Whenever the name Westwood Studios appears on a new game, I automatically have a desire to at least check it out. Westwood’s Dune and Command & Conquer series helped pave the way for an entire new genre of games on the PC, flooding the market with real-time strategy/action games.

The newest in the series, Tiberian Sun, builds on the already established Command & Conquer and Red Alert.

Westwood doesn’t do anything extraordinary in this newest version of the game, but like the others it’s fun and has great replay value.

Tiberian Sun is set in the future, with two warring factions, the GDI and NOD, each with their own buildings, soldiers and military units.

The game is a cross between Sim City and a strategy fighting game. Using the mouse, the player has complete control over each unit and is able to build structures, which in turn enables new options of other structures and units to build.

One of the coolest new features (but also the most annoying when it happens to you) is the added risk of harm from explosions and debris.

An attacking unit coming at my base might be stopped and destroyed, only to shower my units and buildings with debris, damaging them. It’s more realistic and a great feature, but equally frustrating.

Some of the vehicles and weapons in the game are just plain fun. The Titan is reminiscent of the huge Imperial Walkers from Star Wars, though Tiberian Sun’s units pack a little more punch.

I’ve found that once I can air-drop a Titan into an enemy base, it’s all over. The Walker fires a high-powered rail gun that can shoot through multiple units, destroying even the toughest structure with a few shots

The interface is almost identical to the previous games and game play is similar. Westwood did a lot of tweaking to make the game more interesting — it features 3-D terrain and burnt-out cities, and mountains rise out of maneuverable maps — but there’s really nothing innovative here.

For example, one new feature — units that get better as they fight longer — has been done by other game makers. Players looking for an all-new game are going to be disappointed. It’s still addictive and great fun, but like a lot of sequels, much of it is "been there, done that."

Westwood Studios
Rated: Teen 13+ (animated violence)
System Requirements:Pentium-166, 32MB RAM, 4X CD-ROM, SVGA w/ 2MB, mouse, sound board, Windows 95, Windows 98
$44.99
*** of **** overall
* of *** for originality

Originally printed in the News & Observer and NandoNext.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 10th, 2000 at 2:08 pm and is filed under Game Reviews, Gaming, PC Game Review. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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