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Release Date: November 24, 2000 "A suspense-laden stealth ’em up, a head-pounding puzzler and an all-action thriller" Remember that bit in the first Tomb Raider where our freshfaced heroine slides down the side of a gigantic Sphinx and begins trotting across the cavern floor? The camera suddenly zoomed right back into the ceiling, leaving little Lara a tiny figure in the sand, completely dwarfed by her surroundings and simultaneously leaving gamers awestruck by the sheer scale of the game. This was obviously the start of something very special. Five years later, the girl with the guns is a cultural phenomenon. She’s appeared on the cover of style mags (The Face) and featured in ads for fizzy drinks (Lucozade). Grown men even claim to have fallen in love with her (stand up barmy Niels Bemds of Holland, as featured in OPM63). Alongside the hedgehog and the fat plumber, she is one of the most recognisable characters in videogame history. But in the last game, Core Design - presumably sick of the sight of staring at her lithe limbs for the past five years appeared to kill her off. She was last seen buried under a bloody great big pile of pyramidal rubble, which rather begs the question, what are we doing with another game? Surely this is a blatant cash-in; Core milking Lara's dusty corpse for every groat they can scrape. This, however, is not the case. Not by a long way Tomb Raider Chronicles is far from the hastily slapped together rush job we were expecting. Despite the dodgy premise, its actually incredibly well put together, concentrating on the gameplay elements that made the Tomb Raider series great. TRC opens with Laras friends and family gathered in the pouring rain round a suitably extravagant statue of our intrepid archaeologist, mourning the apparent loss of one so young yet so very, very fit. Trusty butler Winston. Gaelic man of the cloth Father Patrick, and french fancy Jean Yves return to Croft Mansions after the memorial service and. over a snifter of whiskey or two, begin to reminisce over the scrapes that Lara got into between the last four epic adventures. While it sounds like a shaky plot device for a game, it works very well. Chronicles is split into four separate and distinct mini-adventures linked only by Lara, and not by an epic quest for a collection of ancient artefacts. This has allowed Core to expand Laras world sideways, in as much as we get to find out a little bit more about her| life outside archaeology, and it also allows for a much greater depth of gameplay. TRC does feature a traditional Tomb Raider adventure - with Lara barrelling round Rome - but it also breaks up into a suspense-laden stealth 'em up. a head-pounding puzzler and an all-action thriller. Brilliant. The first quarter of the game begins behind the opera house in Rome (remember, the one from TR2) with Lara on a hunt for the Philosopher’s Stone. Inept bad guys Larsen and Pierre are chasing her cute little derriere round a temple as she searches for the keys to unlock the way through to the next level. So far, so very Tomb Raider - except the puzzles are a little more accessible and the lovingly textured back alleys of this game make the Rome of TR2 look like the backstreets of Delhi. Which is good. But the crucial factor that tightens up the gameplay - and this applies to all four adventures in TRC - is the way the levels have been designed this time. Core is the first to acknowledge the marked difference between TR2 and 3, at the root of which are the ever-expanding levels. TR3 contained levels you could, and quite frequently did. get completely lost in. Core went down that route because people were crying out for bigger adventures, but in most cases sprawling levels are disastrous because it makes game direction very difficult to control. By returning to the (relatively) compact levels of the early games. TRC keeps you riveted to the adventure - solve puzzle, crack code, move on to the next one. all guns blazing. It's in the second adventure that you get a sense of just how creative the level designers have been. Lara dons Arctic camouflage gear and infiltrates an abandoned German U-Boat, housing the mythical Spear Of Destiny that Hitler was supposedly trying to get his hands on in World War 2. The puzzles that lead to the sub may be classic Tomb Raider, but the penalties of failure reveal a sick twist. The opening area is a cargo bay containing a guy who controls a huge crane that’s sweeping across the ceiling, picking up crates. The first time you walk in the room you'll wander about for a few seconds before hearing a whirring noise. Automatically you'll stop dead (whirring noises in Tomb Raider are bad), which is completely the wrong thing to do. The guy in the crane has spotted you and dropped his steel talons down on your pig-tailed bonce. Hello, instant death. Once inside the confines of the sub, the camera angles generate a nasty, claustrophobic atmosphere with Lara stalking round, dodging sparking electrical cables, never knowing quite what's around the next corner. Reminiscent of any submarine movie, the level balances perfectly the though and action that’s at the heart of the Tomb Raider series. By the third adventure, its time for Father Patrick to take up the story and we flash back to an inquisitive teenage Lara, stowed away with the good priest on a jaunt to Ireland to solve a mysterious haunting. Since Lara's so young, she has no weapons and must rely on brain power to get through the level. Its a nice idea, but of all the levels, this is the weakest. Setting the adventure at night doesn't help matters. In a level that revolves around making precision jumps and dodging little creatures (Core claims they are imps but they look suspiciously like a remodelling of the baboons in TR3) the absence of much light makes life trickier than it should be. Its also the only level where the in-game cut-scenes and camera views don't work as well as they could, again because of the darkness. You'll find Lara stuck in an old chapel, where the camera skips around the rafters following her. Unfortunately, the skeleton that’s chasing you with a sword is oblivious to your fumblings with the view. A shame because the idea of a purely puzzle-based Lara adventure could have worked very well. Tomb Raider Chronicles - Opening/Intro Clip Finally, we arrive at undoubtedly the best level in the game, and probably one of the best Tomb Raider levels ever. Lara does the Matrix by way of Mission Impossible with a hefty dose of Metal Gear thrown in. Alongside helping-hand Zip. her mission (should she choose to accept it) is to break into Von Croys head quarters and steal the artefact known as the Iris. Having blasted past a couple of plasma-wielding guards. Lara discovers the place is stacked up to the rafters with alarm systems. Time to dump the gunnery then. Fortunately she’s something of a part-time chemist and. after finding a couple of jars of chloroform and bits of cloth, sets about knocking out the laser-wielding guardsmen. Despite being a relatively small level, there’s a touch of genius in the way the gameplay guides the player through the building. Partly this works and this is the case across the whole game - through the clever use of in-game cut-scenes. Lara appears to be able to do a whole load of actions above and beyond the call of duty: sliding into bad guys, leaping out of the way of laser lunges. These are actually mini cut-scenes that blend so seamlessly into the action you still feel like you’re in control. And the lighting effect on that cat suit is something to behold... The standard Croft improvements crop up in TRC, with a couple of new moves such as the superbly animated tightrope walk and the parallel bar swing, but Core has also managed to graft a scary edge on to the action. On numerous occasions during the game, set-pieces occur that you just never expect - the crane in the sub dock is one. as is the sudden explosion down the vents of Von Croys building. It adds a real level of suspense to the game and that impresses on you the fact that this may be Tomb Raider V but we haven’t seen it ail yet. "Lara can do a load of actions beyond the call of duty: sliding into bad guys, leaping away from laser lunges" Over the years, there’s no doubt the Tomb Raider games have fluctuated in quality. Partly that’s because the brilliant moments in previous instalments were spread too thinly over sprawling games. Chronicles is a hit because it ditches the rambling levels and concentrates and enhances all the elements that worked into one stunning final episode. Anyway, back to this Croft-meets-the Grim Reaper issue. Surely they can’t really have killed her off. can they? Isn’t she supposed to be appearing on PS2? For the answer to that question, you’ll have to play the game. And you really do have to play this game. PlayStationVerdict ■ GRAPHICS: The pinnacle of PlayStation texturing. Sigh ■ GAMEPLAY: Masterfully paced and much tighter than the last two adventures ■ LIFESPAN: The secrets make it worth playing a couple of times As usual.. ■ OVERALL: Chronicles is the epitome of just how good an adventure can be. Next-gen Lara's reputed to be something different' As long as Core maintains these high standards, she'll be in good hands

FACTFILE Publisher: SCEE Developer: Argonaut Software Release Date: November, 2000 Age Restriction: None No of Players: One MAGIC-CARPET CAPERS AND, MERCIFULLY, NO ROBIN WILLIAMS The Disney Corporations attempt to saturate kiddie consumer culture continues with a follow-up to passable slider-swinger Tarzan ( OPMS1 7/10). Disney’s Aladdin sees you take charge of the baggy-trousered one for 28 levels of Arabian antics. Armed only with a scimitar, ballet skills and some useful friends, you must save the sultan, princess and kingdom from the netherwordly sorceress Nasira — and collect a fortune in gold, of course. A 3D adventure/platformer, the game of the film involves prancing, sliding and charging around well-constructed, visually pleasing locations, collecting coins and gems, and bashing baddies. Its marginally challenging and scores no marks for originality, but fulfil your coin quota and the end-of-tevel bonus games sometimes provide a swift burst of amusement. What saves Aladdin from drowning in its own Disney drivel is the way the game constantly switches modes. One minute you’re stealing apples from a narcoleptic street vendor, the next you’re dodging collapsing pillars while riding a 240bhp Persian rug. Wholesome fun and good basic training for young cadet gamers: just too dull for hardened veterans.

Release Date: September 29, 2000 FACTFILE Publisher: Ubisoft Developer: Doki Denki Studios Release Date: September 29,2000 Age Restriction: None No of Players: One The first of a new wave of titles aimed at three to sixyear-olds, Tiggers Honey Hunt is proof positive that children's games needn’t be patronising, nor scaled-down versions of ‘real’ titles. Instead, Honey Hunt is a beautifully judged platform game which marries Disney’s high production values with excellent level design and playability, its only concession to its young audience being an easier difficulty setting. Tigger has volunteered to help Pooh gather honey jars for a party. This leads the way into an engaging platform romp, with additional collecting missions offered via cameo appearances from Roo. Eeyore and Owl. What really makes Tigger’s Honey Hunt so effective, though, is that its a strong platform title in its own right. Your control over Tigger is superb, while the levels are easy to navigate. This is all excellently presented, with dozens of cut-scenes accompanying each new objective or hazard. Although the polygonal graphics look rather primitive, Tiggers Honey Hunt is a solid and entertaining package. Additional sub-games such as Pooh Sticks are a nice touch, but the key to the games success is simply that it plays very well.

Release Date: November 21, 1997 Tomb Raider 2? And about time too, eh? We don't know about the rest of you out there in magazine-reading land, but for those of us with full-time jobs and a social life it was about the end of last month that we finally finished Tomb Raider - a scant 11 months after its release. Since then we've been sitting around twiddling our thumbs, sighing and wishing that Core Design would get their act together, Well, the wait is over. We've been playing Tomb Raider 2 for a couple of weeks, and you'll probably have run her around the Great Wall of China in the first level, thanks to our exclusive cover disc demo by now. Unless, of course, you're reading the mag in a shop, or you're one of the strange individuals who buys the magazine and doesn't actually own a PlayStation. (We kid you not. We've even had someone ring up and ask why the CD wouldn't work in his hi-fi. ‘it makes the most terrible racket,’ he confessed.) Anyway, we digress. We can even hear the sound of you getting impatient. So... Tomb Raider 2 is brilliant. Thank God. As you'll have seen on the demo. But you'll be wanting to know if the rest of the game is as good as the demo level? OF course it is Ysee, Tomb Raider 2 is packed full of new things. Yes, it's essentially the same game as the original, but at the same time it's got so much more. Take Lara's new moves, for example. As well as all the old jumping, shimmying and running tricks that she used to be able to do, Lara has learnt some new stuff in her year off. Now she can climb. Not just up to the top of a block as she could in the original, but up ladders and climbable walls. A fairly insignificant improvement, you might think. Except that Lara’s ability to climb has revolutionised the level design of the game. Areas that were previously inaccessible have opened up to her, If the level designers were artists, it would be like they'd discovered a whole new colour to paint with, And as we know, the lads at Core were the Michelangelos of level design before, Now the levels are bigger, more complex and more fun. There are other small improvements to her movement as well. Lara can also wade through shallow water now, meaning that she can get her guns out while still in the water. All of these new moves are available to practise in Lara's mansion — just as in the predecessor. But Lara's clearly had the interior decorators in since last time, who've very sensibly managed to convince her to move her gym out of the ballroom and into the open air, where it now resembles one of those assault courses beloved of The Krypton Factor. And that's also a significant new factor in TR2 — a lot of the levels are now out in the open air. But perhaps the biggest single new thing is that Lara can now use vehicles. In the Venice levels, for example, she gets to ride around in a powerboat. Indeed, her ability to do this is vital to being able to complete the level on which it's introduced. The first time Lara climbs into a power boat, guns up the engine and you realise that ~ rather than some animated sequence - you're actually going to be able to drive the powerboat around, is one of the great moments of the new game. Other significant improvements to the first game include the addition of ‘dynamic lighting’. Now that might sound pretty dull, but what it means is that in Tomb Raider 2, sources of light can move around, whereas in Tomb Raider they were just stuck in one position. The major upshot of this is that Lara now has flares. Not the dodgy '70s trousers, that would be too much to bear. No, Lara has distress flares that give off an intense light for a short while that she can run around holding, or throw down dark areas. Again this simple innovation has led to much more intriguing level design, with certain areas of some levels being hidden in pitch black, In much the same way as you had to hunt for ammunition in the first game, you'll find yourself hunting for flares so that you can find out what's hidden down that long, dark tunnel, The other new element that radically alters the shape of the levels is that there are now glass windows dotted around. Glass windows that you can satisfyingly shatter simply by firing your pistol at them. All of these new elements combine to make the new levels feel much more like real places. These small improvements to the interactivity of the levels have made many of the places that Lara visits feel much more realistic. The other thing you'll notice about Tomb Raider 2 is that the graphics are a little bit sharper. The textures are a little more complicated, Lara is a little smoother, the 3D engine is a bit quicker, and some of those slightly annoying glitches, like when you'd suddenly be able to see between walls, have been eliminated. This all helps to give Tomb Raider 2 a richer, lusher feel, and adds to the all-important feeling of ‘being there’. But it's not just the new ways that Lara moves, or the technical advances in the game engine that make Tomb Raider 2 different to the first game. TR2 has a different, more modern and urban feel to it. The plot doesn’t take you toa seemingly endless list of fanciful archeological sites - Lara is more Jane Bond in the sequel than Indiana Jane. There are levels set in modern-day Venice, on oil platforms, in underwater shipwrecks and rather than the occasional tiger or mummy leaping out to scare the wits out of you, these levels are heavily populated by people, Admittedly, they're all still enemies, but whereas the first Tomb Raider had an almost ghostly, barren feeling to it, TR2 seems at times almost indecently crowded. There are thugs with iron bars trying to bash your head in, there are mafioso with automatic weaponry trying to gun you down and — most sinisterly of all, the first time you encounter them — there are frogmen lurking in the water armed with harpoon guns. To help her cope with this new array of enemies, Lara has had her weaponry upgraded. in addition to the familiar pistols, automatics and Uzis of the original, TR2 lets you get your hands on some pretty serious firepower, including an M16 combat rifle, a harpoon gun of your own to use underwater and - the ultimate in carnage-wreakers — a grenade launcher. This modern feel has also got to the background environment, too. There are now huge air-conditioning fans to avoid and giant swinging hooks to watch out for. Instead of the quiet ambience of long-deserted tombs, Lara now spends most of the game listening to the background hum of electrical generators, the throbbing of powerful engines and the piercing shriek of intruder alarms. That's not to say that TR2 is lacking in atmospheric ruins to explore; there are plenty. But at least half the levels are set firmly in the modern world, making for a whole new kind of excitement and adventure. Tomb Raider 2 is also quite a bit harder than the first game. Which is no bad thing for all us battle-scarred veterans. The first level introduces you to a mind-boggling sequence of trap-doors and crushing rooms that will take all your wits and speed of reaction to overcome. There's a series of rooms that require you to keep moving ~ and always in the right direction - to avoid certain death, And this is where our only criticism of TR2 comes in. The first game was, as you will no doubt be aware, a huge success on the PC as well as on the PlayStation. The only significant difference between the two was that while the PlayStation game had a series of save points dotted throughout each level, the PC version allowed you to save the game at any point. Unfortunately, this made the PC version much easier to complete PlayStation original, and also removed quite a bit of the edge from the gameplay. This was because the PlayStation save points were an integral part of the level design. They were frustratingly well-placed, often stretching your gameplaying abilities to the absolute limit. They were also the source of a good deal of the game's excitement, as you wondered whether you could nurse a severely injured Lara through enough of the level to find the next save point. On the PC there was none of that excitement; if you wanted to save the game, you just went ahead and did it. Of course, at the same time the PlayStation save points were an artificial element of a game that was so realistic in many other ways; you're not often looking out for a transparent blue diamond in real life. And they were quite possibly viewed by the designers as a necessary evil, given the limited RAM available in the PlayStation’s memory and on memory cards. In addition to the familiar pistols, automatics and Uzis of the original, TR2 lets you get your hands on some pretty serious weaponary In TR2, though, you can save the game at any point. And — as we've pointed out above - the game is also quite a deal more difficult. While in the first game you often had plenty of time to prepare yourself to make a jump, the second game has many more instances where you're required to act instantly ~ either because of a moving obstacle that must be avoided, because you've had your weapons confiscated and you're being chased by armed baddies, or because of switches that only open doors for a limited amount of time. So what you do now, of course, is to save the game every time you're in a dangerous position. And if you fail your task, you just reload and try again. And again. And again. Until you succeed. The unfortunate consequence of this is that, rather than making the game feel more realistic by taking out the blue lozenges, TR2 actually loses some of its flow to the continual ghastly interruptions of the loading screen. Luckily this flaw is restricted to only a couple of occasions on each level, so you won't get really frustrated about it, But it's not as good as it used to be. And that's a shame. Of course, for PC players this won't be such an annoying problem, largely because it should take quite a lot less time to load a level from hard-drive than it does from the CD. The rest of TR2 is so good and in so many places such a significant improvement on the original, though, that we shan't be letting this one error of judgement affect our scoring of the game; just don't write in and say that we didn’t warn you. Tomb Raider 2, then, is an even more fantastic game than its predecessor. Which, given the fairly short amount of time that they had, is a testament to the growing confidence and expertise of the great team at Core Design. It's guaranteed to sell extraordinarily well and, unlike most sequels, will deserve to do so on its own merits, rather than by trading on its name. Like the first game, TR2 offers you 16 superb levels of gripping gameplay that will amuse, bemuse, scare and exhilarate you in a way that precious few other games do. We have seen the future, and the future belongs to Lara.

Release Date: October 23, 1997 Like platform games? Like jester with magic wands? Like bouncing around a 3D world crammed with mutant fish, electric bridges and giant lava lamps? Believe us, you will... First thing's first, our Nikki looks a bit different this time out Gone is the boyish crop and prepubescent upper torso. Now our heroine sports a flowing main plus a set of lady bumps that could have your eye out at 15 paces. Sounds familiar? Of course it bloody does, but fret ye not ~ Nikki's Lara-alike makeover hasn't extended to the Puckish Fargus and neither do our dynamic duo have to paddle through shark-infested caverns in search of Incan artefacts. Nope, in Pandemonium 2 Nikki and Fargus have to thwart humanoid fish blokes, break free from ice prisons, hurdle malevolent plasma balls and, of course, try to avoid having their retinas frazzled by a barrage of happy-pill 3D graphics. Pandemonium 2, then — business blissfully as usual: The first game, a chemically unchallenged 3D platformer with myriad camera angles plus gameplay from the gods, garnered 9/10 in PSMI4. And a year on, this long-awaited sequ is guaranteed to follow suit. The premise remains much the same. Bored with summon' up monsters from the Stygian depths, this time our heroes must rescue the Comet of Infinite Possibilities from the Goon Queen Zorrscha's evil hoards and, as Sid ‘our narrator reveals in the FMV intro, much nasty stuff lurketh in the ensuing 20-plus levels. But given that Sid is actually Fargus talking wand with a Bronx accent and undulating eyebrows, you can rest assured that those Pandemonium fun levels are still whacked right up to eleven. As with the original, you can swap roles at the beginning of each level — Nikki's new-found buoyancy enabling her to bounce higher than a highly-strung Space Hopper, while Fargus’ forward-roll hijinks can obliterate all manner of beasties. Whoever you pick once you're past those simple first levels you'll be addicted, as no matter how many coins you collect or keys you find, you'll plummet to your doom again and again 4 master that level, scribble down the password and the agony begins anew. But how different — or, more pointedly, better - is it from the original? Good news ~ the engine's faster than before and as Nikki hoicks herself on to a cliff and Fargus catapults off a spider's web in pixel-perfect perspective, the graphics will have you examining your Dr Pepper for stray ‘herbs’. Pandy 2 is also chocker with fresh monsters, fresher threats, plus the chance to fly a Robotech-style rocket through underground mazes blasting the bejabbers out of anything that moves. Add on a level where the now-mangled corridors of Fargus' mind are yours to explore at a zillion mph and, well, it’s that good. But one question remains: Mind-altering vegetation? Dodgy coated Smarties? Tantric magick from the Planet Bonkers? Well, whatever it is Crystal are on, weld like some...

Release Date: November 7, 2000 BEAUTIFUL WOMEN, HIGH-TECH GADGETS, AND MEGALOMANIACS. NO, NOT THE PSM OFFICE ; THE RETURN OF MR BOND TO PS1 IN THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH There’s nothing better than James Bond. And anyone who disagrees is wrong. No argument. And the rule holds for videogames too. For example, it's no coincidence that one of the best games ever made, Goldeneye, is better than its sequel, Perfect Dark. Why? It's got Bond in it. Deep down, you see, everyone wants to be Bond. Even the girls. Which Is why, as a PlayStation owner, it's a little embarrassing to admit the grey box's only attempt at the Bond licence ■ Tomorrow Never Dies - was about as useful as giving 81 of eld a comb. Which brings us to The World Is Not Enough, Once again trailing behind the film to an embarrassing degree and once again developed by Black Ops. But this time the developer has, by Electronic Arts' own admission, been given much longer to come up with the goods, "We know that Tomorrow Never Dies wasn't brilliant" understates a candid Albert Rene 11 o, producer of the PlayStation 1 version of The World Is Not Enough, "but to be fair to Black Ops time was against them," And in truth, a co-licence with MGM didn't help EA exert control over how game looked. For The World is Not Enough EA has obtained a full licence from MGM and Bond-producer Danjaq, granting it much more creative freedom. The most important difference between the two games is the move from a third to first-person perspective. This time round you get to feel that you are Bond, rather than his documentary cameraman. Tou shoot the bad guys, you disable the bombs, and you get to snog the women, (The last possibility should not be taken too literally.) “You feel that you are Bond. You shoot the bad guys, you disable the bombs, you get to snog the women” Naturally, The World Is Not Enough gives Bond his requisite collection of heavy weaponry. While the Walther PPK has always been: Bond's weapon of choice, shady commerciaI deals dictate that the Wolfram P2K is now the preferred silenced sidearm. When accuracy isn't an issue, but the spraying of bullets is, the P2K is bolstered and the Meyer Tact feat Machine Pistol drawn instead. Greater precision can be gained from the Koffier & Stock KS5, while body armour won't help anyone faced with the punchy Munitions Belgique PS1OO. The game also includes a number of weapons that weren't found In the film, such as grenades, gas bombs,, satchel charges and a rocket launcher (see the Going Down boxaut), One of Danfaq's licence stipulations is that the game include a zero-tolerance policy on the killing of innocents. If they haven't got a weapon and you gun them down you forfeit the entire level. Fortunately R IQ's lanky sidekick, played by John Cleese in the film - a timely introduction considering Desmond Llewelyn's tragic death In a motor accident) is here to help. Standard spy issue is the mobile phone, which includes a high-energy stunner (no, hot Denise Richards) to nullify rather than kill Much of the excitement surrounding The World Is Not Enough is that It looks so fabulous. "I don't think you'll see a better graphics engine on PlayStation 1" boasts PenelIo, and he Isn't exaggerating. Black Ops has seriously overhauled the Tomorrow Never Dies engine, ensuring that The World Is Not Enough has long draw distances and plenty of action up dose. “The game includes a number of weapons that weren’t in the film” "Thanks to the CD format of the PlayStation 1 we've been able to include lots of high resolution textures" says Penello. "Each character looks a lot more detailed than before, while the locations draw further into the distance than ever before. We've got one level where you can look up a spiral staircase, built using curved surfaces, and 1 think it's about as far as you can see in any PS1 game. The level designers are given a frame rate counter, so they can keep packing more detail In until they reach our set limit" Part of the deliciousness of the look is the motion-capture of actors (Keanu Reeves no less! Ah, wait. Sorry, Keanu Reeves' stunt double from The Matrix), Everyone has a number of hit points on their bodies, so that if you shoot someone in the leg they'll hop or fall over. Arms are grasped if fired at, while head shots are generally pretty conclusive* The other important aspect of the first person shooter is the intelligence of the Marketers you're trying to outfit, "Soldiers are now much smarter when they engage you" enthuses Penello. "They call to each other for assistance, and understand which parts of the map they can hide behind." Certainly The World Is Not Enough looks stunning and the few levels we have played, although a little rough and ready, are satisfying and scary- All that's missing from this most stunning of Christmas releases Is any kind of Multiplayer Made. It seems as If the graphics engine Is so detailed that there's no way the PlayStation can handle split-screen action. "We could have attempted a multiplayer flame" admits Penello, "but we were concerned that the single-player game would suffer. We've focused on upgrading the graphics engine with this version, and we're very happy with the result." We think you'll be happy too. Prepare to shoot the Iiving daylights out of the enemy Mr Bond. “It looks stunning and the few levels we have played are satisfying and scary”

Release Date: November 16, 1999 "Bond is prone to getting snagged on the bug-riddled scenery" Peppering this review with cliched Bondisms would be all too easy, which is precisely why it doesn't open with the line, “We've been expecting you, 007. You and your appallingly-overdue movie tie-in.” Very loosely based upon the film of two years ago, Tomorrow Never Dies is a third-person action/adventure with subtle stealth overtones and gadgets ahoy. It should prove familiar territory to anyone who has played the superb Syphon Filter. However, where TND has the edge over Syphon Filter is in the impressive diversity of its gameplay. For the most part, TND sees you shooting merry heck out of enemy troops, or sneaking around installations, tower blocks and hotels. You’ll also find yourself skiing down mountains and driving the movie’s signature BMW into battle against bomb-lobbing terrorists. One level even has you taking control of high-kicking Wai Lin, as played by Michelle Yeoh in the movie. Naturally, Bond himself comes well equipped, the ubiquitous sniper rifle surprising no one with its presence. While all of this adds up to a fine experience on paper, the stark reality is that Tomorrow Never Dies is rubbish. For starters, the control system is all wrong. Bond is unresponsive and prone to getting snagged on the bug-riddled scenery. Admittedly, MGM Interactive may have done this on purpose, but try as we might, we can’t recall any scenes from the film where Pierce Brosnan wobbled around behind an intermittently disappearing fence, or slid along a wall like some possessed arthritic. Better graphics or at least a Multiplayer Mode would have compensated somewhat. Although your missions are nicely varied - there’s usually some objective beyond just shooting stuff - it can't disguise the fact that Tomorrow Never Dies is an ugly, flawed monstrosity and utterly undeserving of its license. MGM should be ashamed. James Bond? James Arse, more like. Still, the soundtrack’s cool.

Release Date: January 28, 1999 "All my Digimon are hard... I fight first and ask questions later" The wait is over. PlayStation owners clamouring to have their own brand of little monsters to collect and train will soon be able to get their hands on 113 of the critters. Bandai is releasing Digimon World* based on its successful cartoon series, currently being screened by ITV. You are given a randomly chosen Digimon, who you name, to begin your quest to rally the inhabitants of Digimon Island. some of whom have mysteriously lost the power of speech, and expose- the evil destroying their society. ‘There are lots of RFG and adventure elements." Bandai & Darrell Jones told us. The idea is to explore the whole world and meet every Digimon. There are puzzles to solve, items to collect and dues and information from all the characters you meet." Much of the action takes place in training camps outside the island's evil capital, the once-glorious File City You need to pet your creature to keep him happy, ensuring he has food and rest and encouraging and chastising him according to his behaviour. Sometimes he'll take care of himself by dropping a whoopsie in the woods when he feels the need, Right. You are also able to improve the skills of your monster through a series of passive training exercises. For example, you can improve his strength by having him repeatedly whacked by a giant boxing glove or tweak his attacking skills by making him kick the bell exit of a tree stump in the Green Gym. 'As you explore the Digiworld. you and your Digimon will encounter good and bad monsters." Jones says. You can stand arid fight or run away. If you beat them you can befriend them, though they occasionally leg it r dropping their possessions as they flee. 'All my Digimon are hard as nails," Jones boasts. "I always fight first and as k questions later." However, you also need to pick up key items for when you reach dead ends or need information from other monsters. Jones also promises strong visuals, The Digimon are 3D characters set against Final fantasy-style backgrounds, which helps when you are trying to find a toilet for your Digimon in a hurry, as spinning camera angles, can be very confusing." The development team also aims to convey a sense of the passage of time. Nightfall gradually Creeps In as the day progresses and your monster has cyclical feeding needs which must be satisfied. Digimon World is scheduled for release In November. Gotta, erm. collect 'em all.

Release Date: November 14, 2000 MIRROR, SIGNAL, MANOEUVRE GOES OUT OF THE WINDOW AS TANNER AND CO ONCE AGAIN BURY THEMSELVES IN THE MURKY WORLD OF ORGANISED CRIME Your bumper has just collapsed, the boot’s caved in and the rear left wheel is bouncing off down the freeway. Your damage gauge Ts flashing red, blaring impending disintegration, and you've only got 33.89 seconds to meet your contact. What do you do? WHAT DO YOU DO? Panic? Never. Die? Of course not Answer: You get out of the car. Yes, we've said it before and we'll say it again, the key feature of Driver 2 is the ability of Tanner to hop out of his motor at will. A flick of f and the @ button and he's off trotting down the street clad in his best Oswald Boateng suit. Brilliant, but the latest play of the game reveals the true Implications of Tanner's new found mobility. “Long sections of freeway are perfect for evading cops” Car about to Fall apart? Simply &»am on the anchors, hop out and start walking back along the freeway into the path of a new motor. Luckily the considerate motorists of Driver 2% cities are prepared to avoid bowling you over and kindly stop a few feet In front. A tap on ® and Tanner's back in the hotseat and ready to race away at top speed. Assuming you don't take command of a battered old jalopy that -is... Of course, in the middle of die game, with coppers flying out left, right and centre, dumping your motor might prove a little too time-consuming, so those driving skills honed through playing the first game are going to come in exceptionally handy, For those newcomers still crunching the gears it's advisable to take a ride around the cities in preparation for the missions ahead. Marvel at the features modelled from the locations themselves, Chicago's skyscraperladen horizon, Las Vegas with Its neon-soaked hotels, the Sugar Loaf mountain of Rio, and Havana with its big-finned Cadillacs and ummmm, cigars. The First thing you'll notice racing around the city streets is areas where the road curves off into the distance making the whole experience much more realistic. In Chicago, for example, there are long sections of wide freeway that are perfect for evading the cops, with exits that curve round dropping you back into the city streets. Havana sees you cruising along meandering tree-lined avenues that open up on to the beach¬ front promenade, ft quickly becomes obvious that the new cities are even larger than in the first game, so it's going to take a white to get used to the back-alleys and shortcuts. Luckily, Reflections has cleverly tweaked the map to help you navigate. Once you're on the map, hit ® and it'FI orientate Itself to the direction you're facing, giving you a better idea of which way to turn. Driver had a compelling and often complex plat and the sequel's no exception. Tanner finds himself deep undercover again, this time accompanied by his partner, Tobias Jones, in a double act that makes John Travolta and Samuel L Jackson in Pulp Fiction look like Rodney and Del Boy. Accountant to the Mob, Pink Lenny, has cut a deal with same Brazilian crime lords and started a war in the underworld. The balance of power has shifted towards the South Americans and Chicago's in grave danger of turning from the home of the blues into the city of samba. Tanner and Jones are charged with Infiltrating the Mob and restoring peace to the city.. Tough call. Pink Lenny goes on the lamb, leaving our intrepid duo with the job of stopping any shipments coming into the city via Havana. Cue trip to Cuba. After successfully completing that job, they're off to Las Vegaa to pick up Lenny's trail. Trouble is, public enemy number one, Solomon Caine, is also after little Lenny and there's no option but for our heroes to hook up with the arch-villain and help him track the snitch down. Lenny escapes, but turns I up again in RFo, so It's off to the land of sun, sea and football for our coppers, Will they find him? Or will the Mob get to him first? That's entirely down to your motoring skills.,* “Two suited and hooted heavies steam into a bar wielding shotguns” The plot evolves through a series of cut-scenes and while the cuts En Driver were good, the new ones are quite stunning. The opening sequence looks like something straight out of Lock Stock And Two Smoking Bar refs. Two suited and booted heavies steam into a bar wielding shotguns looking for Pink Lenny who's having a pint with one of the Brazilians. Needless to say they wreck the joint and a man ires dead, blood washing across the floor, his hand still twitch Eng, The effect is incredibly cinematic and, as you'd expect, Driver 2 acknowledges its inspiration with a stream of references to famous movie car chases, doffing Its cap Lo everything from The French Connection to The Blues Brothers. Driver 2 is shaping up to be every bit as exciting as its predecessor was last year. The fact that Tanner can get out of the car adds much more flexibility to the missions, and there's no doubt Et feels right and looks great. All that remains is for Reflections to reveal the missions themselves, PSM will have the full review for you next month but, in the meantime: keep 'em peeled...

Release Date: November 24, 2000 "A military outpost has taken over Dr Kirk’s experiments to breed the killers" Dino Crisis 2 is a mass of contradictions akin to one of those 'good news, bad news* jokes you used to hear as a kid. The good news, for example, is that it fulfils the main criteria of a sequel of having more of everything - especially dinosaurs. The bad news, however, is that Dino Crisis 2 no Longer falls under Capconrs survival horror mantle. Instead, its creator Shinji Milcame has pre-empted criticisms that the rigid structure of the Resident Evil series and the original Dino Crisis have been taken as far as they can. As such, Mikame-5an has created a game that is more action orientated - even arcade- ike in its simplicity * yet still contains many of the traits that made the original so entertaining. The good news is that this is a bold step away from what could have been a safe and predictable follow-up. And it works well. The key differences from the original are obvious from the start and it is at this point that fans of survival horror wilt either recoil in disgust or embrace the game as the new departure it is. White Dino Crisis was a straightforward story well told, the follow-up is more episodic in its content. The game is split into a series of small vignettes within which the scenario unfolds via a succession of sub-stages comprising of roughly five Locations. As these are explored and the obligatory dinosaurs enter stage right an on-screen score system tots up bonuses for every reptile that is laid to waste. These scores are then added up at the end of the five-screen segment, with additional bonuses for getting through without a scratch and taking out several targets with one shot also added. While this could easily be dismissed as a move towards the shallow end of the gaming scale, this tally system actually worth because it is integral to your progression through the game. Rather than finding weapons via the accumulation of keys, door cards and the tike, Dino Crisis 2 Lets the player buy whatever they wish providing they have sufficient cash. Computer banks are dotted throughout the game and act as both save points and weapon and ammo dispensers, enabling Capcom to dispense with the stalwart inventory screens and associated item juggling. The beauty of the system is that players can then lay waste to dozens of rampaging Velociraptors or Plesiosaurs in the pursuit of rocket-launchers and flame throwers or bottle it completely and worry about the heavy artillery later. However, with bigger and hander-to-kill dinosaurs introduced throughout the course of the adventure, a fine line is needed as certain weapons are ideally suited to dealing with particular species. More than a few familiar ideas from Capcorrfs previous games have been gathered together for this sequel. Key cards and the occasional logic test still form the bulk of the puzzles, for example, while the cut scenes with their inadvertently amusing conversations and manner Isms still raise a smirk and those interminable door animations are still There. The rotational control system has also been retained, complete with ISO* 1 spins and a tidy auto-targeting system. With the majority of Dim Crisis 2 set in the lush foliage of a rain forest, though, the more open spaces contribute to Mikames hopes for a more immediate game, with the simplistic yet effective control system perfectly balanced to deal with attacks of up to three dinosaurs simultaneously. But, oh those dinosaurs... "It is resplendent with clever touches that make it a singularly clever and playable game..." An additional benefit of both the open locations and Dino Crisis 2s action emphasis is that it has allowed Capcom to completely rework the graphics. The two heroes, Regina and Dylan, are considerably larger and more detailed than other Capcom survivalists and the animation as they run, stroll and take arms is incredibly smooth and realistic. Rightfully taking centre stage, though, are the dinosaurs. One of the biggest disappointments of the original game was the limited nature of the dinosaur attacks. Sure they looked good, but compared to the multiple 'raptor attacks of Spielberg's The Lost World the reptiles Sacked the canny attack patterns of their silver screen counterparts. No more, though. Signified by a slight rustling of foliage or a distant scratching, Dino Crisis Is dinosaurs are every bit as clever as the ones that tore Bob Peck to bits in Jurassic Park. For a start, they now attack in packs of three, and they also seem to come from nowhere. The raptors will try to outflank the player via attacks from out wide, while this level of cunning continues throughout the game, A Triceratops will attack to defend her babies, for example, while Plesiosaurs rule the waves and Pterodactyls the skies. By far the star of the show, however, is the huge Gargantosaur that appears in the games intro and adopts a similar role to Resident Evil 3k Nemesis creature by appearing throughout the course of the adventure. In total, 12 species now inhabit Dino Crisis 2, with Capcom explaining the larger number via a convoluted time travel scenario. Set directly after the events of the first game, a military outpost has rather unwisely taken over Dr Kirks experiments to breed the prehistoric killers, As is always the case, things have gone tits-up and a time travel experiment has thrown the scientific base back to the Cretaceous period with a mass of dense jungle appearing in its place. Following her experiences in Dino Crisis, Regina is paired with the gung-ho Dylan and an army of soldiers and sent back in time to find and rescue survivors and bring them back. The resulting journey means - just as Ripley returned to the home of her foe in Aliens - Regina is on Dino turf for the sequel, Indeed, as the games stunning CGI intro of the army camp dissected by a marauding Gigantosaur and hundreds of raptors shows, Mika me s obvious love of cinema results in visual influences from everything from Predator and Platoon to, logically, the two Jurassic Park films, The Cretaceous setting is also put to excellent use as a means to keep you constantly on your toes. The game is evenly split between locations based on the displaced scientific complex and the surrounding jungle location. As with the original, parts of the complex cannot be accessed until the relevant keys are found, but as the game gradually reveals its secrets it proves that Dino Crisis 1 is more than a match for its stablemates in terms of taut plot and shocks. It also ups the ante slightly, with the addition of a wider range of locations and the inclusion of sub-games that dovetail beautifully into the CGI scenes and in-game events. Of particular note are the underwater scenes where Dylan dons a divers suit to explore a submerged base. Mot only does this add a number of aquatic species to the dinosaur count, but the shimmering effect of the water and the addition of a jump move create the feeling of playing a completely different game. The same can be said of the first-person sub¬ games that throw up additional moments of suspense and terror, One, for example, sees Regina trying to steer a jeep away from a rampaging Triceratops while the player controls Dylan as he looses off round after round of rockets at the pursuing beast, Its just a bit of fun, but like a lot of things in Dino Crisis 2 it's a risk that pays off. Ultimately, Dino Crisis 2s good news elements easily outweigh -its bad. It is resplendent with clever touches that are only noticeable after prolonged play, yet make it a singularly clever and playable game. The camera angles, for example, are all positioned to make it look as if you're being permanently persued. This isn't the case, of course, but they add tension nevertheless. The game world is also well worked, with dinosaurs mooching around under walkways and on the horizon to indicate a bustling reptilian world, while the way the game gently entices the player into new areas is beautifully handled.. The main bad news aspects are that the game's move towards action has made it rather unrelenting at times. It becomes predictable that three dinosaurs will appear with every switch of the camera angle and the control method Lacks the necessary precision to make climbing out of harm's way as instant and smooth as it should be. All the same Shinji Mikame and Capcom deserve applause for this bold step. Dino Crisis 2 is by no means perfect, but at its heart it is a playable and entertaining game that, through a wealth of ideas and set pieces, elevates itself above its inherently simplistic nature. Dino Crisis 2 doesn't show the way ahead for survival horror, but it is a far more accessible game than its predecessor and one that doesn't sacrifice content in Its pursuit of simple gameplay. Good news indeed.

Release Date: November 17, 1999 "You can deathslide down washing lines and zap hovering robots..." Remember “to infinity, and beyond!” from the first time round? Then you've probably too old to be part of Toy Story 2’s target audience - but that doesn’t mean you won’t enjoy it. In fact, like Pixar’s masterpiece of computer¬ generated cinema, there’s plenty in Toy Story 2 that’ll appeal to those who still think Star Wars starred Indiana Jones and not that bloke out of Trainspotting. Only a year or so back the term ‘3D platformer’ was hardly fit to sit in The Big Videogames Dictionary alongside entries like ‘racing simulation’ and ‘beat ’em up.’ These so-called ‘3D’ games weren’t really anything of the sort as they failed to deliver the freedom to look and move wherever you liked. What Toy Story 2 shows, post-Ape Escape and Spyro, is just how far this kind of platform game has come. Taking control of suburban spaceman Buzz Lightyear you enter a seamless 3D world that stretches out in every direction. Chairs can be climbed, car bonnets can be bounced on, you can deathslide down washing lines and zap hovering robots in your mission to rescue your new best pal. Woody. It’s the ease of getting about that really strikes you. There are very few of those ‘I should be able to do that!’ moments of seething frustration. Leap at a pole and you hang on, jump near enough a beam and you swing round it like some demented gymnast. But don’t let that fool you into thinking that the game itself is easy. Getting from A to B is one thing but finding out what to do and how to do it when you get there is another. Like all good platformers you’re forced to explore before you can collect useful items, and solve puzzles and defeat bosses before you get to visit the next level. While clues are passed on by the Toy Story cast (Hamm The Pig, Bo Peep) the game holds your hand much less than you might expect. You’ll exhaust yourself trying to out-race a toy car without bothering to ask and then discover that you’ll never win without your jet boots that must be earned on another level. There’s no getting away from the fact that many of Toy Story 2s levels don’t feel that big. if you’ve just been flying in Spyro 2 or catapulting stones at dinosaurs in Ape Escape a spot of claustrophobia might set in. Yet compact as they are there’s plenty to do in each stage. Reach the construction yard and you will be asked to round up five little tikes, solve a paint-mixing puzzle, collect 50 coins, find five wrenches and defeat the jackhammer boss at the top of a tower of girders. Unlike old-style 3D platformers this is a game that is in no way vertically challenged. Leap your way past red hot rivets to the top of the scaffolding or shin up a tree and you’ll be greeted by a world-class view of the level laid out below you. It’s a vista marred by no fogging and precious little fading at the edges that doesn’t feel the need to hide its shortcomings under a veil of darkness. The first-person view used to aim Buzz’s laser confirms just how well constructed the levels are as you shoot down toy planes and blow the catches off cribs with a single burst of your light beam. Perhaps the most surprising thing about Toy Story 2 is how easy it is to forget that it’s a film license. Games of films are normally accomplished con-men who tempt you in with cinematic snippets and artfully rendered characters only to cheat you of a decent wodge of gameplay. Last year’s A Bugs Life is a case in point. Happily Toy Story 2 is no such Sindy in Barbie’s clothing - it’s a game that just happens to comes with film clips, not 40 minutes of the movie with. oh. a few game parts thrown in. Cleverly, apart from framing the action, the t movie sequences are used r ' as rewards for collecting additional tokens on each level (our favourite was the clip of Buzz being fried by an evil alien). What is disappointing f about Toy Story 2 is its desire to play things just a little too safe. Ape Escape and Spyro 2 manage to be totally kid-friendly while still introducing some genuinely original elements to the platform genre. Toy Story 2 can make no such claims - at times it feels like platforming by numbers as you run around collecting coins or fiddle about trying to line yourself up for a particularly tricky jump from a see-saw balanced half-way up a tree. Well thought out though it is, there’s a certain predictability to the gameplay that leaves room for cynical types to whine on about “What, more movie/toy cash-ins?!” and not actually bother getting involved in the fun. Which is a shame when an injection of originality at the planning stage could have made Toy Story 2 not just a good film license but an all together excellent 3D platformer. It would be nice to think that Toy Story 2 marks some kind of turning point in the career of the film licensed game. It hints that those tinseltown players are finally sick of peddling pap and have decided to serve up real movie related entertainment instead no more games with the lifespan of your average clean nappy, no more levels that couldn’t challenge a sleepy toddler. Time for nipper minders to pop their corks in celebration then? Maybe not. Toy Story 2 is, unfortunately, the kind of exception that goes to prove the rule. A title aimed at kids that doesn’t insult adults? A movie tie-in that’s a worthwhile game in its own right? We hear the flutter of pigs’ wings coming from the direction of that big blue moon. Enjoy it while you can.

Release Date: October 5, 1999 "Mostly it’s a case of stumbling along, waiting for the next soldier" Bit late really, isn’t it? Nice potential (clanging swordplay, magic, monster pick-’n’-mix and bottomless cleavage), shame about the timing and execution. Comparisons with a certain other spunky lady may be inevitable, but the hope of Xena as Lara-come-lately is sadly scuppered by a clunky control system and painfully linear gameplay. For the record, the evil Kalabrax, imprisoned by the Gods, has escaped. Sniffing around for a human sacrifice, Ms Kalabrax picks on Xena’s sidekick Gabrielle. Xena not happy. Xena fights her way through 21 levels of third-person combat peppered with occasional puzzles en route to a final confrontation. She kicks, she rolls, she leaps, she decapitates an endless succession of Kalabrax broadsword-flailing bozos. All aided by the standard health potion and weapon/armour-upgrade pick-ups and a few rugged chaps booming out the odd bit of Zen guidance (“If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done?”) The puzzle bits are passable, but they’re spoiled by the old problem of it being too easy to tell the murky decorative backgrounds from the brightly coloured Things To Interact With. Mostly, it’s a case of stumbling along, waiting for the next soldier to attack, and while there’s been a reasonable effort to vary Xena’s fighting moves, you'll find yourself repeatedly hammering the sword button rather than waste time and energy messing about with complex kick/sword/roll combo antics. The platform elements are also pretty shaky. Positioning Xena to face in the right direction is tiresome enough, but dare to misjudge the jump for that next crate and there’s no Tomb Raider-style cling-to-the edge correction. It’s back to the beginning for another flash of deja vu. Successes? Well, efforts have been made to keep the game flowing seamlessly from area to area with only a quick tea-slurp’s worth of loading time, and although the fights tend to be awkward, multi-directional affairs, they kick off with some highly amusing battle cries (“Die, witch!”) There’s also a great bit with a grotesque, boulder-hurling Cyclops which works as a satisfying mix of all-out combat and lateral thinking. If you’re currently updating your ‘Xena’s Kick-Ass Web-Shrine,’ you’ll swoon over the fairly accurate show-to-game content and mood. More discerning gamers should rent it or leave it.