In the 1990s, probably the most popular game out there was Solitaire. Installed on almost every Windows machine, it became infamous for the fact that the poor people stuck at a computer all day would play it constantly. There were also the variants, such as Tut’s Tomb (my personal favorite).
So I found myself between interview appointments at E3 and I was cooling my heels - quite literally - in the media lounge. The lounge is a large room partitioned to create a smaller press conference room in the back. As I was resting I heard someone poke their head out the door to the conference room and announce that a press conference was about to begin. "What the heck," I thought. "There are chairs in there, too." Sometimes being in the right place at the right time and making what seems like a trivial decision can have wonderful and completely unexpected results. This, my friends, is Fate.
For those of us who love MMORPGs but don’t want to dish out the money to enjoy them you constantly find yourself tread milling through beta tests, failed games, and other disasters that befall the free to play MMORPGs. Well, for some, the look for a new, stable, free MMORPG has arrived!
When the original Roller Coaster Tycoon launched back in 1999, I don't remember much of a "casual gamer" market. In fact, most folks I knew who weren't die-hard gamers either didn't play, or played Solitaire or Klondike. The Sims hadn't launched yet and Popcap hadn't released its wonderful Bejeweled crack, but RCT took a chance and really grabbed a new group of gamers that weren't all about twitch and triggers. Roller Coaster Tycoon 3 attempts to continue that tradition, while gracefully bringing its followers into the realm of 3D Technicolor nausea.
Dream Chronicles does what a casual game of its nature is supposed to do: provide a few hours of entertainment as it transports you into a magical world of puzzles. Set in a fairy-tale environment, the story unfolds chapter by chapter, but before you know it, it's already over.
Sometimes it seems as if it's the flip of a coin as to whether a title based upon a film/tv show will succeed (more often than not, it's actually quality of the game), but science fiction as a whole has generally survived the translation. Perhaps it's the fantastical storylines, the often beautiful backdrops or, it could be that only those that are truly successful get made into games. It's been 11 years since the original Stargate movie was released; Stargate: SG-1 is now in its 9th season and has spawned a successful offshoot in Stargate: Atlantis. And, currently in production is the game Stargate SG-1: The Alliance. Convenient that it's the game I'm about to preview…
Runescape probably isn't a very familiar name to many, and as such doesn't inspire one to run out and buy it (you couldn't anyway). Maybe you've heard of it one time or another from a friend, but you won't find this game being reviewed by many game companies. 'Tis a shame.
Early in the morning of the final day of E3, I was ushered in to a full room to be shown the latest chapter in Bethesda Softworks' now classic RPG series, Elder Scrolls. The latest chapter of this is titled Oblivion and takes place in the Empire of Tamriel. It is here as the story unfolds we find that the Emperor is dead, the throne now empty and the empire collapsing around them, demons from Oblivion (the Tamriel version of Hell) have flooded the land and are laying waste to it. It is in to this world that you find yourself thrust and here you must answer a dying emperor's wish and save the world.
PC games, especially RPGs, have been in a slump since E3 this past May. I, for one, have been dreadfully unhappy during this dry spell. There's been nothing new to play in these hot, depressing months. On the horizon, though, was a sequel to 2002's hit game, Dungeon Siege. Now it's in my hands and, finally, the drought is broken ... if only for a little while.
Let me start this preview off by saying that I am a fan of the Dungeon Siege series. I've played both Dungeon Siege and Legends of Aranna, and was thrilled when DSII was announced. I have liked the Dungeon Siege line so far because of the unique combat system and the spectacular graphics - so ever since DSII was announced I have been wishing that the developers at Gas Powered Games will keep these systems.
