Battlezone II For: pc Genre: action/strategy Reviewed by: Escee (Brandon) Developer: Pandemic Studios Publisher: Activision Released:1.5.00   I heard about the Battlezone series from a friend, and was impressed by the first game. Let's take a look at the sequel to what some may call one of the best action/strats ever.   Graphics If your computer has the power, the graphics can be stunning. If you want to get the most out of Battlezone II you really need a 500MHz+ computer with a Voodoo3 or better video card. The graphics are stunning, but the system requirements to get them are steep. The box states 200MHz, but I tested the game on a 200MHz and got about 10 FPS - unbearably bad, almost unplayable. The graphics at 1024x768 are simply stunning though. The game will probably run good on a 350-400MHz with an 8MB video card, but you will not get the full experience. Again, the graphics are great. The animation is smooth on a fast system, meaning hires great-looking graphics at a smooth framerate. The colors are very vivid and vibrant and look great on your screen.   Sound Okay, the sound is not exactly the strong point of the game. While the sound is certainly nice, it is not all it could have been. Battlezone 1 used the exact same music as Quake II. Well, Activision has actually created original music this time around! The music is great, but the sound effects are, shall I say, less than perfect. The weapon sounds are okay, the explosions are kind of weak. The voices, on the other hand, are fairly well done.   Gameplay Battlezone II's gameplay is sort of like Starcraft, but in full 3D. You construct a base, build an army, and wipe out your enemy. But, unlike Starcraft, you are actually "in the game," instead of the god overseeing all. You are in your own tank, and control everything from your own perspective, until you get the satellite. If your personal vehicle gets destroyed, you have to get one of your other vechicles to pick you up or your little infantry man will get run over. Battlezone II combines the original Battlezone's strategy gameplay with Starcraft's build-requirements, meaning you now have to construct certain structures in order to have access to new vehicles and machines. The difficulty level is fairly hard, but the gameplay is very fun. Not only is there single-player, there is multiplayer via LAN or internet in multiple modes: strategy, deathmatch, capture the flag, team deathmatch, treasure hunt, sniper, and more. Unfortuneatly, the gameplay is not all good. Not only is the AI bad, but the difficulty is high too. Your scavangers will run right into the enemy base looking for scrap unless you micromanage them constantly. If you send a service truck to repair you, and the shortest route goes through the enemy base, you can say goodbye to the service truck. This was a problem with the original Battlezone too. Instead of fixing what needs to be fixed, namely the AI, Activision fixes what doesnt need to be fixed. The graphics and already good, and while the vivid colors add a lot to the game, I would have rather seen Activision spend more time on the AI problems than tweaking the graphics to perfection. Also, side quests pull you away from your main task. For example, your objective is to eliminate the enemy Scion base. But the game gives you a side quest - rescuing your lieutenant - in the middle of the mission. If you dont complete both the side quest and the main objective IN TIME you lose. The side quests pull away from the main objective, and with steep difficulty and poor AI, this can get frustrating. The gameplay is solid, but is hurt by poor AI and objective.   Control Controlling the game via joystick is usually the preferred method, but many will use the keyboard/mouse combo - meaning you aim and fire with the mouse, and move and issue commands with the keyboard. The camera got in the way a few times, but for the most part the camera is well-built.   Lastability Once you beat the game, you probably won't play it again. There are tons of multiplayer modes via a LAN or the internet, and instant mode (against the computer), which offer a lot of lastability if you get stuck in single-player, but the internet and LAN play modes don't always work...   Ratings Graphics 9.7 Sound 6.7 Gameplay 7.9 Control 8.6 Lastability 7.0 Overall 7.5 bottom line: a solid game that is reccomended for fans of the genre, but plundered with crappy AI and online multiplayer issues. 8.24.00 click on the above screenshots for larger versions.   images from ign and pandemic studios   similar games: battlezone, starcraft, freespace