Players start with a Recycler unit which gathers power from geysers dotted around the planet surfaces. ”What number was the Recycler on again? Oh yeah. Mastering the hotkeys is essential, and although I have tried over the past few days, I still have to glance at the menu options in the top left of the screen. You essentially play a free-roaming commander who can jump into any vehicle and take control of it, but at the same time, you need to build forces through what (initially) feels like a complex system of hotkey menus. There’s the tank/shooting aspect of the game which involves moving around in hover tanks and other vehicles and then blasting the enemy, but where Battlezone 98 excels is the strategy. There was nothing quite like it and even today I can’t think of anything that captures the same style of gameplay or mood. Activision’s 1998 Battlezone release was a brilliant game. There are plenty of references to the “damn Commies” which is amusing. Back in the 90s it was still all the rage to cast the Russians as the bad guys and by today’s standards the game’s mission dialogue is quite cheesy. To give new players a quick recap about what the game is about: the US and Soviets are warring over resources, and the battle has moved onto planets in our solar system as each side searches for precious bio-metal. It’s not a reworking from scratch.Īs it’s been so long since I played the original, I can’t remember too much about how it looked back then, but after checking out some old videos the essence of the game is the same it simply looks sharper now. In other words, it now looks and runs better in today’s modern PCs. This version of the game stays true to the original with some work having been done on the ship models and textures, lighting, HUD, and terrain. Rebellion has been sharing bits and pieces of information for a few weeks explaining what has changed, and it’s worth pointing out that Battlezone 98 Redux is not a complete remake. Rebellion realised there was still a fan base for Activision’s classic and pulled in Mike Arkin who worked on the original to help revitalise the game (see interview). There’s the VR Battlezone game that’s coming, but Battlezone 98 Redux is what we’ve been playing. Rebellion acquired the Battlezone IP and decided to do something with it.
What I remember the most is that I thoroughly enjoyed it, because it came along at time when both shooters and strategy games were super-popular, and Battlezone successfully married both genres.
It’s been nearly 20 years since Activision’s Battlezone released on the PC and it’s been a weird experience jumping back into a game I haven’t played for such a long time.
0 kommentar(er)
