Dark Forces by Lucas Arts and System Shock from EA are two new games hoping to capitalise on the first-person perspective format made popular by Doom.
Both share similar characteristics including enhanced VR options such as the ability to look up and down, climb, jump and so on. Objects can morph into other shapes and advanced texture mapping and lighting effects are used. Stated frame rates are in excess of 30 fps.
The bad news for some PC owners is that both games list as a minimum system requirement a 486 DX/33, with a Pentium delivering optimum performance.
Dark Forces is set against the rich backdrop of the Star Wars universe. The Rebels have received information of a deadly new weapon, the Imperial Death Star. You are tasked to infiltrate an enemy star destroyer, steal the plans and escape.
However while collecting intelligence you uncover a plot to create an army of mechanised super stormtroopers - Darktroopers.
A variety of missions are woven into the verdant storyline that will see the player conducting search and rescue, intelligence gathering and all out rear-guard actions against a legion of foes.
System Shock is the first game to offer true VR via the use of the optional Forte VFX-1 VR visor. The visor permits nearly the same degree of motion as that of commercial systems costing fifty times as much.
A computer has gone on the fritz and thinks that you are ripe for lunch. Alone in a deserted space station, hack evil mutants and computer networks in a vain attempt to remain in one piece.
A unique physical model means that you will experience the full effects of explosions, recoil and variable gravity.
While obviously, 'I can do that too' games, these latest offerings from EA and Lucas Arts deliver exciting new possibilities for gamers interested in this genre. Both certainly bring new elements to the form, but ultimately it will be playability, as epitomised by serial and network options, that will decide which game(s) carry the day.
This preview is Copyright (C) 1994 by Nathan Cochran for Game Bytes Magazine. All rights reserved.