RIGHTEOUS FIRE from Origin.

          Computer     Graphics      Memory        Disk Space
Minimum:   386/33      256 VGA       4MB              5MB
Max/Rec:   486/25      1MB SVGA
Control:   Joystick, Keyboard, Mouse.
  Sound:  Music  = Adlib, Soundblaster, PAS, MIDI
          Speech = Soundblaster, PAS
  Notes: Supports DOS 6.0 doublespace. Must own PRIVATEER.

Reviewed version 1.0 on: 486/66, 8MB RAM, SB, TMFCSPro.

With an enormous silence, Origin released RIGHTEOUS FIRE (RF). This is the much unexpected follow-up to their popular PRIVATEER game, which is itself the latest iteration of the venerable WING COMMANDER (WC) series. Although a follow up product to the game is obvious in hindsight, especially given the expansion disks that the WC games produced, there was hardly any publicity about this product - which is a shame, as there is plenty here for fans of the parent game.

For those not in the know, a brief precis on Privateer follows: the player is cast in the role of a space-faring adventurer. On planets, the character buys and sells goods, takes on missions, and talks to various characters that show up from time to time. In space, you occupy the cockpit and try to avoid getting blown up by your enemies while getting to your next destination. Opposition is in the form of Militia, Federal Navy, Pirates, Retros (religious Luddites in space), bounty hunters, and the big kittys - the Kilrathi. There is a strictly linear plot, revealed in three to four mission episodes, that the player is encouraged to follow and "solve" although there is plenty of fun to be had in just flying around and performing the randomised missions. The game is not quite as free-form as it was advertised to be, but is still entertaining as long as you liked the basic mechanics behind the WC series.

RF adds quite a bit to the original package. You do get to retain all that you had gained in the first game...except for the alien gun, which gets stolen in the opening introductory animation sequence. The initial mission is to try and get it back, which leads on to others and so on. There were no patches released for the original game, and the modifications introduced by RF are more "nice to haves" than necessary, and are not retroactive - i.e., they don't change the original Privateer game.

There are three areas of change:

1) Kill breakdown: you can now see how many of the various types of factions' ships that you have knocked off. This also shows your current relationship to these factions. This is a great boon in trying to figure out how to restore friendly relations with some factions, as this is based on kill ratios that you have run up of one faction vs. another.

2) Ship enhancements: Seven enhancements for each major ship component except scanners. Some have very subtle or hard to detect changes, while others are really clear - like better shields and armour. These all cost but for those who have run up the bank accoutn in the original, these are all immediatly available.

3) Keyboard: there are now keys for increasing shield level step by step instead of having to wipe out your shields and then select highest setting to step backwards. There is also a key for setting throttle to maximum instead of having to hit the + key repeatedly.

Fine. Now what was that about plot again? Origin probably listened to the complaints about a lack of freedom to manouver in the game galaxy, and decided to produce a multi-thread parallel plot. There is still a start and end point, but at the beginning, there are several multi-mission episodes that can be done in any order. You still have to finish all the missions in one episode before starting another, but at least you can choose which order to do them in. Once past the plot mid-point though, and the epsiodes come in strict order again.

The main enemy this time are the retros - this isn't giving anything away, it becomes clear pretty quickly after a couple of conversations with the entertaining series of bar-tenders. There is also a new ship type - not particularily effective - that appears irregularily. Finding the people to start the episodes is not obvious - you actually have to go looking for them. Trying all the main haunts from the first game is a good start but not guarenteed. Taking the missions offered by the mechants, mercenaries and mission computers will take you there eventually - just remember to keep checking the bars.

The problems in basic game design present in the parent still remain. There is something definetly fishy about the Origin joystick routines. Many players complained about the difficulty of particular missions, and the enemy ship AI can reduce the player to just holding down the trigger button and attempting to ram - a not ineffective tactic, and how I finished the final mission. However, the image of oars and a brass prow is not what I expected to be using my totally kitted-out Centurion for.

Bottom line - I payed for it, I played it and I enjoyed it. You get a feeling of accomplishment each time you complete an episode. The dialog is still hopelessly wooden and repetitive - but you end up blowing away most of the annoying ones so there is some satisfaction in that. Finishing it was tinged with relief, I have to admit, but I would still buy the next add-in if there is one. This is not going to change your opinion one way or the other about the system. If you liked the forebears, you'll like the progeny.