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Lapis' Game Reviews (Eternal Daughter)
Soldat Forums - Misc - The Lounge
Deleted User
May 11, 2005, 11:17 am
Here I will review games that I find enjoyable and worth mentioning to you all. I will use my own scoring system, and my own format, so hopefully you will find the reviews worthwhile and informative.

Last Update: Cave Story Screenshot Link Fixed.

Current Games to Review: (In no particular order and not a complete list)
Soldat
Ragnarok Online
ADOM (Ancient Domains of Mystery)



The Review System

First off, I will start out with the technical information for the game. Who made it, system specs, etc. I'll then have a row of screenshot links, followed by the actual game review and the games score.

The Scoring System works like this. There are 5 main categories to score. Gameplay, Graphics, Sound, Music, and Interface. Each category is scored on a range of 1 (very poor) to 10(perfect). As I doubt any game will ever truely please me, expect 10 to be very rare and the ultime, if you will.Gameplay - How fun is the game? Is it new, or original?
Graphics - Is the game visually appealing? Does the artwork suit each theme?
Sound - How do the games' sound effects measure up? Do they help draw you in, or are they absolute junk?
Music - Does the music help create the mood or is it just there to annoy you?
Interface - Are the controls easy to master? Is the GUI clunky? Unorganized? etc.Again, each category can recieve a score of 10. This means that there is a grand total of 50 points available to the game. What I do is I then add up the scores for each category, and double it, to recieve a percentage grade out of 100. Therefore, if the game scored a 35, I'd double it, and it would score a 70/100, or 70% satisfaction.

Finally, please keep posts to a minimum in this thread. If you find my review helpful, then feel free to send me a PM. I don't take requests, but if you'd like to point me in the direction of a free game that you find fun or enjoyable, then I won't turn you down.

Now, on to the reviews.



Heavy Gear 2
Created by: Activision and Dream Pod 9
Genre: First-Person Shooter/Strategic Warfare/Modern Mechanized Combat
Where to get it: eBay

System Specifications or Requirements: * 3-D Hardware Accelerator*
* 166MHz Pentium® Processor (233MHz recommended)
* A 100% Windows® 95/98-compatible computer system
* English language Windows® 95/98 operating system
* 64MB of RAM
* 450MB of uncompressed hard disk space for game files, plus 80MB for the Windows swap file
* Quad-speed CD-ROM drive (600 K/sec. sustained transfer rate)
* 100% DirectX 6.1 or higher compatible sound card
* 100% Microsoft-compatible mouse and driver
* 100% Windows® 95/98 compatible joystick (optional)
* CD Audio (Redbook) supportScreenshot 2 - [url="http://img17.paintedover.com/uploads/17/heavygear2shot3.jpg">Screenshot 3

How should I describe Heavy Gear 2? Set in a semi-futuristic world, its storyline takes place sometime after ours and before Mechwarrior's. Earth is in conflict, and a seperatist army is waging war with us from a planet too far to be considered a threat. You a part of an elite force specially trained and prepared to deal with that enemy threat - until you discover just how big a threat it is.

Heavy Gear 2 is what brought me into multiplayer gaming. From my meek days on the official servers (which are currently down, unless you know of where to find the updated server.dat. It was never officially released), to the days and months I spent playing this game on GameSpy, watching the players drop from 144 to a humble 15. The game certainly lost popularity as time went on, not because of the fault itself, but due to the games lack of advertisement.

Heavy Gear 2 has some very interesting gameplay and its something I certainly enjoy. In HG2 you are the commander of an elite squad of specially trained fighters, 5 in total, who will literally fight to the death by your side. Piloting large machines known as Gears, something between the size of a human and a Mech, you must make use of your training to destroy the enemy threat. Utilizing either a first-person view or a birds-eye Command and Conquer style view, you can command your teammates, create formations, and even order them to perform hit-and-run attacks on targets. This was one feature I especially enjoyed, and the next, was Stealth.

Many levels can be won by fighting. In fact, you will almost always face the enemy, though never on your terms. What begins as a very simple destroy this enemy style of game, becomes a very frantic and almost religious act of dropping your Gear to the ground and going Passive. Radar is a large factor in Heavy Gear 2, and running over hills with your Radar blaring is a good way to get your team killed. Fast. You will quickly learn to skirt around hills, and only use your active radar when absolutely necessary.

This is because each Gear is composed of several main portions, and you are not invulnerable. You are basically piloting a lightly-armored combat suit, still in the prototype phase. At any time you take damage you run the risk of losing a core system of your Gear. Your torso can become damaged, and you'll be unable to twist. Your legs may break and even blow off. Your arms may go down, you may lose your hud, radar, literally anything on your Gear is able to malfunction. You may wonder how you survive at all. Well, this is where Gear Threat comes in.

Before each mission you design your Gear. You change out weapons, assign new stats, all in the safety and security of a very detailed pre-mission briefing. Rather than let you outfit your Gear with the best weapons, however, each mission has a Maximum Threat Value, or simply Threat. As you add weapons and stats to your Gear, your Threat increases, and you cannot start the mission without lowering your Gear's Threat. This may sound pretty lame, but that's where Perks and Flaws come in. You can assign special bonuses to your Gear to help iron out your score. For example, you can add Reinforced Front Armor, to block frontal attacks, and take a faulty radar system to help balance it out. You may not need stealth for this mission, so you also take a high radar signature, and that lets you get another gun or some extra rounds for that autocannon. Strategy is abound in the HG2 universe.

The graphics for Heavy Gear 2 are somewhat dated. They show signs of age, but they are still inviting and the terrain will simply draw you in. Many missions literally stretch several hundred miles as you perform various tasks, and the terrain ranges from simple rolling hills to ferocious martian landscapes and even outer space! The Gears themselves are well animated, and the guns have some very pretty effects.

As for Sound, Heavy Gear 2 heavily relies on it. Voice-overs, cutscenes, even mission briefings are all done with video and sound. You recieve live feeds to your cockpit, all in glorious sound. The voices themselves help draw you in, and amidst the sound of heavy gunfire and the clang of autocannon shells piercing your suit, it all gets very, very surreal.

Music is not so much a factor in Heavy Gear 2, but where its there, it fits very nicely. The music seems almost dynamic, meaning that as combat rages, the music is fierce and active. However when combat subsides, and stealth is a factor, the music grows dim and quiet to suit the mood. Very nice, but as I said earlier, there's not much music to the game.

As for the controls, well, they are unique, as you use the numpad to move and you must, otherwise you will not be able to master this game. All action that even involves movement includes the numpad, while turning your view and firing is done with the mouse. Not your standard controls, but once you master them you will be quite pleased with the results.

Overall, I'd say Heavy Gear 2 is one of those hidden gems that no one seems to have played, however, I think that with enough patience and practice, anyone can sit down and enjoy a match of Heavy Gear 2.

Final Scores:Gameplay: 8/10
Graphics: 7/10
Sound: 7/10
Music: 5/10
Interface: 8/10Overall: 74%



Cave Story / Doukutsu Monogatari
Created by: Pixel
Genre: Side-Scrolling Action/Adventure RPG
Where to get it: Here

System Specifications or Requirements: * A Relatively Fast Processor ~400mhz
* Sound Card (for audio)
* Uhm, a PC?See here for screenshots.
Wow. There is so much to say about Doukutsu Monogatari that I cannot begin to describe it. Let me begin with my first experiences and I'll let you form your own judgement from there.

Starting and installing the game was easy enough, and not being one to read a manual, I immediately sat down and gave the game a try. My first impression of it was that it would be short, uninteresting, or even just a waste of my time. However, after the first few phrases of dialogue I grew warm to the game, and the beautiful graphics and gameplay contained therein.

What can I say about Doukutsu Monogatari, besides that you should play it now? Like, as in, stop reading this review and go play it. This game is amazing. The controls are very simple, and you quickly become a master of even the most harrowing jumps, and each player develops their own combat style. Speaking of which, combat is very energetic, as you always seem to be one step below whatever you're fighting; Defeating your enemies gives you a great feeling of accomplishment and keeps you coming back for more.

Speaking of enemies, there are more than enough to keep you on your toes. This game has more bosses than one of those from the Contra series, and they're several times larger than our tiny robot friend. Each boss has a purpose, and I'm glad to say that they aren't just thrown in there to be there (like some games that just toss hard fights in to make it seem hard). Often times the story flows right into a boss fight, and Doukutsu makes you work hard for your right to advance the plot.

The story is indeed, the main draw of Doukutsu Monogatari, so I cannot say much here. It pulls at you, right at your heart, and you'll find yourself drawn into something so much more than a game that words cannot describe it. With every nook and cranny concealing another hidden item or another portion of the plot.. it just seems like the game never truely ends.

The sound! The sound in this game is so very amazing. Simple. Tact. Effecient, and right on que. Everything fits. If I honestly had a complaint about the sound, its that my human ears are insuffecient enough to pick up all the sweet and glorious tones that compose it. God I love the sound in this game!

Music. See Sound. This stuff is awesome! The music makes the game even more worthwhile.

I wish I could say more about the game, but its so hard to do so without revealing some portion of the plot. Definitely, definitely try to play through the game without using a walkthrough, and search every nook and cranny for that little secret. Every item has a purpose, and many of them aren't used until the very end of the game. (I've said too much already.) Go play the game!

Final Scores:Gameplay: 10/10
Graphics: 9/10
Sound: 10/10
Music: 10/10
Interface: 9/10Overall: 96%



System Shock 2
Created by: Through-The-Looking-Glass Studios
Genre: First-Person Shooter/Adventure Sci-Fi RPG Thriller (omg)
Where to get it: Here

System Specifications or Requirements: * A Relatively Fast Processor ~400mhz
* Sound Card (for audio)
* Uhm, a PC?See here for screenshots.
System Shock 2. The first game that ever really scared me, and the only one that has ever driven me to the point of paranoia and sheer madness. I love this game.

System Shock 2 is a classic. I cannot begin to describe to you this game. The schematics are very simple. You're a cybernetically enhanced human with the ability to upgrade the major portions of your cybernetic "rig" in order to become more advanced. There are several areas to advance in, including weapon skills, computer system skills such as hacking and repair, as well as psychic abilities to level up in. There's a wide array of skills to choose and each option will make you unique.

The graphics that come with the game are somewhat poor by todays standards. However, there is an excellent remake of them called the Rebirth Mod that -greatly- enhances the look and feel of the monsters. There is also a Texture Upgrade pack on the internet somewhere, which brings SS2's graphics above that of even Half-Life 1. They're all very surreal and they fit the mood well.

Sound. Sound is everything in this game. Being based off the Thief engine, sound is very vital in SS2 as every noise you make can alert enemies to your presence - something which you definitely do not want, as you are a very mortal human and ammo is scarce. Better keep that wrench handy.

The music is a bit poor, although it is nice, often times it drowns out the more necessary noises of the game. Turn it off or plan to be ambushed all the time.

The interface is pretty awesome, and its something you need to see to understand. You interact in two modes, Shoot mode and Inventory mode, and you can seamlessly transfer between them.

System Shock 2 is a very wonderful (and scary!) little gem that I highly suggest you try.

If enough people want the aforementioned files then I may host them somewhere. Just ask nicely!

Final Scores:Gameplay: 10/10
Graphics: 9/10
Sound: 10/10
Music: 8/10
Interface: 9/10Overall: 92%



Eternal Daughter
Created by: Blackeye Software
Genre: Side-Scroller RPG/Action/Adventure
Where to get it: Unofficial Mirror Site

System Specifications or Requirements: Really, any PC with a soundcard and moderate processing power.See here for screenshots.
From the unofficial site's own description:

"The tenuous relationship between the many races of the World is being strained as the greedy Dungaga hordes expand their Empire of Steel. In the game you play as Mia, a young girl born into slavery under the Dungaga. You must escape the bonds of your oppressors and defeat the greater evil controlling them. Fulfill your destiny, and discover the truth about who you really are.

Eternal Daughter is a massive, non-linear platform game in the tradition of such console classics as Super Metroid and Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Explore a world that spans hundreds of screens, where you will collect special items, fight over 30 enemies, and tangle with over a dozen enormous boss monsters. On the way, don't miss the opportunity to meet a variety of interesting creatures and either befriend or kill them!" - Podium Games

Eternal Daughter is quite the experience for any gamer and especially those who like the Super Metroid/Castlevania genre. Exploration is key, as well as combat with evil monsters and a rich plot, it all adds up to several hours of fun.

Eternal Daughter is very fun and I have few complaints as to the overall flow of the game. The graphics are very streamlined, meaning they are all very detailed and fit the theme of the many areas well. From jungle sceneries to desert plantlife and even the mechanized city of the Dungaga, its all quite eye-pleasing.

Eternal Daughter's sound and music departments are very strong as well. Each enemy has their own sound effects and there are even environmental sounds here and there to keep you immersed in the game. If you're a big fan of curious, adventurous music, then you'll love Eternal Daughter's soundtrack.

The game itself is easy to "read"; all the visual elements are easy to view and understand. After a few moments, you'll get the hang of the game and you'll quickly begin removing the Dungaga threat from Mia's homeworld.

A game I still haven't beaten despite several days of gameplay, it's quite a wonderful little gem that everyone should try.

Final Scores:Gameplay: 9/10
Graphics: 8/10
Sound: 8/10
Music: 8/10
Interface: 8/10Overall: 82%

Next Review Coming Soon.

Deleted User
May 11, 2005, 12:36 pm
You should review Cave Story!

Deleted User
May 11, 2005, 8:42 pm
or a game called soldat.. its really cool u should test it

damnnation
May 11, 2005, 8:45 pm
CAWNTER STRYKE!!! :D
nah do soldat

papasurf31
May 11, 2005, 9:28 pm
Retard, it's spelled Kownttur Stryhk: Sorss.

Deleted User
May 11, 2005, 10:30 pm
I'll add a "waiting list" of games I intend to review. Check the original post.

Green Barret
May 12, 2005, 5:16 am
I was reading this post when an idea popped up. How about changing this post to a review page of fun free games? After all, alot of people play Soldat because it's fun and it's free. For a desperate gamer with no money like me, free games that are just even slightly fun are better than retail games no matter how good it looks.

I know some games that are fun and perfectly free in legal terms. These are NOT demos but full games. Search them and they will pop out. I hope I can review them, but it'd be best if someone with better English than I have did it. Here's a list of them.

- Grand Theft Auto 1 >>> 2D top view action game. Steal cars, do jobs for gangs!
- Ground Control(Fileplanet) >>> 3D Real Time Strategy game.
- Tribes 1 and 2(Fileplanet) >>> Famous 3D action game, including vehicles!
- Hidden and Dangerous >>> 3D Action + Strategy + driveable vehicles! Absolute must.
- Enemy Territory >>> One of the most active FREE online 3D action game around.
- CS2D(if you're truly desperate) >>> 2D copy of Counter Strike.

I'll post more if i can think of them. By the way, some of the games above were once retail games that were released for free by their respective companies as advertisments for other games.

Captain Ben
May 13, 2005, 7:19 am
Could you please review Blockland? Perhaps even the almighty Little Fighter II?

Deleted User
May 13, 2005, 7:35 am
I haven't added those games to the list, but I intend to review most of what you two have listed, mainly because I've played it.

DT
May 13, 2005, 3:52 pm
this is good since i'm going to be a future Game reporter...

BManx2000
May 14, 2005, 3:24 pm
Game reporter... riiiiiight...

Deleted User
May 15, 2005, 1:30 am
about Cave Story: I cant find the 5.th puppy :P

SPARTAN_III
May 17, 2005, 4:44 pm
review UT2004!

also when you review games, post a link to the d/l site. for retail games tell us where to get the demo.

Green Barret
May 26, 2005, 10:37 am
Very simple overview of Hidden and Dangerous:

Hidden and Dangerous Deluxe

Once a retail game, Hidden and Dangerous was turned into a freeware game to advertise Hidden and Dangerous 2, the newer version.

Gameplay consists of completing various missions with a 1~4 member team of SAS commandos. The missions range from search and destroy to escape to VIP protection and lots more. It takes place during World War 2, where the SAS were created.

You can choose from over 20 SAS agents with different specialties. Each agent has certain strong points and weaknesses, so look carefully.

There are also alot of weapons to choose from, and more availible if you search the maps and killed enemy units.

Moreover, there are vehicles in this game. Cruise in Willis jeep over enemy packed beaches! Storm the front while riding a Tiger tank! There are even airplanes you can fly, but unfortunatly you won't have any chance of having combat in them.

The multiplayer is co-op only, which allows you to play with up to 3 other people in single player missions through the internet. However, there isn't any lobby for this game so you have to connect to the server by IP address. This makes hosting pubic games difficult.

Overall, it's a great game, but it relies rather heavily on try-and-error. And although you can rambo through the missions, it's much more advisable to play strategicly by teamwork, which can be done via team commands or a map mode that allows you to waypoint and command each member(single player mode only).

*TIP: Without knowing, the scope may take some time to learn how to use it. It's simple: hold your scope button(default right mouse) down and move the mouse forward to zoom in and vise-versa to zoom out.

Download link: http://www.gathering.com/hd2/hddeluxe.html

Want more info? Click here: http://www.3dactionplanet.com/hd/

Deleted User
May 27, 2005, 11:03 pm
New review added. Also note that Hidden and Dangerous' free-cd key period ran out a long time ago. There are no new keys.

Deleted User
May 27, 2005, 11:42 pm
half-life two.

peemonkey
May 28, 2005, 1:53 am
is (Please refrain from swearing)e.

Deleted User
May 28, 2005, 1:57 am
Remember that I have to have played the game, guys. I'll add a few more to the list of pending games.

Unlucky 13
May 28, 2005, 3:26 am
Interesting, you are going to review RO. I can't wait for another guy's insights on it.

Green Barret
May 28, 2005, 3:35 am
Hidden and Dangerous doesn't need keys anymore! The since the Deluxe version, its been totally free.

Deleted User
May 28, 2005, 4:41 am
Whichever version of Hidden and Dangerous Deluxe that I acquired.. required a CD key, and it was downloaded from FilePlanet. The version from your link, I'm assuming, doesn't?

By the way, if you feel you have a game I should review, give me a download link and I'll give the game a try.

Toumaz
May 31, 2005, 4:29 pm
Hehe, I'm tempted to ask you to review Rekryt... But then it'll end up into an overall of 5%... so... naah.

Nice work there, Lapis. You're really a good reviewer, ever thought of making a career out of it? ;D

Chakra`
May 31, 2005, 6:35 pm
They seeeeee youuuuu ..... run.....RUN!


Man I love System Shock 2, so I had to post. I still play it to this day. Great review.

A few things to complement however...

1. For a start, the game is also co-op multiplayerable. Great fun I must say, but don't overdo the 'custom save'. Rely on autosaves as much as ya can, because sometimes saves can get corrupted. Don't download or do anything else either, as going out of sync can get you booted.

2. For some, getting the game to work well on a modern system is annoying. For others it's nothing at all. It was made in 1996 afterall.

http://www.ttlg.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=64 is a forum with a nice FAQ on the matter, as well as other things. But remember if you download the rip, don't forget to run the 'oggsetup.exe' after installation.


3. Rebirth never got finished, so some of the work done for it never came out in a release. Namely the dreaded rumblers and a reskin for midwives. Get the community 'complemented' version here: http://www.strangebedfellows.schwarzsilber.de/index.php/topic,8.0.html

http://perso.wanadoo.fr/etienne.aubert/sshock/images/SSR_Compar_1.jpg


4. Texture mod you speak of is SHTUP. http://shtup.home.att.net/


5.Theres a few other mods you can tackle that deal with the (stupified) weapon balance and other things, like new sounds, and even a few dodgy fan missions. http://shock.musicexplosion.net/modules.php?name=Downloads


6. Completed this game all the god damn way about 5-6 times.

But never alone.

Never alone.

Deleted User
June 1, 2005, 11:41 pm
Absolutely awesome, Chakra. You saved me all the time and trouble of figuring out where all the files were on the web.

Maybe we should hook up together and play some SS2 over the web? You and me against The Many. I go tech and standard, what about you?

Tha Doggfather
June 1, 2005, 11:57 pm
Just join #2wai.soldat on irc.zoite.net, that's where the SS2 junks hang out. They play it online together more than Soldat -_-

Chakra`
June 2, 2005, 1:38 am
The above is true.

Dunno if I could play it again though...played it at least twice already this month. Played every class and weapon there is too, so i'm cool for anything. Need something to make it harder though...tried all the mods out there and it's still too damn easy in multiplayer.

Deleted User
June 2, 2005, 2:02 am
Yes. The game is difficult on almost any setting alone, but with any more than that the game becomes easier, until you get 4 players in on it. I think there's a mod that changes the games difficulty to Impossible, but that'd just mean more specialization for the players.

With 4 players though, System Shock 2 is damn hard. Just not enough stuff to go around. Especially on impossible. =\

Deleted User
August 5, 2005, 10:38 am
Could u show me a games which are very similar to soldat ???
please.

LazehBoi
August 5, 2005, 11:06 am
Make a review for Chu Chu Rocket! DU EET!

Deleted User
January 24, 2006, 11:56 am
MAKE A REVIEW FOR ANYTHING!

m00`
January 24, 2006, 1:40 pm
make a review for Deus Ex

Rhombus
March 31, 2006, 3:01 pm
why are you telling him what to do? Don't you think he'll decide what to do for himself?

Deleted User
April 1, 2006, 2:25 am
I asked for game suggestions.. and man is this topic old.

Maybe I'll write a few reviews soon.

Deleted User
April 1, 2006, 8:44 am
please review wolfenstein 3D
It is 3D dos game where you get to go back in time and kill nazis and hitler.
http://www.idsoftware.com/games/wolfenstein/wolf3d/

Rhombus
April 1, 2006, 2:58 pm
jrgp says it the right way: please...
see what I mean?
m00` just tells you what to do.

Some Damn Idiot
April 2, 2006, 11:28 am
www.navyfield.com