Reviews (22)

Fritz 8 is nice.
I guess Fritz 8 is stronger than chessmaster 8000 (GOOD). I have almost the whole family of chessmaster xxxx (from 2000 to 8000). Fritz 8 human interface is not very friendly or intuitive, maybe I spent too much time with the chessmaster series. I could not find the self-play mode in Fritz. The analysis of Fritz is very professional, it even uses the international symbols to grade the position. However I'd like to see another mode to give numeric values at each position like chessmaster, the symbol =/+ , +/=, etc. are not specific enough (at least to a detail player like me.) The user manual is hard to follow.
OK, 4 1/2 stars.

Worst User Interface Ever Designed!!
This program has a lot of features, however, it's pretty close to impossible to figure out how to get the features to work. I've never in my life seen a program with such a non-discoverable, non-intuitive, obscure interface.What is truly amazing about this program, is you can read the manual and still not figure out how to use the features!I've just spent 2 hours (including studying the manual) trying to figure out how to load a PGN file of some games that I've played to use the analysis features of the program and I still have no clue how to do it. Unbelievable.I've used several other chess programs and never had to even open the manual.I've used 100's of windows programs and this is clearly the worst interface I've ever seen.

Many Features combined with easy gameplay!
I don't know why someone would complain about bugs in this game because I have yet to find one! My guess is that the person complaing about them is using a pirated version of the software and thus his problems were created.

Anyhow, the game is definitly loaded with features (most of which are already explained by other reviews) but the one thing I wanted to emphasize is that this game actually helped better my game play tremendously!

Un buen juego de Ajedrez
La verdad, resulta sorprendente lo facil que resulta jugar.
Saludos Cordiales!
España

This Beast is Best
I have most of the top commercial chess programs in the world (Shredder, Fritz, Junior, Hiarcs, Chess Tiger, Deep Sjeng, Ruffian 2, Rebel and Chessmaster), and Fritz is my favorite program.I don't even use Chessmaster anymore.Fritz is a Chessbase product, so it is state-of-the art in all respects.I can't imagine why some of the other reviewers had some problems with it.Myself and my chess-playing friends have had none.

For those who are saavy about chess programs, yes, I admit that Fritz is the second-strongest program ... Shredder 8 (also a Chessbase product) is definitely stronger than Fritz, but if you aren't Gary Kasparov, who knows the difference?Besides, in my view Shredder suffers from several defects ... its principal variation (PV) in analysis can be complete rubbish (ie: hanging a queen for no compensation), although it's first move of the PV is always first-rate.Also, Shredder's playing style is "dryer" and more technical (e.g. boring) than Fritz.If you want a tip-top program that plays like a boring machine, grinding out wins, then get Shredder.If you want a program that will come at you like a doberman, then get Junior, Hiarcs or Chess Tiger.But if you want the best of both of these worlds, then get Fritz!

Hey, let's face it ... unless you are a Grandmaster, any of the top programs I named, on their top level, will tear you to tiny little pieces every time, especially when you're playing blitz.However, Fritz has many modes (like Friend, Sparring and "personalities") that can lead it to playing like you!There are dozens of ways to change or "dummy down" Fritz's play, and you can have fun with all of them.You can also use Fritz's GUI to play the many FREE winboard or UCI engines freely available on the Internet (I have about 3 dozen, but many more are available).So, it's like having a whole chess club at your disposal, and you can even have the various engines and personalities play each other in matches or tournaments, or help you play against Fritz.(I don't know about you, but I need help against the silicon beasts.)

One observation ... which program does Gary Kasparov (and other top players like Anand, Kramnik, Leko, etc) use and analyze with?Fritz.Did Chessmaster get a match with Gary Kasparov or Vladimir Kramnik?Nope ... only Fritz and Junior did.If Kasparov says Fritz analyzes the best, that's good enough for me!

Fritz's database is also very useful and it's GUI and many features are top-notch.Also, if you are a serious chess player and want to get the top chess database program, Chessbase, then Fritz will fit in seamlessly.How can you go wrong, especially at this discounted price?(Don't hold your breath looking for a discount at Chessbase...ha, ha.)

So the bottom line?Fritz is #1.Get it from Amazon!I did, and don't regret it a bit. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

To commemorate the premiere of the next chapter in the world's greateststrategy game, WarCraft III: Reign of Chaos Collector's Edition willbe available in limited quantities for those who demand the ultimateWarCraft III experience. Available at select retail outlets only,WarCraft III: Reign of Chaos Collector's Edition features severalexclusive items, including:

The Art of WarCraft, a high-quality coffee-table book featuring rareand never-before-seen images from the WarCraft universe. Art from every stageof game development will be included, from early concepts to finished pieces,along with behind-the-scenes commentary from the Blizzard development team.

The official WarCraft III cinematic DVD, including complete WarCraft IIIin-game cinematics, digitally remastered in widescreen format for TV viewing.Exclusive special features include concept art, storyboards, original cinematictrailers, and audio commentary from the Blizzard cinematics team.

Also included is the WarCraft III soundtrack CD, a commemorative collector'sedition manual signed by the WarCraft III development team, and four limited-edition8 by 10 prints featuring rich artwork portraying battle-hardened veterans fromeach of WarCraft III's races.

WarCraft III: Reign of Chaos Collector's Edition will be created in a one-timelimited run, and once they're gone, they're gone forever. Reign of ChaosCollector's Edition will be available during the first half of 2002coinciding with the launch of WarCraft III: Reign of Chaos. --Blizzard Press Release ... Read more

Reviews (100)

Great title
Warcraft 3 is a great new title in Blizzard's the Warcraft universe. The realtime strategy game brings new races to the table, these being the night elves and the undead. The plot thickens, the action is intense.
The cinematics are breathtaking, the new game engine is great and so is the gameplay.
Battlenet also gets a facelift.
All in all, a great title. Even if you're a newcomer to the Warcraft universe but you enjoy real-time strategy game, you should definitely get this game.
The collector's edition is awesome. It comes with the game, the soundtrack of Warcraft III on CD, 8x10" posters of the Humans, Undead, Night Elf and Orc and also a fairly thick and detailed book called the Art of Warcraft which is basically a "behind the scenes" look at the work that went into the creation of this masterpiece.

Orcs are friends, not goons
I have to admit that I've killed many orcs over the years and never felt an ounce of remorse about it--and who could blame me? They smell bad, they drool, have terrible dental hygiene, steal the jobs of hard-working dwarves and gnomes, and of course...they eat people. Or so I was told. (*Mild Spoiler*) You can imagine what a shock it was to learn in Warcraft III that not only are the orcs not enemies; they are allies you need to save humanity's collective bacon. So as you play the game, you'll need to drive that Lord of the Rings propaganda out of your mind and find peace with your inner orc.

Warcraft III is a terrific real-time strategy game that goes farther in blurring elements of role-playing and strategy than any game that's come before it. The inclusion of heroes as role-playing characters is terrific and provides extra incentive to explore the entire map because you never know what items or quests are hidden in remote corners. It just makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside when you find those hidden magic boots or that ring of protection. Warcraft III also marks the best story to date for a Real-Time Strategy game. In the third campaign of the single-player, I tell you that I was an orc...for about an hour. It's also worth mentioning that the tale cleverly unfolds in a way to allow you to play each of the factions (Human, Undead, Orc, and Night Elf) in a compelling progression.

Anyone who has played RTS games before will be familiar with the interface and gameplay of Warcraft III. All of the usual unit types are there--it's just that in Warcraft III they seem more polished than in other games. Whether it's the endearing signature responses when you click on them or the way the units intelligently form up, move, path find, and attack, every aspect of every unit has obviously been thoroughly tested and balanced. Not once when I gave an order did a unit wander off from the pack to explore some random corner of the screen and cause me mouse-crushing, game-cursing rage (see how well I found my inner orc?). It may not sound like much, but those of you who have played many real-time strategy games know that this is not a given. When I ordered a unit to march to a certain place and kill, they did just that.

I realize that the game is over a year old now, but it's worth noting how technically sound this game is. I did not have a hiccup in this game. Never in my single-player campaign did the game crash to desktop, freeze, stutter, spit or delay. The load times were very reasonable and there were also no graphical problems changing resolution or color depth. The graphics themselves are probably the weakest element of the game; all of the units certainly look very blocky and dated. But of course, for a real-time strategy game, who really gives a crap? You don't need state of the art graphics for an RTS. I certainly didn't find that it affected my experience.

I only played the multiplayer a couple of times and I got stomped like the kid in my elementary school who used to wear cardigans that looked like they'd been swiped from Mr. Rogers' closet. It was that bad. This game has been out long enough that even if you seek out a so-called newbie game, you're dealing with people who obviously eat, slept and breathe Warcraft. But there was no problem finding a game and I didn't have any problems with lag or people bailing out of games. It just so happens that I stink.

On the whole, this is a beast of a game: fun to play, compelling, balanced and technically sound...and I think it's time we thought about an orc for president.

Very dissappointed
The presentation was good.I bought this Collection to get a behind scences on the making of Warcraft etc. I was dissapointed that the DVD wasn't more than the game. No running commentary, no behind scences. I will be selling it as soon as I can.

this game is great
This is a really great game.I do not have this game but I play it all the
time.I love playing this game on battle net.I also like playing it with my
friends on local area net work.I liked this game the minute I played it.

Awesome game
I bought Warcraft 3 because I am a fan of the Warcraft series. I was blown away by the amazing graphics and the overall playability of the game. Once you have beaten the game in campaign mode you can go online and play via Battle.Net, or as many people do, via your home network.

Warcraft 3 is different from WC2 and Starcraft because you are introduced to special characters (Heroes) who level up during the game and have special abilities. Heroes are a key feature of the game that makes it different (and better) than other games of this type.

Another interesting thing in this game is that you have motivation to beat your opponents without use of overwhelming force. The more units you have the higher "tax" you pay on gold and wood that your units bring in. This makes you try to find more creative ways to beat your opponents.

Overall this is an awesome game. ... Read more

Product Description

Return to Nevendaar more than ten years after the First Great Wars devastated the lands and take up arms as one of four distinct races against an insidious evil. Can you survive the Dark Prophecy? ... Read more

Reviews (20)

I wouldnt call it "strategy"
A few people think Disciples 2 is the apex of strategy- but here's why it isnt.

1. Placing your units within their group (each group has 6 spaces). The guy who wrote a review before said this is a strategic element. Here's the strategy- Put your archers in back. Put your melee guys in front... I hope i didnt spoil it for you.

2. Combat- Yeah, you have to make sure you attack certain guys in a certain order to get rid of as many as fast as possible, but its not tricky. In fact, its not any more than common sense.

3. Missions- They're all "different" but the same. You start with the same leader. You have to rebuild your army each mission- and its exactly the same everytime. There's no need to switch up tactics. Essentially- you play the same mission over and over and over. Except the mission just gets longer. Or perhaps thats just the monotony that makes me thing that.

4. On each mission you build up your base, which isnt strategic either. Each building gives you access to a unit upgrade. You get 4 kinds of units that arent your leader- Fighter, archer/mage, big monster(ie dragon) small monster (ie werewolf). If you want your fighters to deal more damage, you biuld one biulding. If instead you want them to deal less damage but be immune to the first fire attack, you build a different one. And if you dont like your choice, deal with it. You cant get both trees in a single mission. So you get a variety of 4 units. And usually, only 2 are even worth using.

There's no deep strategy- its all common sense. Just make sure you dont pay for this. If you want real strategy- try starcraft, or close combat, or tetris, or pacman. Whatever.

Get this game!
If you have money to buy ONLY one turn-based fantasy strategy game, there's only one that will suit your needs, Disciples II.The graphic, depth, artwork, gameplay and overall quality of this game is very high.I do not suggest you buy the two separate companion games, Guardian of Light and Servants of the Dark.They are each 1/2 of the original game.Instead, buy Disciples 2: Rise of the Elves.That game will include the core Disciple 2 game and the expansion, Rise of the Elves.Again, do NOT buy "Servants of the Dark" and "Guardian of Light."

Anyway, back to the game.In this game, simply choose one of the races (Demons, Dwarves, Human, Undead, and later Elves) and try to conquer the entire map.There are two main resources, gold and mana.You need the gold for buildings and hiring units. But you also need mana to cast some spells which can help turn the tide of battle.Remember, unlike Warcraft, gold and mana are in unlimited supply, so you do not have to worry about running out of resources.

Your units are grouped in a stack of 6 and get upgraded as you win battles.There are very different units for different races.For example, only humans have healer, while the dwarves and demons tend to have powerful melee fighters (like Giants and Greater Demons).Usually, you tend to have one very powerful stack and create a lot of weaker stacks for fodders.This is overall a very enjoyable game and quite addicting.Even if you can't find someone to play with in multiplayer mode, the campaign is fun and interesting.At the cost of this game selling today, get it now!You can thank me later.

Very Good Turn-Based Strategy Game
As of this writing, this game is pretty old.However, I'd just like to add my two cents:This is a very good turn-based strategy game.You can play either the stand-alone scenarios or the story-based sagas (I played the latter).You can play through the sagas as any of the four races.And, since the sagas are different for each race, you really should play each race.Also, within each race's saga, you can play with a focus as a Warrior, a Magician, or the Guild (a Thief?).Each focus will add a different twist to the way you play.Plus, no matter what focus you choose, you can create and use five different types of heroes.Only three of them (Warrior, Magician, and Explorer) are really good for transferring from scenario to scenario.But, regardless, there's a huge replay value in this game.

The problems I have with this game are minor.The biggest problem is that when you transfer a hero to the next scenario, you can only transfer the HERO and five items.The party members you've spent all that time training don't transfer.Also, the spells that you've researched don't transfer either.This means that at the start of each scenario, you spend a lot of time just getting your party members up to a usable stage.Another problem is that you have to choose your upgrade path for your party members at a global level.It would have been really nice to have each city have its own upgrade path for the characters it generates.The last quibble that I'll talk about is that the cities themselves aren't of much use.Capturing a city doesn't give you any inherent income or resource streams.If there are sources of that stuff outside the city and within its area of influence, then you get those streams.The problem is that you can do the same thing by having a hero just plant rods at the resources.

I highly recommend this game.Old as it is, it's still fun to play.

Epic
Disciples II is a good game. Most everything about it conveys a sweeping epic feel to it. Awe-inspiring music and graphics/artwork abound. During combat, the backgrounds change according to what type of terrain or location - if you fight on territory held by the Mountain Clans, you will be fighting on a cold wintry field; likewise, if you are fighting in lands held by the demonic Legions of the Damned your background will be a twisted, hellish place - and of course, if you attack an opponent's city your background will be, well...like a city and attacking an enemy on the water, your background will be as if on a ship.
The graphics during combat are always fun to watch - these are awesome pre-rendered artwork animations imported into the game, not pixellated blocky graphics. The music conveys a sense of both granduer and urgency - like a Conan the Barbarian-type movie with an epic score. The music really does enhance the overall feel and experience.
On the downside though, I've discovered that this game does get a bit boring and repetitive after a while. Playing only against the computer in single-player mode contributes greatly to this situation (in fact, every single computer game I've ever played falls prey to this conundrum). If I was to play real live humans via the internet, I imagine it would vastly and exponentially increase the fun factor.

the most addictive turn based style game i have ever played
i have played allot of different games but disciples 2 stands out as the most addictive i have ever played i am at work thinking about new team setups how far i can level this one or that one up and what skills to choose when i do level up. this is a need to have game for all strategy game players ... Read more

Reviews (2)

WANT TO BE HOOKED WITHOUT SPENDING A DIME
SINCE THE FIRST DAY I GOT THIS SOFTWARE, I WAS HOOKED.THE BEST PART OF IT IS IT DOESN'T COST ME ANYTHING TO PLAY THE SLOTS THAT
ARE SO MUCH FUN TO PLAY.IT MAKES ME LAUGH AND IT'S ENTERTAINING
ALSO.I WOULD SUGGEST THIS SOFTWARE TO ALL WHO LIKE PLAYING THE VIDEO SLOTS OR NICKEL SLOTS.IT'S FUN.

It's ok...but there are better ones
This cd rom slot style is an alright game just as long as you don't have anything else to play.If you have any others, they would be more interesting than this one.The game has some fun bonus rounds but there are not that many.My advice is to find something else like Reel Deal Slots Nickel Alley. ... Read more

Product Description

Hidden & Dangerous 2 is a first and third person tactical shooter that builds upon the tremendous success of Hidden & Dangerous. You lead a small squad of Allied soldiers deep behind enemy lines, to carry out secret missions during World War II. The gripping story line takes you to Europe, Africa, Burma, and other locations scattered across the globe. Each critical decision impacts you, your men, and your country. This unique blend of action, strategy, and tactics forces you to use your brain ju ... Read more

Features

• Control up to a 4-member team through an imaginative and intense story, where your men gain experience, and both physical and mental advancements.
• Complete over 20 missions in 9 campaigns from the lush jungles of Southeast Asia to the harsh deserts in Africa.
• Commandeer a variety of vehicles including trucks, tanks, motorcycles, and planes.
• Supply your squad with a number of weapons including pistols, sniper rifles, grenades, and bazookas!
• A Fully Interactive Environment depicts the ineptness of drowsy guards, the shocking quickness of an elite German battalion spotting your movements, and the terrified look of the enemy as you shove the barrel of your rifle under his nose!

Reviews (23)

Divorce
This game may be great for males aged 20 to 35, it's target audience, I'm sure... however, for the girlfriends and wives that know and love these men, this game is dreadful.It will suck the men into a sick virtual world... and they never return whole again.Women-- be aware of the dangers to your relationship that this game poses.Good luck and stay strong.

Better than Call of Duty/MH Pacific Assult!
I'm not a huge war gamer but with the most recent war game titles coming out out such as Call of Duty and MH Pacific Assult and of course I had to try them, found overall that they were great war games especially Call of Duty (The original version) United Offensive is way to scripted! MH Pacific Assult was my last purchase before this beauty and so far I have not been able to finnish it due to the unforgiving scripting of the game at Henderson Field where you have to shoot down Japanese Zeros before they bomb your hangers from above. Somehow the game kills me for not being able to do this correctly meaning shooting down all the Zeros which I find nearly impossible!

Now to this game. It is something to behold why? Well, you can acomplish any mission any way you want using hardcore Tactics rather than closely folling scripted objectives like in the previous two game I have mentioned. Also, the AI is not overly hard which I like. Sometimes it is down-right-dumb but with such gameplay like taking cover and using your men's way points to complete objectives, the game shines! Also, you can choose to run and gun or secretly devise a plan of your own to accomplish your missions. The latter is far more rewarding though because it takes some brain power rather than how fast you can click to shoot your enemy. I feel sometimes I am part of the Dirty Dozen and have to sneek into a camp or town to blow up a building or steel documents rather than just kill everything that moves and then get out in a shooting match to the death! This game makes you feel like you've accomplished more than just body bags for the enemy, it makes you feel like your part of a SAS team in WWII. Both of my GrandFathers fought in the war and though they were not part of a specialized force like the SAS being Americans and trying to reck havic on the German's or Japanese, they saw some combat and didn't really talk to much about it because it just something you don't talk about if you really were there! The horor of war is abscent from most of my generations eyes due to post Vietnam and pre Desert Storm kind of falling in between things but I always wanted to know what it was like to accomplish what those guys did 50+ years ago when thier odds were less than favoritable against the overwelming numbers of the Nazi's or the Jap's trying to make a safe-free world to come for all of us. It was a job not a obligation and they did it very well. With H&D 2 I feel as if I was really there doing my job like they did! If you liked Call of Duty the original and are currently or have finished playing MH Pacific Assult and do not already have this War title, buy it at the good price that it is! It is a welcomed change to the run and gun everything down mindless WWII shooters of the past and present!

Excellent gameplay, but ahhh the patches.
This game rocks. As far as gameplay, it is as good as it gets. My only gripe is all the patches, and that if one doesn't have the same patch upgrade, their may be issues on connecting to some of the servers.

That said, I had very few bugs in the single player game, and only the patch issue for multi-player. I think this game blows away MOH and is graphically better than BF 1942, though BF 1942 is fun to play as well.

If you don't have this game, I'd highly recommend getting it. Also, the Sabre Squadron expansion is a must get. If you are watchful, you can get both for around 20 bucks US.

A note for those who have performance anxiety lol, please upgrade your GUI(graphics card) to the latest drivers. If your card is older, it may not run DX 9 games. Another thing to upgrade is your ram. The one person with only 256 of ram, well.... that's the minimum for Windows XP. Up that to 512, plus get a more advanced card like the ATI 9600, or better(the equivelent in nVidia)and together with a 2 ghz machine or better this game will fly!!!

Also, for those worried about too many controls, you can customize them to your likeing. Almost all games allow control customization.

H&D 2
Good graphics, good models, many weapons but buggy and laggy.
I connected to a server. In the first map the game was a little buggy, in the next map the game was so buggy and laggy I couldnt even move!

So heres a quick list of the game:

PROS:
-Good models and graphics
-Many weapons
-Realistic
CONS:
-Buggy and Laggy
-Some glitches

ya mooks
all the morons saying this game is unstable are clearly ignorant. Two things you need to keep updated ya bunch of idiots. 1) The game like all other games has bugs, so you need to update it with the autopatcher it comes with. Simple huh? End of problem. 2) Those saying their computers are fast, as in 2ghz and all that clearly don't realize that the actual graphics processing takes place in the video card which means you need to UPGRADE your pos video card in order to play this game.
Other than a bunch of idiots with no experience in gaming complaining about how difficult it is to control wi/ so many keys, this game is awesome. How else are you to manage so many vast commands and controls besides the way it is already implemented in the game?
Anyway, the game is breathtakingly amazing, the AI could be better, storyline is very unique, sound and graphics are great. Stop complaining about your own inadequacies and get with the program - the game is legendary, buy it!!! ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Pretty good for a computer game
this is one of the best computer games i have played. unfortunatly that doesn't mean much as i tend to be pretty disgruntled with games despite the fact that i remain fairly obsessed with them. i played this one maybe 90% of the way through with one skater before becoming sort of fed up and losing interest. but for awhile there i was quite a fan. on the plus side alot of the game is nicely constructed. on each level there are all these goals to accomplish and lots of rewards for doing it- this is true of most games (though too few sports games), but most importantly for much of the game you feel like you're improving- and you really are! it looks neat and has a wonderful feel to it and i loved all the scoring and the detail of the scoring. i liked how it all broke down into little 3 minute or less runs, it sort of combined some of the enjoyable qualities of the traditional (or i guess old) arcade games with all the modern graphics and style. i really liked this. it felt unique too. i mean sometimes every computer game, even across genres, can feel all the same to me, but this felt like a new thing to me.

now the negatives: it doesnt really include anything more than the most rudimentary few instructions. it has a tutorial which was fairly incomplete and deadly confusing at times as it referred to playstation controls or something so it took me a long time to figure out (i am not great at this, but i only play on a computer and am not an idiot or anything). even very late in the game after many hours of play there were some things i was just not entirely clear on how they worked (lots of key combinations). i have read people suggesting you get a, um, i forget the word, one of those play pads or something, but this game is for a pc and does seem to work fine with the keyboard so why not just tell us how it works on that? also there's alot of stuff about different skaters and customizing that was pretty uninteresting to me (but that stuff usually is- at least this game wasn't half skating half "fantasy skate league owner" or something like all those lousy ea sports games out there), and even if it were interesting to me you couldn't really do much interesting- like you could choose alot of tattoos for your skater but they're all kind of the same idea of a tattoo. the boards too you win for your skater are pretty boring. finally, big complaint, towards the end it just gets too hard. for me theres challenging, which is fine, but it just gets to be like work eventually- you got 200,000 pts. now get 400,000. especially in the last half of the campaign i felt it didn't ever let me revel in the skills i had. i realize there are all these people getting millions of points and people are always writing about this or that being too easy, but i must admit i find most games a bit harder than i like. this is especially true in sports and strategy type games where easy is never all that easy and usually bunches up pretty close to the other difficulty levels. still, perhaps a difficulty setting would have been nice here or just, i don't know, in tony hawk i think the idea is you play through lots of skaters. why not have some be lots better than others (rather than just having variations of talents). oh, also, theres a kind of fog when things are far away which can make it sometimes challenging to locate things at a distance (which is important), and there was a stat point i could not jump up to no matter what i tried, and despite the exact descriptions of what should work not working (this was in tokyo, don't know if others ran into this).

thats about it. i recommend it certainly for 5 or 10 bucks.

great game
Scate as a scater you make or pick through places you never dreamed of. You will love this game! It's better than the other 3 games. Buy it now! Ages 9-25.

THPS3
This game is the best on my cd rack. Acually it never comes out of my computer. The third game in this series is another step up from 1 and 2. With added tricks and all new parks it makes it that much more interesting. You are not the only one in the park anymore. There are pedestrians walking aroud and asking you to show them your moves ( Which gets you extra points). They have also added Bam Margera to the lineup of pro skaters and he deserves it. The create a skater has gotten way better. You can find anything you want to put on them and make you or people you know. You can also change the original characters. Imagine having the power to make tony look like anything. Make boys or girls. Park editor is better too. Here is a description of all the parks:
Foundry- much like the warehouse level of thps1. Weave around the workers and don't fall into the lava. See how long you can stay on the catwalk without falling
Canada- Very big with a parking lot for street skating, a park, and lots of treehouses with walkways up high. The goals are fun in this one.
Rio- many lines going around the park for grinding, cool bowl/quarter pipe combo in the middle. see if you can find the secret pool (yes its empty for skating). This is a comp
Suburbia- Trailer parks nice houses and the haunted mansion. It may seem boring at first but wait till you find the secret area.
Airport- Pretty much a downhill park but some flat places. Lots of rails in this one. If you like vert get to the basement and there are lots of halfpipes. goals on this one are fun too
Skaters island- Youve probably heard of this in real life. It may look like its all vert but the fun boxes are a place for the streeters to dwell. The secret area in this is the best. Grind the pirate flag and youll see.Its a comp
Los Angeles- My favorite park in the game. probably the biggest too. The best goals and so many spots. The eathquake is a fun addition.
Tokyo- This is the most high tech park ive ever seen. Its really hard to place in this comp.There are no really secret areas there just hard to get to.
Secret level-ill let you find out what this is. It is really cool. it may seem like its all vert but thers street skating to be found. You wont be expecting this

Well thats all the levels ive found. Great game you should bye it.

Awesome game for skaters and non-skaters alike
This game is an absolute must for skaters and non-skaters too. The graphics are awesome and realistic. Once you get how the controls work you constantly get better. When you're out past Canada it gets easy. Depending on your player the objectives are different. When you get bored playing the levels there are a lot of pre-made parks to choose from. If you get tired of those you can made tons of different ones on your own. If you already have THPS1 and 2 you just got to have this one too. The graphics are much better than any extreme sport game I've ever seen. The game is awesome but the controls are difficult since all the tricks are played on the number pad. If you press different directions you get different tricks. It runs on relative slow computers as well as the really fast ones. Along with famous skater like Tony Hawk, Reynolds, Muska, Steamer and others you can create your own skater. As you get through levels you collect stat points. The more stat points the better your skater. The levels are awesome. The graphics are about as realistic as you can get, and the pipes, pools and rails are easy to use. All in all this is an awesome game and though I don't have THPS4 yet I imagine it will be even better.

HORRIBLE in oregon
This game has the wors graphics of any game I know. Get THPS2 ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

The Master of Orion series is synonymous with addictive turn-based strategy gameplay. Though the premise--choosing a unique alien race and then leading it in a galactic quest for glory--isn't new, there is something about the series that draws people back. Is it the original take on the diplomatic, economic, military, and exploratory components of galactic conquest? Is it the intrigue of the Antarans, an ancient and predatory race that always seems to pop out of hyperspace to attack at just the wrong time? Is it the sense of accomplishment that comes from building a functioning interstellar empire? Frankly, I don't know. But for whatever reason, these games are notorious for creating a bad case of Just One More Turn syndrome.

Master of Orion 3, then, has large shoes to fill. Appropriately, "bigger" is one of the best adjectives that can be used to describe this third installment. Fans of micromanagement are in for a treat, as the most noticeable new feature is the vast number of options available. The level of control is nice, but can be overwhelming--you'll sometimes find yourself swimming in a sea of menus, interconnected sliders, and check boxes. The array of empire management tools are all used to advance along one of three paths to victory: dominating your enemies militarily, getting elected as president of the Orion senate, or finding all five hidden artifacts.

Each planet in your empire has many components that must be managed individually--including taxes, build queues, regional zoning, terraforming, resource collection, economic infrastructure development, and military versus planetary spending limits. Successful management leads to a productive planet; mismanagement results in revolt and unrest. A vital addition to the game is an AI viceroy for each planet. Viceroys will carry out mundane work based on empire-wide policies you can set, but don't expect them to do exactly what you want very often. And even with the help of viceroys, the galactic scale is no less daunting. You must manage not only a galactic budget and research, but also diplomatic relations, spy infiltration, and military development and deployment. The manner in which the player interacts with the Orion senate is new to MoO3. You can now become a member of the senate and use it to impose sanctions or declare war on other alien races.

When diplomatic negotiations fail, space and ground combat become necessary. You assign task forces mission types that include long-range attack, short-range attack, point-defense, indirect fire, and reconnaissance. Ground forces are likewise grouped into task forces based on their size and strength. Once in combat, you can opt to control things directly or sit back and let the computer take care of everything. You can even skip combat altogether and jump right to the outcome--the fastest and easiest way to manage battles.

In the end, Masters of Orion 3 succeeds with compelling gameplay that will leave you engrossed for hours (or days) at a time. Thanks to the strategic depth of the game, vast number of management options, diverse and interesting alien races, a randomly generated universe, and a sprawling technology tree, no two games will be alike. Though dense and complex, the payoff is well worth the effort. MoO3 is a fantastic title perfect for anyone who enjoys strategy games. --Jon "Safety Monkey" Grover

Pros:

• Engaging and immersive gameplay
• More depth, longer games, and greater diversity
• Addictive--expect to dump eight hours into a single session
• Multiplayer includes a turn-limits option and financial benefits for brief turns

Cons:

• Calling it "graphically dated" is being polite
• Incredible complexity may leave a lot of gamers confused
• Productivity, social life, family, and personal hygiene may suffer

Features

• Galactic Councils and diplomacy of never-before-achieved richness and depth. Trade technology, make and break treaties, demand tribute and propose Bills in the Orion Senate
• Explore rich solar systems, complete with jump lanes, worm holes and hostile alien races
• Play one of 16 unique star-faring races or create your own custom race
• Dynamic Galaxy Generation ensures that no two games are ever the same
• Colossal Space Battles that feature beautiful, tactical real-time combat resolution that keeps play moving at a brisk pace

Reviews (105)

Possibly the worst game ever?
That is, if you could even call it a game. Micromanagement hell is more like it. Mediocre graphics at best, hours upon hours need to be spent to learn how to navigate the controls, an AI that is mindbogglingly poor and all this on top of the long delays and poor support. I'm amazed it made it out the door. I'm amazed that the people who brought you MOO2 packaged this and sold it with a straight face. I really wanted to like this game, but it simply is no fun at all. You can either let the game play itself by hitting the end of turn button when you get bored of staring at the screen, or you can delve into a what quickly becomes a hell of micro-management. I've read most of the other negative reviews on here, and they all seem spot on. Read on for more details. I can only hope that someone else will save the genre.

bigger is not better...
I am a huge fan of Master of Orion series. The first two games were true gems. So what is truly wrong with the third one? Its simply too anal retentive. The micro-management you have to do with this game is simply overwhelming. The first two games were fun, easy to play and simple to get into. There was enough details to keep the interest but its not overwhelming. It was also entertaining, fun and quite addictive. However, playing MOO 3 seem to be more like work. Its not very fun to play, instead of being addictive, its a type of game where you want to take a break. While the basic concept of MOO3 remains the same as the earlier two games, the game designers didn't improved the game, they just made it harder.

The sad thing is, the overwhelming details that the designers inserted didn't make the game any better. There is no real reward for all these details. The game get really boring really quick. The designers just want you to micromanaged a growing galactic empire. A very tiresome and unexciting chore.

Most fans of MOO series would be deeply disappointed by this game. Its a game that will cater to the very few while droving most away.

Back to moo2
If anything this game got me reHooked on Master of Orion 2.This game just sits there and plays it's self and that makes it boring, very boring.Any chance we can get a Master of Orion 4 that is based on the aspects that made this line of games fun and popular instead of something new?

Trying to be fair on all aspecs of this title....
Allow me to try and write a review based upon countless hours of play and analyzing the layout and structure.First, this is a 4x, DEEP strategy title.When first starting the game, leaving the help hints on and seriously reading them can help you better understand the workings.The manual; I use only to look up a reference if something is confusing me (a.k.a. what Casus Belle was).If you try to understand the game by reading it cover to cover you won't succeed.It takes TIME to understand how the game manages the A.I - and YES, you WILL be using the A.I. in LOTS of cases.The programmers wanted the gamer to feel like he's the leader/president/emperor of a galactic civilization, not a viceroy of a particular planet or solar system, therefor micro managing is definitely out of the question.Looking back over your systems from time to time to fine tune is what will get you ahead, not working out each detail of each planet each turn.Another part of the game - shipyard construction, can be very confusing if you don't know how each style of ship can be used.The only way to decide is to play, create ships, and see what happens.It's now second nature to me to create fleets and ship types, but it took many hours of understanding before I could finally do it `on the fly'.This review may sound cryptic, but really the only way to understand the game is to dedicate and play, with an open mind and a willingness to use your imagination.I personally believe that the A.I. could have been fine - tuned to balance ship and troop construction (It seems to build too much of a certain type).The game is slow, but consuming.I recommend it for anyone who loves deep strategy and has a willingness to learn.It could have been better though.Try to borrow or rent before you buy ^_^;;

they really screwed this up
i am coming at this from a moo2 perspective. i am a big fan of that game. when i initially purchases moo3 a year or more ago, i sat down and impatiently tried to learn the game. i only spent about an hour or less and i gave up. what was i missing? anyway, i chocked it up to not spending enough time to learn the game. i went back and had fun with moo2. recently, i sat down and spent another 3+ hours trying to learn moo3. i went through all of the guidance dialogs, read all of them.

the main problems are: the game has become too complex. you can automate almost anything, but there are so many things to control that's all you can do ... automate. so you are left with little to control. attempting to control most any aspect of your economy or war effort by hand will most certainly result in a failure, unless you are willing to spend hours per move.

also, there seemed to be some problem with the game AI. without going into details, after playing for a bit i seemed to come to a stalemate. i was hopelessly outgunned against an enemy that blocked my progress into the rest of the galaxy. he would not attack me, no matter what. i tried inciting him in all possible ways. i even tried to surrender to him, and he refused?!?? i threw everything i had at him and he just kept detroying my ships, but never came after me.

also, as the game got more complex, it too longer and longer for the computer to process its moves. it got so it was taking 20+ seconds on a 2ghz machine. annoying to say the least. ... Read more

Book Description

Aliens Versus Predator 2: Primal Hunt Expansion Pack combines creatures, weaponry, and settings from Aliens Versus Predator 2 with three all-new interlocking, character driven stories of a corporate mercenary Predator and hybrid PredAlien. This time the PredAlien and Predator stories begin to unfold 500 years before the events of Aliens Versus Predator 2. With new weapons and challenges, the three enemies battle over a mysterious artifact with the power to keep the savage Aliens at bay, and as legend has it, even control their minds. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Addictive? Not half!
This is, quite simply, the most addictive game available on the PC. The Multiplayer format is particularly intense and a heck of a lot of fun.

Fans of both the Alien and Predator movies should appreciate this game more than most. The single player missions in particular capture the essence of the films; when playing as human do not turn off the lights and remember it's just a game is my advice.

A few minor tweaks have improved upon AvP2, and gameplay overall is better. Graphics are still fairly average, and this often makes people smirk at the apparent poor quality. However, I would say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder; the game may not have as slick graphics as titles such as Halo or Half Life 2 but it means that you don't have to have a top of the range PC to run it! But as I said, the game is generally better; one thing's for sure, and that's that the multiplayer gaming is AWESOME:

This is the addictive aspect of the game; playing online is so enjoyable that you can get lost in the action. I won't go into detail about the different types of match or characters but suffice it to say that there's enough to cater for most FPS fans whatever their flavour:

Like stealth? Be a predator and suck in your stomach as people walk close enough by you to use your claws. Like to get stuck in? Nothing better than surpising your prey from the shadows and ripping them apart as an alien. Want a mean arsenal? Corporates or Marines both carry enough fire power to make a small hole in the moon if they felt the need.

Newcomers, or Noobs (got to learn the lingo when you get online), might find the veterans intimidating with their frags going up and up but it's easy enough to soon become a killer yourself, join a clan, and start lecturing the noobs yourself after 2 weeks :)

I haven't yet played a game that can scare you, whip you into a frenzy, or make you laugh (insert evil laughter here) as well as Alien versus Predator 2: Primal Hunt expansion pack.

Buy it. Join the collective. You won't be dissapointed.

Great first person shooter
While the graphics and animation of this game are not the leading edge, it is still a fun and challenging game. A perfect buy for the Alien or Predator fan.

Great expansion pack
AvP2: Primal Hunt is a great expansion pack for AvP2. If you've liked the game, you'll like what this pack has to offer.
I sort of regret it doesn't offer more missions for each species, if I remember right I think there's only 3 per each, which means 9 new levels total in this pack.
If you've played AvP2 then pick up this expansion pack as well, it will fill in some gaps and tie some lose ends in the story.

A very good expansion pack to an amazing game!
Alien vs Predator 2 is my favourite computer game of all time and I feel that this expansion pack helps to complete the game.

Let's face it, there is no way that you could top the 1 player in Avp 2, it is just the best first person shooter game I ever played and the thought that it could get any better is mind boggling. The 1 player missions in this version are shorter because there are only 9 of them, however keep in mind that this is just an expansion, not a stand alone game so I wasn't really expecting more, some people may have set their expectations a little high (just like a movie sequel). However this is still a very good fps game and I think the makers were trying to make something slightly different from the first AvP 2 so things don't get too repetative. The fact is that most people don't want you to mess with a good thing. This expansion packs storyplot ties in with AvP2's storyplot, its sort of a prequil.

-I like Dunya's missions because you get to use the sentry guns and the turret gun for the first time, and you also can use duel pistols-like in the first AvP where you could use duel pistols, but AvP2 dropped that for some reason. Most of Dunya's missions still keep some of the creepy atmosphere as in AvP 2 so I would rate the Corporate mercinery's missions as a success.
-The Acient Predator's missions are also good, you get to hunt some wild animals at the beginning and then get frozen and wake up in a strange time. The energy flachette is an okay weapon, its about the only rapid firing weapon the predator has, however I never use it anyway. What I really love is when we get implanted by the face hugger, great story twist if you ask me, and where you die, the predalien picks up.
-I found the predaliens missions to be rather disappointing, because out of the three missions you get, 2 are used up as a facehugger and a chest burster, even AvP 2 only used one mission for your life cycle. However the remaining mission for the predalien is pretty good and I'm glad the makers let you head bite now, I never really understood why they took away the predaliens inner mouth in the first place, why would the predalien burst without an inner mouth? The drone from a human has one, the runner from a quadroped has one, there is no reaon to take it out.....Well Primal Hunt didn't actually put it in, but you can still head bite which is important because you get barely any health from slashing the corpses, and if you look closely, the predalien's headbite still doesn't give you very much health.

Now the improvements in multiplayer are where the game really shines! AvP2:Primal Hunt included the things that AvP2 left out, There are new levels, including the dropzone which allows humans to use sentry guns and turret guns, and a few more new levels with sentry guns (and the marines and corporates can use duel pistols). You also can use the new acient predator in multiplayer which you couldn't use before. I like the new predator cloak too, because unlike the oringinal AvP2, your oponents can't highlight your name while your cloaked, whick may not sound like a very big deal, but it makes a huge difference when you are stalking a human because humans basically shoot at watever name they highlight. As the predator you are still practically impossible to see by a human if you DON'T MOVE and I am seen much more frequntly by people in the original AvP2 when I'm stalking them then I am in Primal Hunt, and you can stay cloaked for longer. I'm kind of confused as to the reason why the health bar and energy bars are red now, its not as pretty to look at but whatever. You can also use the energy flachette (no big deal) but, of course lets not forget the best thing about being a pred in multiplayer now...You can slef destruct! This isn't really a good or effective weapon...but, let's face it...you can't not self destruct! I feel like a real pred when I blow myself up rather then give my opponents the kill! Improvements on the aliens are of course the fact that the predalien can headbite, some people don't like this but it is necissary when your the predalien, its tough enough to survive in muliplayer as it is, let alone without the ability to gain health, and the game kept it as fair as possible seeing as you don't get much health in the first place, if your down to minimal helth, you need to bite like 5 heads to get back to full health, and the predalien is also the slowest of the aliens. Another alien improvement is that facehuggers and chestbursters can open vents now, and when your character is stunned, you can move just a little so your not completely helpless. Oh, and I also noticed that your name doesn't have a number in front of it anymore, which is small but I dont understand why we had numbers in front of our names in the first place. There are less servers on all the time on this version, there's less choices, however I feel less overwelmed and its easier to find your friends that you make online

So in conclusion, if you really enjoyed Aliens vs Predator 2 and you like its multiplayer, I encourage you to get the expansion pack Aliens vs Predator 2: Primal Hunt, its not very expensive and its deffinelty worth it, and if you've never played AvP2, get the gold version if you like the alien and predator movies or just shooting games for that matter.I'm going to go play some multiplayer on Primal Hunt now, my servers are usually re-enactments of the alien or predator movies, or of Alien vs Predator. I pride myself on being the first server to host movie remakes (unfortunetly many servers are copying me now) and my re-enactments are always very accurate to the movie, more accurate then any other server. If your ever playing on the multiplayer look me up, my name is G () Z M O <RAT>.

AvP2 primal hunt
I am a major fan of AvP2, it is a amazingly good game, i agree compltly with these other people going on about the game having no real plot, the motion tracker blimbing, the dark corridors, the screams! the hive, the only good thing about this game i found was that there was sentrys aviable on "some" maps I am really angry that they did not put them in ally, or qurantine
also i good thing to make this game a sucsuss is that there ned to be better maps bigger ones with bases and stuff like that, so hunmans can use there vicles, MP isfun but its just a big blood bath, people want CooP ness or atleast a battlefield forstperson stratgy like reneagde
but this is an amzing game dont let that through you off, the preds claoking has been made more easy to see gives newbes a better chance but hey they still die lol

from
{SAS}Pathfinder{S} ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Best FPS game I've ever played
This game is incredibly cool, and works fine for me under Panther.The graphics are unreal, and the realism of the game is astounding!You do have to turn shadows off completely in the Siberian chapters, or it will crash, though.I had to call MacPlay to find out why it was crashing in that chapter.Also, sometimes bad guys get stuck in doorways and can't move anywhere, which is why I've given an overall rating of 4.But it's 100% fun, and I highly recommend it!!!

Unplayable on Panther, Indeed!
This game has been out far too long for there to be any excuse for its current state. When you attempt to play this game in 10.3, as soon as a level loads, all the sounds for that level begin playing simultaneously.

It's completely disorienting and makes the game impossible to play. Macplay is aware of this issue and is apparently either unwilling or unable to do anything about it.

If you're running 10.2, you'll probably enjoy this game. If you have 10.3 or are planning to upgrade, stay away. It doesn't work.

Anxiously awaiting a patch but losing faith that there will ever be one.

Doesn't work with Panther
Supposedly this is a good game, but until MacPlay updates it to work with both Quicktime 6.5 and Mac OSX 10.3 it is a waste of money.

Does not work with Panther
Be sure to check MacPlay's website for updates BEFORE buying this game. I bought it at the same time as Panther, only to discover that it doesn't work with OS 10.3. MacPlay has not given a timeline for fixing this problem.

Update: 10.3.3 did NOT fix the problem. Still no timeline for a fix.

finally
no way to rate the number of stars properly.ive got an emac which exceeds all the systems requirements, and this game installed well. however it absolutely refused to launch. i called macplay, and they said a patch is being developed. this looks like a good game, but better wait to buy until the bugs are worked out.

4/12 still no patch for panther, and the patch for 10.2 didnt work. gave up waiting and bought the windows version (cheap) for my game box (cheap,cheap,cheap). five stars for the game, zero stars for the mac version, my latest coaster. nolf 2 is very much like nolf; the graphics are slightly better in 2, but the level design and varietyin 1 is better. in #2, you can alter the abilities of your character with skill points gathered by progression through the game. killing volkov in game 2 was surprisingly easy;, he just sat there while i blasted him. the last level, khios, was also fairly easy, but the atmosphere and the pictures of the aegean island were beautiful. definitely recommended in the windows version.

5/5for panther, there is now a download of a quicktime update that makes this work perfectly (ive only done the first three levels, but voice synchronization is right on). now id give this the same rating as windows. go to macplay and apple for details. ... Read more

Product Description

Control every aspect of the business, from the variety of planes in your fleet, to the cities you fly to, not to mention every financial nuance. Do you have what it takes to transform a few small planes into the world leader in air carriers? Step aboard Airlines 2 and find out. Flying the skies is easy...Try owning them! ... Read more

Reviews (10)

AIRLINE by Efzed
Hi everyone. I have a copy of AIRLINE Simulation which is avaialble at www.airlinesimulation.com I think this simulation is far better than Airlines 2 (which I also have) The gameplay is much more realistic, there are over 5000 airports and there are around 250 aircraft types. It is much more flexible than Airlines 2 and whenever I have contacted their customer support I usually get a fast reply - within 48 hours at least. I can ddefinatly recommend this game.

Do the designers actually play the games?
Nervous about the manufacturer is not a good way to start playing a game. Global Star Software has been pushing back Airport Tycoon 2 (the more anticipated release) since October 2002, including two more delays in January and February. Obviously, the game is either poor, buggy as hell, or both. So sitting down to tackle Airlines 2 made me nervous.

And how! After a nightmare installation (thank goodness I have a Windows ME machine, it wouldn't work on XP), I finally got 'er going. The game is more like an interactive spreadsheet, but hey, I like the numbers games it gives you.

Then, as previously mentioned in another (and quite well-written) review, the planes start falling from the sky. The whole point of a simulation is an aspect of realism, which this game lacks. Realism is replaced with frustration, which really kills the whole experience.

I hope the designers create a fix/patch to correct this. For now, the game is one of those that you throw up your hands and say, "man, that was SO close. I was very nearly entertained."

Could have been better
Airlines 2 is great because it deals with building an airline empire. However, it falls short of being really entertaining. The fun factor is just to small. It cannot compare to any of the simulation games such as Railroad Tycoon or Ports of Call. Also, the developers changed the brand names of airplanes.

A good start...
I really wanted to like Airlines 2. It is basically an updated and improved Air Bucks (if you remember that one). I really like Air Bucks, but since it was a DOS game... I hadn't played it for years.

I had to try five different computers before I found one that would run Airlines 2. Luckily I have the variety of choices to try. You must have Windows Me, a 3D graphics card and at least 128MB of RAM. Your display driver has to be up to date, and a newer CD-ROM drive. It was rediculously hard to get it working.

Now for the bad news . Things work fine for a couple of years and then planes start crashing left and right. After about 10 years, even if you replace your airplanes with newer ones, you will have multiple airplane crashes EACH MONTH. If there were this many crashes in real life no one would ever fly.

The most important plane is the Boeing (called Boodwing) 707. Stock up on these because they get discontinued about a year before the 747 shows up (at a far higher cost) and many routes only are economical to fly with 707s. Huge cities must have large planes flying to them, so when you lose a 707 most times you have to shut down the route. DC-10's can take some routes, but not most.

The rule "book" is a joke. There are many important rules that you have to figure out by trial and error. For instace, the rule book says that planes "must be the right size" for a route. What does that mean? Huge cities must be served by large planes. Tiny cities by small planes. So, if you Large city being served by 737s (for instance) grows to a Huge city, all of those routes suddenly stop working until the planes are replaced by 707s, DC-10s or the like. In many cases the routes have to be abondoned.

Want to fly a hub and spoke network? Forget it. A city can have, at most five routes in and out of it (depending on the size).

Don't even get me started on the total lack of responce from their technical support people.

This game could have been very good, but it fails miserably.

problems
you people that are having problems get the latest driver for your graphics card and it could be that graphics card that is causing the problem and not your processor ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fun but buggy
The game is an excellent reproduction of the television show with all the bells and whistles.Two big problems: 1. Final Jeopardy sometimes jumps to the end
of the music before you finish answering and you lose the game. 2. You can never get to the tournament of champions.You are supposed to qualify if you earn $100K but you never get in!

Had fun but was frustrated for obvious reasons. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

business learning
Great way to get students interested in business. Learn how the products you buy are really a collection of natural resources that have gone through a long series of processes. Learn how our economy was created, even the negative aspects to our economy.

Ignore the Quirks, Get Into It, and Have FUN!
This game is a little quirky, as someone pointed out, but it was created by a German software company, so it's not going to be perfectly "intuitive" for an American mind. In general, the Germans have a different mindset than the typical American. Case in point: the HVAC controls in a Mercedes-Benz. I am a fairly logical person, but it still took me a while to get a handle on which control did what on an old 190 I had a few years ago.

That said, I have not stopped playing this game for a year. I wish for a less grid-like field of play (a downer on most simulations, I think you'll agree), but the game has a lot of bright points, and the play is engaging for a mind that's interested in production analysis and efficiency optiimization.

The graphic representation of the playing world is excellent - bodies of water vary in color (by depth), wildlife, and human vessels (although they are not exactly to scale). You can turn the clouds and their shadows on or off. Cities grow and metamorphasize over time. There are numerous kinds of trees and terrain in any one scenario.

There are a good number of vehicles available in each of four transport choices: truck, rail, ship, or air, and each has its own cost and benefit makeup. Upon its introduction to the scenario, each vehicle stars in its own animated sequence; the animations are well-done, and the vehicles seem very true to their prototypes in the animations.

There are also something like 100 different products available to manufacture, ship, and sell. You have to build the supply chain to support the creation of each type of product. Most follow this model: raw materials to a mill for processing into useable supplies, to a manufacturing facility that transforms these into final goods, to a retail store to be sold to the end user.

You control all the factors of production from gathering the raw materials to the finished product. You have to manage the level of production and set labor rates at each step in the process. You have to maximize your profits by managing the sell prices of your goods in each store, and keep an eye on which products are seasonal in demand - it varies by quarter.

Overall, this is an excellent offering, especially for the price asked here on Amazon. I am rating it 5 stars because I am still playing it after a year, and not many sims can make that claim in my house. Check out the Gold edition also available here - it includes the upgrade pack with more missions (hopefully harder ones, since I agree that the missions tend to be easy to accomplish), vehicles, etc, which I need to get myself! As I said, ignore the quirks, get into it, and have a blast!

Good but not that good.
When I first played Industry Giant 2,I had a hard time figuring out how to make money but, after about two days, I finally got a few stores built that was making money.
This game is NOT as difcult as SimCity 4 but, it does give challanges that you don't face in SimCity 4. you may have to slow down production at one of your plants because demand is low,or setting a warehouse to store only eggs and milk, instead of beef, is only an example of the different desion making you will have to do in this game.

A Little Fun, a Little Quirky
Industry Giant II is a good, but not spectacular, game.

The game play is simple enough.I suggest reading through the tutorial, as some of the user interface actions are far from intuitive.

The game is a little short of challenging as all the scenarios, easy, normal and hard can be beat quite handily. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

all wrong!!!!!
this didn't install properly, after i got it installed 2 of the games didn't work!!!! sim golf and sim theme park.. totally waste of money and time i feel sorry for my mom who bought this! i wonder what sim mania 3 will include?? if you thought it would be cool to ride your rollercoasters and make them on sim coaster you were wrong. there is not enough power over your coasters and the challenges are hard to beat on sim coaster.
sim golf was pathetic!! i couldn't even play sim theme park it didn't work so good!!! golly gee why couldn't they put other sim games in it.

Way To Skip The Best One, EA Games
I give this 2 stars for benefit of the doubt because I have not played Sim Coaster.

Sim Theme Park and Sim Golf did nothing for me, not even fun in an initial sense, but I confess I've never played a Golf video game I liked.Golf for me is being there.

Sim City 3k, when it came out and I rushed to buy it, I thought was a step up in detail, capability and graphics from its predecessor, but it was a step down in gameplay, stability and music (though many couldn't care less about the latter).

This visit to Amazon was actually to see if there was a Sim Mania package that had SimCity 2000, because I'd love to have that game compatible with my current system.THAT was a heck of a game.SimCity Classic was popular, but it was 2k that really put Maxis (the developer at the time) on the map.It wasn't as advanced as SimCity 3k, but it was an all around superior game.

The reason why I'd rate SimCity3k at only 1 star is not because it's a terrible game.It's okay.But I just think it's a waste of time.SimCity 2k is worth playing, and if you really want the best SimCity game all around (that's currently out), I can't imagine an arguement against SimCity 4, as long as you get the Rush Hour expansion pack too.

My Op
Maybe they did not work on your computers because simply your computer is outdated. It workered great on mine no problems i even ran with Xp. This game is ok but i prefer other EA games. And to anyone who thinks EA is a bad company is wrong. This company is making millions and is making the games i love. I suggest anyone read up on them they are not some unqualified team of dummys but one team of experts.

sim coaster sucks

want to do rides
not how much revenue fromsnow cones etc

didnt install correct had to reinstall

this is about simcoaster part only

simcity3000 better than previous versions

I LOVE THESE GAMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
These games are so much fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That's all there is to say.........Just wonderful. And very creative- they think of EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!!!! ... Read more

Product Description

Eidos World War II Panzer Claws - Complete Product - Games - 1 User(s) Complete Product - Standard - PCTake control of the Allied, German, or Russian forces as you engage the enemy in the European theater of war from the German invasion of the USSR, to D-Day, to the last great German offensive in the Ardennes Forest. Utilize ground troops, a vast number of tanks and other motorized vehicles, as well as air reinforcements to crush the opposition and reach your ultimate objective victory! Nice electronics is your source for everyday low prices on theEidos Inter STKCMPUS00 - WORLD WAR II PANZER CLAWSand all other Eidos Inter Software - Multimedia ... Read more

Features

• Engage others in Internet or LAN multiplayer combat.
• Battle through over 20 historic missions on the battlefields of World War II
• Choose your command over one of three powerful armies - the German Wehrmacht, Soviet Red Army, or the Allied forces.
• Infiltrate buildings and abandoned vehicles with your ground troops.
• Strategically plan your assault as weather conditions and time-of-day affect landscape appearance.

Reviews (7)

IT BITES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This game bites. Every time I play it freezes up and it's not even fun. It has horrible graphics so don't waste your money like I did. (...)

Great game to put in your WWII collection!
I got this game for free for my birthday along with Secret Service In Harm's Way. This game is RTS unlike Secret Service. This game was very good RTS game. I don't know about the accuracy because I don't know that much about tanks even though I'm interested in WWII. I think this game is just like Blitzkrieg but only with tanks. I didn't have any bugs so I was able to enjoy the game without frustration. It's very good WWII game and I enjoyed it a lot. It just like your typical RTS games and you will definitly be satisfied with your purchase. From the two birthday gift I like this game more though I shouldn't be comparing RTS to FPS. Secret Service was no match for World War II Panzer Claws even though I enjoyed Secret Service. That means this game is a damn good game because I enjoyed Secret Service but I enjoyed this game even more. The gameplay, sounds, and graphics are all amazing. I don't think accuracy matters as much as the execution of the gameplay. I really had fun playing this game and I think about playing again during classes. I can't concentrate in school because I think about how I should attack the enemies and stuff. If you really like games, you should know what I'm talking about. So I highly recommend this game to any RTS fans.
P.S. I also plan and think about Stacraft and Warcraft in school (it means I recommend them as well).

Try the demo before buying!
It is good that Eidos Interactive launched a demo so that everybody, who can download the 312 MB, can try it. The demo is regrettably limited to only 2 missions and no multiplayer function. It shows, however, that the game has very nice graphics, but overall it does not bring anything new or better than other Command and Conquer-style games. You are in command of a tank or a squadron, plus the support of soldiers and bombers. You control them with a mouse clicks and that's it (for me). I did not like it and also I think that the too limited demo version deters customers. I'm glad I saved few bucks.

Try the demo before buying!
It is good that Eidos Interactive launched a demo so that everybody, who can download the 312 MB, can try it. The demo is regrettably limited to only 2 missions and no multiplayer function. It shows, however, that the game has very nice graphics, but overall it does not bring anything new or better than other Command and Conquer-style games. You are in command of a tank or a squadron, plus the support of soldiers and bombers. You control them with a mouse clicks and that's it (for me). I did not like it and also I think that the too limited demo version deters customers. I'm glad I saved few bucks.

I like it.
I am an avid WWII enthusiast & researcher. I make WWII armor models. So naturally, anything with tanks and the likes I rather enjoy.

After playing all missions and maps, I have to say that this game is an impressive game. It is very stable and I really haven't had many problems with it. The programmers were of high quality, and knew what they were doing. The artists were also of high quality, and knew what they were doing. They made a great game in the end.

There are several drawbacks however:

The first one is the lack of a realism mod... I'm sure in time it will be developed, but the hit point based unit system is just too unrealistical to me (taking 5-6 shots in a King Tiger to kill an M3 Stuart makes me laugh, or making it so ALL tank killers can kill ANY tank, even IS3s and etc., or making it so Tanks can NOT hoze down infantry /w their MGs, but can run them over). I can totally understand the need for balance in any game, but lets face it, war is not fair, and any game emulating that should be able to emulate the unfairness.

The second drawback is the Earth-3 engine. All this engine is is an overlay to the DX components. Sure, with the Earth-3 engine, the water looks incredibly realistic, but with 15-30fps avg. with my G4 Ti4200 128DDR, it's a major drawback. After turning it off and using "Compatibility" mode, I am recieving the 50-60fps I should be getting.

The third drawback is the initial problem of the screen refresh rate problem. Initially, the program assumes your screen can handle a 120hz screen refresh... So naturally, when you try to run the game, nothing but a black screen will show up. Turns out you have to edit your registry and get it so the configuration utility allows you to select your screen refresh rate to something more realistic like 60hz or 75hz. Again, a major drawback to anybody w/o a bit of computer knowledge, especially since it's neccessary to fix or else you won't be able to play.

The only real other drawbacks are a few minor things... like not being able to assign units to a group "0", or having to use left-ctrl to assign units while right-ctrl does nothing, or having to manual go into the program settings and unchecking "lock camera" to be able to rotate your camera around.

All in all, there are a few minor drawbacks that can make anybody a bit skeptical of the game's ability, but you honestly need to realize that the only real major problem with the game is the HP based unrealistic system. For some people, thats fine, for the die-hard WWII enthusiasts like me, HP based system will really turn you off.

On the better note, the Graphics are amazing... Each model is superiorly done and they made sure that the scenery and the likes is just as well done. The maps that come with the campaigns are very very nicely done...ten times better than some games like Close Combat, Panzer General, or even Sudden Strike II. Trees are able to be knocked over, clearing paths through forests to allow your forces to flank the enemy. The explosions are heart felt, very impresive and well done.

All in all, I rate this game 4 stars, 1 star taken away for the non-existance of a realism mod, but I'm sure that will come to pass.

Great game, great replay-ability, great graphics, good interface, and excellent visual effects... ... Read more

Reviews (16)

WOW
This game is a brilliant game. If you like racing games you will love this. Even if your not a big fan of racing games you will love this game. The amount of tracks is truely amazing, even though there is a lot of them every single one of them is very good. The graphics are great, its very realistic. You will be stuck playing this game for hours on end. The only bad bit about it is when your not playing it your not very happy. It truely is amazing. A must Buy! :-)

No car racing game can touch this
This is hands down the best racing game ever made for any platform.The way the car acts and drives is as close as it gets to real life.Im sick of those fake rally games made by people who have never driven a rally car nor been to a rally.What you see on tv doesnt compare to it in real life and this game gets you very close to real life.I cannot wait for the Third version to come out.This is the best racing game out, gran turismo doesnt even compare to the reality of driving.This game came out long ago and still is the number 1 game out there.Car reaction and game play should be all you need in this game and learning controls or worrying about using a keyboard instead of a mouse tells me your playing the game for the wrong reasons.

Disagree totally with gamer fromNYC
This game works great with a force feedback wheel. The setup is very intuitive, you don't really need to read anything. Just set it up man and go! My 14 yr old son had no trouble getting this up and running within minutes. Buy this without fear and enjoy!

Excruciating thrills for armchair rally champions
This is a fabulous game. If auto racing is something you're interested in, the price of Colin McRae Rally 2.0 is probably far below what the software is actually worth. At this time the most realistic form of racing is rally, in the sense that any Joe on the street can relate to the cars and courses. Although the cars are customized far beyond the norm, this is highway driving taken to its extreme. The speeds approach 100 mph on twisty and rough roads. Formula One computer games are pretty good and since Jacques Villeneuve learned to drive Spa on F1 for Pentiums, then raced in Belgium competitively by himself, you must admit the appeal is there, although the way an F1 car behaves is considerably different than what you see - or feel. Load Colin McRae's latest and you'll see why this is probably the best driving simulation available. I play mine with a basic ... Logitech steering wheel and so I can't speak for the forcefeedback models ..., but the experience was almost catatonic. There is a warning that people who suffer from epilepsy better watch out, and it is true: the realism shown onscreeen can put you in a trance.

About the game: you can play either single stages in any one of 4 countries (Finland, Greece, France and Sweden - and this is a pretty good spread of the driving conditions available) or go to championship mode and race against 15 others and hope to finish in the top 6 to move on to other rounds that open up for you such as Australia, Kenya, etc. My driving abilities stalled in Kenya where the muddy roads and serpentines made it impossible for me to finish lower than 9th - and that was in novice mode with automatic everything, no setup changes and invincible car (the computer sets you back on the road after very realistic and scary rollovers.) You will hear the gravel crunch as the car power-slides left and right trying to stay on the road. The trick, apparently, is to stay on the road and not carry too much speed around the bends. Out of the starting gate, the computer launches the car, but then you control it on your own. As you pass the yellow markers every so often and realize your speed has put you at the back of the field, you tend to overdrive and cut corners - and that's how you sideswipe trees and rocks or hit an evergreen head-on. On the "easier" tracks you'll get used to it and slow down a bit. In an environment such as Kenya, you definitely get frustrated when nothing seems to get you out of that last spot - or when you can't stay on the crown of the brown dried mud which feels like clay when you slide. Make sure you save the game before exiting so as not to have to recycle previous performances as you move along in the championship. Also, I may be imagining things, but my driving improved when steering the Subaru, rather than the Ford or Peugeot - presumably the Subaru is 4WD, but I'm not sure whether such technical differences are really built into the cars; I mean, the best car is the Peugeot, but I lost a lot of time with it in Greece, for instance.

As (or when) you get better, you start to experiment with tire choice, suspension setups, steering adjustments and, presumably, use the wheel paddles to change gears. How you manage to crawl your way through the championship in sixth place while doing all that a real driver would is what makes the difference between those who think they can drive alongside Marcus Gronholm and those who enter at Exit 30 and can just cut across three lanes of traffic at 75 mph before cutting back in order not to miss the Exit 31 on any American highway. The graphics are STUPENDOUS! Occasionally you will see the screen "drawing" ranges of trees ahead of you, but the road you're on is as real as they get. The co-driver's voice is there, as is the setting sun in Greece and Australia and falling snow on the windshield in Sweden.

One last thing: for the real banzai in you, there is an option for "arcade" which pits you against 5 other bouncing, trouncing drivers on several short circuits which you must win in 3 laps in order to qualify for another. The computer clearly generates all the others and you can win after enough practice and concentration - at the novice level.

I suppose the only thing that would not measure up to reality is the weight of the car - which in real life you feel and must take into account as you take a banked curve at 75 mph, especially when it's raining. But that aside, I really don't know what else can beat this game. I would be willing to bet that when version 3.0 comes out, it will be virtually undistinguishable from reality.

Game's Ok, setting it up ... bigtime, zero stars
It seems as if the developers of this game have never heard of a mouse. It seems as if these guys still prefer to move thru a menu using arrows. In this day and age, setting up a game should not require scrolling thru a menu with arrows on a keyboard.

It would also be very nice if the developers would create a thorough helpfile. In searching for info on how to setup a force feedback steering wheel and brakes/accelerator setup, the manual says to search the CD's readme file. Except there's none there. The Windows Startup button/program reveals a 'help' file that is also useless. Website help files is also useless. These guys need to know how to thoroughly document a help file.

Manual is useless. CD's so called 'HELP' file is not there. Game's Help file is useless. These guys need a lesson on how to develop games for PCs.

So, the only way to play this game on a PC is to use the keyboard's arrow buttons. How quaint!! If you're thinking of using this on a PC with a force feedback steering wheel setup, avoid it at all cost. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Full Motion Video Game from circa 1992
It runs like a real movie using full motion MPEG 1 Video & how soon it ends depends on how acurate & quick you are to shoot the bad guys & not the good guys with your mouse or buy a light gun. You die if you ever get shot at once or kill an innocent. You get to continue from the last scene everytime you die up to 7x times. Acting is good or not too bad from actors. The stunt work & camer work & how it moves is great.

Doesn't even need to install anything, works straight from CD. Only needs 266 mhz computer, win 95/98/Me/200/XP, 32 Ram, Direct X 8.0 with 16 bit disply & 16-bit sound card.

I bought this from Buyerworld at Amazon Marketplace & works great on my XP. (I made sure I got the one that said it was XP compatible) ... Read more

Reviews (80)

THE HITMAN FACTOR!!!
Hitman was a hit cause it brought about a new meaning to gaming by intruducing 47 to the world.Its excellent levels,good storyline and irritating toughness makes it as crazily as possible-A WINNER.Then Eidos brings the sequel.HITMAN 2 and i got to be honest wih anyone who reads this review.This game is worth playing.There are a few control issues and it does get a bit tedious as you advance thru the missions,but you'll be so addicted to the game that to get a silent assasin rank you have to replay every level again devising 2 or 3 stratigies using elements in the game itself.That makes HITMAN 2 another winner.There are huge levels located in excotic places.Every level is different.Even the 3 st petersburg missions have different atmospheres.There are decent no of guns and snipers and an excellent storyline.

MY FINAL COMMENT
Play this game even if you are new to the hitman series.IT WILL get boring after you FINISH the game 4 times

Suspenseful!!! (4 1/2 stars)
This game is one of the most intense and suspenseful gaming experiences I've ever had.You are a hitman for hire trotting around the world and taking care of business.There are 20 missions, tons of weapons, great music, and again, some VERY intense gameplay.

Gameplay: I can't say it enough--suspense and intensity!The game is designed to be played in whatever way you choose.You can go in with guns blazing (which works much of the time, depending on the difficulty setting) or you can lurk in the shadows, behind corners, and within a variety of disguises.The game encourages you to use stealth and rewards you for being strategic and limiting "collateral" damage.Most missions will allow you to take out your target without harming anyone else.However, there are a few missions in which you'll have to send more than one person to the morgue.Much of the gameplay boils down to surveillance, getting disguises, staying away from guards (and most civilians), dragging and hiding bodies, finding and disposing of your target(s), and escaping.The real fun comes with choosing a strategy for the job and all of the tension created when you're sneaking around and trying to avoid being discovered.The only quirks I experienced with gameplay was the oversensitivity of the guards on a few occasions.Otherwise, this is a very entertaining game.It lasted me about 40 hours on expert (medium) difficulty.

Visual: Very well-done.The weapons look and act realistic, and the settings (St. Petersburg, Malaysia, Nuristan, India, Japan, and Sicily) are all attractive and convincing, with weather effects, region-appropriate language, and great architecture.The graphics are not state-of-the-art, but they are still quite good and create immersive atmospheres.

Sounds: The soundtrack by Jesper Kyd is probably the best I have heard in a game.It is orchestral, but fits the atmosphere of the game very appropriately.It also adds tension at the right times and does give you the sense that you are doing your deeds in faraway places and different cultures.The voice-acting is good, and people talk in the appropriate languages.All weapons sound as they should.Even the sound of the footsteps of your assassin are determined by whatever terrain he is walking/running on.

Replay value: I definitely intend to play this one again, since there is more than one way to complete the missions.Also, the more strategic and secretive you are, the higher your rating and rewards.

All together, Hitman 2 is an excellent game for anyone who likes stealth missions and intense gameplay.

HITMAN 2: Silent Assassin......or Rambo II
I agree with what PC-Gamer said about the game (series). It's a couple of steps short of being a great game. I think the fundamental idea behind the game is good. However, it needs alot of work.

First off the enemy AI is out to lunch. Enemies will flip out on you at times when it feels you're doing everything right (prompting the often used WTF phrase for the game), and are happy-go-lucky at times when your clearly up to no good. Many times you can upset the enemy by doing something wrong or being in the wrong place only to rectify the situation completely by a change of clothes which many times is done in a dead end room or hallway. If the AI was any good enemies should get at least a little suspicious of a 6foot5 bald dude (oh yeah...UPC tatoo) now wearing a change of clothing coming out of the same place/area the enemies just chased your character (Agent 47) into. But no, everthing is kosher with them. To make matters worse sometimes enemies catch you in the act of changing into the clothes of a victem you just killed only for them to stand there and go "hmmm...is this right?". Sometimes you can actually get away with even that just by walking out of the area. One level in particular had problems with AI. Basically the idea was that you needed to come up with a Pizza delivery boy disquise and had to take out a Pizza boy for it. I found the best place to do that was in the bathroom while the delivery boy was taking a whizz. Nobody else was in the bathroom at the time so no one would immediately see a crime and then report it. Killing him was no problem. Changing into his clothes was no problem. But, the second you go to drag his body to a more secluded location everybody goes nuts. From the map system you can see how all security make an immediate beeline from across the building to the bathroom you are in to take you out. After trying this a couple of times I opted not to drag his body anywhere; taking a risk that someone would walk in on it. No one ever did. I find that with both the first and second Hitman I have to "work around" the AI like that. I hope they totally changed the AI on Contracts.

Although the map system has been greatly improved and simplified over the first Hitman I personally think that having a "satellite" dynamic feedback on every individual on every floor (inside and outside) is stupid. It really makes the new feature of looking through keyholes in doors(for enemies)laughable. I hope they have removed this in "Contracts".

Another thing I dislike is the report card you get at the end of every level. You get ranked on how aggressive you were in the past level (the more aggresive the poorer the score) and how stealthy you were (the higher the better). Although I don't mind being ranked on my performance in the game, this system allows players to finish levels with horrific scores. In another words they can go through the level shooting at almost everything in sight. Personally I think that defeats the purpose of the series. If you want a shooting fest you shouldn't expect it here. I would prefer if it was more like the original (I said more like it, not just like it, because that system was not without faults either). If you can't finish the level like something resembling a "Silent Assassin" you shouldn't get past it. You should get shot to pieces in a real hurry. Unfortunatly this is not the case. You just get a bad report card and move on.

I like the addition of the tool shed; a place you collect all of the various weapons available throughout the game. Unfortunatly many of the weapons are unholsterable and have to be carried out in plain sight of everyone else in order to be collected. If you are seen with it causing an alert (very likely) your score goes down. Also such weapons have to be carried out of the level one at a time. So you have to gamble with which weapon you leave a level with, hoping ones you have discarded will be available later in the game for you to collect. For example the first level allows you to collect a Golf Club and a sniper rifle. But you can only take one out. I have yet to see another occurrance of either weapon later in the game.

I also liked the use of more appropriate costums in this release. Gone are the days of a 6foot5 caucasion chineese waiter (in China) delivering poisened food to unsuspecting targets.

Eventhough I liked the levels of the first Hitman better (I thought more time was spent on them, ie plant leaves moving out of your way as you pass by) I also liked some of them here. St.Petersberg, for example, was done pretty well.

Overall I have to say I liked the original (despite the extra lives system) better then the second. I hope that Contracts is considerably revamped over Hitman 2. This game is not bad, but it could of been better.

winner... worst game ever
I just installed Hitman 2 and have to say it is possibly the worst game I have ever played.The developers need to go back to school on this one, the controls are terrible!Playing this game is so frustrating, camera angles are terrible, movement also sucks.Worst of all, selecting weapons and "using" items just plain DOESN'T WORK!!!If you enjoy watching your character get shot dozens of times while you try to figure out why the game won't select you weapon, then I guess this is the game for you.Give this one a pass it just sucks bad - only positive thing is I got it free with my sound card, I'm giving this one away - actually that would be cruel, better off making this CD a drink coaster.

HItman
I have never played the first hitman but i bought this game on advice from a friend. This game is on of the best games that I have played. the missions might be short and the death secenes might be overdone. For example if you shoot someone in the foot with the M95 (a 50 cal. gun) he will die. I do know that and fifty cal gun is powerful but i thought that it would just blow off his foot. Also if you run it is a death sentence. But over all the game is great. It is a game in which you need to plan approach carefully. Or you can go in with your ballers and slaughter everyone in the level. But if you are going for a silent assissan rating you need to be careful. The game is awsome and the replay value is high it is worth the money. ... Read more

Features

• PC from Global Star Software
• ESRB Rating: T (Teen)
• Entertainment and games

Reviews (1)

This Game is Okay.
This game is pretty fun. But don't expect any hip-hype. Sometimes the game will freeze in the middle of the game. If you are a hardcore Battleship fan buy it, if not don't. ... Read more