NEXT GENERATION REVIEW: ARMY MEN
IT COULD BE A HIT
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Army Men
Harkening back to the earlier, gentler years in your life,
3DO's Army Men has a distinct charm it adds to the RTS
genre.
April 30, 1998
Army Men is a game whose roots can be
traced back to the plastic toy-littered
battlefields of our youth. But this time
around, you can guide that miniature army
into a war campaign that combines both
elements of strategy and action in a real-time
game that's just a bit different than the norm.
Gameplay takes place on a top-down map
where the player guides the 3D modeled
Sarge and his troops through one of three
campaigns: Desert, Alpine, or Bayou. Each
campaign contains four scenarios, in which
two to three missions are completed to
progress. Each mission contains multiple
tasks, and after you complete each objective,
Headquarters relays new ones for you to
pursue. To complete a mission, the player
needs to meet each of the specified goals in
the allotted time period and keep Sarge alive
throughout. In some of the hairier spots, the
challenges come fast and furious, so stay
sharp and be ready for anything! When a mission
is completed, the player is rewarded with Black
and White newsreel-type cinematics.
A nice feature of the game is the Boot Camp
where users take the time to hone their skills
with various weapons, vehicles, and tools before
charging into battle. As a member of the armed
forces there are a number of weapons at the user's
disposal, such as a Rifles, Flamethrowers, Mortars
and Bazookas. Each offers varying capabilities,
and the Boot Camp proves extremely useful for
honing shooting skills. The player also has to learn
which position (standing, kneeling, or lying-down)
works best for hitting a given target. When the player
is ready, it's time to enter the battlefield and
blast the enemy into bits of charred plastic.
In addition to the entertaining single-player games,
there's also a multiplayer mode that enables two players
to wage war in one of two ways. In Capture the Flag,
the objective is to collect each of the enemy's flags
to claim victory, while Blitz requires the elimination
of a specified number of foes from the enemy forces.
One of the game's few drawbacks is the lack of intuitive
controls. It seems like the numerous gameplay keys are
spread throughout the keyboard, and it takes a bit of
time to mentally map them all. And a good understanding
of the controls is imperative, because battles become
pretty intense, requiring split-second actions and decisions.
However, the good elements certainly outshine any minor
drawbacks, and when combined with the title's nostalgic
feel, Army Men offers an attractive package to just about
any game player.
Bottom line: Quite simply, Army Men is fast-paced,
well-designed, and a whole lot of fun.
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