|
POWs are trapped in the world of Quake, soldier, and it's your job to go in
and rescue them! This promising premise may well be the best thing about
Microforum's well-intentioned, but spotty, offering. The CD is broken up
into several sections. The useful and well-organized level installer lists
all of the 23 new levels and gives a brief summary of each, complete with
helpful hints and a recommendation for either single-player or deathmatch
play. When you've decided which levels sound like they'd launch your grenade,
you can simply install them with the touch of a button. When actual play time
comes, just a couple of mouse clicks load the level of your choice.
Unfortunately, when the actual action starts things get a little sketchy.
While the levels are inventive and promise plenty of surprises and excitement
for deathmatches, the graphics and sound fall far behind the quality of the
original id offering. In an attempt to facilitate deathmatch play, each level
is extremely crowded with passages, columns, weapons, and power-ups. In
addition, the Dark Hour is aptly named. In an effort to create multiple
shadowy hiding places, each level is darker than the one before it, making it
virtually impossible to see anyone or anything around you. Finally, the
distinctive qualities of each level don't offer the continuity necessary for
single-player action, making anything played alone a mere practice session for
later multiplayer confrontations. The CD also offered an extensive list of
worldwide Quake servers, information sites, and gameplay hints. |
