing you to fight on with
detailed animation with snowflakes falling and watching your fists until you grab it back
wolves not only wagging their tails, but exhaling clouds Ad d in some p a rtic u la rly
Above, the gory action in the foreground is
of frosty white breath. gruesome special moves, alw ays perfectly complimented by the gor­
The twelve characters on offer are even more impres­ such as grabbing a foe and geously animated backgrounds, which are
sive, as varied and flamboyant a bunch as you can sawing the blade across his zoomed in and out of with great effect. The
many special moves and brilliant character ani­
imagine. The humongous Earthquake is one of the throat in a welter of blood,
mation make player selection great fun as well.
biggest sprites ever seen on the 3DO system, practically then yo u 've got a gam e They're all so good, you want to be every one!
Quentin Taran tino would
love.
The sound effects provide a
crunchingly good accompaniment to
all the action, along with some very atmospheric music.
Also as expected are the usual two-player, one player
practice and tournament modes - the latter taking you
through all the other characters with just three continues.
Crystal's one innovation is a welcome save game option,
making for a generally superb 3DO experience. If you
are fed up with the likes of the SFII series, and want
something that looks and plays completely different, then
this is well worth considering. □ ssw
3DO m agazine rating: ★ * ★ ★ ★
 review

3 1 )0

R i s e - R o b o t s

Publisher: Art Data Interactive ® 0101 8055268080 Developer: Mirage/Cognisense Save G am e: No Price: £44.99 Available: Now

o ver the past two years, Rise's heavy metal

heroes have become the videogame ver­
sions of supermodels, their 3D Studio
curves adorning preview after preview.
Even after all this exposure, they remain
inspired creations. Like R2-D2 or C-3PO, they're robots
w hich a re at once b e lie vab le as c h a ra c te rs and
machines. The lumbering gait of the ape like Prime B
"No version will sound or play better than ours, Rise is the type of
title which really confirms 3DO as a major player" - Keith Wood,
programmer, Cognisence.
perfect for the 'cinem atics',
short FMV sequences intro­
ducing the game, and each
robot as you face it in com­
CVBQRG: D Q U S '. E D
M
□ Z u n io n
I
: SEN T R V
| :urg

robot, the chillingly insectoid crusher and, of course, the bat. The storyline has your
shapeshifting Supervisor with her truly frightening character, the Cyborg, visit­
Mantis-morph - it's a brilliant cast for any game and ing an automated factory in
they're never looked better than on 3DO. revolt against its human mas­
Unlike conventional, hand-drawn sprites each frame ters. The sleek new Supervisor
of animation is taken from the manipulation of incredi­ robot has learnt freedom of
bly detailed 3D models. To provide frames of animation, though and the infection is
the models were put through various combat moves spreading. The 3DO version
designed by a real martial art expert - a modelling extends the original intro with
process which took about two months per robot, with full an excellent Cyborg creation
lightsourcing on all 100+ frames of animation. All this scene, besides extending in­
work certainly comes through in a finished product - game cinematics with d a z ­
when the Crusher snaps its pincers at you, there's noth­ zling fly-bys of all the robots
ing cartoon about the way it moves, light gleaming and new death scenes.
across its pistoning limbs. Add in debris flying off with Rendered in full 2 4 b it,
every blow, plus crunching good sound FX and it's an Truecolour these are impres­
impressive experience. sive sequences - all the more ___________________________
The flexibility of the robot models also make them so because the character graphics are so close to those Above, the Sentry robot is an enormous sprite, but
Below, the Crusher demonstrates its spectacular in the FMV. The 3DO version also benefits from an its huge kicks are incredibly fast. It also learns your
leaping attack. Below the Sentry robot wins. excellent techno soundtrack which you can select instead moves so a repeated attack pattern is suicidal.
of Brian May's guitar rock. screen, but his kicks are as fast as Chun-Li's. Even on
Rise is undoubtedly a great story, but is it a great easy level, this is a very tough, very quick game which
beat-'em-up? W ell, no, set against the likes of SFIIX or will take time to master. There aren't a huge number of
Samurai Shodown this is a rather limited game. The moves, but each character has about two special moves
immense size of many of the robots rules out robot ver­ and you'll need to know them to survive for long.
sus robot fights, although there is a secret option for mil­ O verall, this is a very Flollywood-style production
itary versus military since they're reasonably sized. The which wipes the floor with any of its competiton in the
robots are also rather few in number, so to beef up the presentation stakes. Strip out the graphics and you'd
challenge, the game forces you to go through the have a rather unexceptional game, but with them you've
Supervisor's underlings twice before you get that climatic got a ground-breaking hype monster. If the idea
^ confrontation with her. She's a spectacular finale, appeals, the 3DO version is faster, slicker and more
but getting to her won't be at all easy. playable than any other version of this highly acclaimed
While some other versions play rather slug­ mega-game and well worth buying. □ ssw
gishly, 3DO Rise is lightning quick. The sentry 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
robot may be two-thirds the height of the

» . - .3
*1 -
 review
( O i*

3DO
O f The Warrior
Publisher: Interplay ® 0 2 3 5 8 2 1 6 6 6 Developer: U niversal/N aughty Dog

ay o f the Warrior is as a good a start as

Save G am e: N o

With Street Fighter II stepping up a level and threatening the same

Price: £TBA Available: TBA

any. It features nine different characters all-out attack on the 3DO system as it successfully pulled off on the
from all kinds of wild and depraved
backgrounds. In all honesty I have never
16bit consoles, it's time for those rivals to come flooding in.
seen a more varied mix of degenerates digitised graphics, are the undoubtedly pri­
in all my years of console battery! For a start there is mary attraction with gameplay trailing a
Shaky Jake, an Aussie farmer-type bloke who swigs poor second.
spirits and ignites his flammable breath to barbecue his W h ereas S SF IIX relies on well-timed
opponents, and whose hilarious dialogue includes combos and fluid attacks to win, W arrior is
"Strewth, you fight like a wombat", and "Now that's a almost mindless button-bopping with wins
knife" taken from the famous Crocodile Dundee scene! often resulting more from luck than actual
Then there's Crimson Glory, the babe from hell who skill. Good as the graphics are (brilliant in
w ise-cracks in a heavy A rizo n a d ra w l, her moves fact), W arrior just doesn't have the playa­
including bunging bottles, breaking backs, and explod­ bility to back them up. The main problem is
ing people's heads - all of which are climaxed with the that the fighters don't respond as quickly to
cheeky lass taking a huge tug on her whisky and spitting your commands as they should, resulting in
it out into the a ir, hardly how a proper lady would very jagged action that looks more like a
behave! Other combatants include M ajor G aines, a staged W W F bout than two fighters who've
steroid-gobbling m arine, Fox, a lethal hit-man type got to kill to win. Unlike MKII, and especial­
geezer, and other assorted ninjas and stick-wielding ly SSFIIX, you don't actually feel that sensa­
thugs. Th ey're a ll im pressively digitised and fully tion of landing devastating blows, you just
equipped with spectacular moves. swipe aw ay and occasionally your oppo­
Nevertheless, the first thing that'll hit you about this nent topples to the ground like a sack of spuds!
game is the tremendous soundtrack. No sooner do you In terms of presentation, W arrior is certainly a better
boot the game up, than you ears are heavily assaulted showcase of the 3DO system than SFIIX; besides smooth
by a frantically-paced thrash metal bombardment of screen scaling to keep the characters always in view,
sound. This then fades into the background and the there's some absolutely stunning guardian monsters
screen is filled with a huge skull that introduces you to (which a cheat lets you control). Newcomers to beat-
the contest ahead. The in-game music is equally impres­ 'em-ups will probably have great fun with it initially, but
sive, adding massively to the atmosphere. for true beat-'em-up fans W arrior is essentially a weak
There a re three modes of p la y in W a r rio r; MKII clone with no guts or personality of its own. □ rpb
Tournament, a one-player game in which you fight your 3DO m agazine rating:
way through the nine characters before confronting two
mega-bosses; Versus, which is a standard two-player The special moves provide the most fun in the game,
above. Discovering and implementing them is great
and Demo, just in case you fancy watching the computer fun. Below, the bizarre bunch that star in this off-kil­
duff away by itself. ter game. You wouldn't want to meet any of them
Like most beat-'em-ups, W arrior is very hard to mas­
ter and each character has a vast array of suit­
ably gruesome moves, plus several "Fatality"
sequences that make M ortal Kombat II
look like an episode of Button Moon!
Honestly, you've never seen dismem­
berment's as graphic and sick as this.
However, after a while it becomes obvi­
ous that p resen ta tio n a l gim m icks,
including that great sound track and slick
 review
IO * »

International
Soccer
Publisher: Electronic Arts © 0753 549442 Developer: Extended Play Save G am e: 10 SRAM Slots Price: £44.99 A vailable: Now

he anticipation for this title has been enor­ After the ultimate American football sim (M adden) and the fastest
mous and first impressions seem to con­
racer (Road Rash), have EA produced the definitive footie game?
firm EA have bettered even M adden in
creating the most visu ally impressive, some action-sensitive, stadium-shaking
slickly packaged game yet. From the soundtrack and intelligent camera cuts
superb FMV intro, spliced with in-game action scenes (for goal kicks and corners etc). Unlike
(hardly distinguishable from real life) to the multitude of most footie games, long matches are
play options, camera angles, slow motion entirely absorbing with the audio-visu-
controls and stunning, sampled sound­ '/ J y als providing an engrossing atmo­
tracks, FIFA looks and sounds as good sphere. However, as with all ver-
as any game written. In play, you can s 'ons ° f F IF A , g ra p h ics do
believe you're watching a real foot­ » f P % f CC extract a penalty in gameplay.
ball match, so detailed are the sprites M These days most footie fans
and so smooth is the animation, all
ai»nzine . , 7 ,.
have becom e used to the
panned and zoomed across with unbe­ / j ^ ab su rd a rc a d e speed of the
lievable smoothness. For the first few °P U 9 & - microdot graphics of Kick O ff and
games, you can't resist running everything Sens/. Compared to these FIFA feels a
back in slow motion, choosing the free camera view to little sluggish at times, which may be
whiz all over the place, watching the action from every more realistic but less excusable is the
conceivable angle. Even more so than John M adden, controllability. In Sens/ it's perfectly easy
these slow motion flashbacks are almost a game in their to put together blindingly fast successions
own right. of passes and strikes. Here, passing is
In game, despite the multitude of views available, the more cumbersome, and interceptions almost the rule Above, a header keeps the
Stadium camera is most helpful, providing a smooth rather than the exception, making flowing play difficult. ball in play. Inset, flashy
moves come easily to FIFA
panning horizontal track of the action, and keeping as Another irksome flaw is the imprecise nature of tackling. players, and good fun they are
much of the pitch (about a third) in view at one time. Unlike almost every other football game I've played, too. And of course, they're always intentional. The
Over-the-Shoulder, Ball-Cam, End Zone and Side-Line where tackles are swift and decisive, in FIFA, opposing slow-mo and zoom facility prove handy for debate.
are all nice to replay action, but each pose difficulties in players just wrestle with each other for several seconds.
some aspect of play, making passing especially difficult. O f course, these problems are no less pronounced on
Truly then, FIFA for the 3DO system is a stunning other versions and that hasn't stopped it becoming one
looking game and veterans of previous FIFA incarna­ of the bestselling carts ever. The 32bit glories of the
tions will be incredulous at the visual panache, the awe­ 3DO version mean it should be even more successful,
but compared to the world-shattering hype, gameplay is
still only enhanced and FIFA isn't as definitive as say
Madden. Rage's faster-running Striker is still in with a
chance for the cup, but in the meantime FIFA gives the
3DO system another genre classic which is essential for
any footie fan. Moreover, if you've got five pals and
(more problematically) five joypads then the six-player A mad dash down the middle in close-up, and a
game is pretty much unmissable as well. □ mew chance to admire the characterful footballer sprites
in action. The animation is excellent. Below, an easy
3DO m agazine rating: * * * * * strike shouldn't cause any problems for the
computer controlled keeper. They're all very good.
 review
♦ •O l

1A / T Jo h n V V
3 1) O

Madden Publisher: Electronic Arts © 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: High Score

he incredibly detailed, beautifully animat­

Save G am e: 3 SRAM Slots

Madden w as one of the first 3DO multiplayer releases to justify the

Football
Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

ed sprites of Madden on the 3DO system next generation hype, marrying state-of-the-art presentation in-game
will be a revelation to any one familiar
with Mega Drive and SNES conversions.
and out to fantastic playability.
As will the stereo sound, FMV intro, sam­ moves and implementing them success­
pled in-game commentary and smooth panning action fully, revelling in the game's fantastic
replays. Since American Football itself is so reliant on controllability. Authentic team stats,
big game razzmatazz and spectacle, this FMV sequences and brilliant sound and
is an apt title for EA to showcase the narration all conspire to make this
3DO system's abilities on. And as even more cruelly addictive.
gameplay itself is even more gor­ t. The ultimate heresy in this 'soc-
geously addictive and engrossing,
all this visual sumptuousness is
3D O " cer'-loving land is that I'd argue
American is better than British in
welcome icing on the cake. the videogame stakes. In a footie
The most significant graphical ^ game there's only a modicum of
enhancement, which in turn boosts control ava ila b le over your team,
gameplay considerably, is that the action play being inevitably focused on the
is viewed much closer, and in far greater detail. This player in possession. Madden, by con­
makes sophisticated plays far more realistic than the fat, trast, gives a feeling of complete control,
indistinct players from lesser consoles. Although scrim­ and thus far greater satisfaction. Whilst
mages are still an explosion of confusion, the superbly some might find the stop-start nature of
realistic sprites are much more easily distinguished play off-putting, the pauses to plan your
between - and it's this clarity that makes Madden much next move are completely engrossing. In
more accessible to football novices. fact, they only accentuate the excitement
M adden w as alw ays designed for beginners and of the actual plays, shorts bursts of adrenaline that are Above, it looks like a throw down the middle is all
your 3DO system will do practically everything until you riveting in their potential for glorious progression up- that's possible. Below, plenty of space to work with
decide to take control. It couldn't be easier to get into, field or stomach-churning interceptions and failure. and it looks like a run down the right side is coming.
but it's still American football and working out the right Despite stiff competition, this remains the most impres­
strategy is essential to both success and enjoyment. sive game I've ever seen, on anything anywhere. Whilst
Basically, each team has four attempts, or downs, to single player games don't offer quite as much excitement
make ten yards towards the opponent's goal. If this dis­ as the extraordinary two-player matches, this is still an
tance isn't covered, play switches around. You can make unmissable piece of software. □ mew
the distance by a combination of runs and throws: there 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
are in fact over 100 different plays, each represented by
easy to understand onscreen diagram s. W orking out
which play is best for each situation, against the defen­
sive move you expect the other side to make,
is an intriguing battle of wits.
As a complete novice to the sport -
in fact, I usually take pains to avoid
watching it - all it took were a few
goes to have me entirely addicted. I
Left, 83 is making a strong run even in the pouring
particularly enjoyed learning new rain. Below, goal time.
 o <9* Mo

k >Tm ? rv A.
t d r e :
■ ■ i w m m i ■ ■ i ■ ■ i

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review

Publisher: Panasonic ® 0 3 4 4 8 5 3 1 4 6 Developer: C apcom Save G am e: N o Price: £ 6 0 A vailable: Dec/Jan

uper Street Fighter It X is Capcom's reply The Super NES didn't get it, the Mega Drive didn't get it, and you sure
to thousands of happy-go-lucky coin-op as hell won't find it on the Jaguar. The ultimate conversion of the
addicts who thought the old format need­
ed a boot in the right direction if it was to
arcade milestone has come to the ultimate console.
there are some niggles. The most sur­
compete with the likes of MKII and indeed
the whole new line-up of impressive beat-'em-ups that prising is that in some ways the game is
offer much more to the player than just winning rounds.disappointing on the 3DO system. The
For those uninitiated in SFII lore, SSFIIX sound is arcade perfect, but the tunes
includes the four new characters intro- are the same as when the first game
duced in Super SFII plus a massive appeared and nothing new has
array of new and improved moves, ^'x j ^ £
been added to compete with W ay
including the brand-new Ultra j O f The Warrior's state-of-the-art
moves. The latter are obviously a rock track. Sim ilarly the visuals
cunning ploy to indirectly compete M agazine lock the freshness that Warrior's
with Mortal Kombat by offering the various special effects offer.
player something hidden to find and Nevertheless, for real beat-'em-
perfect, whilst keeping the gore factor up fanatics, SSFIIX is still undoubtedly
down to minimum to placate the anti-violence brigade - king of the hill. Years of constant devel­
cunning non? As in MKII, the Ultra moves are secret opm ent has not only retain ed that
and complicated, but offer a spectacular pay-off to those incredible playab ility, but added an
prepared to work for them. If you make a throw move incredible number of moves per charac­
when the 'Super' meter flashes, a fiddly joypad manoeu­ ter - the possibilities for combination
vre will cause your fighter to lunge into a super-duper move attacks are almost endless. If you're serious about Above, the China lass demonstrates how to render
combo move that saps your opponent's energy like beat-'em-ups, or just want to see what the best is like, a man uselessl Below left, we used to think these
nobody's businessl Pull it off when the other fighter's then SSFIIX is pretty much unmissable. □ rpb woman were sexyl
energy is at minimum and the screen will turn into a 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
huge explosion as your foe is totally hammered!
This effect, as with almost everything else in the mmmmm
arcade game, is superbly replicated with the 3DO ver­
sion. Capcom have even brought across the coin-op's
Q-Sound, which sounds stunning through a decent hi-fi.
The graphics are also accurately recreated with incredi­
ble detail on all the fighters. Backgrounds aren't quite as
impressive, the colours seem a little muted from the coin­
op, but the speed at which the game runs is incredible -
easily refuting early scepticism. If you've only got a stan­
dard joypad the speed can actually be a problem - the
'pause' button has been used as a distinctly
aw kw ard sixth button - but a Capcom
designed pad is due for near simultane­
ous release.
finish 'em off with an Ultra
SFII fans will obviously find this an id this is the stunning effect,
essential buy, many will probably ei Long and Ryu practice for
buy a 3D O system just for it, but i amateur ballet production!

Above, Sagat unleashes the full force of his Ultra

move. Left, the 55FII babes battle it out for overall
supremacy! Who's the most gorgeous? Who can
say. Can't wait to see Kylie pull off that move.
 review

^Llouc Dark
io a +

3DO
the
Publisher: Infogrames ® 071 7 3 8 8 1 9 9 Developer: In-house Save Gam e: 3 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: January

A s the hype machine is already churning One of the biggest PC releases of '93, Alone made polygon graphics
on A lo n e III for the PC, it may seem
sexy with its haunting mix of realistic animation and bucket loads of
annoying that 3DO system owners are
being fobbed off with the original - espe­ blood. But is the 3DO version still worth a shiver?
cially as the programmers haven't even rooms or must be placed in certain positions, so a thor­
bothered to update the 3D O m ultiplayer version. ough walk around of each location is essential.
However, the hoary old excuse that it's a classic game Another reason to explore is the surprisingly high
which doesn't need changing actually holds some water degree of interaction. Cupboards not only look good,
with Alone. Thanks to an excellent soundtrack and stun­ but can be pushed in front of windows to prevent nasties
ningly rendered locations, Alone In The Dark has the bursting through. Vases can be smashed to find keys,
am bience of a classic horror movie and everyone mirrors combined to spectacular effect and a whole host
deserves a visit to this haunted house. of weapons put to work. Up until Alone, polygon games
Your objective is simple: escape from the house. were all rather clinical and gore-free. Alone changed
Compared to its sequels it's not that big a challenge, but that by not only by having plenty of blood splashed
while veterans can whiz through it in hours others will about, but also through disturbingly realistic animation.
have more trouble - and fun. Besides being packed with Watching a zombie savage your character in a spray of
puzzles, this Gothic abode offers an unusual game per­ blood is a truly gruesome experience. However, I sup­
spective. W ell, three or four different perspectives per pose it helps justify the various knives, swords and bro­
room to be exact. As your character wanders about, the ken bottles you use against them, not to mention a satis-
game automatically swaps between the most suitable or fyingly lethal shotgun. This is, without doubt, a very adult
- being French - most dramatic perspectives to show game, both in content and atmosphere, but that's a com­
what's happening. Although this can be confusing at pliment rather than a criticism. The thread of violence
first, it not only helps show off the polygon graphics but that runs through Alone adds to the unbearable tension, The frozen ballroom dance, for example, is a puzzle as
also hints at the various puzzles and traps which lurk in overshadowing every scene with spine tingling dread. unsettling as it is tricky. What's more, unlike most adven­
every room. Some objects are hidden in corners of There are certainly some very weird scenes as well. tures the design and innovation of Alone becomes more
not less impressive towards the games climax. Clearly,
as the programmers became more comfortable with
their original idea they got more ambitious, imbuing
their product with a degree of artistry rarely seen in a
videogame.
So despite being a drearily unimaginative conver­
sion, the strength of the original game makes it still well
worth a look. While PC owners will see no reason to
trouble themselves with it, others will find much to delight
(and terrify) themselves with here particularly as the
o ffic ia l, PAL release w ill be full screen. N ow if
Infogrames cut to the chase with a souped up Alone In
The Dark III, everyone will really have something to look
Above, the shotgun is the easiest forward to. □ m e w
w ay to dispense of gouls, and the
most enjoyable. Inset, attacks from 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★
this snapping, vicious dog, are
invariably fatal without a weapon.

A reflection of itself will give this winged guard

something to cry about. It's down these stairs that
Alone In The Dark really opens up, with many
monstors and puzzles below ground...
 review
ioa*

3 0 0

World Cup
Publisher: US G o ld ® 021 6 0 6 1 8 0 0 Developer: Arc Save G am e: 2 SRAM Slots Price: £TBA A vailable: Early December

he perennial success of golfing games on With digitised stills for every view rendered in World Cup Golf, US
every conceivable format since the dawn
Gold seem confident this is as real a golf game as you'll ever see.
of video games isn't difficult to compre­
hend. Few sports are as relaxing as mak­ they aren't as dramatic as the simpler
ing a long drive down the open green, animations in 16bit PGA. They also
nor as expensively exclusive - making simulation consid­ cause a brief pause for disc accessing
erably more affordable than reality. which interrupts that much sought
In the pursuit of producing a sim as close to reality as after illusion of realism. Also irksome
possible, Arc have stuffed World Cup G o lf with digitised is that there's just a single 18-hole
backgrounds and FMV sequences. Set in Puerto Rico, course - the price of such detailed
the various scenes seem a little less colourful than you re cre a tio n of the D orad o Beach
might expect, and large, digitised player graphics are course where the 40th anniversary of
conspicuous by their absence, but the level of detail is World Cup Golf is due to take place.
impressive. The obsession with realism also comes To ensure long-lasting ap p eal
through in the control system, a vast wealth of options there are, however, no less that 15
being available through an exceptionally friendly inter­ different championship formats, from
face, each control bringing forth a window from which the usual skins and medal games, to
to access the finer details. Fade, draw, top and back the enjoyable one club and putter
spin are all easily achieved, along with stance, backspin game, which is an excellent way of
and everything else you'd expect. Hitting the ball (the learning all the types of strikes that
main thing really) is nevertheless simple and effective, can be applied to a ball, without hav­
allowing you to soon build the confidence for heroic ing to worry about different clubs.
shots with wildly inappropriate clubs, just for the hell of People with golf-loving friends are also well catered for, against, equipped with some very tough, smart comput­
it. Especially fun is trying wacky slices around trees just with up to 32 two-player teams able to join in on any of er-controlled players. Non-fans might be less forgiving
to test the realism of the program - it passes with flying the 18 holes (which can be practised individually by of the sluggishness when you hit the ball, but golf is
colours. perfectionists). never going to appeal to arcade fans and with PGA
By way of contrast, the much lauded FMV sequences Overall it's the fine detail, the incredible variety of G olf still some way off this is bound to do well. □ mew
which attend every tee-off aren't that impressive. The options, that will get golf fans queuing up for W orld Cup 3DO m agazine rating:
window in which they appear is small and, while slick, Golf. There's no less than 72 national teams to compete

DOL

|m<o| I'ik ii ;
The huge array of tournament
styles to play, plus the wel­ »«JLt rf
pn« s
come practice options, are ?06 ‘*03.,
very impressive, and com­
pensate for the single course.
Above, in the rough
and in the shade.
0 n—
From the map, it
would appear I'm
rather off course. PDJU ST HIND EFFE C T
Top right, the pull­ o ;/ _______s o x lo o se
out menus are both
easy to use and very ! NORM OFF A V
accurate in imple­
mentation. There's
certainly no difficulty P P IU C T GROUND CONDITION
for beginners in
tackling World Cup
Golf. The wind and
I4QLE £ FR FC TIC E other weather condi­
SHOT 19 tions, right, can be
PUTTER -C-
adjusted then saved.
SA V E
Left, an easy putt.
review
w- J Off-World m

Interceptor Publisher: Crystal Dynamics © 071 9730011 Developer: In-house Save G am e: No Price: £39.99 Available: Now

he brilliance of the Total Eclipse graphics The 3DO system is becoming something of a nirvana for racing fanat­
engine made its reuse almost inevitable, ics with Road Rash and Need For Speed blasting a w a y all Earthly
but Interceptor both improves on it and
uses it for an entirely different type of
competition, while Interceptor provides a mega-blasting sci-fi variant.
gam e. The barren levels of our early matically. Some come with guided mis­
cover disk have been entirely blown away in the finished siles or lasers w hich, w hile ideal for
game, Crystal Dynamics going into overdrive with mind- beginners, also make the game a bit
blowing sci-fi landscapes. easy. Initially things do seem rather sim­
There are six different planets, each Hi ple with warp gates to put you behind
with six o r seven levels to race *4 the other player - a trick required by
acro ss, and in Story M ode, the £ the fact you can 't turn around.
object is simply to get to from one
end to the other, blasting or avoid­
3D O .
However, with practise the game
(ft becomes very p layab le as you
ing trouble all the w ay. As with Magazine (ft become more adept with rear-fire
Total you can't turn around, but the mines and various other weapons.
landscape is so broad there's still The game's main appeal though is
plenty of exploration to carry out finding one-player with the screen overloading
the most lucrative (or safest) route through each level. on speed, detail and incoming fire! The
When you finish a planet you also get to meet an end- terrain is the most outrageously varied
level boss - usually an enormous, heavily armoured ever seen, boasting endless hills, ravines,
tank. It's one tough challenge, but while Story Mode has pits and ridges to race along. With ever
a fixed route through the planets, Arcade Mode lets you more tight time limits the landscape alone might be classic arcade game, with simple objectives, seductive
practice each one separately (as in Road Rash). This is enemy enough for some games, but not Interceptor. visuals and sonics (the music is up to Crystal Dynamics
good fun as they're all so varied, but it does diminish the Each planet introduces some new hazard, from pop-up usual high standards) and gameplay that is simply joy­
incentive to play through normally and is clumsy com­ lasers to electric towers to gunship copters. The list is ful. Inconceivable on any other machine, this is outstand­
pensation for the lack of save game. endless and the screen is always swarming with lasers ing stuff, and with a brilliant two-player game, quite
Two-player Mode is better structured with each plan­ and missiles. And then there's enemy buggies and cycles unmissable. □ mew
et offering three battle sites - win two and the planet is that provide the stiffest (and most thrilling) competition, 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
yours, win all the planets and you've won the game. initially just blasting and ramming, but eventually laying
Moreover you can switch your cars at any point - an mines and using rear-fire lasers on you. It's these high
important consideration since their capabilities vary dra- speed chases, w hizzing down roads and through
ravines trying to escape the nippy enemies, that really
make Interceptor a quite unique and supremely accom­
plished gaming experience.
To stand some chance of survival you can spend any
money you've collected at the end-level shop. Extra lives
(clones), missiles, nitros, shields, engines, tyres and
(most expensive of all) cars are all on offer. Some of
these appear in-game as collectibles alongside specials
such a screen-busting nuclear smart bomb. But
really it's the superb speed and complete Intimate scraps with enemy
controllability over your buggy that make buggies, above, are common
this huge fun. and exhilarating. The detail on
the vehicles is excellent. Head-
Overall Off-W orld Interceptor is a
to-head, below, is non-stop
action, with everything moving
at incredible speed.
♦■ Ol

he most striking thing about Road Rash is Road Rash is the game even the little girls in big DMs like. Ultra-fast,
how complete a package it is. From the
ultra-violent it's what videogaming's all about.
opening power chords to the flame-licked
'winner' logo this a perfectly orchestrated Mercury Prize runners-up Therapy?.
experience. IFs not only the endless FMV, You can choose whichever you want
arcade-style visuals and rock star soundtrack - it's to accompany your racing, or none if
details like 3D rendered flybys of bikes for sale, even the you prefer. Sound effects aren't, ini­
menu screens are bizarre but beautiful tially, as impressive but that weedy
works of art. drone is due to your bike not the
The most important thing to say is 3DO system. Work your way up
just how playable a game this is. F> to a more powerful bike and
The speed is unbelievable, but you
always feel in total control and
3M agazine
D O <3 rj
the full-throated roar is superb,
The 3DO system also excels
never doubt the fairness of a the FMV department,
crash. If you touch an obstacle Cinepak faultlessly digitising
A , .v ^
glancingly then you only lose a little some 40 different specially shot
speed and energy: iFs only if you hit video clips to reward or mock your
something square on that you go flying off the bike. performance. Not French New W ave
On early levels roads are wide, traffic infrequent and perhaps, but skilfully composed little
collisions treated generously. But then tracks tighten to vignettes a la MTV.
two-lane death-traps thick with oncoming traffic, while The only slight disappointment is the game structure. formance is terrific, especially with nitrous injection.
competing bikes get even faster. Yet the controls are so As with the original you can see any of the five main Choosing the right bike at the right time is also an
tight, the feel so good, that you can whip along the locations, from the Pacific (Highway to urban hell, right important tactical element.
pavement, clip joggers who foolishly play chicken, from the start. When you complete all five, you progress Overall, this is pretty much your definitive EA game:
squeeze between two speeding cars with a whisker to to the next stage where the tracks are harder but not arcade-style instant addiction married to home computer
spare, even slide onto the grass and hills at the side to graphically all that different. This is a style depth and long-term challenge. □ mew
avoid trouble. Then there's 150mph fights with fellow minor whinge though, after all if the 3 D O m a g a z in e rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
bikers and pursuing cops. The realism of the crunching game's challenge isn't enough
bicycle chains is more satisfying than most beat-'em-ups. reward, how about Ollies' bike
All of this is realised with stunning graphic flair. The shop. Earn enough cash for a
Spartan wastelands of the Mega Drive version have superbike and the increase in per­
been replaced with lush countryside, finely detailed cities
and sweeping coastlines. The 3DO system's twin graphic
engines work overtime generating stunningly realistic
texture maps at breathtaking speed. Outside of an
arcade there has never been anything like this. The way
landscapes rise and fall, the speed at which buildings
whip past - it's astonishingly realis­
tic and uttedy convincing.
Even better than an
arcade game is the sound­
track which features tracks
from groups such as Tight squeezes, above, certainly provide a buzz.
Below, a skateboarder misses sudden impact by
seconds. Road Rash welcomes sociopathic riders.

Above, swinging your chain at opponents

with two cars on the horizon is asking (or
trouble. Left, things get cosy in tunnels.
Only wimps bother slowing down though.
 view

Publisher: Electronic Arts © 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: A T G Save G am e: 10 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: Now

he image of an arrowheaded FI 77 arc­ Shock Wave raises the art of FMV presentation to new heights with
ing over the Earth was always one of the
real actors seamlessly blended into CGI action sequences. But does
most striking images in the 3DO system's
hype. Cynics could argue it was only pre­
the game live up to the movie?
sentation, but with the 3DO multiplayer which takes place on a different location
that's part of the point. A doublespeed CD as standard, on Earth. Within a fairly broad corridor
Cinepak video compression and a superfast bus make you have complete freedom of movement
FMV presentation easy. Almost 3DO game for the 3DO except for your altitude, which is fixed.
system has some sort of Silicon Graphics wizardry to At the end of the corridor is an end level
introduce itself with and, as the machine matures, the guardian, but there's plenty of alien-
eye-candy will be ever more tightly integrated into the infested stages before you get there. On
actual game. the early levels aliens are slow-moving
Shock Wave is at the crest of this wave. O f course, and simple-minded, but as you progress
the intro is slick with some of the sharpest CGI imagery new types arrive with tougher armour
around. Moreover the use of real actors, with chroma­ and smarter tactics. It's a good idea to
key photography to integrate them into CGI sets, is a listen during those FMV briefings!
world away from Super Wing Commander's computer In-game visuals are just as impressive
art. However, the FMV doesn't stop with the launch of as the FMV. Texture mapping is used on
the FI 77. As you skim across the texture-mapped waves just about everything except your laser
of the River Nile, fellow pilots appear on the instrument bolts. Alien ships have a truly other­
panel to urge you on. The female flight controller radios w orldly look about them, while
sarcastic comments, while the alien invasion storyline is locations such as Las Vegas are
advanced by news broadcasts. If you complete the mis­ evocatively portrayed with
sion a new FM V sequence updates you on alien streams of light shimmering W ar O f The Worlds. O kay, it's a classy story to rip-
progress, and suggests new tactics. You can't help but in the dark. The graphics off but these days the collapse of the Soviet Union
feel involved as the pilots trade quips about the upcom­ a re , as you exp ect, fully has reduced our interest in massed alien invasions.
ing missions. interactive. Flit a skyscraper Nowadays the enemy is within, and shows like the
The game itself is split into ten missions, each of and a nice explosion con­ X-Files or Twin Peaks have their aliens as lost and
sumes masses of points. confused as any normal serial killer.
For shoot-'em-up fan a tics The main problem, however, is that while the game
Shock Wave offers plenty of fast 'n' is fun to play it lacks depth. The FI 77 has a simple
frantic action with a better graded difficulty curve than array of weapons and combat's rarely all that complex.
Total Eclipse: better still it also has a save game option. Worse, because there's only ten levels they're made very
However, despite its many good points its advanced long and protracted. Going back to base for a hospital
technology is ultimately superficial. The FMV movie has scene, then restarting on the easy early stages soon
great production values, but its plotline is fixed. If you becomes tiresome. As you might expect of a develop­
a mission you get the next clip of ment team called New Technologies G roup, Shock
f you fail you get a hospital clip and Wave is ultimately more interesting for its slick coding
a chance to retry. This linear structure is than its unremarkable gameplay. If you want a blast, it's
ultimately a lot less compelling than challenging enough. If you want more, then the planned
Wing Commandeds interactive narra­ data disk better have some major improvements. □ ssw
tive. Also, the plot is a tad stale being 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★
essentially an update of HG W ells'

Above, acting tough. The excellent FMV sequences

really do add atmosphere. The tips, tactics and
sarcastic asides from your controller (inset) are both
useful and entertaining.
 review
♦■ Ol

3 1 ) 0

Publisher: Electronic Arts ® 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: O rigin Save G am e: 8 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: Now

he reason Wing Commander caused such Originally released in 1991, Chris Robert's epic space opera pointed
a stir in 1991 was the way it skillfully
the w a y forward for the coming multimedia revolution. Massively
interweaved presentation and gameplay
to provide a truly cinematic game. Rather
upgraded for the 3DO system, it's still as addictive as ever.
than interspersing its 72 missions with a ships. Unlike the original PC game with
handful of static reward screens, Chris Roberts devel­ its 1944-style decor, the 3DO version
oped a plot which went through the entire game. The glistens with hi-tech FMV sequences.
intro sequence kicks off a plot which has you coming The sequence which has you combat-
aboard the Tiger Claw carrier as a rookie. Your first suited, running to your ship and then
mission is to uncover what happened in the intro blasting off really does get the adrena­
sequence and, as the game progresses, your perfor­ line pumping.
mance affects how the story develops. Do poorly and the Once on a mission the game
Federation's campaign becomes ever more hopeless, becomes more conventional. The mis­
leading ultimately to a Kilrathi victory. sions aren't massively varied, breaking
While most games begin with you plonked in your down into either escort or patrols. As
spaceship's cockpit, Wing Commander begins in the you'd expect, combat involves lots of
Tiger Claw's Rec Room. Here you can chat with various frantic manoeuvring to get the enemy
characters, learning combat tips, hints about upcoming into your sights, but what sets it apart is
plot suprises and maybe even begin a romance. If you the detail. Not only can you give your
fancy a different sort of action, a practice mode is wittily wingman commands, but you can
incorporated as an arcade machine. Basically, the Rec exchange insults with the Kilrathi. The
Room provides the human dimension of the story, the digitised speech really comes into its
faces to the various wingmen you'll fly with and a gloss own here, Kilrathi taunts such as 'Does
on their characters - important since in the heat of battle it hurt ape-child' add immensely to the
the way they behave varies dramatically. atmosphere. A Krant, top, comes into range of your mass drivers.
The Briefing Room, by contrast, provides the tactical The actual graphics are generally excellent. The 3DO The detail is brilliant, but don't admire it too much.
Below, the Tiger Claw rec room.
story with plenty of detail on your upcoming missions. system's hardware was designed for exactly the same
When that's over the pilots are shown running to their 'scale and rotate' school of sprite handling as the origi­
nal Wing Commander used. The new sprites are conse­
quently far more detailed and look gorgeous. One par­
ticularly stunning effect is when an enemy ship dissolves
into debris, one large chunk flashing with electricity just
like in Star Trek III. It's a shame then that's there is some
jerkiness, but this is first generation of software for the
3DO system from Origin and generally everything
moves very quickly and effectively.
Combat certainly feels realistically hectic. Enemy
ships whirl about desperately jockeying for position,
your wingman invariably flies into your line of
fire and loudly protests over the radio while
your instrument panels flash red, then
explode under enemy fire. Your various sparkling quite cinematically while the excellent sound
weapons all look great, laser bolts effects could well have been sampled out of Star Wars.
As you complete more missions, you go up in rank
and get to fly better ships with a wider choice of
weapons. Tactics become more important and despite its
toughness, the developing storyline makes leaving the
game alone impossible. Even when you complete it,
there's always the temptation to return as every failed
mission takes the game on a different course, bringing
different missions to fly. In this and much else, the game-
play of Wing Commander helps see off superficially
flashier games such as Shock Wave. With Wing
Commander III already rushing toward completion, sci-fi
fans shouldn't miss catching up on the storyline with
episode one! □ ssw
3DO m agazine rating: ★ * * *
 review
IO B +

3 DO

* } n e l Lord©
Publisher: Crystal Dynamics ® 071 9730011 Developer: Toys For Bob Save G am e: 3 SRAM Slots Price: £39.99 Available: Now

f all the initial batch of games for the The Horde is one great lolloping mongrel of a game. One third novel
3DO system, The Horde is probably the
strategy game, one third bloodthirsty arcade game and one third
most promising for the future in the way it
merges so many different elements into a FMV gagfest.
single game. The strategy element is ini­ and gathering enough money to pay
tially hardly noticeable, while the arcade action is fast, your taxes. In each province there's a
funny and spectacular enough to get almost anyone small settlement of farmers who auto­
hooked - which is when the Hordling-like matically go about tending their land.
jaws of long-term addiction set in with ‘ i / fj, The finely detailed graphics show the
ever more intriguing problems. various crops growing, and at the
W rap all this up with some fun 1 end of each season they're har­
FMV, great sound FX plus inspired
soundtracks and who could resist?
3D O vested, yielding monies to you.
(<g As time goes on, the farmers mul-
The intro sets the scene with the iM a g a Z im - o tiply and settlements slowly
king being saved from choking to spread across the land. You can
death by a serving boy. The cheap even go into farming yourself, rais­
sets and awful English accents mean ing cattle or planting trees which, when
you'll probably skip past it, but as the game proceeds grown, can be chopped down for
the FMV reappears with short clips to reward completing wood.
a level, or announcing some random event such as a It should be an idyllic life, but there's
meteor (I). All the acting is good, but RoboCop's a problem or two. Well, several thou­
Michael Gregory steals the show as the evil chancellor. sand actually. The Horde are as cheery
His plotting is often truly hilarious and while the story is and vicious a bunch as you could ever
hardly compulsive, the game is and the FMV serves as a hope to avoid. At the end of each season their cheery bite. It then sits there, grinning and rubbing its fat belly.
welcome and amusing break between levels. yodels fill the air and they begin lolloping in. Bounding If you can kill it before it swallows, the farmer is saved -
Your objective is to survive a tour through the king­ across the plains, their arms swinging about and jaws if not he's dead.
dom's five provinces, spending several years in each lolling open they head straight for your village. Besides being brilliantly drawn and animated char­
Hordlings know only two words: 'food' and 'eat'. As acters, the Hordlings also have a full repertoire of bodily
they sweep through the village, precious crops are hov­ noises for eating and swallowing. So as you rush about
ered up and houses attacked. Once the walls collapse trying to thwack them, your TV echoes with the sounds of
the Hordling gulps the unfortunate occupant in a single crops disappearing and farmers being eaten. At first the
effects are hilarious, but as the end of the year
approaches things become more grim: fail to pay your
taxes and the chancellor has you beheaded!
To protect the village you can build fences and
deploy Hordling-popping traps. For serious money you
can buy extra weapons or even deploy knights and
archers - although remember you have to pay their
wages! As your defences increase, so the Hordlings get
tougher. The easily poppable Hordling are accompanied
by thick-skinned giants, voodoo Hordlings, fast-moving
Below, the evil chancellor offers piranhas on legs and more.
another patch of land. You won't
These varied enemies not only make the arcade
like itl Right, the Shimto plains pro­
vide a fairly easy intro to the game. action far more frantic, they also pose real tactical prob­
Below right, Hordus Freezus lems. How do you best arrange your traps, will deploy­
Buttofium attack. ing knights cost more money than you can afford? This
may sound difficult, but after a few goes you'll go
sweeping through the years having great fun. Then
you'll run into trouble and realise you needed to save
more money. So you'll go back to the start and realise
just how tough the game can be.
Overall, The Horde is a near-perfect blend of arcade
action and compulsive strategy. There's probably not
enough levels and there is some slowdown on the
arcade sections, but it's certainly kept me playing for
days (and nights) on end. Heartily recommended! □ ssw
3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
 review
i
o
3 DO

Publisher: M indscape © 0 4 4 4 2 4 6 3 3 3 Developer: SSI/Lion Entertainment Save G am e: 1 SRAM Slots Price: £TBA Available: Now

ungeons & Dragons has been going for In Slayer, the 3DO system's chipset ushers in a whole new world of
ages now, its enthusiasts evolving an ever
gaming, merging the depth of AD&D with state-of-the-art 3D visuals.
more elaborate counter-reality for their
lead figurines to move through. For the instantaneous transport. The latter
outsider the fantastic characters and sce­ can be confusing since different
narios seem alluring, but only the most ardent have the areas tend to look alike and the
time or dedication to master an ever-growing rule book. onscreen automap, while a neat
Computers can automate all that boring paperwork, but idea, is a little too small for com­
until now they've struggled to do that and provide an fort. Nevertheless this is totally
involving graphics system. The first breakthrough was engrossing adventure, firmly built
Mirrorsoft's Dungeon Master, which mixed D&D-style on standard AD&D rules and yet
depth and 16bit 3D graphics to such effect it was not surprisingly easy to get into.
only a bestseller in its own right, but also sold a lot of One criticism that can be lev­
the new fangled Amigas it ran on. Now Slayer aims to elled at many games of the genre
do the same thing for the 3DO system, making the is their longevity of appeal. Once
graphics not only far more detailed and colourful, but one dungeon's been solved there's
also infinitely more convincing with incredibly fast, fluid little to be gained from playing it
animation (albeit in letterbox format). The surprise is that again. This is where Slayer really
this doesn't come from some hotshot new developer, but comes into it's own. A random
boring old SSI - the masters of exceptionally authentic, dungeon generator gives approxi­
graphically conservative (read, dull) sims. Nor are the mately four billion possibilities -
developers content with simply making the game fast, it and that's an aw ful lot of late
also includes Doom II tricks like being able to look nights. Still not enough? Then why not try the dungeon Above, Goblins and Myconoids bunch up to attack -
sadly for your energy bar, there's no slowdown so
through windows, and some stuff planned for Doom III designer? Create your own labyrinths, decide how many best be quick with the sword. Below, the inventory
like being able to look up and down - useful for negoti­ treasure and monsters are to be found and fought. Avid screen where you select weapons, spells and more.
ating traps - and multi-level architecture. You can look D&Ders will delight at the amount of game in the pack­
down four or five tiers and see monsters walking down age and neutrals will be pleasantly surprised by its
there, waiting for you - it all adds to the experience of accessibility. Recommended. □ ssw
being in a real, interactive environment. 3DO m agazine rating: k k k k
The game allows for just one main character,^no
teams, but as you'd expect from an official AD&D prod­
uct, he or she can be finely tailor-made in his or her
occupation, race, morality, stamina and much, much
more. There are, however, 21 ready-made characters so
you can plunge straight into the action. Within moments
you can be dashing around dungeons, battling strange
creatures and collecting all that wonderful
treasure. There are some 40 odd mon­ 1-
sters to encounter, many of them bril­
liantly grotesque, and you'll need all
your skills to come through the dun­
geon's 20 levels alive. O f course,
there's plenty of traps, locked doors
and also transporters - which offer

* V »:

Above, a glimpse of the multi-level architecture - by

holding down Shift Right you can pan up or down
for some stunning views. Left, you can not only see
through windows but attack through them too.
 review s

3DO
A nother World
Publisher: Interplay ® 0 2 3 5 8 2 1 6 6 6 Developer: In-house Save G am e: Password Price: £TBA Available: TBA

he original, Amiga version of Another A revolutionary gam e on 16bit, this classic French arcad e adventure has been
World caused something of a sensation
stylishly reworked for the 3DO multiplayer.
with its unique, cinematic approach to
the hoary old genre of side-scrolling game maintain this muted, but atmospheric style.
arcade adventures. Not only was the Known as Out O f This W orld in the States, it's cer­
long, scene-setting intro one of the best of its time, but at tainly not a huge game, but it's both imaginatively var­
key moments in the game itself there would be short 'cut ied and very demanding - especially as the game for
sequences'. When a gun is found, a two-second close- the 3DO system runs so much faster than any other ver­
up animation shows a hand reaching for it - an atmos­ sion. O ur errant scientist, Lester Knight Chaykin, is
pheric, and useful means of identifying otherwise tiny unusually limber for a quantum genius who's just stum­
bled onto inter-dimensional travel. He can walk, run,
jump, swim and much, much more - all superbly
realised with slick animation and intelligent joypad con­
trols. The game begins with you having to make Chaykin
swim to surface, then kick some rats
out of the way before coming face handled by Americans, is very faithful to the original.
to face with a huge alien pan­ Rather than slapping on some garish new sprites,
ther - this sends you running Interplay have kept to the o rig in al look but
backwards to jump across a recoloured it with a rich 256 colour palette. It
chasm, then swing back over obviously doesn't push the 3DO system in the way
objects. Because of the memory limitations of 16bit sys­ the panther to run into a Gex does, but such a stylish conversion of a 16bit
tems, the sequences were simple, but their briefness and laser-toting alien. Obviously, classic is still more than welcome on the new
graphical simplicity was perfectly in keeping with the it's not your average arcade generation. □ ssw
game and its fast pace. The programmers even deliber­ adventure. 3DO m agazine rating:
ately simplified the intro graphics to make the whole This conversion, despite being

Publisher: Electronic Arts ® 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: Mythos Software

Holmes
Save G am e: 10 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: N ow

he 3DO system's first brush with the En g lan d 's g reatest detective, and its most notorious m urderer, seem set for
great detective comes courtesy of an
confrontation is this challenging adventure set in the London of 1888.
earlie r version of a CD-ROM war-
horse. Like Microcosm and Night Trap, (there are some 60 characters and 3 hours of dialogue),
Holmes is a multimedia experi­ but with the 3DO system's effortless full-screen,
ment which is rejigged for every new format full colour FMV these tiny windows have
Sadly, like most pioneers it's more interest­ dubious appeal - especially considering the
ing technically than for its gameplay. The acting. W orse, the connection between
(once) hi-tech trickery comes in the form of game graphics and FMV is jarringly tenu­
FMV windows which flash up for every ous. W h ile A n o th er W o rld flaw lessly
conversation. There are plenty of these as blends in-game and cut-sequences, Holmes
Holmes wanders about questioning people sim ply bord ers its FM V w in d o w s with
antique picture frames - never mind the incon­
gruity with the distinctly 16bit game graphics.
After the initial fascination wears off, the best bit
about the FMV is that it can be turned off. Nevertheless it out and easy to use, making the detective work a plea­
still exerts its cost on the gameplay structure: while most sure for the most of the time, and the fine attention to
new adventures try to provide an illusion of free move­ detail reflects well on the developers' love of Holmes.
ment, cramming in sub-quests at every turn, Holmes pro­ The story also appears to be quite intriguing, despite the
vides a plodding, methodical adventure where the prob­ dubious Ripper opening, and Holmes is of course a truly
lems come in linear order. If you get stuck in one place, great character. W hile more advanced adventures
you're generally stuck with little option to try something linger in development, the Holmes war-horse provides a
still serviceable challenge in the meantime, f l ssw
Nevertheless, this is a big old game with plenty of 3DO m agazine rating: ★ *
challenge. The icon/verb control system is well thought
 review s
♦ •O l

Powers Kingdom
Publisher: Panasonic ® 0 3 4 4 8 5 3 1 4 6 Developer: M icro C ab in C orp Save G am e: 4 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

n Japan consoles have always sold to a Bizarre, spectacular and very different, this combative role-playing game provides a
more mature audience and RPGs fre­
unique insight into Japanese gaming.
quently top the charts. Unfortunately,
because American and British console spells are genuinely dramatic with realistic flames, thun­
owners are younger, RPGs are rarely derstorms, tornadoes and much more.
converted and this vast genre is largely unknown to non- Combat is very much at the heart of the game. The
Japanese speakers. Thankfully the 3DO system is differ­ kingdom is split into several dozen zones and you
ent, and Powers Kingdom is one of Panasonic's progress through them one at a time. In each
best games so far. zone you have to roam about until you've
Known as Guardian W ar in America, found and killed the twenty or so enemies.
the scenario's appeal seems to have The finding is easy, zone layouts are rel­
been lost in the English translation with a tiv e ly sim p listic, but when you
the stylised intro recounting a banal encounter an enemy, things become
fight between good and evil. Initial more interesting. Besides the three or
a p p e a l is further underm ined by so weapons or spells a character can
yoghurt-tub heroes who look like char­ own, they can also have two additional
acters from a Ski ad, blessed with names bodies with their own weapons. You can
such as Pumpkin! Thankfully, you can input also recruit enemy characters and bring All this is great fun, but ultimately there's something a
your own names and in-game things soon them into your party. Unlike normal charac­ bit too methodical about it. The ability to save at any
improve. ters, these aren't controlled directly, but you can time removes a lot of the challenge and the game
While most Japanese RPGs look awful - due to the arrange their attack patterns. The best fun is when you doesn't change all that much, apart from new tactics for
memory constraints of SNES carts - Micro Cabin have engage a couple of enemies, unaware of other enemies new monsters. Nevertheless, it's very addictive, very
gone to town with the 3DO version. Each of the various­ on the horizon, leading to some huge battles. And as the unusual and well worth a look. □ ssw
ly themed landscapes is presented in full 3D, quickly and enemies get smarter they start using their own magic -
3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★
smoothly rotating around as you move. The numerous even healing themselves.

S ta r Control II
Publisher: Crystal Dynam ics ® 071 9 7 3 0 0 1 1 Developer: Fred Ford & Paul Riche III Save G am e: 10 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

tar Control 2, like The H orde, is an A w ards such as Best Action-Strategy G am e 1992, Best Action G am e 1993 and Best
ambitious attempt to combine arcade Adventure Gam e 1993 show how well the PC original went down. But is it still fun
and strategy elements. The difference is
that The Horde was coded for 32bit,
for '95 on the 3DO system?
__ J ■ J C n P T p iN
arcade-quality hardw are while Star your starship battered and lost on an alien planet. Here
Control 2 seems designed for 8bit tech. The core arcade you find an ancient factory and slowly construct an
game takes the basic Asteroids engine - rotate, thrust incredible new ship: the Vindicator (although like your f f l
and fire - and uses it for 22nd Century combat between own name, the game allows you to change it). You - -
starships. The same control method is even
reworked for navigating between planets
return to Earth and find it enslaved by the Ur- ' . H : : ' 4 /
Quan - the battle to free it and many other
and exploring their surfaces. With Star alien races is both complex and entirely
Control 2 the 'next generation' appears . addictive, the adventure going through
—i ------------------ L-----i.------------------ 1----- L____ 1
positively geriatric. k many different twists and turns as you ♦ H h c t c th e h e ll did y o u c o m e f r o m ?
• I t o ji ll b e a p l e a s u r e b l a s t i n g you*
H o w ever, it's worth persisting H freely roam the galaxy. ug ly f a c e ou t o f th e s ta r s
• Surr e n d e r fo u l a lien c r e a t u r e or
because not only is the strategy game I As you'd expect from Crystal, this y o u urill b e a n n i h i l a t e d ?
♦ Look let s be r e a s o n a b le H e CHN
incredibly involving, but even the ■ is the best version by light-years. Not c o e x is t pe a ce fu lly

arcad e sections improve. A casual 9 only is there a stunning intro, but the
game with a PC owner brings forth a control menus have been smartened up, can be tedious, it would be quicker to scan text usually,
stream of technobabble about various the action scenes feature smooth scaling but overall it's very involving. Sure, the entire game
ship types, weapons systems and surprising w and the various alien graphics have been engine should've been reworked for the 3DO multiplay­
ly sophisticated tactics. There's simply a huge prettified (or, more accurately, uglified). The er but that would take years and in the meantime 3DO
amount to the game and the strategy side offers not just main change, however, is a superlative new soundtrack system owners have a very slick, classic game to while
trading, intricate negotiations and galaxy-spanning with excellent music (sounding very like the cloud music away a great many late nights. □ ssw
wars but also an exceptionally involving storyline. from the original Star Trek movie) and atmospheric 3DO m agazine rating: ★
The Ur-Quan's sudden attack on Earth in 2112 left speech for all the characters you meet. Occasionally this
 review s
lo a *

W aialae Country Club

Publisher: Panasonic ® 0 3 4 4 8 5 3 1 4 6 Developer: T&E Soft Save G am e: Player stats to SRAM Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

s with the prequel, W aialae Country After the great success of their first golfing sim, P e b b le B ea ch G o lf Links, Panasonic
Club features enormous (half screen
have moved the action to Hawaii for another 18-hole championship.
tall) players which really catch the eye
with their smooth, surprisingly accurate The commitment to flashy grap hics also comes
animation. Especially appealing is the through with the control system, Pebble's novel, three-
Player-1
way various shots such as chips and puts have been quarter power circle overlaying the swing to dramatic,
5th strc lw .
digitised, so that each play is realistically portrayed. and realistic, effect. Stance, fade and draw are easily
14 yards N '
Equally seductive are the course graphics themselves, adjusted, but the level of fine tuning doesn't seem quite
which are significantly brighter and more atmospheric
Z phi
as precise as the U. S. Gold game. Shots are taken
than World Cup G olf - get too close to the crowd quickly, and the screen updating has been
and a cluster of amusingly digitised people can vastly improved over Pebble Beach, with
be ad m ired (T&E Soft pro g ram m ers, replays and caddies (advice on or off) all
methinks?). at hand to help you learn from your
mistakes.
A s with W o rld C up G o lf, the
biggest weakness in Waialae is the lack
of courses. One 18-hole championship
doesn't really offer enough long term play
value for expert golfers, but the Cinepak FMV
flybys of each hole and the all-round excellent pre­ well indeed, with slightly faster disc accessing making
sentation certainly help compensate. play immediately more accessible. Despite both games'
Whilst the slick visuals would probably entice more merits, however, the killer golfing game is still to come,
novices than World Cup, this is no bad thing. The World and probably from Electronic Arts. □ mew
Cup title does offer a more sophisticated and challeng­ 3DO m agazine rating: ★
ing game, but this looks much more fun and plays very

M onster Manor
T M M T E s c a p e f r o m ^ T M J ^ T

Publisher: Electronic Arts ® 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: Studio 3 D O Save G am e: 5 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

he 3DO multiplayer's graphics chipset A laughing skull, howling ghosts and a hanged man make for an extraordinarily
is crammed full of just the sort of trick­
packed haunted house.
ery needed for a very scarey night at
the videogam e p a rlo u r ind eed. The gameplay lurking beneath the atmosphere is a
Translucent ghouls, rotating skulls and simplistic riff on the Wolfenstein/Doom formula: a first
massed spider sprites are all in a moment's work for the person perspective with a gun as cursor point, big 3D
twin graphics engines, which also manage to wallpaper mazes and lots of monsters to shoot. The weird, period-
the various corridors and rooms with some suitably piece furniture which seems to have a spectral glow is,
Victorian texture maps. The soundchip expertly mimics sadly, just uninteractive set dressing with collectibles lim­
distant shrieks and clanking chains, making for a gen­ ited to the familiar keys, energy restores and weapon
uinely spooky experience which many have found ammo. W ell, not so much ammo as batteries since
engrossing enough to pull them through all 12 levels. rather than Doom's endless variety of ever more explo­
sive firepower, Manor allows only a quaint electric zap-
per. It is probably more in keeping with the atmosphere
than a double-O gauge shotgui
ag ainst otherworldly spirits,
doubt more effective - neverthe
less the kinetic satisfaction of
using it is less than overwhelm­ offer and later levels offers some spooky surpris­
ing. es. It moves fast enough (perhaps too fast),
The gam e as a w hole is there's plenty to shoot and plenty of neat effects
ve ry much an atm osphere but gameplay is itself a rather ghostly factor in
piece. If the idea of wandering this unremarkable gothic zap-'em-up. □ ssw
around a haunted house appeals, 3DO m agazine rating:
there's plenty enough challeng
 review s
IC fl*

MegaRace
Publisher: M indscape © 0 4 4 4 2 4 6 3 3 3 Developer: C ryo Save G am e: 3 SRAM Slots Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

eg a R a ce comes to the 3D O system This is an over-the-shoulder wetdream of a gam e, smoothly blending witty intro
laden down with rave PC review s, sequences into superlative in-game graphics.
praising the next generation graphics
w hich come courtesy of S ilic o n
G raphics rendering. W hile the cars
and road are real-time, the gorgeous backgrounds are
being spooled off disk - it's a neat compromise which
demonstrates not only Cryo's technical wizardry with
Silicon Graphics rendering, but also a genuine artistic
flair. Undersea race tracks feature sharks swimming
overhead, hitting a go-faster arrow triggers a slick
speed-blur and one hazard produces a gorgeous dou­
ble-vision effect.
The programmers' wit even comes through in the TV
commentator who, while incredibly annoying, actually ing and playing MegaRace yet
has some good lines. The game he introduces is a futur­ - easily wiping the floor with
istic, planet-hopping the PC game. Yet it's as a game
ra c e r w here the that MegaRace on any machine
objective is to destroy is at its w eakest. The g rap hics
a set number of cars which cause bystanders' jaws to drop
before time runs out. matter little when you're actually playing, tightly focused treat, MegaRace is undoubtedly a gorgeous confection,
It's a simple enough on a fast-moving but ultimately simplistic and repetitive Just don't expect the gameplay to match the superb
game and the game game. There's plenty of power-ups and the overall plot audio-visuals. □ ssw
is undoubtedly the all helps make it very worthwhile, indeed if you want to 3DO m agazine rating
best looking, sound- am aze neighbours or simply give the old peepers a

Total E clipse
Publisher: Crystal Dynam ics ® 071 9 7 3 0 0 1 1 Developer: In-house Save G am e: N o Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

hile Total looks even better than games The Total E clip se in question is undoubtedly of 16bit gaming - after this there could
like M icro co sm , which stream FMV be no more doubts about the 3DO system's power.
backg ro und g ra p h ics o ff the C D ,
there's one rather huge twist. Namely,
these graphics aren't being pulled off
disk. Rather than simply playing an uninteractive movie,
prerendered on a Silicon Graphics workstation, the 3DO
system is actually manufacturing these images on the fly.
As you fly into a canyon, the multiplayer's custom chips
are mapping pre drawn textures across the canyon's
surfaces. Blank, computer-type surfaces are magically
lined and pocked with unbelievable detail. The 3DO sys­
tem also does this to all the enemy ships and buildings.
Now this is all very clever technically, but the point is th e-w all, drop-dead fully interactive
these graphics are fully interactive. You can crash into graphics and a classic soundtrack. It's
them, you can turn them on their head by doing a stom­ what shoot-'em-ups are supposed to be.
ach-churning 360° roll which is totally, hair-raisingly The game's structure consists of 20 lev­
controllable. You get to choose your w ay through els, all quite long and increasingly tough,
ravines, you can dive down into valleys to pick out d ivid ed between tunnel and a b o v e ­
enemy silos... it's the difference between playing a game ground sections with five different planets
and watching a graphic demo. offering varying terrain types. There's a
On top of this you've got excellent sound effects and wide range of power-up weapons and at the end of shoot-'em-ups yet seen, inside or outside an arcade. It's
a brilliant, wailing rock guitar sound. When sitting late each planet there's your regulation, humongous mega- what your 3DO system was made for. TJ ssw
at night playing this, you have to wonder why should guardian. These can take ages to kill, but this is a rela- 3 D O magazjne rating:
you ever have to put up with anything less? Hang-on- tively small price to pay for one of the smoothest, slickest
 review s
ioa*

Burning Soldier
Publisher: Panasonic ® 0 3 4 4 8 5 3 1 4 6 Developer: Pack-in-Video Save G am e: No Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: N ow

espite the new English dialogue, there's If B u rn in g S o ld ie r looks just like a spectacular sci-fi movie, maybe it's because that's
no disguising the uniquely Japanese
exactly what is.
flavour of this frantic blast-'em-up. The
grandiose scale of the space battles, Microcosm and also makes seeing what's hap­
the Transformer-like adaptability of the pen a lot clearer. You also get some nicely
machines and the offbeat soundtrack make this a dis­ done laser bolts and with the mega-beam,
tinctly M anga production. The movie theme matters which you charge up by holding down fire,
because it"s not just the intro which is cinematic, but the spectacular smart bombs. Enemy ship sprites
whole game with pre-rendered graphics forming the are also impressive, moving exceptionally
FMV backdrop like with MegaRace or Novastorm. As quickly with plenty of detail, and hitting them
with all such CD-stream ed products, gam eplay is produces slick fireball effects.
inevitably totally linear and with Burning Soldier all you The main appeal is, of course, the preren­
control is a blinking cursor. This is, however, rather dered graphics and these begin well enough.
Level One's journey through an asteroid
field to an attack on an enemy fleet,
culminating with a spectacular
battle inside the lead battleship,
is quite mouthwatering. Various
cut-scenes are well-integrated
and destroying the mothership
brings the rew ard of a great high scores is fairly good fun in the simultaneous two-
destruction sequence. The next level player mode, but overall this oddity's main appeal is
isn't quite so impressive though, and probably to Manga fans. □ ssw
while later levels are better with just four levels there's 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★
not a great deal of lastability on offer. Competing for

D ragon’s L a ir
Publisher: Elite ® 0 9 2 2 5 5 8 5 2 Developer: In-house Save G am e: No Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: N ow

D espite its archaic origins, D ragon's W hat we have here is possibly the original CD game! In the late eighties the arcade
Lair's fabulous visuals have cast a long
version wowed the populous with its Laserdisc played imagery.
shadow over videogames with every
machine getting a version - even if it's Laserdisc original, the appeal of the game changes
an entirely different game 'inspired' by somewhat with a £ 3 9 .9 9 pricetag. For that kind of
the coin-op, as with Elite's SNES game. The reason why money you don't want a quick
the graphics are so good is because it really is a movie, la u g h , you w an t a good
produced by Don Bluth Studios of A ll Dogs G o To long-term challenge with
Heaven fame. If plenty of in tera ctio n .
you m ake the Dragon's Lair isn't, and
right moves, the never was that sort of
film keeps run­ gam e. For a ll the
n in g , if you sp e c ta c u la rly and
make the wrong imaginative traps con­
move the tained within the evil
Laserdisc jumps dragon's castle, all you
to play a death have to do is memorise
sequence. It's a which way to push the joypad
similar system as used by American Laser Games for the and when to press fire every now
M ad Dog games, with the same advantages, high quali­ and then. The screen occasionally flashes to help you their reactions for maximum high scores irresistible. For
ty visuals, and disadvantages - extremely limited inter­ out, but too much of it is simply down to trial-and-error these people, at least, this slick conversion (with infinite
action. As an arcade novelty both are good fun and few experimentation with very tight time limits. continues for beginners) will be a welcome chance to
people would complain over 50p for a quick laugh. Some people would argue whether iTs really a game rescue Princess Daphne one last time. □ ssw
The problem comes with domestic versions. While the at all, but on the other hand there are quite a few die­ 3DO m agazine rating: * *
Cinepak FMV is excellent, coming extremely close to the hard fanatics who love the graphics and find honing
 review s
IC l*

Sew er Shark
Publisher: Virgin @ 081 9 6 0 2 2 5 5 Developer: Digital Pictures Save G am e: N o Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

ykstra's Hollywood pedigree comes Digital's 'U-Direct' series began here, with B la d e R u n n e r FX w hiz John Dykstra
through with a retrofitted, unglamorous
actually handling the directing chores.
w o rld v ie w w hich is im p re ssive ly
realised in production values, if not least the producers have gone back to the
script. W hile the blast-'em-up action original film - the blurred Sega footage has
couldn't be simpler, the movie-style look and feel is been replaced by crystal clear 3DO Cinepak.
much more engrossing than most other FMV games. Also, the simplicity is something of an advan­
The plot has you piloting a fast-moving Catfish Scout tage in some ways - the fast, blast-'em-up
Module through a labyrinth of tunnels, choosing direc­ arcade feel is rather more involving than Night
tions at intersections, and blasting the mutant rats, bats Trap's voyeuristic languor.
and scorpions that float in the dark. Clean out an area On the debit side the in-your-face, abusive
and take the right turns and... you get another tunnel. dialo gue from your captain is tiresom ely
It's that simple. The design clearly betrays its low-tech, American urging you to kick 'rat butt' with a
Mega-CD origins with very limited interaction, but at variety of laughable insults. Various puns seem
irreverent asides on the game itself, with
"Don't think - if you think you're dead" and
"Relax - pretend it's a game - it may
even be some fun" provoking par­
ticular mirth. The storyline is also
overly simplistic with the main
plot twist revealed far too early values and involvement of such important players as
and easily. Shock Wave easily Dykstra must be welcom ed, and his next efforts
overshadows it in this, as well as should be awaited with some anticipation.! 1mew
gameplay and technological flair. 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★
Nevertheless the high production

N igh t Trap
Publisher: Virgin ® 081 9 6 0 2 2 5 5 Developer: Digital Pictures Save G am e: No Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: Now

iewed without the hype and controver­ Babes, music, violence, how could it fail? No interaction perhaps? No doubt about it.
sy that plagued the Sega version, Night
N ig h t Trap is about as interactive as N e ig h b o u rs , and just as predictable.
Trap now looks a very dated, rather
sad exploitation title. Admittedly, the At first it seems vaguely interesting, with
Cinepak FMV is far superior and the FMV of an alien getting killed being a neat
CD accessing far faster than the Mega-CD version, but pay-off, but too little happens too slowly.
what's the point? A few unfortunate novices may get The inability to accelerate time forces you
suckered in, admiring the babes on the pack shots, but it to rewatch the same old sequences over
and over. Sure, the tightly clad babes look
good, but the acting is dire and entirely
uninvolving. Since progress is larg ely
dependent on trial-and-error to discover
where best to place traps, you're going to
see a lot of this movie, and I can't imagine
many people will be sufficiently engrossed
(or titillated) to keep returning to the
start. Clocking in at some 90 min­
doesn't take long to uncover just how shal utes (on two CDs) it's irksome
low the interaction is. Basically there's that there's no save game.
eig ht cam e ra s w hich you can flick Despite all the controversy over the vio­ killing people. This is a rather sad example of just how
between, triggering various FMV views of lent capture of one girl by the aliens, one uninteractive 'interactive' movies can be and is an unfor­
rooms in a soon to be besieged house. or two such brief scenes are lost in the tunate distraction from more imaginative visions of future
All you can do is set traps and, if you're monotony of the rest. Repeated viewing gaming such as Demolition Man. □ mew
lucky enough to see an alien wander into may well induce psychosis, but it's more 3DO m agazine rating: *
one, press fire to trigger it. likely to be of catatonia than rushing around
o Ignore Al

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reviews

Publisher: Crystal Dynam ics ® 071 9 7 3 0 0 1 1

PaTaank
Developer: P.F. M agic Save G am e: No Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 A vailable: N ow

he innovation of PaTaank is that the Like the innovative Tw ister, P a T aa n k is another odd-ball, U.S.P. release, guaranteed
action is viewed from behind your pin­
to challenge even the most seasoned gamesplayer's senses. It's Pinball, but not quite
ball, with the table rotating at a blister­
ingly fast rate around you. There are
as you know it...
no flippers to push you up, rather, your and accompanying these tables are some of
craft has an internal supply of thrust velocity (which is the most impressive soundtracks yet heard on
finite) that you must use to propel you towards your cho­ the 3DO system, each theme packed with
sen area of the table. Initially, this rapid screen updating samples and riffs that inject a megadose of
is bewildering, especially as all the pinball tables are lit­ excitement to the already surreal experience.
tered with huge FMV monitors, projecting junk MTV style The chief problem with PaTaank is that if s
footage relevant to the theme of the table in play. But so incredibly tough to guide your pinball
after a few minutes concentrated play, the bizarre con­ (even with tilt and thrust), that precise play is
cept is grasped, and you soon begin to understand the exceptionally tricky, and frustrated players
game mechanics. may find themselves ricocheting all over
There are three tables; Luv, Surf and the place, lost in a visual explosion of
Disaster, each brilliantly rendered and bizarre taste. It's like being lost in a
them ed, with tunnels of love to be high tech shopping centre at
entered, rubber sharks to avoid, letter Christmas. On roller-skates. On
sequences to be activated and the afore­ acid. And whilst the tables pre­
mentioned video w alls to watch for sent are brilliantly designed (par­
advice and tips. These video walls give the ticularly Disaster, with monitors blinking a Nevertheless, it's an excellent showcase for both the
game a Zoo TV look, quite unlike anything plethora of apocalyptic sequences), there isn't technical ability of the 3DO system and the superb visual
I've seen before in a videogame. really enough to satisfy for long, the small size of the artists at P.F. Magic. Expect cult success. □ mew
The tables can either be played individually, or tack­ game adding to the feeling that PaTaank is more of an 3DO m agazine rating: ★
led in the full game - where all three are interconnected, experiment than a fully fledged game in its own right.

R eal P in ball
Publisher: Panasonic ® 0 3 4 4 8 5 3 1 4 6 Developer: In-house Save G am e: High scores only Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: N ow

very console needs a pinball game (or Despite their low-tech origins, pinball tables both real and simulated are enormously
so I'm told), but with this and Paalank
popular with ever more elaborate designs and sound effects.
as the 3DO system's entrants, it's safe
to say we haven't got one yet. Real
Pinball boasts a 'real' 3D view of each
of its five tables, but whereas Paalank is perhaps too
innovative for its own good, Real Pinball fails in exactly
the opposite way. The foreshortened perspective is a stu­
pidly literal rendering of a pinball table. While it may
look realistic, details at the top of the table are difficult to
see and it makes play confusing. The flat, vertically
scrolling format that has served every machine from
Spectrum to PC Engine perfectly well
has been discarded for the sake
of gimmickry, and hence Real
Pinball plays like a dog.
This g ra p h ica l cock-up are perfectly matched by blippy tunes and unex­
might have made some sense citing sound effects.
if the programmers had pro­ The final icing on the cake is that the game
vided some imaginative table doesn't even manage to play fast. The pinball
designs. Instead you're pffered rolls around like a ten ton cannonball while your Pinball addicts, then, would be advised to wait for part
the most unexciting tables imag­ flippers flip like they're made of lead rubber. The three of the pinball saga, as sadly, no-one seems pre­
inable, each decorated by ethere­ potential for a truly spectacular pinball game on the pared to tackle the format head on. □ mew
al, mythological Japanese clap trap 3DO system is vast, but this doesn't come close and is 3DO m agazine rating: it
that's completely uninspiring. Lacklustre visuals which easily eclipsed even by Kirby's Pinball on the GameBoy.
 Order by post, or by phone or come to
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Dragon L o re ........................ . £49.99 Road Ra sh + M usic C D .................. £54.99
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reviews

Publisher: The 3 D O Com pany ® TBA Developer: Tetragon

G ridders Save G am e: 1 SRAM Slot Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: Now

hile the environmentally-minded intro Puzzlers are renowned for their dire presentation and unimaginative visuals, a cliche
fully conforms to puzzler traditions -
Tetragon aim to smash with help from the 3DO system's powerhouse chipset.
being short, weak and entirely unrelat­
ed to the actual game - the presenta­ blocks arrive to crush them. Later on it gets far
tion in-game is a revelation. The flat, more complex, but a little robotic dog provides
insipid 2D visuals and bippy-boppy soundtracks of old an unlikely accomplice, barking when you're
have been replaced by a heavy-duty graphics engine - near a useful point.
with both board and game blocks realised as 36 levels make for a sizeable chal­
texture-mapped polygons - and genuinely lenge, but ironically its graphic
good CD soundtracks. Screenshots do little flair is as much a hindrance as
justice to how smoothly and quickly the an advantage. While the game
blocks keep moving, all with crunching looks good close-up you can't
good sound FX. W hat's more, this isn't see that much of the board - so
some old puzzler tarted up with new graph­ you have to zoom out and watch
ics, but a genuine attempt to produce a new from a distance. This isn't that
style of game. As you progress, the levels much more fun than 2D graphics,
become multi-tiered with lifts, canyons and so especially as it"s often more confusing
forth providing a truly 3D experience. which, in turn, helps make the game logic overly
The prime objective of the game is collecting gems, convoluted. Classic puzzlers begin very simply
usually secreted within moving blocks. To get the gems and easily, setting out the clear principals later
out you have to stop the blocks moving, which is rarely to be complicated by fiendish kinks. Gridders never pro­ er puzzler unlikely to break out of its ghetto making for
simple as many blocks keep tumbling even if you stand vides that hook, it's too off-kilter right from the start, that classic puzzler finishing line: it's okay and if you
in their way. So you have to find other blocks to block, although there are at least plenty of imaginative addi­ like this sort of thing, you'll probably like this. □ ssw
building a pile-up stopping the blocks you want. Then tions to complicate things later on for addicts. 3DO m agazine rating: ★ * ★
you have to scurry over to collect the gems before more Overall, despite all it's efforts I'm afraid this is anoth­

B attle Chess
Publisher: Interplay ® 0 2 3 5 8 2 1 6 6 6 Developer: Krisalis Save G am e: 8 SRAM Slots Price: £TBA Available: TBA

attle Chess w as a lw a ys the perfect After causing a sensation on the Amiga with its inspired mix of superb animation
exam ple to cite ag ainst those who
and serious chess logic, Battle C h e s s has been converted to every new format since.
claimed videogames were mindless.
Take one admired, but initially difficult play on as well.
to get into strategy game and apply The 3DO version's main advantage is
state-of-the-art audiovisuals. Each move has the pieces its use of the RISC CPU to make the com­
brought to life with slick animation routines, while taking puter player both faster and tougher to
a piece triggers a comical set-piece animation sequence. p lay a g a in st. The long w aits of the
The game is made even more accessible with the range Amiga version have been radically cut
of squares a piece can move to being highlighted when down, while the combat sequences now
it's selected. And when you've got so experienced with feature a zoom-in mode to make them
the game you can't be bothered with the fancy more dramatic. However, while the
presentation, there's a straight 2D board to new an im atio n s a re a big
improvement on the Amiga
gam e, they're don't push
the 3DO system in the way
the original game pushed
the Amiga. It's a particular
shame that the game keeps
the old fixed perspective,
which does tend to have the pieces obscuring 3DO multiplayer chess game. As it is, Rattle Chess is
the board, rather than offering the ability to pan competent and entertaining but far from an inspired
about. Powers Kingdom's graphic engine, offering a conversion. □ ssw
host of stunning cinematic effects and rotating the entire 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★
landscape about, would've been perfect for a great
 Gxms U S A-
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ESCAPE MONSTER MANOR £39.99 STREET FIGHTER II TURBO £TBA
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HORDE, THE £39.99 THEME PARK £44.99
MAD D O G II U.S. £T11A TWISTED £39.99
MAGIC CARPET £TBA VIRTUOSO £39.99
NEED FOR SPEED £44.99 VR S TALKER U.S. £59.99
NIGHT TRAP £39.99 WAY O F THE WARRIOR £54.99
OFF WORLD INTERCEPTOR £39.99 3D O CONTROLLER £44.99

JAGUAR £229.99
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20THCENTURYVIDEOALMANAC £44.99 GEX £40.99 ROAD RASH £40.99 THEANIMALS £44.99
A W hole new way lo experience History! This 3 D Gecko boldly goes where no platform char­ Are you prepared for no holds barred street racing H ave a Tru e Adventure in the A nim al Kingdom .
This product uses one of the world's largest archives acter has gone before. Through 3 D texture-mapped and bare knuckle combat all to the thumping beat of Th e A nim als allo w s you to see and hear o ver 200
of historical video to produce a backgrounds, G E X moves with unique style. exo tic m am m als, birds and rep tiles in o ver 30
the hottest alternative Rock Bands?
G E X is nobody's stuffed animal! m inutes o f vid eo clip s. Th e A nim als also brings
visual encyclopedia of the century with
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JOHN MADDEN NFL‘94 £35.99 SAMURAI SHOWDOWN £35.99 about o ur anim al neighbours from exp erts at the
w orld-renow ed San D iego Zoo, if you lo ve anim als,
ANOTHERWORLD £35.99 This is’nt just a game • it’s a phenomenon.
A perfect conversion of the Neo-Geo fighting classic, you’ll lo ve Th e A nim als.
Amazing graphics and video clips from the NFL with all the moves in stunning detail and slick high
Young scientist Lester Chaykin never in his wildest
speed. A whirlwind of sword-swinging combat.
dreams imagined it would happen... but it did. plus the essential gameplay of all the previous THE HORDE £35.99
While experimenting with sub-atomic particles, his Madden games.
Create yo u r ow n villag e on land g iven by the King.
laboratory was struck by lightening teleporting him SEWERSHARK £35.99 D efend yo u r villag e rs, b uildings and crops from the
into another dimension. A strange world, nothing MEGARACE £35.99 ravenous hord ling s. W ith d ig itized video as an
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training and resources to survive.
Virtual reality head to head driving combat over 16 SHERLOCKHOLMES £35.99
reality defying racetracks, 3 D graphics and digitized
animation. THEME PARK £40.99
BATTLECHESS £35.99 SHOCKWAVE £40.99
NIGHTTRAP £35.99 The most intense 3D combat action ever seen on die TOTALECLIPSE £35.99
It took 2,000 years for someone to make chess
better. Avoid the Queen's fatal flash of lightening 3DO. Use futuristic weaponry to defend Earth's cities
OFF WORLD LNTERCEPTOR £35.99 Brain-m elting space com bat w ith 20 m issions through
to conquer her territory. Bone crunching sound from alien menace. astounding 3D texture-m apped landsapes and tunnels.
effects 3 D animation and stereo voices that bring Take your off-road interceptor over the harshest Th e n o .l 3DO game in Japan and Am erica,
your chess pieces to life. texture-mapped landscapes at incredible speed
on a mission to take out the government's most
SPACEACE £35.99 TWISTEDGAMESHOW
wanted criminals.
£35.99
DRAGONS LAIR £35.99 Join W ink Fizzdale, the super slick , super suave twisted
STARCONTROL 2 £35.99
You control the actions of Dirk the Daring, a viliant PATAANK £35.99 game show host and his adorable assistant, Hanna.
Explore over 3,000 planets on this astonishing 3 D O Pick one o f six crazy contestants and youuu're. ..Tw istin'.
knight on a quest to rescue the fair princess from the
The first 3 D pinball game that puts Y O U behind Control your character through 8 totally different
clutches of the evil dragon. version o f the PC adventure classic. Fight epic space
the ball itself! 3 D graphics, fierce speeds, video interactive TV contests. Zapp com m ercials, match voices
battles while reaching for the stars.
walls on the table - pushing 3 D O and the with faces and answer trivia questions.
DRAGONS LAIR2 £35.99 game-player to the limit. Fun for a ll the fam ily.

Princess Daphne has been spirited away once again.

SUPERWINGCOMMANDER £35.99
Only you, Dirk the Daring can save her.
POWERSUDE £35.99 The award winning W ing Commander series brings VIRTUOSO £35.99
Powerslide takes Rally car simulation into the thrilling arcade action, intense fight simulation and Play a rea l-live rcx k star in the 21st Century w here m usic
ESCAPEMONSTERMANOR £35.99 third dimension whilst offering the most realistic stunning new art to 3DO. and V irtu al R eality are the o n ly escapes
driving game ever!
 reviews

Twisted
lo t*

3 DO
Publisher: Electronic Arts ® 0 7 5 3 5 4 9 4 4 2 Developer: Studio 3D O Save G am e: No Price: £ 3 9 .9 9 Available: Now

here have been gam eshow games T w isted is perhaps the most innovative and intriguing game for the 3DO system yet.
before, but they've usually consisted of
Could this be the future of game show?
a bunch of sad graphics replicating a
drab TV show's set, plus a series of text ishes, you must select items that weren't in the
questions pulled out of a tiny database. trolley. Then there's a game sort of like 'match
Twisted is different. Twisted uses the 3DO system to such the picture', only it's sounds instead, and
effect it looks better than most real TV shows. sounds apparently voiced by ex-Presidents at
The basic objective for you, and up to five friends, is that. Another game wittily has you in a TV
to get to the top of a spiral staircase. Players take turns showroom, zapping TVs as ads come on - but
to stop a random number generator - videogame dice - don't hit that 3DO ad! One challenge is a slid­
and then get a challenge to see if they can throw again. ing tile variant, only the tiles pictures are parts
Challenges are weird. Like, there's FMV footage of a of FMV movie. All of this is
trolley being whizzed about a supermarket. When it fin- wrapped up in some great
presentation complete
with a sm arm y FMV
host, hostess and play­
er characters who give
you plenty of lip if you
mess up.
Played solo, Twisted is
a real mindbender and plen- various trivia questions are unduly irksome due to their
ty of fun, but it only really comes into its own with plenty American bias. Nevertheless this is an intriguing game
of people crowded around, jostling for position and and a great party piece. □ ssw
mocking/applauding each other's efforts. Without them 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★
the various challenges can get a bit repetitive, while the

Soccer K id
Publisher: Krisalis © 0 7 0 9 3 7 2 2 9 0 Developer: In-house Save G am e: 5 SRAM Slots Price: £TBA Available: Now

he most remarkable thing about Soccer W hile A m iga platform ers are u sually d ire, S o c c e r K i d is one of a select few
Kid is its control system. W hile most
exceptional to that rule. The 3DO version is undoubtedly the best yet.
develo pers seeking to oust M a rio
(Nintendo's flagship) go overboard on a footie maniac with a whole repertoire of ballsy stunts.
graphics, Krisalis have actually spent Can't reach that high up platform? - jump on the ball for
time thinking out the gameplay. The FMV told story - a superjump. Bonus item protected by fiendish spikes? -
with aliens stealing the world, crashing and scattering boot the ball through to collect it for you. There's even a
the pieces across Earth - may be silly, but the footie whole range of useless stunts, such as heading the
idea is the springboard for a great character. ball, which are there simply for fun (and to
The Kid isn't just another platformer in foot­ rack up bonus points). But most of all the ball
ball strip (which you select at the start), but is used to take out enemies both in the air
and on the ground, with striking the ball at
right angle requiring more skill and timing
than most football sims. While at first it all
seems a bit tricky, with practise the amount
of control possible is amazing which is, after
all, what interactive gaming is all about.
While the character is among the best around, early
levels are disappointingly linear with London providing
a rather drab opening to the game. This is all the more the levels do get markedly more imaginative and chal­
pronounced because the 3DO version is pretty much lenging, but this isn't the game to wow your mates with.
identical to the Amiga A 1 20 0 version. The graphics W hat it is is a remarkably playable and enjoyable
seem a bit sharper and more colourful, they certainly platformer. □ ssw
move faster, but apart from that and plenty of sampled 3DO m agazine rating: ★ ★ ★
speech it's basically the Amiga game. As you progress
 E C.C.G. □
M AIL O RD ER ONLY
U 7-: / / . i r / : ' < 1 / a h h . i / v i -o k

f O X 2 9 5 > '73 OO 6 0
i //

p i
w u /z/v/ v c i / /

r\\i i jn m
PANASONIC 3DO UK CONSOLE & SOFTWARE
k ii
/ i \ /<>/»■>«>/ /»•%

;/x> »# k . i / / \ / u i m i k

Panasonic REAI. 3DO Console....*389.95 Second Control Pad....*39.95

ALONE IN THE DARK . . . .£34.00 MADDEN NFL . . . . .. . .£33.99 (Console Pack includes: 3DO Console. Control Pad. Total Eclipse Game)

EA SOCCER ..................... £38.24 THE HORDE................ .. . .£33.99 Alone in the Dark

IDragon s Lair
........................... 39 95
3695
Sherlock
do ck holmes
Shock
>ckWaves
holmes
Waves
3V 9 5

40.95
THEME PARK ............. O U T J A N '95 ROAD RASH .............. .. . .£40.00 Escape from Monster Manor .
FIFA S o cce r..................
3" 9*-
Soccer Kid
43 95
Star Control 2 ...............
32 95
36 95
G r id d e rs .......................
MEGA RACE ..................... £42.50 NIGHT TRAP .............. .. . .£33.99 Us a Birds L ife ..............
. .47.95
Super Wing Commander
. 20.95
The Horde .......................
. . .37 95
3695
John Madden Football . 37.95
Theme Park 3995
For a full price list w rite to: Night Trap .................. . .44.95
Total E c lip se .................... . 3695
Peter pan . 39.95Twisted (the Gameshow) . .37 95
3 HILLSIDE C L O S E Road Rash................. 39 95 Way of the Warrior .. .47.95
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BICESTER BUY OTHER ITEMS WITH THE 3DO & SAVE MONEY
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or phone 0869 324472 P rk v s a rc fully inc. C h eques X Post O rd ers p a \u h le to l lira Softw are. W rite to us at:
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SAMURAI SHOWDOWN 2 (202 MEG) T E A NOV 94

SB SAM 1

3DO, HEW RELEASES NEURO DANCER FIFA SOCCER

NEED FOR SPEED
1 NOV 94
1 NOV 94
KINC OF FIGHTERS 94 (196 M E G ) T
AERO FIGHTERS 2 (102 MIC)
BA
I B A NOV 94
NOW
.........................
iTTTT CO STREET FICHTER 2 MEGARACE T BA 2EDBLAOI (110 MEG) £58 99 T BA
PANASONIC3D0+G*ME(LK) 395.00 FIFA SOCCER 44.99 COWBOY CASINO 34.99 CORPSE KILLER
FIFA SOCCER
IMMORTAL DESIRE TBA WORLD HEROES J (FEB 1 1-95)__ T BA TJA
• EM£ Postage DRAGON TALES £19 94 ART OF FIGHTING 1 £5294 £2999
PANASONIC3D0+GWE(USAJ395.00 ROAD RASH 46.99 3DO SAMPLER DISC 2 12.99 throughout
NEED
w FOR SPEED
icu run irttL i
OFF THE WORID INTERCEPTOR
ctad rr>NTRfll
„ cVaVFB
£44 92 ART OF FIGHTING 2 .£58 94 £2899
MAINLAND UK. £4191 ART OF FIGHTING ) T BA T BA
REBEL ASSAULT ^ROAD
*- ° RASH
5LA n *
USASCARTBOX 70.00 UlTRAMAN (JAP) 59.99 STAR CONTROL II 39.99 • All products direct RETURN FIRE
£49 94
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FATAL FURY 1 (JAN 95)
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£52 92
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AGCR OF DARK COMBAT
___ T J X ___ T J A
£59 94 NOW
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£49 91
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SAMURAI SHOWDOWN
SUPER SIDES KICK 2
£59 99 £95 99
f SB 94 TBA
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 com petition

3 DO
WIN A
" I t ' s t h e f i n e d e t a i l a n d t h e in e r e d i h l e v a r i e t y o f
o p t io n s th a t iv ill g e t g i d f fa n s q u e u in g u p f o r
W o r ld T u p ( J o lf . T h e r e 's n o le s s I l i a n 72 n a t i o n a l
te a m s to c o m p e te a g a in s t, iv ilh so m e v e r y to u g h ,
s m a r t c o m p u t e r o p p o n e n t s ... h o u n d to d o i v c l l . "

3 D O m a g a z in e rating: ★ ★ ★ ★

o celebrate the long

awaited launch of

their new golf game,

World Cup G olf (and, no doubt, the & World Cup Golf
launch of our own publication), Courtesy O f U. S. Gold
U. S. Gold have provided a fantastic

competition for 3DO magazine

Answer the easy question below and

one lucky winner will receive:

A 3DO machine

1 Copy of World Cup G olf

1 World Cup G olf Polo shirt

1 World Cup G olf cap and

1 W orld Cup G olf mug

A further 50 lucky runners-up will

receive W odd Cup G olf Polo shirts

and caps. Worth the price of a

stamp? W e think so.

Question: Which Caribbean Island

plays host in W orld Cup Golfc

Answers on a sealed envelope or

postcard to: 3DO magazine

U. S. Gold Competition

Paragon Publishing

124 Old Christchurch Road

Bournemouth BH1 INF

Closing date for entries 3:1:95 □

S H A P IN G THE FU TU R E
Stereogram designed by Altered States Visuals Limited 44 (0) 71 490 2342

/ \ ( €
A \zrb \/s
inform ation systems

N im b u s I n f o r m a t io n Systems
R ag lan H ouse
L lan tarn am P a rk
C w m b ra n
44Focus on C D -R O M p r e s s i n g ” G went N P 4 4 3AB

Telephone:
Sales (01633) 867777
Adm in (01633) 867788
F acsim ile (01633) 867799
 pr eviews
♦ ■ O l

3DO

The world of 3DO software just keeps expanding. Below is a list of the titles already
announced, but there's m any more in development across the w orld, including
several EA titles already in production for the M2 upgrade.

A R T DATA INTERACTIVE Space Ace L U C A S A R T S /E A

Doom I The sci-fi follow-up to Dragon's Lair. [Soon] Rebel Assault
The phenomenally successful first-person perspective Virtuoso Stunning Star W ars themed, CD-streamed shoot-'em-
blaster is upgraded for the 3DO sysem, as is [Spring] A Doom-sty/e blast-'em-up with over 24 exceptionally up with incredible variety. [Soon]
Doom II: Hell On Earth varied levels. [Soon]
The current PC mega-hit is bound to be huge on M IN D S C A P E
3DO. [Spring] A. Maze
A stunning first-person perspective SF sports game for
C R Y S T A L D Y N A M IC S up to eight players. [TBA]
Cyber Clash Dragon Lore
Heavily arm ed robots clash in a spectacular 3D A mythological adventure with stunning, pre-ren-
arena. [Spring] dered graphics from Cryo. [August]
Gex Warriors
Hype-cute, hyperactive platformer. [January] A 3D fighting game which, using Atried's own 3D
Bio-Motion system, is claimed to the most realistic yet.
[TBA]

GAM ETEK N A M C O /P A N A S O N IC
Family Feud Star Blade
A quiz game based on the original, US version o f A conversion of the classic coin-op claimed to
Family Fortunes. [Soon] improve over the original. [Spring]
Quarantine
A Doom-sfy/e game on wheels, shooting and running
over zillions o f enemies. [Soon]
D IG IT A L P I C T U R E S
Corpse Killer GTE
A Caribbean-set, FM V heavy shoot-'em-up which Jammlt
requires a light-gun for best results. [TBA] One-on-one basketball sim. [TBA]
Supreme W arrior: Ying Heung
A bizarre FM V fighting game. [TBA] IN F O G R A M E S
Alone In The Dark 2
DOM ARK More o f the same superb stuff, only bigger and even
Flying Nightmares better. [Spring]
State-of-the-art sim based around Harrier jumpjet.
[April]

E L IT E P A N A S O N IC
Power Slide Myst
A 3D rallying game with the emphasis on realism. Hugely acclaimed, supremely atmospheric CD-ROM
[Soon] adventure comes to the 3DO system. [TBA]
Seal of the Pharaoh
Intriguing Japan ese, first-person perspective RPG
recently redubbed for the American market. [TBA]
Tetsujin
Doom -slype 3D blaster. [Soon]

R A G E /C O C O N U T S
IN T E R P L A Y 3DO Striker
Kingdoms The incredibly popular, super fast Amiga game gets
400M b o f FMV is brilliantly integrated into a classic u p g ra d e d fo r the 3D O system with FIFA -style
adventure. Sequels are already being planned, as is graphics. [Soon]
a coin-op version. [TBA] >
 previews
♦
5 RENEGADE SPECTRUM HOLOBYTE Station Invasion
Several lilies are under active consideration for con­ Star Trek: The Next Generation Ambitious, multimedia edutainment title. [Soon]
versio n, but as yet nothing can be announced. A truly epic project which has been in development Time2Die
Speedball II heads our most wanted list! for over a year. Purposely designed for the 3D O An abandoned island is the site for some frantic,
system, it's got stunning 3D graphics and a unique Doom-style action with stunning graphics. [Soon]
S IL E N T SO F TW AR E game structure. [Spring]
Return Fire
Hugely playable tank/jeep/helicopter game. Brilliant S T U D IO 3D O
in two-player mode. [Soon] The All New People's GameShow
Post-communist gam eshow likely to be somewhat
S IE R R A Twisted. [Spring]
A n e a rly 3 D O b a c k e r w ith the d isa p p o in tin g SkyVyper
D ra xo n 's Revenge a n d fun p u z z le r Incred ib le Heli-Pak wearing vigilante roams the streets in 2 1 10.
Machine in the States. Future releases such as a con­ [Spring]
version o f Red Baron are still under consideration.

U. S. G O L D
ELECTRONIC ARTS Space Hulk Flashback
3D Atlas A raved over strategy cum shoot-'em-up based on The follow-up to Another World. [Soon]
A powerful and fun geographical program. [Soon] the famous board game is brilliantly upgraded for
PGA Tour Golf the 3DO system. [March] V I R G IN
Likely to be the best g o lf game in the history o f Cannon Fodder
mankind, ever! [TBA] The PC version o f the incredibly addictive shoot-'em-
up is updated for the 3DO system. [March]
Demolition Man
A stunning packaging including Op Wolf and driving
games, skilfully integrated with so much FM V you
practically get the whole movie. [Soon]

ShockWave: Op JumpGate
Five stunning new m issions with fantastic FM V.
Requires original ShockWave to work. [Soon] Digital Dreamware
Rave-type multimedia project. [TBA]
Dragon
Hyper-violent SFII clone with the difference that there
can be three fighters on screen simultaneously.
[February]
Lost Eden
C ryo 's ep ic adventure, featuring dinosaurs and
mankind co-operating in prehistoric times, should be
a gorgeous-looking release. [March]

Syndicate
The PC version o f this superbly atmospheric tactical
shoot-'em-up is subtly reworked. [Soon]

Heart O f Darkness
Another World for the 32bit generation - should be
stunning! [April]
11 th Hour
Fantastic, CD-streamed adventure with a horrific
Wing Commander III bent. [TBA] □ ssw
The most expensive videogame yet, a supedative 3D 3DO m agazine
combat sim cum space opera. [January]
 SCOTLAND KENT BIRMINGHAM BIRMINGHAM
COMPUTER
GAME
GAME ZONE Hard Level ZONE VIDEO
336 Londonderry Roaa,
RETAILERS SH0PS AT: 1
7K
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HIGH STREET 021 355 7990
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THE FIRST WITH, AND 3DO Player • SEGA SATURN, 32X, S0NY-PSX, NEC-FX, 3D0, ETC ‘
ROAD RASH £44 N E W U .K .

B ES T FOR 3DO SHOCK WAVE £25 U S E D U .K . £379.99 • V ID EO G A M ES & SYSTEM S *

• A D A PTO R , C A B LE, JO YPA D •
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H o rd e £ 34.99 • M ULTI-M EDIA * A U D O /V ID EO CARD 4
ALONE IN THE DARK £25 U S E D IM P O R T

NEW & USED, UK & IMPORT R o a d R a sh £ 38.99 • CD-ROM DRIVE ■

|OHN MADDEN £25 U S E D IM P O R T

£44 T h e m e Park £ 38.99

3DO SOFTWARE FIFA SOCCER N E W U .K .
A U BRANDS A M M G ISTtM D TRADt MARX
PX Welcome O f WEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS
ALWAYS IN STOCK New and Used Games stocked
M A IL O R D E R S E R V IC E A V A IL A B LE Postage- £1.50 p er g am e / £8.00 for co n so le RM 1 HING LUNG SHOPPING CENTRE, 1/Fl
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FAX: 0925 418784 FAX: 010-852 3876066

LONDON MIDDLESEX
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echno House, Low Lane
Horsforth, Leeds LSI8 4DF
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Mail order Sizzingly Hot Line games fo r your console. Opposite Argos
Save 10% on a ll 3D O
so ftw a re .
0532 590077 MEGA DRIVE (N in ten d o ) Uxbridge

A ll so ftw ■ a n * /h a rd w a re a r c Low low prices T A W

NEW STORE
o f fic ia l L.K. v e rsio n s - All latest Games & Machines-
We arc a mail order company.
Cheques/Postal orders only. Allow 6 days
Super Quick Delivery. 8 MASTER SYSTEM
♦ 3D O Specialists
clearance for cheques. No part exchanges. \GAMEBOfl
Postage is £2.00 for 1-6 items of software. Call NOW 3 DO PC CD-ROM
♦All U K and US titles stocked
Ring for prices, or ask for Free price list AMIGA CO32
along with Free postage voucher.
for all your W E BUY & SELL
♦Sega Saturn + Sony PSX coming soon

Call Leeds (0S32) .Ml IKK or write to:- 3 D O r e q u ire m e n ts SECOND HAND GAM ES!! ♦Mail order e n q u irie s welcome
ADRENALIN SOFTWARE, P.O. BOX 21, OPEN MON-SAT 10 :0 0> < ;»-6:00 p »i
MORLEY, LEEDS, LS27 OXE. Zap Hours: 9am-7pmMon-Fri
Weekdays 2pm till 8pm
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CONSOLE CONNECTIONS CONSOLE CONNECTIONS
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Dragons Lair ............... £38.99
Road R a sh .....................£38.99
Guardian w a r ............£38.991
Night T ra p .....................£38.991
Siper^CcnTTHidff £43.99 Sherlock Holmes £38.991
£ 3 9 9 .9 9 ETiTT! £ 3 9 9 .9 9 Jurassic Park ............ £28.99 The Horde ................. £38.991
Fifa Soccer Theme Park Fifa Soccer Theme Park I Atone in the Dark . £43.99 Need for S p e e d ............T.Ba I
FOR THE BEST PRICE John Madden Off World Int. John Madden Off World Int. Lem m ings.....................£43.99 Powers Kingdom . . £38.991

Need for Speed Mega Race Need for Speed Mega Race
IN THE UK... RING Road Rash Shock Wave Road Rash Shock Wave GAMESEXCHANGEAVAIL
(0 2 4 6 ) 261417 + M AN Y M O R E C A L L ..

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3D0’s: £399.99 including Pi t
O'Mara's Discount Warehouse P LEA SE CA LL! P LEA SE CA LL!
Any Questions call Phil on:-
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WITHOUT CRYSTAL DYNAMICS

3D0 IS JUST AN EXPENSIVE TOY

Crystal Dynamics. Off-World Interceptor. Total Eclipse and The Horde are trademarks of Crystal Dynamics Inc. c 1994
Star Control II is a trademark of Accolade. Inc. 6 1994 Fred Ford and Paul Reiche III. PaTaank and PF Magic are
trademarks of P.F. Magic 1994 3D0 and the 3D0 logos are trademarks of the 3D0 Company. All rights reserved