VOLUME 3 ISSUE 6 هړ > PlayStation js Е | o 1 ^ i л © A SE AE же $29 cu اس co 2 ri и Бу Sony Computer т А” تا ШШ! || — ې 5 Шор رلا اسراو E = marks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Tomba! is a trademark of WHOOPEE САМР? Co. Ltd. ©1999 WHOOPEE CAMP Co. Ltd. PlayStation and the PlayStation TOMA; THE EVIL SWINE RETURN JUST BECAUSE YOUVE GOT THE HAIR, DOESN'T MEAN YOU'VE GOT THE POWER. FLYING SUITS, STYLISH YET FUNCTIONAL. «® TOMBA GOES COVERT WITH A PIG SI BEAT THE ао SORRY, TOF ONLY ONE wy” | | From Contrail, the Wild Arms” and Legend Of Legaia’ STAGE:IO = SCORE:38334 Swim, climb, and battle to solve hundreds of Unlock 10 mini-games to test your skill action-based puzzles. and increase your stats. Alundra 2 © 2000 Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Alundra is a trademark puter Entertainment Inc. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Published - Activision is a registered trademark of LP وز a trademark of the Interactive Digital contral 5 i: АП rights reserved. АШ other trademarks or trade names are the properties of their respective owners. 4. of Alundra’; E You are Flint, a renegade swordsman оп a quest to free a Ringdom from the grip of a sinister ruler. Through a land г of hidden danger you wield your weapon, "m navigating an intricate | story wrought with bizarre | characters, brain-twisting ‚ | puzzles and wild games. Beware! An even greater evil is about to be ^. revealed... Official PlayStation Magazine Dale Strang Editorial Director ЈЕ. Funk ٥ joe_funk@zd.com Editor-in-Chief Kraig Kujawa ® kraig_kujawa@zd.com Managing Editor Gary Steinman • gary_steinman@zd.com Deputy Editor Joe Rybicki ٥ joe_rybicki@zd.com Associate Editors Mark MacDonald • mark_macdonald@zd.com Chris Baker • chris_baker@zd.com West Coast Editor Wataru Maruyama wataru@gamespot.com Contributing Editors Doug Erickson • Joe Gray Johnny Masthead ٥ Jim Mazurek ٥ Andrew Vestal Copy Editors Dan Peluso ٥ Jennifer Whitesides Creative Director Michael Stassus Senior Art Director Bob Conlon е bob_conlon@zd.com Art Director Donna O'Hara Contributing Art Directors Tim Davis ٥ Jason Hinman Mixx Entertainment, Inc. Stuart Levy, CEO & Bureau Chief Matthew Galgani, Producer Kiyomi Fukuyama, Editorial Manager Yutaka Ohbuchi, Japanese Correspondent Production Director Carlos Lugo Senior Prepress Manager Peter Discoe Prepress Manager Dave McCracken Electronic Prepress Technician Chris Melody Project Leader Mark LeFebvre Analyst Scott Parus Business Director Cathy Bendoff Circulation Director Joan McInerney Circulation Director Shirley Viel Senior Newsstand Sales Manager Don Galen Subscription Service Number: (303) 665-8930 (0.5. Only) hitp://servico.playstationmagazine.com ZD Game Group 50 Beale Street, 12th floor San Francisco, CA 94105 tel: (415) 547-8783 fax: (415) 547-8777 Group Associate Publisher Suzie Reider ® suzie@zd.com Telephone (415) 357-4915 National Sales Manager, Northwest Anthony George • anthony _george@zd.com Telephone (415) 547-8774 Account Executive, Northwest Mary Gray • mary. gray! Telephone (415) 547- District Sales Manager, Southwest Karen Landon ® karen_landon@zd.com Telephone (760) 942-6277 Account Executive, Southwest, Midwest & East Coast Linda Philapil ® linda_philapil@zd.com Telephone (415) 547-8781 District Sales Manager, Midwest & East Coast Marc Callison • marc. callisonGzd.com Telephone (630) 382-9034 Senior Marketing Manager & Creative Director Rey Ledda • rey_ledda@zd.com Telephone (415) 547-8775 Senior Ad Production Manager Dennis Fitzgerald • dennis_fitzgerald@zd.com Telephone (415) 357-4998 Fax (415) 547-8868 Advertising Production Coordinator Teresa Newson • teresa_newson@zd.com Telephone (415) 357-5428 Advertising Coot Tippler Ubbelonde е tippler_ubbelonde@zd.com Telephone (415) 357-4930 Editorial A few unofficial words from the official editor-in-chief A Year of Belated Surprises hen I looked back at 1999 during our preparation for this year's awards, I must say that I was a bit surprised. But not for obvious reasons, such as the PocketStation’s absence or the obscene glut of wrestling games. Rather, I raised an eyebrow because many of the best games of 1999 were those that filled long- deprived genres. There have been lots of great games for the PlayStation, but how did so many obvi- ous holes go unfilled for so long? Until Activision released the incredible Tony Hawk Pro Skater, the PlayStation never had a great skateboarding game. Sure, there were a few others before it, but they weren't nearly half as good. And now we're getting a couple other passable ones such as Thrasher: Skate and Destroy and possibly Street Sk8er 2. It's like the industry collectively turned its head and said "Oh yeah, skateboarding games are a good idea, aren't they?" The same thing happened with snowboarding games a few years ago. For quite awhile we've craved a light and fun cart racing game that also offered а great multiplayer mode—it's been a console gaming stan- dard. Yes, there have been pretenders like Motor Toon, Chocobo Racing, etc. that have tried to do the job, but they did- n't come close to fitting the bill. And now, finally, we have the brilliant Crash Team Racing. It sure took a little while, didn’t it? Expect others to follow suit. Just as I'm writing this, I've gotten wind of a similar game on the way from Eidos called Walt Disney World: Magical Racing Quest. Looks like the industry has turned their head again. First- and third-person shooters have been a staple on the PlayStation, but they never really had the depth, story, or atmosphere needed to make any of them stand tall above the others. Syphon Filter broke down that barrier early in 1999 and Medal of Honor closed out the year in grand fashion with Medal of Honor. Whenever I play any of these games, they make me won- der why it took this long for them to arrive. Some people would say that it has taken develop- ers awhile to really master the system, but the brilliance of these games has more to do with design than it does technical prowess. While some of these titles are no-brainers that should have been out years ago, others are here because development teams decided that they need- ed to go against the normal rat-race of creating a game, and actually take their time. And then there's the ultra-late conversions that just make me shake my head. Why in the world did we have to wait until 1999 for Civilization II and You Don't Know Jack! to come out? These two titles have been perched at the top of their genres for years and are just now mak- ing it onto our favorite platform now. It has to make you wonder and hope that companies are learning from these previous mis- takes. That they can look to the future and load up the PlayStation2 with the best games as soon as possible instead of wasting their (and our) time with has-beens and endless clones. The Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine is the only Sony Computer Entertainment America-licensed magazine and is published by ZD Inc. through an exclusive arrangement. As such, OPM remains independent from SCEA, and is a critical, autonomous voice that helps readers get more out of their PlayStation system by delivering the most current, comprehensive and candid coverage of PlayStation software and hardware. Kraig Kujawa Editor-in-Chief March 2000 Official ٢۹٢ (а) of ZD Inc. To reuse any material in this publication, obtain a permission request form at www.icopyright.com/zd, ог have a form faxed ог mailed to you by calling (425) 430-1663, Copyright © 1999, ZD Inc. All Rights Reserved. TM & © for all other products and the characters contained therein are owned by the respective trademark and copy- fight holders. All materials in this magazine are subject to change and the publisher assumes no responsibility for such changes. The йеп GST registration number is 14049 6720 RT. Printed in the Magazine, РО. Box 55362, Boulder, CO 80322-5362. Call us: (303) 665- 8930 U.S. or (303) 604-7445 all other countries. Fax us: (303) 604-7455 U.S, or (303) 604-0540 all other countries. Or visit our subscription Web site at http://service.playstationmagazine.com, The editors and pub- lishers are not responsible for unsolicited materials. Without limiting the rights under copyrights reserved herein, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written notice Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine (ISSN 41094-6683) is published monthly by 20 Іпс., РО. Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338. Periodicals Postage Pending at Lombard, IL and additional mailing. offices. Single-issue rates: $7.99. Subscription Rates: One Year (12 Issues and 12 demo discs) $39.97 U.S., $65.97 all other countries. We periodically make lists of our customers available to mailers of goods. and services. If you do not wish to receive such mailings, please write to us and include а copy of your mailing label. Subscription Service Questions and Address Changes Write to: Official U.S. PlayStation РУ Eg Winterfresh. en mHwe Sophie, PENA of Nohi 1000 "Tool" Introduced to Eastern Continent 465 Empire 800 Invention of "Tool" When Gustave XIII D mother Sophie passed away. Gustave XIII attacked and seized the DUKEDOM OF WIDE upon turning 20. fig. 15: Gustave XIII (the younger) age 15 After he exiled his wife and child, Gustave 1 à another son. He named the newborn GUBTAVE XIV-who would eventually become the after Gustave XII died. єрїмї? op АЧМ? Philippe became the Marquis of Nohl after Sophie passed away. Marie was forced to marry CANTAL, the new Marquis of Otto, for political reasons. Gustave XII seized one-half of the Otto territory in return. Gustave XIII became the hero of those who did not have Anima. Instead of relying on the power of magic, he and his partners developed skills to use machines History of the GUSTAVE Empire Migration to the Southern Continent 374 Rebellion Fall of the of Nika ~400 400 Hahn Expansion 0 Establishment of the Empire Tre story of the GUSTAVE Empire belongs to a time when the people used the magical power called "Anima" to conjure mighty spells. The Kingdom of Finney was ruled by شر EI oe XII was attacking the Marquis of Otto when Qt USTAVE XIII was born to himself and his wife, SOPHIE DE NOHL. Gustave XIII was destined to be the heir of the throne. He would later have a brother named PHILIPPE and a sister named MARIE. fig. 14: The Royal Family Gustave ид When Gustave XIII turned seven, he participated in the FIREBRAND CEREMONY in which he was to prove his worth to become the heir of the throne. During that ceremony, Gustave XIII found that he had j E not the power "Anima." Because of his inability to use Anima, Gustave XIII, along with his е were exiled from the Kingdom by thé and Marie would never see their mother again. Philippe was terribly saddened by the loss of his mother and blamed Gustave XIII for this. While he still had the pride of Royalty, Gustave XIII became a target of contempt resulting in his twisted personality. 0 1 209. 1 % GeXeoe iG ЗАР 1227 Exile of Gustave XIII 1243 and Sophie de Nohl Finney Kingdom 1 unites Merchmin DEATH OF КЕСІМДІ —> 1270 | Cantal gains control of Merchmin Territory 1220 Я 1269 7 1271 Li „> 8 To Tuee Mc, ve а! ота МИГ e T NES ұм —= 2 XIII became known as GUSTAVE THE М Gust اا seizes Hê planned to expand his territory, but was Dukedom of Wide wien he and a small regiment were assaulted As tn the Kingdom of Finne; | auring an expedition, He was 49-vears old. 1. Cantal and Philippe promise with Gustave XIV for this battle, but backed the last moment, leaving Gustave XIV to suffer Because he used metal to improve his military, (2402 ка AU With 4 COUNT د After the Battle of Buckethill, Philippe requested to rule the Kingdom of Finney. He failed in the Virebrand Ceremony forcing him to name his son, MILIPPE П, the heir of the throne. At his Firebrand У Coren rss ۰ Philippe vord used S HAPE HISTORI an 1 in the y. In the “Ы ВЕ ок = Gustave ЗТАУЕ Тазы be shat has amount fig. 16: GUSTAVE THE STEEL ..iown as TEEN MILD ANIMATED VIOLENCE SUGGESTIVE THEMES. Vist www ото or cal 1-800-771-3777| or rating information. SQUARE.SOFT: © 1999, 2000 Square Co., Ltd. АП rights reserved. SQUARE SOFT and the SQUARESOFT logos are registered trademarks of Square Co., Ltd. баба Frontier is a trademark of Square Co., Ltd. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment www. sq uaresoft. сот Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. Published by Square Electronic Arts L.L.C. PlayStation y A ٢١٢١ “Because we dont want your Аа maiming a SOFTBANK company in their games J you dont want your hids AE „Timothy C. O'Brien Jason E. Chudnofsky Chris Dobbrow „Terri Holbrooke Michael 5. Perlis „Dan Rosensweig DAD D B » пати n their games. c € Chief Financial Officer... | President, 20 Events . President, SmartPlanet .. | President, 20 Corporate Operations | President, ZD Publishing . | President, ZDNet .. President, 20 Education . President, 20ТУ..... Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary Senior Vice President, Development and Planning Senior Vice President, ....................... Corporate Marketing Vice President, Controller | Vice President, Tax .... CHILDHOOD للت Vice President, Treasurer | TE parany | Vice President, Human Resources EVERYONE | Vice President, Information Technology EVERYONE RATING: The E Replaced The Previous K-A Rating و Last Year. Suitable For Kids Ages 6 And Up, E-Rated Games e кан Мау Contain Minimal Violence Or Crude Language. | Integrated Client Sales es ne BY Executive Vice President ... | Executive Vice President Senior Vice President ... | Vice President, Corporate Sales . EARLY CHILDHOOD RATING: Deemed Suitable For Children 3 Or Older. Products Carrying This Label Have Absolutely No Material That Would Be Considered Inappropriate By Parents. ZD PUBLISHING | President GEO E N TE | | Executive Vice President/Publishing ... The Enterprise Group Executive Vice President/Publishing 70 Publishing, General Manager Executive Vice President/Publishing PC Magazine Executive Vice President/Publishing .. Consumer Publications | Senior Vice President/Publishing د د سی ٢ d Peter Longo Publisher, PC Magazine Senior Vice President/Publishing ................. Alan Perlman | Publisher, Interactive Week Vice ЫТЫ Ы УЗ ае т ЛАН Анда John Dodge Editor, PC Week Vice President/Publishing دد ېساد په A NO 6. Barry Golson | Editor in Chief, Yahoo! Internet Life Vice President/Publishing, Production . TEEN RATING: Contains Suggestive Themes, Mild Or Strong Language And Animated Violence. Some Parents May Want To Supervise Children Playing T-Rated Games. „Michael J. Miller .. Jim Spanfeller MATUR E MATURE RATING: These Games Contain More Adult Themes, Such As Blood And Gore, Stronger Language And Sexual Themes. Deemed Not Suitable For Those Under 17. шше [о BY „Roger Herrmann Vice President/Publishing Jom Jones Publisher, Computer Shopper Vice President Publishing لا Eric Lundquist Editor in Chief, PC Week Залы | р И АШК УЛИ ME ADULTS ONLY RATING: The Extreme Of The Ratings, Suitable Vice President/Publishing а.е Jim Manning $ International & Integrated Sales Development For Adults Only. Packs Sexual Themes And Extreme Violence. Yee President د دن Charles Mast sirculation Console Manufacturers Have Yet To Allow An AO-Rated Game. Wes د نن وسوسو Roh неп | Editor in Chief, Family Р | Vice President ИЧЕ و Sloan Seymour Publisher, PC Vice aR КААБ» А ж» ЖЫШ Раш Somerson Editor in Chief, РС Computing Vice President/Publishing, Game Group . Dale Strang Vice President/Publishin „Раш! Turcotte Publisher, Yahoo! Internet Life - Ы 20 Labs " a в | Vice President and General Manager . fark Van Name Chief Technology Officer, ZD Labs . Bill Catchings Director . Director . Е رما Шу GAG Ziff-Davis, A SOFTBANK Company COMPUTER ` ШЕШЕ GAMING | WORLD nTRODUCTIN THE SHAVHAR, as EVIL SUPERBEINGS ano sameno YOU ль VALDEMAR, ULTIMATE POWER, THe monstrous ТЖЕ RED SUN. сотан SO SELECTABLE MESENS ser n Decr SPACE AMD ON e WEAPONS PANED ELL се CRAVITY SE RÉCENG е. смее لا عچمۍ VAST NEW SOLAR SYSTEMS where up-close оосеснт ACTON МАКЕ ТНЕМБЕРІМТІМЕ SCH-I COMBAT GAME, дул АОММ оч PLAYSTATION® CAME CONSOLE: په ٢ susecuns]" و ESRB | PlayStation Е ® > s Colony Wars, Colony Wars Vengeance and Colony Wars Red Sun are all ™ or © of Psygnosis Ltd. 1997-2000. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of سن پس Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Digital Software Association. — 1 Sg Ж aui "Tom Lay the ^ Т к ; 788 SmackDown! HEY DON'T FOR ROLV үө ار ыо Make friends then break them as you roam backstage from the boiler room to the kitchen. Call upon your allies for help and then climb over them as you kick, grapple, and People's Elbow your way to the top. Just remember that backstage politics can work against you ~ don’t let The Rock" run-ins, well-placed metal chairs, and McMahon appointed guest referees get you in the end. AND THEY DON'T FORGET, WS PlayStation © = e дей 5 . ы i Contents Letters Read what happened when one reader ә bought а peripheral that sounded too good to be true, and learn the secrets behind Sony's “Tool.” Plus, a particu- larly radiant Reader Art section. Syphon Filter 2 | We blow the lid off 989 = Studios’ top-secret follow N ews j up to their smash hit espi- Lots of big names are signing on to : 30 == سم پچ = опаде action game—the new games, like everyone's favorite EXE. | story, the levels, the multi- prize-fighting, ear-biting Brooklyn à И player game—everything! brawler, Mike Tyson. Plus all the latest d: > + 66 PlayStation and PS2 info and screens. Previews Best of 1 999 Get the inside scoop on Alundra 2, Front £ Mission 3, Hydro Thunder, Street Fighter Й It's that time of year again, EX 2, Deception Ш, Armored Core: y when we bestow the OPM Masters of Arena, and the perplexing Editors’ Awards on the Flintstones’ Bedrock Bowling. best—and the worst— zA games of 1999. See how Н gi your favorite games fared! | 1 te rn ati оп а! - 1 06 This month we take a look at Sony's new spy/espionage adventure game Chase the Express, the old-school shooter RayCrisis, and one last peek at Dragon Quest VII before its release. PS2 Update! سا Every month these develop- Revi ews ers manage to top them- 3 : я selves with better-screaris; Find out if ECW Hardcore Revolution We've got a first look at stacks up to the rest of the wrestling Square's new racer, Type-S, pack, And read what we thought of along with several others. Hot Shots Golf 2, Marvel vs. Capcom, Jackie Chan's Stuntmaster, and more. Tricks In keeping with the Syphon Filter 2 theme this month, we give you an entire section of high-tech espionage tricks, as well as cheats for Crash Team Racing, and much more! fa Gran Turismo 2 REN Check out the step-by-step instructions for each and every 1 license test, as well as hints оп every race event, complete with lists detailing cash and 5. е.а. г. prizes awarded. 1 1 4 Check out this month's light-gun gallery. Can anything stand up to the mighty GunCon? And feast your eyes on some new figures based on Front Mission 3 and Final Fantasy VIII! Demo Disc This month, not only do you get to read all about Syphon Filter 2, you get to play it yourself! You'll also be able to check out Silent Bomber, Ace Combat 3 and a load of other hot games. Enter their world at eidos.com à as = EA ES Е-е د و ون وي يوي —— s | 7 0 | і lia idle ولت سو ТЕК : اا و ове A ЕХ « د هم خد د 70% асады کو пивара EUN Follow the light PRODUCTS RANGE FROM 3 N то MATURE Playstation CONTENT RATED BY SOFTWARE RATED Eidos Interactive and the Eidos Interactive logo are registered trademarks of Eidos Interactive, Inc. Fighting Force 2, Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, Core and the Core logo are all trademarks of Core Design Limited. Fear Effect is a trademark of Eidos Interactive. Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver is a trademark of mation oi dui Crystal Dynamics, Inc. © 1999 Eidos Interactive. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association.Titles in this advertisement are rated Teen through Mature by the ESRB. Т” E لسا (= = PlayStation EXIT OPERATION: OBSERVE SURROUNDINGS. IF SCENERY IS MOVING-REMAIN IN VEHICLE. IF STATIONARY, PROCEED WITH CAUTION TO NEAREST EXIT. Letters A glimpse into the demented minds of our readers Caption Contest Winner Letter of the Month Peripheral Woes Dear OPM, Dear OPM, After playing Gran Turismo 2 without pause since its U.S. release | must say that it is beyond words. (If the original GT was a 5, then what is 672?) But, what stirred me to write you a letter is Gran Turismo 2000. | read that it would just be an updated version of GT2, so І just thought | might pass along my suggestions. 1) Add more real-world tracks: Spa, Indianapolis, Nurburgring, Sebring, etc. 2) Add more of the truly exotic cars: Lamborghini, Ferrari, Maserati, etc. 3) Eliminate the “car wash” and add the “body shop.” If we can take “for professionals only” one step farther, we could allow damage as an option and force players to fix their cars. This can add many possibilities: What if you win a race by bashing, but then have to fix your car for the next race in the championship? What? Not enough money to complete all repairs...? You could also use the body shop to paint your cars as you like, sponsor and all. 4) Include more races with even tougher Al. 5) Expand the Rally mode. PlayStation2 is going to be incredible; | just hope that we get a Gran I recently purchased something called a “Super GB Booster,” made by a company called Innovation. The sales clerk told me this product | would be compatible with my son's PlayStation and would enable him to play his Game Boy games on it. This was my son's birthday pre- sent, but within an hour after returning home, it became obvious that the product was defective. One | out of seven games worked on this device, and even then there was no audio. I immediately tried to return the device, but was told, "Tough luck." The salesman pulled out a disclaimer that basically said that فل لتا «od “Mikey’s attempt to skip out on his date proves DarkmanPoe@aol.com ow you too can have your shot at history with the OPM Caption Contest! Every month, we run a game-related pic- ture or screenshot. Your job is to write a humor- ous caption for it and submit it to us at any of the addresses on the fol- lowing Letters page. The winner will be chosen by the following scientific method: We'll read them all, and the one that makes us laugh our asses his store did not warrantee this item. He offered me half my money back on this scam. I have learned my lesson, and will never purchase anything without the PlayStation trademark on it again. I thought Sony might be interested in this, as it possibly infringes on their trademark. Bonnie Weyrich | Pismo Beach, CA Turismo sequel that is equal to the task. David Fiallo 76301,737@compuserve.com Though it's probably too late to implement апу of these changes into GT2000, these are all great suggestions that we'd also like to see in future sequels. Visible damage to the licensed vehicles is unlikely, though, since car manufacturers don't seem to like the idea of seeing their beloved vehicles smashed beyond recognition. Do you think you have what it takes to write the Letter of the Month? Send us your timely, original, well-written video game expositions (you don't even have to agree with us!) and you too could win an official OPM Box or Jov. New surprise goodies every month! Though it may not technically be trademark infringement to produce such dubious peripher- als, it is certainly unethical to manufacture and sell a product that fails to perform the adver- tised function without some kind March 2000 The development kit is some- thing that only game developers will need to worry about; it's just the hardware that allows game designers to program titles for the new console. An integrated system for coding and debugging software, it simplifies the more complex development kit used for developing games for the original PlayStation; where the original kit required a PC, the new kit is a stand-alone system. And it's a good thing consumers don't have to buy them: They go for around $20,000! Choose Your Tools Wisely Dear ОРМ, Irecently saw a picture of what 1 thought was a fat PlayStation2. Then I noticed the word "Tool" on the side, and the caption which indicated it was a PlayStation2 development kit. But there wasn't any more information about what it really is or does. So what exactly is the "Tool" for, and will it be some- thing that consumers will have to buy along with their 7 Miguel De La Rosa Immokalee, Florida of warning. We'd recommend taking your case up with the manufacturer, and if they refuse to help you, contact the Better Business Bureau or some similar consumer support organization. We've heard too many stories like this regarding unlicensed peripherals. Always remember to look for the PlayStation logo on the box, and check your store's return policy before buying any product that states that it is "not licensed, sponsored, endorsed or manufactured" by Sony. Then you can at least make sure it works! off will get a sparkling new game or game-relat- ed item. Now, see what you can do with this pic: Official 0.5 ان Magazine №) [You didn’t really think those were the official rules, did you? For all the legal stuff on this and our other contests, please refer to page 24.) How do you like the mag? What about the design? Are we leaving anything out? we want Let us know! your input! To get special attention as far as design and content issues go, label your letters or e-mails with the heading: PlayStation Magazine suggestions c/o the Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine at the addresses on the final Letters page. We can't wait to hear from you. E-mails having to do with upcoming games can be sent to marketingeagetec.com. And in case you'd rather bombard them with real paper, their mailing address is Agetec, Inc., 900 Veterans Blvd., Suite 600; Red- wood City, CA 94063. Make us proud, soldier! Activision is planning to release in the near future. The game looked intriguing, sort of like a Colony Wars set in the Star Trek universe (with the story expected to fall between The Next Gener- ation and Voyager). Look for a more in-depth preview soon! A glimpse into the demented minds of our readers Make It So Dear OPM, I have a question that maybe you can answer. Are there any plans at this point for a Star Trek game on the PlayStation? I was just wonder- ing because I see Star Wars games on the PlayStation for those who Letters id you buy a copy of our magazine that did not contain a demo CD? Do YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR SUBSCRIPTION TO OPM? POINT YOUR BROWSER TO http://subscribe. playstationmagazine.com/service AND FILL OUT THE APPROPRIATE FORM. WITH A CREDIT CARD, YOU CAN EVEN START A NEW SUBSCRIPTION! e-mail: opmezd.com and check us out on www.videogames.com I want to e-mail Agetec to tell No, you're not seeing double; this month's winner, Gene Dambach of Pawling, NY, treated his submission with UV-sensitive paint, so that when the original image (left) was held under a blacklight, certain parts would glow (right). Our response: “Ооооооһ.” Other fine efforts this month come from Todd Adamson of Sandy, UT (cen- ter) and Timothy Lim of Little Rock, AK (right). Good work, folks. ea 1 Sic ‘em! Dear OPM, them they should release RPG Maker. What is their address? Kent Boorman alphaunicronehome.com If you need to reach us now 630 382 9010 like Star Wars, but no Star Trek. Actually, we recently got a behind-closed-doors look at a new Star Trek game which The Reader Art Challenge Every month we'll be picking one excep- tional piece as our Reader Art of the Month. The winner will have his/her piece published and will receive a new game or game-related item in the mail—so include your mailing address with all submissions. snail mail: PlayStation Magazine Р.О. Box 3338 Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338 Simply send the receipt in an envelope marked “OPM Replacement Disc” to the address below with the name and address of the store plus your phone num- ber and address and we'll send you the disc. Make sure you specify which month the corresponding disc belongs to in order to ensure you get the right one. Also, if you have a malfunctioning or non-working demo disc, call SCEA at 1-800-345-SONY. They will provide instruc- tions to obtain repair or replacement ser- vices. For more infor- mation see this month's Demo Disc section. Mike Brown via the Internet ways to reach us Official Contest and Sweepstakes Rules ОРМ LETTER OF THE MONTH Official Contest Rules: 1, No Purchase Necessary: To enter, send a letter ог standard-size postcard containing your name, ‘address, and phane number together with your comments to “OPM Letter of the Month”, PO Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338, No purchase or payment of any money is necessary to enter. One entry per household. All entries must be handwritten. Mechanically reproduced entries will not be accepted. Entries must be received by the 10th day of the month for the next available issue of OPM. АД entries become exclusive property of ZD Inc. and will not be acknowledged or returned. Ziff- Davis assumes no responsibilty for lost, mutilated, late, illegible, incomplete, postage-due or тізді rected entries, 2. Prizes: One Grand Prize winner will receive а box containing various items from the ‘OPM offices. Grand Prize has an approximate retail value of at least $10. Winners will be selected by а judging panel whose decisions are final. Winners shall be selected from әй valid entries received. ‘All entries wil be judged on the following criteria by OPM editors, whose decisions are final: (50%) originality and (50%) creativity. Entries containing obscene language will be disqualified. All prize winners will be notified by mail. Prize) are non-transferable, No substitutions of prze(s) are allowed, except at the option of ZD should the featured prizes become unavailable. 3. Odds of Winning: The odds of winning wil be determined by number of valid entries received. 4. Eligibility: Contest open to residents of United States and Canada. Void in Quebec. Non-compliance with the time parameters contained herein or return of any prize/prize notification as undeliverable will result in disqualification. Winners or their legal guardians shall sign an affidavit of eligblity/release of lia- bility/prize acceptance within 5 days of receipt or forfeit prize. By acceptance of prize, winners) ‘agree to the use of their name and/or likeness for purposes of advertising, trade or promotion with ‘out further compensation, unless prohibited by law. Neither 20 Inc., nor its affiliates, subsidiaries, divisions or related companies are responsible or liable for any damages, taxes or expenses that con sumers might incur as د result of this contest or receipt of prize. 5. Winners List: For alist of win ners, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope identifying the month for which the winners list is requested to “OPM Letter of the Month Winners List" at the address listed above. Allow 4 weeks for delivery of winners list. 6, Restrictions: Void where prohibited or restricted by law. All federal, state and focal regulations apply. ОРМ CAPTION CONTEST Official Contest Rules: 1. No Purchase Necessary: To enter, send an original caption for the attached screen shot on a stan- dard sized postcard containing your name, address, and phone number to “OPM Caption Sweepstakes” PO Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338, No purchase or payment of any money is necessary to enter, All entries must be handwritten. Mechanically reproduced entries wil not be ‘accepted, Entries must be received by the 10th day of the month for the next available issue of OPM. All entries become exclusive property of ZD Inc. and will nat be acknowledged or returned. Ziff- Davis assumes no responsibility for lost, mutilated, late, illegible, incomplete, postage-due ог misdi- rected entries, 2. Prizes: One Grand Prize winner will receive one (1) video game or one (1) video game-related item as determined by 20. Grand Prize has an approximate retail value of $20-50. All entries will be judged on the following criteria by ОРМ editors, whose decisions are final: (50%) orig inality and (50%) creativi. Entries containing obscene language wil be disqualified. Al prize win- ners will be notified by mall. Prizes) are non-transferable. No substitutions of prze(s) are allowed, ‘except at the option of 20 should the featured prizes become unavailable. 3. Odds of Winning: The ‘odds of winning will be determined by number of valid entries received. 4. Eligibility: Contest open to residents of United States and Canada. Void in Quebec. Non-compliance with the time parame- ters contained herein or return of any prize/prize notification as undeliverable will result in disqualifi- cation. Winners or their legal guardians shall sign an affidavit of eligibility/release of liability/prize acceptance within 5 days of receipt ог forfeit prize. By acceptance of prize, winner(s) agree to the Use of their name and/or likeness for purposes of advertising, trade or promotion without further compensation, unless prohibited by law. Neither ZD Inc., nor its affiliates, subsidiaries, divisions or related companies are responsible or liable for any damages, taxes or expenses that consumers might incur as a result of this contest or receipt of prize. 5. Winners List: For a list of winners, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope identifying the month for which the winners list is requested to “OPM Quote Contest Winners List" at the address listed above. Allow 4 weeks for delivery of win- ners list, 6. Restrictions: Void where prohibited or restricted by law. All federal, state and local regu: ations apply. TOP 10 MOST WANTED SWEEPSTAKES Official Contest Rules: 1. No Purchase Necessary: To enter, send a letter or standard-sized postcard containing your name, address and phone number together with your list of 10 most wanted video games to "Тор Ten Most Wanted” Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine, P.O. Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338 or e-mail it to qary.steinmanezd com or fax it to (630) 382.9010. No purchase or payment of any money is neces- sary to enter. One entry per household per month. Entries must be received by the 10th day of the month for the next available issue of OPM. АП entries become exclusive property of Ziff-Davis and will not be acknowledged or returned. Ziff-Davis assumes no responsibility for lost, mutilated, late, illegible, incomplete, postage-due or misdirected entries. Sponsors reserve the right to cancel this contest at any time with appropriate notice. Only one prize per family, organization or household per month. 2. Prizes: One Grand Prize winner wil receive two (2 video games as determined by Namco. Grand Prize has an approximate retail value of $80. Winners shall be determined by a ran- dom drawing of all valid entries by OPM editors, whose decisions are final. All prize winners will be notified by mail. Prize(s) are non-transferable. 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Neither ZD Inc., Namco nor their respective affiliates, subsidiaries, divisions ог related companies are responsible ог liable for any damages, takes or expenses that consumers might incur as د result of this contest ос receipt of prize. 5. Winners List: For a list of winners, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope identifying the month for which the winners list is requested to OPM Top 10 Most Wanted Winners Lit, P.O. Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338. Allow 4 weeks for delivery of winners list. 6. Restrictions: Void where prohib- ited or restricted by law. All federal, state and local regulations apply. min ЕШ *configured by Marc Ecko/The E -“ ( | ast... а Medie A t ” % ider.. U.S. PlayStation Magazine -Official val Tomb Ка "Alter reaching legendary status on the PC, the Misht and Magic universe is ready to cast its spell on the PlayStation. -GamePro Play le With E a Vengeance. Prepare for the ultimate battle of good and evil. As Drake, a lone mer- сепагу toughened by years of hardship, you re swept up into the midst of a Crusade in the incredible 3D fantasy-action lands of Ardon. Your only mission 15 to rid the land of the same vile evil that annihilated your family. Then, and only then, will you have your revenge! “A unique blend of action and role-playing : Conquer 5 dark and hostile worlds, over 15 levels in all * Мау your enemies through scores of grueling quests * Qo to battle armed with a variety of wicked weapons & sizzling spells Prima Strategy Guide Available ©1999 Theap تت AN Rights Reserved. 300, Crusaders of MightandMagic, Might and Magic, and their respective logos, are trademarks and/or service E] тагове Тће 0 0:Сотрапу іп the U.S. and other countries. PlayStatigff arftl the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. э? All other trademarks belong to their respective owners. The Рита 1000 and Prima Publishing are Registered Trademarks of Prima Communications, Inc. www.mighta ndmagic.com News A monthly wrap-up of all the information for your favorite system | Tyson =a Fights CE 5 Again 1 5 e's been convicted of raping a beauty queen. He's р Р Ы snacked оп Hollyfield’s ear during a title bout. Heck, he hasn't even held a boxing belt since 1996. But that's not stopping based Codemasters from signing Mike Tyson to an exclusive license agreement to appear in the forthcoming Mike Tyson Boxing, due out in May. With such a checkered reputation, it may be a bit surpris- ing that anyone bothered signing Tyson to such a deal. "There are issues and concerns that we're certainly not blind to, but well aware of," concedes Michael Hayes, worldwide director of sales and marketing for Codemasters. But after conducting research with the game's target audience (late teens-early twenties), Hayes says he was convinced that Tyson was the right name to attach to the game. "They see Tyson as one of the greatest boxers of all time," says Hayes. And despite his thuggish antics, Tyson remains the biggest draw in boxing. But Hayes is quick to point out that the game won't focus on the darker side of Tyson; rather, it'll be a realistic sports simulation. "We're not producing a product that has ridicu- lous, over-the-top or aggressive and inappropriate moves," he says. The centerpiece of that game will be Career Mode, in which you can choose among 100 different boxers and nur- ture their careers until they eventual face Tyson in a title bout. You'll do everything from hiring a trainer to managing a regime to picking bouts and adjusting your training sched- ules—a process that can take several months, according to Hayes. There'll also be arcade-style bouts and versus modes in which you can play as or fight against Tyson. But there def- initely won't be any ear-biting moves or the like. "We would be wrong to do anything crazy like that," says Hayes. The game will be based on the Codemasters' Prince Naseem Boxing, also due out in May. Tyson will be consulting for the game, but it seems unlikely that he'll be doing any motion-capturing. r Tyson hasn't starred in a video game since the 1986 NES «еч hit Mike Tyson Punch-Out. Official u.s. PlayStation СО March 2000 Above аге two pics from Prince Naseem Boxing, which Mike Tyson Boxing will be based on. photograph by Michael Sexton Sosa Signs | With 09 Super-slugger Sammy Sosa has switched affilia- tions, signing a multiyear deal to help with the development and marketing of Sammy Sosa High Heat Baseball. Just last year Sosa was the cover boy for EA Sports’ Triple Play 2000, a critically praised game. But apparently Sosa is looking for something better. "I agree with the gaming maga- zines that say 3DO's High Heat Baseball is the best," he said. Hmmm...we just wonder what mag- azines he's been reading, because we gave the horrendous High Heat Baseball 2000 just one disc (to be fair, though, the PC version of the game was much better). Hopefully Sosa's skills will help improve 3DO's flagging PlayStation franchise. Quote of the Month “If we get a ‘T' rating, we didn't make it violent enough.” -John Inada, marketing manager for Tecmo, commenting on how he hopes that Deception ІІІ: Dark Delusion gets a Mature rating rather than a Teen rating. Lara Flick Looms Closer Lara Croft may be edging closer to becoming a celluloid reality, according а recent report in Variety. The movie industry trade publication said Paramount Pictures is in “advanced negotiations to enlist Simon West” (The General's Daughter, Con Air) to direct its Tomb Raider film. No word yet on who'll be starring as Croft, though. The film was set for a summer 2000 release, but it looks unlikely to make that date. Separately, Variety also reported that Columbia Pictures is pursuing Sam Raimi to direct its forthcoming Spider-Man film. Raimi, who recently directed For Love of the Game and is best known for the Evil Dead films, is “an avowed Spider-Man fanatic,” according to Variety. > 4 Е = Eu Е 54 „5 5 о ФО eg 2g = - зе ЕЕ =“ ES T = 5 ± 500 Fans of Gran Turismo 2 who've already devoted 110% of their efforts to Polyphony Digital's masterwork were surely disap- pointed to learn they could only complete 98.2% of the game. Sony shipped GT2 just shy of completion—a fact that was con- GAME STATUS COMPLETE PRIZE MONEY TIL @ 98.20 تسس پس xc won un rend m ux aes anao firmed by Polyphony on its Web site. The consensus is that GT2 is missing its drag racing courses, Since you can earn drag cars but there are no devoted tracks to race them on. Sony CEA has yet to comment on this shortfall. How interested are you in playing Mike Tyson Boxing? total number of voles: 2443 poll taken تا com illustration by Wayne Vincent News A monthly wrap-up of all the information for your favorite system eternal Ring Here are a few more screens of From Software's first-person RPG Eternal Ring. The game is set on an island divided into eight areas, each with its own drag- оп, and you'll have to rely on elemental magic rather than using weapons. ess than two months to go سا the PlayStation2 launch, and we can hardly wait! The big news this month is Square’s PS2 racer, Type-S. We've also got another batch of great screens from a handful of previously announced games, along with plenty of juicy tidbits in our PS News Roundup. 4 MR-S зеотон > мя E Tupe-s Featuring a "driver's-eye" camera angle and simulation-style gameplay, Square's new PS2 racer is scheduled to release in Japan sometime this spring. Check out the detailed car models and advanced lighting effects in these screens. Which "secondary" feature of the PS2 is most enticing to you? Connectivity options 3 8 MB Memory Card 501 Enhanced Dual Shock 432 |—— Can stand on its side 404 March 2000 kessen Another month, another batch of Kessen shots. We tried to avoid them, but all those pretty horses just pranced their way into our News section. Ability to play DVDs 8,493 2000 4000 6000 8000 10000 The Ru Tomb Robbery S: Paramount Pictures is Official 054 Дк ө СӨ Violent Behavior THE FACTS: Mortal Kombat and anyone who's seen Relic Hunter knows that it's nothing is bloody and violent. Е ВОВ: Right. We knew that already. We also know that the series is past its prime and quite tame next to the current generation of gorefests. But apparently a group of protesters didn't realize that when they marched on more than a bad Tomb Raider ripoff. Why Paramount is bother- ing to develop a second-rate ver- sion of Tomb Raider, a license they probably paid a lot of money for, we'll never know. Guess it's just another example of Hollywood brilliance in action. developing a movie based on its syndicated TV show Relic Hunter. ГНЕ КОВ: Yes, we know this is a PlayStation magazine, and this item seems to have nothing to do with our favorite system...but hold on! You see, Paramount is also producing the Tomb Raider film— MLB 2001 Every дате is like дате 7. MARCH 40 WWW.989S5PORTS.COM [EVERYONE | PlayStation Major League Baseball trademarks and copyrights аге used with permission of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. www.majorleaguebaseball.com Official Licensee - Major League Baseball Players Association. € MLBPA. www.bigleaguers.com 989 Sports and the 989 Sports logo are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. Developed by 989 Sports. © 2000 Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. things we دا think we E S think this month Hopefully, Jedi Power Battles doesn't continue the tradition of EPisopE | mediocrity Need for Speed sequels are com- ing out quicker than car makers are able to design new models. Acclaim needs to take their PlayStation games more seriously. They should concentrate on mak- ing a couple killer PS2 games to punctuate their turnaround. According to Sony, a PlayStation is in one of every four households. What in the hell are the other three in four thinking? The PlayStation needs a stock day- trading game. Moreover, it needs to come out before we all lose our shirts playing the real market. Kessen better turn out to be a good PlayStation2 game. Otherwise we'll look like a horse’s ass for showing all those screens. All those Y2K survival supplies we never used can finally be put to good use: Once the PlayStation2 arrives, we'll never have to leave our homes! Licensing Mike Tyson for video games probably started as a really bad joke that someone took a little too seriously in the Codemasters’ boardroom. Midway is loading up their PlayStation2 line-up. We're hoping that they spare us the requisite Mortal Kombat launch game. Due to being rushed, Gran Turismo 2 can only be completed to a tally of 98.2%. Maybe the other 1.8% will be forthcoming on a expansion disc. News A monthly wrap-up of all the information for your favorite system Armored core 2 The graphics aren't the only thing to receive an upgrade in this stunning- looking mech title. There'll be plenty of details to manage, with 13 different gauges displayed on screen, including everything from damage to cannon trajectory to radar/weather display. PS2. The fantasy/RPG will be develo, by Volition, the minds behind the well- received Descent series. е Tecmo told us | that their Ninja Gaiden title should release at the U.S. PlayStation2 launch. They also confirmed they'll be developing a Dead or Alive title, but due to an exclu- sivity agreement with Sega, the game won't bear the DoA name. A Tecmo Bowl game for the PS2 is also in the works. АРС screen from Summoner just around the corner, there's no way the Hollywood will be able to keep up. Just think: cinematic effects on the fly, intensely immersive gameplay and the ability to connect with gamers across the globe—all in your liv- ing room! 962 News Roundup Sony will be holding a PlayStation 2000 Festival in Japan on Feb. 18 through Feb. 20, just days after this issue hits the newsstands. The event will feature 20 playable PS2 games. Stay tuned to videogames.com for all the latest news. • The lineup for the Festival includes two newly announced games from Square EA: FIFA 2000 and Boarder Cross. While we've got no details about the latter, we presume it'll be a snowboarding game. • U.K.-based developer Headfirst Productions is working on a game based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft. Titled Dark Corners of the Earth, the first-person per- spective game will focus on exploration and puzzle-solving. * Vile will publish sequels to Twilight Syndrome and Fire Pro-Wrestling. Both games were former roperties of Human, which recently Big Business THE FACTS: Video games are almost as THE RUB: With $7.2 billion in hardware and software sales in 1999, video games are edging real close to the film industry's $7.4 billion annual box office take. And with the PlayStation2 leclared bankruptcy. • THQ announced hat they're developing Summoner for the Chicago's City Hall in January to try to stop a $2 million grant awarded by the city to keep Midway from moving away. What we'd like to ask the protesters is: Do you actually believe that dis- rupting the livelihoods of 700 employees is less destructive than a silly video game? Really, now. Jown McCLANE STUNT DOUBLE #6 - ARM BROKEN NEAR SLOT MACHINES IN SHARPSHOOTERS DUEL WITH A RUSSIAN TERRORIST. ат тм Presents As nominated by our attractive, intelligent readers Resident Evil 3 Nemesis Aaahhhh!l!! Just thinking of this zombified Capcom sequel gives us the willies. Gran Turismo 2 Vroom! Vroom! Vroom! You'll be up in your room just a playin’ all night. It'll make ya feel right. Medal of Honor Is it just us, ог are Nazis just as mon- strous as any abomination from Doom or Quake? Final Fantasy VIII Check out some new toys from this latest Square masterpiece in the g.e.a.r. section. Thrasher: Skate & Destroy It appears that Tony Hawk might have started a trend here... Tomorrow Never Dies He may shake those martinis, but no one’s shaking Bond from Most Wanted. Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage You're still clamoring for the coolest purple dragon since Figment at EPCOT Center. Crash Team Racing Between CTR апа GT2, now's a great time to be a PS racing fan. Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation Check out how Lara worked things at 16...ог just check out Lara. Driver Nothin’ like saving the day by driving recklessly through four huge cities, leaving cops in your dust. Our monthly contest winner's top five picks Deception Ш: Dark Delusion Gene's up for some sadistic, trap-setting madness in this Tecmo sequel. Tomba! 2 When hostile pigs capture your girlfriend, something's gotta be done! Apparently, Gene agrees. Shao Lin Gene could be waiting for this eight-player brawl for a long time. Word is, it might be canceled. Tenchu II It's more stealthy ninja action for Gene, this time set before the events of the first Tenchu. Fear Effect We're anticipating this Blade Runner- esque survival horror title just as much as Gene! What we've been playing instead of working Gran Turismo 2 The best game of 1999...and still the best game of 2000! Hot Shots Golf 2 Who doesn't like to taunt their coworkers while playing golf? Silent Bomber This one came out of nowhere to blow Joe away. Syphon Filter 2 The frustration factor got to Mark at first...but then he found the cheat menu. Madden NFL 2000 Kraig’s relentless defense is the stuff of legends around the office. Send your votes for the Readers' 10 Most Wanted games to: Official PlayStation Magazine Attn: Readers' 10 Most Wanted, Р.О. Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338 or e-mail us at: gary steinmanezd.com or visit the OPM section оп www.videogames.com Top 20 The best-selling U.S. PlayStation titles as reported by the nation's top retailers Gran Turismo 2 PUBLISHER: Sony CEA Last MONTH: = GENRE: RACING RELEASE Dart: Dec. 1999 No surprise here. Following up the once-greatest racing game ever with the new greatest racing game ever means few copies left on store shelves. Tomorrow Never Dies (000€O) PUBLISHER: EA Last 173 GENRE: ACTION Retease Date: Nov. 1999 It seems that a lot of you saw The World is Not Enough and put this latest Bond game on your Christmas list. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater (00000 PUBLISHER: ACTIVISION Last MONTH: 4 GENRE: SPORTS RELEASE Date: Sept. 1999 You know you've got a great skating game when it out-sells all other sports titles, period. NBA Live 2000 (00000 Ривизнек: EA Last MONTH: 2 GENRE: SPORTS RELEASE Dare: Nov. 1999 After taking a year off due to last season's strike, plenty of b-ball fans are eagerly picking up this popular franchise's return. Spyro the Dragon (00000) PUBLISHER: Sony CEA Last MONTH: 6 GENRE: ACTION RELEASE Date: БЕРТ. 1998 A low price coupled with a quality sequel have helped move Spyro's first adventure into the top five for the first time ever. 5 a Gran Turismo (00009) PUBLISHER: SONY CEA. Last MONTH: 9 RELEASE Dare: May 1998 Crash Team Racing (00009 PUBLISHER: Sony CEA Lasr MONTH: 3 RELEASE Date: Ост. 1999 Resident Evil 3 Nemesis ©0000 PUBLISHER: CAPCOM Last 7 RELEASE Date: Nov. 1999 Frogger (00000) PUBLISHER: HASBRO Lasr Момтн: 13 RELEASE Date: Ост. 1997 Toy Story 2 (00000) PUBLISHER: ACTIVISION Last MONTH: - Revease Date: Nov, 1999 0 Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! 00000 PUBLISHER: Sony CEA Last 7 RELEASE Date: Nov. 1999 PUBLISHER: SONY CEA Last 7 RELEASE Dare: Nov. 1998 93 Ө @ B Crash Bandicoot: Warped B Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation 00000 PUBLISHER: EIDOS INTERACTIVE LAST MONTH: - RELEASE РАТЕ: Nov. 1999 Driver ©0000 PUBLISHER: GT INTERACTIVE Last MONTH: 10 RELEASE Date: JUNE 1999 Рививнев: EA Last Момтн: 12 RELEASE Date: Auc. 1999 @ madden NFL 2000 B Rugrats ©0000 PusLisHER: THQ Last Момтн: — RELEASE Date: Nov. 1998 Twisted Metal 4 00000 Рививнек: 989 STUDIOS Last MONTH: — RELEASE Dare: Nov. 1999 B A Bug's Life 00000 PUBLISHER: Sony CEA Last Момтн: 17 RELEASE Date: Nov. 1998 (8) Medal of Honor ©0000 PuBLISHER: EA Last Момтн: 15 RELEASE Date: Nov. 1999 20! Pac-Man World ©0000 PUBLISHER: NAMCO Last Момтн: 14 Revease Date: Ост. 1999 Source: NPD TRSTS Video Games, December 1999. Call them at (516) 625-2345 for questions about this list. Note: Мо games for competing console systems (e.g., N64, Sega Dreamcast, etc.) were included. Overall sales figures may vary. Game descriptions are written by the OPM staff. ЈОНИ McCLANE STUNT оду #54 | “STEPPED ON PROXIMITY MNE ye ROULETTE TABLE WHILE BATTLING TERRORIST sihe us VIVA LAS VEGAS тм News A monthly wrap-up of all the information for your favorite system Clockwise from top left: Front Mission 3, Hot Shots Golf 2 and Ace Combat 3 Electrosphere. “Expendable ана Ultimate Fightin ETE All release dates are tentative and subject to change. More information on all future releases will be given as it becomes available. 4 c о = с ~ un > ә 5. GOOD LUCK. YOULL NEED IT. McCLANE IN EXTREME DRIVING MODE. JOHN McCLANE is BACK. AND LAS VEGAS WILL NEVER BE THE SAME, IN DIE HARD TRILOGY 2 you CAN PLAY YOUR FAVORITE GAME OR Mx ALL THREE GAME STYLES INTO ONE INTENSE ADVENTURE, YOUR ENEMIES HAVE ADVANCED AL, SO (Туи TAKE 60TH STRATEGY AND 5кіш To SAVE HOSTAGES WHILE TRYING ТО SAVE your дим Витт. USE TWELVE DIFFERENT WEAPONS То BATTLE ENEMY TERRORISTS, WHOSE Five DAMAGE QUADRANTS MAKE THEM TOVGH To DROP, For mature audiences only. www.foxinteractive.com idemarks of Twentieth Century Fox . The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. MATURE у (с ш a - oe - MeL Animated Violence 5 : an ; № GAMERS UND _њЊ 7 NO EXCEPTIONS Strong Language CONTENT RATED BY ESRB ECW is a trademark of HHG, Corp. ECW Hardcore Revolution" and Acèlaim® © 1999 Acclaim Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Developed by Acclaim Studios Зай Cake City АИ Rights Reserved: TNA sid tho TNN logo are registered trademarks of Network Enterprises Inc. Nintendo, Nintendo 64 and tho "М logo are trademarks of Nintendo of America Inc, © 1996 Nintendo of America Inc, Licensed by Nitendo, PayStatioh and the PlayStation lagos داوېهد trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment ne. Screen shots shown were taken from the PlayStation version о! the video game. к МАТУВЕ SU 5 Animated Violence NO GAMERS | | NO 6586 Strong Language 2 PlayStation CONTENT RATED BY ESRB ECW is a trademark of HHG, Corp. ECW Hardcore Revolution™ and Acclaim® © 1999 Acclaim Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Developed by Acclaim Studios Salt Lake City. АН Rights Reserved. ТАМО and the TNN logo are registered trademarks of Network Enterprises, Inc. Nintendo, Nintendo 64 and the "N" logo are trademarks of Nintendo of America Inc. © 1996 Nintendo of America Inc. Licensed by Nintendo. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Screen shots shown were taken from the PlayStation version of the video game. 4% , PTIUNS 5 و IN lago are registered trademarks of Network ire registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. MATURE [o Animated Violence Strong Language CONTENT RATED BY ‘Served, Déveloped by Acclaiin Studios Salt Lak ıd the PlayStation logo: ECW їз a trademark of HHG, Corp. ECW Hardcore Revolution™ and Арсіаітт © 1999 Acclaim Entertainment, Iie. پس Enterprises, Inc. Nintendo, Nintendo 64 and the ^N* logo are trademarks of Nintendo of America Inc. © 1996 Nintendo'ol America lac. Licensed Бу Ninténdd. PlayStation Screen shots shown were taken from the PlayStation version of the video game. КҮКЕ, 6Р5 HP 45/58 96% چچ (Kems became 2 Wood Saddle MEET MONSTERS 24F w19 Fp 140110 نم ENCOUNTER ALLIES ЖЕТ СЕТ ІО5Т іп this amazing new adventure starring FINAL 5 Chocobo and many other familiar characters. Explore and battle in a variety of mysterious dungeons which randomly change each time you enter them. Challenge dangerous monsters. Discover your companion’s secrets. Recover untold magical treasures. he You may never see daylight again. © 1998, 2000 Square Co., Ltd. All rights reserved. FINAL FANTASY, SQUARE sat uci 325۸ RE. SOFT * SOFT, and the SQUARESOFT logos аге registered trademarks of Square Co., EVERYONE | Ltd. Chocobo's Dungeon is a trademark of Square Co., Ltd. U.S. Patent No. MILD ANIMATED VIOLENCE || 5390937, 5649862. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered حح Vis تش نا www. squaresoft.com trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a PlayStation Published by Square Electronic Arts L.L.C. trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. hugely elaborate affairs requiring more than mere sword-boppery. As far as story goes, you'll find Alundra 2 to be a much more good- natured affair than the melodramatic and apocalyptic tale that drove the first title. Our hero, Flint, is a young swordsman framed by a group of air pirates for a crime he didn't commit. In the rather wacky opening encounter, he causes their mecha- nized birdcraft to plummet from the sky, along with his poor self. Awakening on shore, he is rescued by a headstrong young princess who needs his assistance in dealing with a rogue Baron and an evil wizard who're using magical keys to create a legion of androids. Strange? Sure is, but it's also part of the charm. Although it really isn't a spiritual successor to Alundra, Part 2 has enough of that Matrix panache to make it one of the more interesting action-RPGs on the horizon. Alundra 2 Theme: RPG # of Players: 1 Availability: Spring 2000 Developer: Matrix/Contrail URL: www.activision.com It’s Alundra...without Alundra? cerebral action-RPG fans. And although Working Designs won't be lending their trademark translation style to this Alundric outing, rest assured that Activision is doing a class act with the sequel. In fact, they've gone as far as to hire the same professional voice talent that spoke for Metal Gear Solid—this def- initely isn't a typical RPG rush job. The world of Alundra 2 is definite- ly different this time around: Flint and his enemies are in full 3D, as are the environments he traverses. That's for the better, since it allows for trick- ier puzzles and better special effects, while still maintaining the tight con- trol that defines Climax/Matrix-devel- oped action-RPG titles. Of course, this Alundra is distin- guished by the fact that a lot of time and effort has gone into making the play intriguingly diverse: Not only are there over 10 distinct mini- games, but boss encounters are 2 д Bandicoot 4, starring Korky the Koala. Super Mario Brothers X, featuring two chubby French electri- cians named Jean and Claude. A Zelda title, minus Link. It'd be a little odd, eh? Well, incongruity didn't stop Matrix from developing a sequel to their successful action-RPG title Alundra, minus the title’s epony- mous hero. Alundra 2, the follow-up to the Working Designs-published hit, stars a pluckly lad named Flint, in a world rather different from that of the first title. No doubt this will cause fans some con- I magine, if you will: Crash sternation, but rest assured: و bi | izarre choice in naming aside, this game features all the devious puzzles and clever level design that made the first Alundra such a favorite among more ie 1 4 Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Alundra 2’s cast of pirates provide comic relief. You see, when you have a game whose villain impales living creatures with magic wind- up keys to turn them into mechanized monsters, it’s good to have a laugh every now and then. TIME:889 HP:50 FLINT:2 #2: The Shooter: It’s Robotron 2084, baby! Guide a tiny dart-firing Flint about, dodging bullets and kamikaze enemies, while capturing coins and blasting baddies. Watch those hit points, though, or you'll wind up mon- ster food. #3: The Run: Think Pac-Flint, with one monster. Grab all the coins, but don’t smack into the critter you share the maze with or your coin-gob- bling days come to a tragic conclusion. BET:0020 МАР:01 6ЕТ:0000 Mini Games In Alundra 2’s Casino area (hey, every RPG has to have one), you can play a number of slick little minigames, loosely based off of classic arcade games. As you play, you can rack up medals which can later be redeemed for goodies. Some are pretty pricey, though; you’d better start beefing up your joystick skills now if you want that 2,500 medal item! Here’s a rundown of what to expect: #l: The Rally: Flint takes to the asphalt in this miniature racer reminis- cent of Super Sprint and RC Pro Am. Skate around twisty tracks, but don't hit the walls—seems those puppies are nine-tenths nitroglycerine! СТӨ, March 2000 Official U.S. (MENAS f • THE ARCADE FANTASY FIGHTER FROM THE INCREDIBLE COMIC BOOK SERIES * CLASSIC JAPANESE, COMIC BOOK STYLE ANIMATION COMBINED WITH CAPCOM'S SIGNATURE GAMEPLAY • EXPERIENCE SUPER STORY MODE LOADED WITH MINI-GAMES AND OTHER DANGEROUS QUESTS * UNLEASH YOUR CHARACTER'S INNER PERSONA IN THE FAMOUS STAND ATTACK Animated Violence Suggestive Themes 4 е 24 PlayStation ғ RPG 1 Spring 2000 Square Square EA www.squaresoft.com Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Front Mission 3 The weird and wonderful world of Wanzer warfare despite the zillions of numbers and options, you'll be navigating through your pilot roster and arse- nal like a pro in no time. Front Mission 3 is an extremely detailed game, featuring a wealth of play options and customizabili- ty sure to delight micromanage- ment fanatics. Those who enjoy assiduously developing characters will love the game's mechs, called "Wanzers" (VAHN-zers), which allow for an incredible level of customization and weapons load- out. The battles are intricate turn- based affairs, often featuring mul- tiple objectives, and a ranking sys- tem at the end of each fight eval- uates your performance, so you'll really need to make smart tactical choices, using the terrain and obstacles to your advantage. Skilled tacticians will find them- selves amply rewarded for their clever maneuvers, while strategic chumps will find themselves on the wrong side of the trash com- pactor. With all this depth, there's little doubt that Front Mission 3 is one of Square's strongest offerings in quite some time. tional affairs after his adopted sis- ter disappears following a bizarre explosion at a military base in Japan. With his friend Ryogo and a mysterious woman named Emma, he sneaks into the establishment, only to discover a terrifying secret that threatens to set the entire world of the 22nd century at war. Key decisions by the player at this point can lead to the ensuing battle being played from the per- spective of either side, with a completely different set of missions and cast of supporting characters for each. That's bang for the buck, folks; you're required to play this bad boy through twice just to see all the game has to offer and see each side's unique angle on the complex plot. The graphics, of course, are solid, although they lack the clari- ty of those found in FF Tactics. Weapons effects, especially those of high-level weapons and special attacks, are exceptional, and the detailed mech designs add a solid dose of realism. The interface, fortunately, is up to the task of making the game's inherent complexity accessible; HP bars, each for a vital area of the Wanzer and its attacks which boost accuracy or target the pilot specifically enable you to really dish it to your foes, but watch out: The enemy can often do ut of the blue, Square EA surprised everyone by announcing a Stateside release of the third installment from Square's extremely popular mech tactics game series, Front Mission. This can be considered a bit of an event because the first two titles sold rather well in Japan when they were released for the SNES, yet a U.S. release was utterly neglected. Now, would-be tactical geniuses іп the U.S. can see what all the hype was about in our native language, thanks to a more receptive climate. For those for whom this preview will be their first encounter with this ven- erable series, here’s a recap: Imagine the general feel of other tactical RPGs, such as Final Fantasy Tactics and Tactics Ogre, but with mechs and all the details that come with piloting a large bipedal chunk of titanium. Front Mission 3 is the latest in this series, and is one of the deepest titles Square has ever developed. The game starts by placing you in the role of hotheaded test pilot Kazuki Takemura, who inexpertly gets himself embroiled in interna- Tactics 'R' Us expend all your AP in one turn; if the enemy is close, you'll need a few points left over to deliver a coun- terstrike. Both you and your foes have a number of pilot. Sp the same to you. Choose your attack wisely. Missiles can deliver massive impact damage at range, but if the enemy is close, you'll wanna issue a metal knuckle beatdown. For sheer punch-and-scatter dam- age, nothing beats a high-powered shotgun or flechette cannon. Don't let all these numbers frighten you. A smart general will keep his beady little eyes on the percentage chance to hit, and the line-of-sight marker to ensure that they get the biggest hit at the right time. If you've played Final Fantasy Tactics, you'll feel right at home with Front Mission 3's turn-based battle system. While it doesn't share the ATB timing prin- ciple, it still takes place on a 3D grid-based map, with similar height- and terrain-based considera- tions. The entire shebang is governed by Action Points (AP), which regulate your ability to move and perform other actions. It's not always a good idea to March 2000 Official 0. АРУ اه Old flames di out, but Ican always make new ones. Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Street Fighter ттт appearance іп the EX series. There are also new bonus rounds scattered through the normal game which can be played in their own mode. A new feature in the game engine is the EX move which is basically the same thing as custom com- bos from Alpha 2 and 3. As with the original, there will be endings and other secrets to unlock as you get through the game. Unique to this version is the director’s mode which allows you to edit replay data to make your own movies. How much players will toy with it is any- one's guess though. 7 RES $- Lis қ TENS 59 بت — А Я EX 2 Theme: Fighting # of Players: 1-2 Availability: March 2000 Developer: Arika Publisher: Capcom URL: www.capcom.com t was a long time С but the follow up to the first Street Fighter in 3D is final- ly coming to the PlayStation. Street Fighter EX 2 was origi- nally released in the arcades on what is essentially a PlayStation, so it seemed a speedy conver- sion was all but assured. The technical aspects were never a problem so it was basically a timing thing that gamers had to wait around for. Fortunately, this highly anticipat- ed sequel seems to have been worth the wait. The first EX title was known for how blocky the character builds were, so Arika went and smoothed out the polygons for a nice clean look. They went the extra step and added lots more moving fabrics to them as well, making for a lot more eye candy. Four brand-new fighters join the fray along with old favorites Vega, Blanka and Sagat who are making their first REAL COMBAT. PLASTIC МЕМ." RATING PENDING Chun-Li gives Sagat a little some- thing to remember her by. эро www.armymen.com “> PlayStation Мел, and their respective logos, PlayStation and the Plays idemarks belong to their respective owners Theme: Racing # of Players: 1-2 Blue Shift Midway Publisher: URL: www.midway.com Нусіго Thunder Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Availability: Spring 2000 Develope: A splashy arcade racer sure to float your boat That volcano in the distance isn't just for looks. Sooner or later, you're going to be leaping into the mouth of the Fire God him- self. Just watch out for the mon- keys on the way. As mentioned in the preview proper, one of the best parts of Hydro Thunder is its superlative track design. A few of the highlights you'll want to watch for include: Crazed fishermen, swarms of orcas, and a spectacular leap off an iceberg into the belly of a modern-day Titanic are the highlights of the begin- ner's course. Learn to master the Hydro Jump here and gain access to a secret route that slides through a series of ice tunnels to give you a major leap on the competition. This intermediate course starts out tame enough, in a small Greek villa, but later has you ripping through ruins and screaming down shattered aque- ducts, only to finish with a leap over a cruising yacht. Those with a quick eye will spot the hidden route in the underground ruins, which can lead to an instant gain in position. Arguably the best course in the game, Lake Powell finds the Hydro Thunder racers pursued by nautical cops out to stop the fun. A ramp off of Hoover Dam will lead to one of the most gut-wrenchingly spec- tacular drops in a game—just don't hit the helicopters on your way down! A massive storm rides over the ocean currents as you navigate through treacherous waves and an entire Sargasso Sea's worth of sunken vessels. Highlights include a ride through a ruined aircraft car- rier and the biggest waves this side of a Seattle Seahawks' halftime. An eye-bursting special effects extrav- aganza that features a huge dimensional rift into an alternate Egyptian universe where massive gods lord over the competition and a magical tempest holds court upon the waves. Don't let the laser light show distract you from the collapsing ruins! arcade mentality. Aside from some impressive water physics, there's very little that's sim-like to be found in Hydro Thunder, and that's the game's strength—freed from the confines of dull realism, the level design has run amok, creating some of the most bril- liant track designs seen in a racing game. From tearing off of a 500-foot dam on Utah's Lake Powell to sprinting through the submerged subway tunnels of a post-apocalyptic New York, this game's whimsical levels sport ridiculous jumps, insane secret routes and stunning scenery galore. If your nautical skills are up to par, you'll unlock more tracks and boats, each more wild and imaginative than the last. The PlayStation version sports two tracks not seen in the arcade version, one of which is a midnight romp through a sunken castle. The PlayStation version also promises a full two-player mode of the split- screen variety, although the price paid to bring the frame rate up to snuff may be a bit steep. The Dreamcast version's two-player mode suffered from severe choppiness due to somewhat subopti- mal code; let's hope the PS version doesn't share a similar fate. With a little work, Hydro Thunder PS could be one of the snazzier arcade conversions available this spring; from what we've seen so far, things are shap- ing up well for fans of the over-the-top arcade racing title. waves in arcades around the country with its high-adrenaline maritime hijinks and outrageous track design. Now, at long last, it's making its way home to the PlayStation, courtesy of Midway and developer Blue Shift, promising all the intense water-bound thrills of the original. However, it's no secret that the arcade version was quite a visual monster, and begs the question as to whether the PlayStation is up to the task of doing justice to such a graphically lush title. Well, Blue Shift has done their best to re-create the feel of the arcade ver- sion, and it shows. Although the frame rate is rather iffy as of this beta, and the game is decidedly low-res, almost all of the detailed track structures and special effects remain in the game. In fact, unlike its Dreamcast cousin, this version actually has rippling reflections and more accurate track layouts. Seems the extra time taken with this version has paid off—this is no San Francisco Rush job! The sound is also more robust and accurate than the aforementioned conversion to Sega's next-gen console, with all of the voice effects and clips from the arcade intact. For those who haven't had a chance to play one of the better arcade offer- ings of 1999, let's get you up to speed: Hydro Thunder is an all-out, balls-to- the-wall boat racing title with a very L* year, Hydro Thunder made Become the terror of penguins everywhere. Official 0,54 مه این March 2000 Always preferred. my weapon to my woman anyway. An early look at the games of tomorrow Previews Deception lll: Dark Delusion Strategy 1 March 2000 Tecmo Tecmo www.tecmoinc.com creatively depraved ways of setting up series of traps to brutally slaugh- ter your opponents. Like the past two games in the Deception series, you have to protect yourself from various would-be kidnappers, ransom- seekers and other riffraff by carefully placing these traps and then luring your attackers to their destruction. The challenge lies in linking together multiple traps for powerful combo attacks (which also net you more points), or using hazards within a room, like falling chandeliers and flam- ing furnaces. As you progress through the game, you can use your points to build better traps. With 300 different death devices and thousands of combo setups, Deception III looks like it may add another layer of dis- turbing depth to this dark series. BUT UTOR ARROW SLIT 6) SPRING FLOOR S ~ 569 hink of the most gruesome T way to kill someone. Need some help? OK, how about crushing said person's spine with an enormous boulder, or splicing his body with a sharp swinging pendulum, or even running that poor sap into a wall of spikes. Not bloody enough? Well, how about combining all three meth- ods for a truly torturous mess. If that sounds like good whole- some fun, then Deception Ш: Dark Delusions may be just the game for you. And if it doesn't— well, Tecmo ain't too соп- cerned. “This isn’t a game for everyone,” says John Inada, Tecmo’s mar- keting manager. "It's not for the fainthearted; it's for the hardcore.” He's not kidding. After all, the gameplay in Deception III focuses on finding the most MADE NI ті Ока) ими REAL COMBAT. PLASTIC МЕХ." Я | 300 Ме | WWW.armymen.com How to build a better bear trap: (1) take your standard bear trap, (2) add a Thunder Emblem, (3) then viola—you've got a Thunder Claw. Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Armored Core:Master of Arena Theme: Action # of Players: 1-2 Availability: Q1 2000 Developer: From Software Publisher: Agetec URL: www.agetec.com Although the visuals haven't changed much since the first AC, they're still pretty darn good. or less around arena combat, the designers have provided you with the ability to customize your opponents, building their arsenal and setting their AT level. While these custom battles don't help your progress in the one-player game, they do allow for a more flexible level of replayability. As a bonus, the. game's second disc can be used for link play, so your pals won't have to cough up the dough for their own copies if you want to do a little linked-up head-to- head combat. At this time, Master of Arena is just more of the same, with the difficulty pumped up into. the stratosphere. If you're a fan of the first two titles and want to put your skills as a Raven to the ultimate test, Master of Arena looks to provide perfect fodder for your mech fetish. fights can get to be quite gru- elling. If you win, you can net yourself some serious credits, and maybe even a specialized part or two. As with Project Phantasma, you can import your mech from the previous titles in the series, and equip it with selections from over 170 new parts to create the uber- mech of your dreams. Nineteen new missions and 1507 plus arena combatants make this more than a mere expansion disk, although the graphics and sound are little changed. Most of the missions are longer and more arduous than those found in the first title, and sport better level design. If Master of Arena features any significant improvement over previous AC titles, it lies in the game's multiplayer mode. Since the title is centered more rmored Core, From As slick mech battle title, has become a bit of a cult classic. This suc- cess has led AC publisher Agetec to publish the "expansion" titles here in the US: the earlier Project Phantasma, and now the robust Master of Arena. As the title would suggest, Master of Arena is largely about battling foes in the arena to prove your superiority. Be warned, though—your орро- nents are no slouches and the The Flintstones Bedrock Bowling E 53 ес (scattered about the course), col- lect a specified number of crystals, and clear the track of giant, squawking birds. Not that it'll Бе easy, mind you; you have to avoid drop-offs, hungry dinosaurs, lava, barrels of dynamite, and various other track-specific dangers. Hey, nobody said bowling was a safe sport. Sometimes, a little weirdness can add a lot of character to a game—just look at the success of Sony's PaRappa the Rapper. If Adrenalin and Southpeak can pull through with Bedrock Bowling by adding play depth and technique, they may just have a niche classic on their hands. clad nancy boys to feel it. Or so the premise of Adrenalin Entertainment's forthcoming "Bedrock Bowling" title appears to be, since it doesn't share much in common with the more traditional sport of today. In many ways, this game could be described as the spiritual successor to the "slide" portions of Mario 64, only more fleshed out and detailed. Taking their cue from the Flintstones license, Adrenalin has crafted a large number of unique tracks for would-be cavemen to bowl them- selves down, each featuring a par- ticular theme and hazards. Along the way, you'll be challenged to knock down the requisite ten pins Ruse 259 [t гө Щи замо 5% ншы que د $ з Ithough anyone who has А: the classic Hanna- Barbera cartoon has seen Fred and Barney bowl on more tra- ditional lanes, we now know that their unfettered caveman machis- mo led them to participate in “bedrock bowling,” the original X- sport, unbeknownst to their cave- man wives. Back then, men were men, and weren't afraid to luge through the most dangerous of prehistoric environs in a hollowed out half-bowling ball, collecting mysterious crystals and thwacking pins placed in their way. All of this, in the name of a caveman adrena- lin rush so powerful that it would choke today’s knock-kneed suit- LN ё شه Theme: Sports # of Players: 1-8 Availability: March 2000 Developer: Adrenalin Entertainment Publisher: Southpeak Interactive URL: www.southpeak.com Ft 29 TIN PPPA سوا = юбо хг Шынын Hey, Mr. I'm-So-Civilized, why don't March 2000 Official U.S ЕЕ ө] СТӨ YOU try sliding down the interstate іп a half-sphere? Come to think of it, why don’t YOU build a record player using a turkey and some rocks, too? ЖУ i 1 МАЗТЕК ОҒ АКЕМА 16 jate С. Jc. Armored Core ва I ot Sony Computer Entertainment America Ine: The ratings icon is a нк of the Interactive Digital Software Association. <> PlayStation lo Нес in. 800 Veterans Вы cmp Sot lec logo, and Master eats by Son a : cate so ВВ iste айтал, \ rights reserved. EA SPORTS isan Electronic Arts™ brand. NASCAR is a registered tr License. "Bobby Labonte” and “Tony Stewart" name and likeness used under license fro mputer Entertainment America for use, with the PlayStation, gaitieconsdle. PlayStation а Association. The ratings icon is a registered trademark of the Interactive Digital Softwa Arts. EA SPORTS and the EA SPORTS Jogo are trademarks or registered trademarks"ef Electronic Arts in the U.S. and/or other countries lity Care and Ford Credit are used under license trom Ford Motor Company. Dale Jarrett and Robert Yates Racing trademarks are used under images, track names, \габетагк and Other intellectual property are used under license from their respective owners. Licensed by Sony Entertainment ) 2000 Electi Racing, Inc. саг team, an of Sony Cor 229 PlayStation EVERYONE CONTENT RATED BY EXTREME NASCAR® RACING — Over 45 NASCAR cars, stars, ick lock rucks, and legends. Un | sweet саг upgrades and bonus 3 vehicles as you ۰ E. E % سا (Бу ныгы Қ Quality: 7 مالسا 3 ШЕ” duo 4 Н THE HIGHWay — ead 'ет off at the pass wi with Shortcuts, get big air off jumps, and earn extra tracks unti ntil you rule ом 20 open road Courses, ы MAKE "ЕМ PAY — Blast your opponents with power ups ing Wi ister ог —send them flying with a twis! 1 um roar away with nitro jets. National Association for Stock Car Auto (015, © 1999 Redline Sports. All other lation logos are registered trademarks www.easports.com Triple Play 2001 Just in time for the 2000 season comes this latest install- ment to EA Sports’ Triple Play fran- chise. Perhaps the most noticeable addition is the inclusion of all-time greats like Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Ted Williams. Player models have also been tweaked, with more accurate graphic represen- tations of many superstars. All players feature their signa- ture batting and pitching styles, and don't be surprised if the computer offers a midseason trade. There are even several new animations, including an umpire argument! Publisher Electronic Arts Developer Treyarch Theme Sports # of Players 1-2 URL: www.easports.com Jedi Power Battles LucasArts tries to redeem their mediocre first attempt at a game based on Episode I with Jedi Power Battles. As one of five Jedi Knights (Obi-Wan Kenobi, Qui-Gon Jinn, Mace Windu, Plo Koon or Adi Gallia), you and a friend can fight your way through 10 levels of Trade Federation minions and Sith forces, including Darth Maul. Each Jedi has differ- ent abilities and can use their lightsaber, items or the Force against foes. The game is slotted for a spring release. (We'll believe it when we see it.) Publisher LucasArts Developer LucasArts Theme Action # of Players 1-2 URL: www.lucasarts.com Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Rock the Rink In the spirit of the Genesis’ Mutant League games, EA's Rock the Rink fea- tures fast-paced, three-on-three hockey with absolutely no penalty box. Use опе of nine new teams оп a variety of rinks to slam and bash the street-tough NHL clubs. Look for it this spring. -- ADEK ? Г Theme Sports # of Players 1-8 URL: www.ea.com Publisher Electronic Arts | Developer Electronic Arts Major League Baseball 2001 The first Fox entry into the plethora of Play-Station baseball games aims to emulate an actual “MLB on Fox" telecast itself. Announcers Tim McCarver and Joe Buck call the play-by-play, with help from Fox Sports’ “Sounds of the Game” and the Fox Scope. The 3D engine boasts real- istic player control, and you can also expect most of the features of a modern baseball video game (create and trade players, lineup alteration, substitutions, etc.). Guide your favorite team to the World Series! ня ВА Official U.S. ان 420) March 2000 Theme Sports Publisher Fox Sports tt of Players 1-2 Developer Fox Sports URL: www.foxsportsinteractive.com "...еаѕіїу the most realistic апа challenging skater yet" Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine -August 1999 Over 100 tricks to pull. Legendary skate spots including China Banks, the Brooklyn Banks "олма E апа тоге. The best video game soundtrack ever compiled featuring. . . RUN DMC PUBLIC ENEMY A TRIBE CALLED QUEST GANG STARR AND MORE... лата ИО HRASHER PRESENTS WWW.ROCKSTARGAMES.COM = K are aD 2 =. ЕТ R 0) т www.skate destroy.com DEVELOPED BY | 22275 <> | | PlayStation Graphics and gameplay appear similar to other popular espionage games like Syphon Filter and Metal Gear Solid—you search the train for clues, keys, weapons and other items while keeping the ene- mies at bay. You can fight with both your bare hands and various weapons, including John Woo- style dual pistols. Also promised are various mini-games (disarming а bomb, shooting down terrorist gunships) and over 50 minutes of FMV cutscenes. No word yet on а U.S. release, but this one seems too big for someone not to bring over. Theme Adventure # of Players 1 Availability Now Developer Sugar & Rockets Theme Shoot 1# of Players 1-2 Availability Spring Developer Taito the express train Blue Harvest mid- way through its non-stop journey from St. Petersburg to Paris. The train is not only carrying the French ambassador and his family (all of whom the terrorists have taken hostage), but also many priceless art objects the Soviets recaptured from the Germans during World War II. Now the bad guys are demanding $2 billion from the French government and claim they'll set off a nuclear war- head if they don’t get it. Your job, as U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Jack Morton, is to get on the train, res- cue the ambassador and his family, disarm the warhead, and stop the terrorists. All іп a day's work, right? arcade shooting action for the PlayStation. In addition to the lock-on system carried over from the previous installments, Crisis adds the interestingly titled "Penetration Ratio"—a percentage that increases with each enemy you don't destroy. If the ratio reaches 100% you have to fight a boss immedi- ately, even if it's right in the middle of a level. With three fight- ers to choose from (the third was hidden in the arcade), branching level paths, and pedi- gree of the two awe- some prequels before it, RayCrisis could be one of the last great PlayStation shooters. 56 هدد International Previews An early look at the games of tomorrow Sony СЕ Jumping Flash! developers Sugar & Rockets are taking on an entirely different genre in their latest release, the action/adventure title Chase the Express. Here's the setup: A group of ter- rorists calling themselves Knights of the Apocalypse have attacked The third edition to the popular Taito series of "Ray" shooters (the other two came home as Ray Storm and the Saturn-only Galactic Attack), Ray Crisis is the latest in the ever-dwindling ranks of pure Quest 1 pic RPG is looking and better and better each time we see it, and there’s а great chance we will see it in the U.S. eventually, so we thought we'd take one more look at ОМИ soundi before its release (that is, unl it gets delayed for the 300th time). The most interesting gameplay feature revealed recently is the ability for you to change the "job," or class, of your characters during the game. In addition to more standard jobs like priest, warrior, shepherd or dancer, you can give your party "monster jobs," lending them the abilities of the wild creatures you defeat in your travels. Although previous Dragon Quests have included variations of this system, part VII promises more than double the amount of different classes to choose from than ever before. There's still no set release for this game, but Enix is promising it sometime this winter—keep your fingers crossed! Order OPM Back Issues ог Demo Discs Today! То order, simply send your order form indicating which issues you would like to: Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine Back Issues, Р.О. Box 3338, Oak Brook, IL 60522-3338 All requests must be paid for by check or money order ONLY, made payable to ZD Inc. (Please do not send cash.) The cost for each issue is as indicated on the order form PLUS shipping and handling. Shipping and handling charges for each magazine are as follows: $3 U.S., $3 Canadian and $5 foreign. All payments MUST be in U.S. funds. Prices and availability Volume 2 10 August 1999 Tarzan Lord of the Console Ape Escape Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: | Final Fantasy УШ, 3 Xtreme, Tiny Tank, Jade Cocoon, Macross VF-X 2, You Don't Know Jack, Centipede, Ultimate 8-Ball non-playables: Shao Lin, NFL GameDay 2000, NFL Xtreme 2 Volume 2 Issue 12-510 September 1999 EA sports vs. 989 studios Jade Cocoon Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: UmJammer Lammy, Sled Storm, Chocobo Racing, Pong, Monaco Gran Prix Racing non- playables: NFL GameDay 2000, NCAA Gamebreaker 2000, Vigilante 8: Second Offense, Thrasher, Toy Story 2 Volume 3 $10 October 1999 Final Fantasy VIII Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions, WipeOut 3, Omega Boost, NFL Xtreme 2, Jet Moto 3, Champion- ship Motocross, Toy Story 2, Bugs Bunny, Pac-Man World non- Rugrats, Countdown Vampires, Wu-Tang, Fighting Force 2, NHL FaceOff 2000, Medal of Honor, NBA Shootout 2000, Hot Wheels Turbo Racing Volume 4 10 November 1999 Tomb Raider 4 Crash Team Racing Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Grandia, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, Killer Loop, 40 Winks, NFL Blitz, Crash Bandicoot: WARPED, Cool Boarders 3 non- : Fear Effect, SuperCross Circuit, Demolition Racer, Kingsley's Quest, G-Police: Weapons of Justice [ | December 1999 PlayStation 2 Dino Crisis Strategy Demo Disc includes: Gran Turismo 2, Thrasher: Skate and Destroy, Test Drive Off-Road 3, Madden NFL 2000, NFL GameDay 2000, NCAA GameBreaker 2000, Cool Boarders 4, Demolition Racer non-playables: MTV Sports: Snowboarding, Twisted Metal 4, NCAA Final Four 2000 January وچ End of the World Buyers Guide Resident Evil 3 Strate: Demo Disc includes: anaes Dino Crisis, NHL FaceOff 2000, NBA Basketball 2000, Tarzan, ‘Army Men: Air Attack, WCW Mays : Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, International Track & Field 2000 Volume 3 Issue 5-510 February 2000 "Wrestling Roundup Medal of Honor Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Tomba! 2: The Evil Swine Return, Tomb Raider The Last Revelation, SuperCross Circuit, MTV Sports Snowboarding, Ballistic, International Track & Field 2000 е : Medal of Honor, Hot Shots Golf 2 PlayStation ағ I Volume 2 Issue 3-$10 Metal Gear Solid Crash Bandicoot Strategy ето Disc includes: playables: Tomb Raider Ш, Crash Bandicoot: WARPED, Bomber- man World, A Bug's Life, Running Wild, Invasion From ond, Kagero: Deception II, Metal Gear Solid, Gran Turismo, non:playables: Silent Hill, Knockout Kings, lig Air Volume 2 Issue 4-510 January 1999 Gex Deep Cover Gecko Tomb Raider Ш Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Silent Hill, Moto Racer 2, Brave Fencer Musashi, Apocalypse, T'ai Fu non-playables: Rugrats, Test Drive: Off-Road 2 Volume 2 Issue 6-510 Г | March 1999 PlayStation Dictionary 2365 Filter Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Syphon Filter, Bust А Groove, Shadow Madness, Fisherman's Вай, Akuji the Heartless, No One Can Stop Mr. Domino Sk8er non-playables: NCAA Final p “99, Guardian's Crusade Volume 2 Issue /-510 April 1999 The Year of the RPG Silent Hill Strategy R4: Ridge Re Racer Type 4, WCW/nWo Thunder, Rollcage, Warzone 2100, Rugrats: Search for Reptar non-playables: Legend of Legaia May 1999 Star Wars: Episode I-The Phantom Menace Feature Legend of Legaia Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: И где Sede, Legend of Legaia, onte! non-playables: reme, Centipede, Driver, G Police 2, Gauntlet Legends Volume 2 Issue 9-$10 June 1999 Resident Evil 3 Nemesis Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Oddworld: Abe's Exoddus, NFL f Blitz, Bust-a-Move 4, R4: Ridge Racer Type 4, Elmo's Letter Adventure non-playables: Star Ocean: The РЕНЕ Story, Bloody Roar 2 bo 2000, July 1 m 25 Games You Must Pla Street Fighter Alpha 3 Strategy Demo Disc includes: plavables: Ape Escape, MLB 2 Next Tetris, Tony pun Pro ent PENA abu roc 2, Bloody Roar 2 non- مه سن Jet Moto 3, Xena: Warrior lacross VFX 2, Street Fighter | | December 1998 Issue 8-$10 Play 7 Мау 1998 و 10 Greatest PS Fighters 4 Tekken 3 Strate: 2 و Beg Demo Disc includes: playables: Einhánder, Gex: Enter the Gecko, Klonoa non-playables: Dead or Alive, Gran Turismo Issue 9-515 June 1998 Metal Gear Solid Preview Gran Turismo Review Demo Disc includes: playables: Cardinal SYN, Vigilante 8, Forsaken, №20, TOCA, Dead or Alive non- playables: Tomba, Jersey Devil Issue 10-57.99 July 1998 playables: Gran Turismo, Tombal, The Granstream Saga, Jersey Devil, NBA Shoot Out, Blasto, Speed Racer У : NFL Xtreme, MLB 99, Tekken 3 Issue 11-515 [ | August 1998 Metal Gear Solid Vigilante 8 Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Tekken 3, Turbo Prop Racing _ non-playables: Duke Nukem: Time to Kill, ځا Lunar: Silver Star Story, Ninja: Shadow of Darkness, Metal Gear Solid Issue 12-510 ІН September 1998 PlayStation's Birthday Elemental Gearbolt Strategy Demo Disc includes: : Spyro the Dragon, Duke Nukem: Time to Kill, WWF War Zone, The Unholy War, S.C.A.R.S. поп-ріауаЫеѕ: Metal Gear Solid, Rival Schools, Test Drive 5 Volume 2 uu 10 — £I Г | October 1998 Зер Spyro the Dragon Strategy ЧЕН» ~ سو Demo Disc includes: playables: Metal Gear Solid, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver, Test Drive 5, Devil Dice, Brunswick Bowling, Ninja, NFL Xtreme, Cool Boarders 3 поп- playables: Parasite Eve, Rival Schools, NFL GameDay 99 Issue 2—%7.99 | | November 1998 playables: MediEvil, WarGames Defcon 1 Dragon Seeds, б.а Future Cop L.A.P.D, Wars Vengeance поп- Crash Bandicoot: WARPED, Tenchu, Tai-Fu, Rugrats, Abe's Exoddus, Brave Fencer Musashi, You Don't Know Jack subject to change without notice. Issue 1-$15 [ | October 1997 Ghost in the Shell, Final Fantasy VII Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Intelligent Qube, PaRappa the Rapper, Ace Combat 2, Fighting Force 5 non-playables: Tomb Raider II, NFL GameDay 98 Issue 2-510 Г] Мометђег 1997 PaRappa the Rapper Bushido Blade Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Crash Bandicoot 2, Croc, Armored Core, Madden | NFL 98, Cool Boarders 2, Colony Wars non-playables: МНЕ FaceOff 98, Ghost in the Shell Cool Boarders Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Bushido Blade, Vs., Star Wars: Masters of Teräs Kasi, Jet Moto 2, Cardinal SYN, Ghost in the Shell, Moto Resident Evil 2 Feature Tomb Raider II Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: NFL GameDay 98, CART World Series, Frogger non-playables: Spawn, Final Fantasy Tactics, Pandemonium 2, бех 2 Issue 5-$10 Г | February 1998 Dead or Alive Feature 1997 OPM Editors’ Awards Demo Disc includes: les: NCAA GameBreaker 98, Tomb Raider II, Command & Conquer: Red Alert, Crime Killer non-playables: Pitfall 3D, Resident Evil 2 lame 8, Monster Rancher Issue 6-$7.99 [ | March 1998 Bloody Roar, Monster Rancher, Shipwreckers non-playables: Alundra, NBA Shoot Out 98, Saga Frontier, Mega Man Neo Issue 7-$10 April 1998 10 Overlooked PS Picks Resident Evil 2 Strategy Demo Disc includes: playables: Hot Shots Golf, Pitfall 3D, WCW Nitro, ONE non-playables: Blasto, The Granstream Saga AGONY. MADNESS. DEATH. CHEMIGALS HAVE THEIR SIDE EFFECTS. -NextGen The ability to deliver powerful psychic blasts! Master a totally unique arsenal of psychic abilities! They are your only defense against the sinister Galerians. -GameFan.com -GameProWorld.com ну. y Become totally immersed in a fully realized CARION 3D universe that is yours to explore, 105: МХ-)4 | yours to master – yours to obliterate! Nalacon=Psychokinesis p e SMS The ability to levitate and freeze matter! Over 50 hours of reality warping game- play, plus over 7o minutes of stunning cinematics that propel the gripping story. PlayStation In Stores March 2000! * You're in the Kill Zone. * Night Fight. Ри P= COMBAT 3 еерее * Lock and Load. FROM THE MAKERS OF AIR COMBAT EVERYONE a بوجو а Ка PlayStation “fd PlayStation) > = жа S March 0 )سه (о ٢171 1 PlayStation SFZ MARKS THE RETURN OF GABE LOGAN IN ONE OF THIS YEAR'S MOST ANTICIPATED lon lB 1 — For a game with little pre-release hype, no recognizable characters and one of the strangest names since Irritating Stick, the runaway success of 989 Studio's action/espionage title Syphon Filter surprised а lot of people— not the least of which was producer Darren Yager. “Oh yeah, definitely we were surprised. It was a new title, no one had ever heard of it before. The name's kinda ‘out there'—'Syphon Filter, what the hell is that?’ Maybe it was a good thing though, because people started asking questions about it. Then we started seeing some of the reviews and we were like, ‘Oh my god, we've got a hit on our hands.’ АП the work that we put into it finally paid off.” Now, exactly one year and over a million copies sold later, Darren and 989 are hoping for another big pay off with Syphon Filter 2, due this March. LAST TIME, ON SYPHON FILTER... Since Syphon 2 begins immediately after the ending of the first game, a quick recap of the original is probably in order. The story centered around Gabe Logan, special operative for a mysterious organization called "The Agency,” which seems to exist both inside and outside the U.S. government at the same time. His mission was to stop a terrorist group, lead by a man named Erich Rhoemer, from developing and deploying Syphon Filter, a deadly virus which could be genetically programmed to target only certain demographics or ethnic groups. Gabe eventually tracked Rhoemer to his base in Kazakhstan where he was preparing to launch a missile containing the virus and cause an international incident. Despite being betrayed by the Agency, Gabe succeeded in causing the missile to self-destruct in the outer atmosphere and killed Rhoemer. YOUR NEW MISSION: Just hours after exploding the missile, Gabe and his partner Lian Xing are preparing to leave Kazakhstan and travel back to the U.S. with important data on the Syphon Filter virus which could lead to a vaccine. But before they can leave, Agency operatives appear on the scene and take Lian hostage; she has contracted the virus and they need her blood to develop a new strain of Syphon Filter. Gabe escapes with the data and is headed to a safe location in Arizona when his transport plane is shot down over the Colorado Rockies. That's where Syphon 2 begins—Gabe parachuting into MACDONALD ILLUSTRATION BY 2РАСЕ Gabe and Lian are not only bei y, but are also wanted as terrorists by the FBI the snow-capped mountains, his first priority to find the wreckage of his downed transport plane and locate the data disc he left onboard. It won't be easy—both the Agency and the FBI are hunting him. That's the super-simplified version of the story—we won't even get into the bevy of new and returning characters and smaller story points here. This intricate and twisting story line (inspired by a mix of Tom Clancy and other spy novels, Jon Woo action movies, and terrorist thrillers like Die Hard) was a big part of what so many people loved about the first Syphon Filter, and luckily for fans the sequel's plot continues the tradition of double crosses, political intrigue and big surprises. It does so using cutscenes like the first game, but in Syphon 2 the story is more often advanced in real-time in the levels themselves. For example, you might be trying to sneak around two guards when you overhear them talking about their ambush for you farther up the road. Or as you try to sneak out of a hospital you come up on two Agency men interrogating a prisoner and learn vital information about their plans. These types of in-game plot points can hold keys to finishing levels, add objectives to your 2 бабе Logan | Levels Two hours from his scheduled rendezvous in Arizona, the C-130 transport plane carrying Gabe and his rag-tag collection of loyal soldiers is shot down over Colorado by Air-Force jets under orders from the Agency. Gabe and his men parachute down safely, but the discs con- taining the Syphon Filter virus data go down with the plane. You can actually control yourself You arent the only one taking Gabe shows off his neu in flight foc a few moments as you head shots anymore—these enemy jumping ability, leaping over this parachute doun. snipers can take you out with one waterfall chasm. vell-aimed bullet. The Agency has wired this bridge with explosives; they plan to blow it to trap Gabe and his men on the mountain, then bomb them with Sarin nerve gas. You've got two minutes to kill the Agency commander before he can give the order to blow the charges (without being spot- ted, of course], then disarm all the explosives planted under the bridge. Time for a little stealth action—use bho needs a light? The new Later you come acro: your knife and sneak up behind guards flamethrower burns right through а taken hostage. El: to silently slit their throats. line of enemy soldiers. real quiet-like. Gabe barely escapes another Agency ambush by leaping on to this passing train. Although it will take him closer to the crash site and lost data discs, the Agency has deployed a veteran RET (Retrieval and Elimination Team) to stop him. Want to see this level in action? Check it out yourself on the playable version on this month's demo CD! Use the stacked crates for cover, khen the train goes into an extended tun- An idiotic guard tosses د but watch out for guards hiding nel, slip on the nightvision goggles and grenade at a fuel tanker car, with among them. watch for enemies from all sides. predictable results. You finally make it to the burning wreckage of your transport plane, only to find Agency thug Archer and his men already there. These are no ordinary soldiers— they are armed with grenade launchers, sniper rifles, plan ambushes and take head shots. It's up to you to get to the discs before they do. Everyone who played the first game knows that one of, if not the, coolest part about Syphon Filter are all the different levels and mission objectives you are sent on: Rescuing prisoners, sneaking into or These aren't your average Agency sol- Archer is escaping with the discs! You Use the scattered plane debris as diers; bust out the sniper rifle and | cant let him get away-stop him somehow. shielding from snipers and enemy fire. take ‘em doun with some headshots. You have been placed іп a hospital facility on this military base in Colorado for testing. You must first locate your gear, then find a way out of the holding facility and off the base. It won't be easy—security is tight and you start off equipped with nothing but one of those flimsy hos- pital smocks. Also, airbase personnel think you're a terrorist and will fire on sight. Keep your ears open while you sneak Once you find your stuff it's time to get This plane is being refueled to go around the hospital—you-might overhear off the base. Keep out of the spotlights back after Gabe—sabotage it, then find some important info. to avoid setting off the alarm. your oun transportation off the base. This trendy Moscow nightspot is the setting for a meeting between Lian Xing and Russian military official Uri Gregorov, who has important information about the missing Syphon Filter data. But before they can meet, someone tries to kill Gregorov; his own bodyguards have turned against him. Chase after Gregorov but watch your back! à Don't let the disco lights and thumping Sneak through the ventilation ducts Solid Dont let your guard doun for a second, Gregorov's club music distract you. bodyguards are after him and you. Snake-style and eavesdrop on your enemies. mot even in the ladies bathroom. You're not the only one trying to find Gregorov. The Agency has sent their best assassin, Mara Aramov after him. His own bodyguards are still trying to kill him, and now the local Russian authorities are even in on the action. Make your way through the streets and rooftops of Moscow and take Gregorov alive—he's no good to you dead. Watch out for snipers with grenade It's а trap! Teo cars suddenly come speed- Use your nightvision when things get too launchers along the rooftops. ing down the alley at you-act fast! ‘dark and foggy to find your enemies. An informant critical to stopping the Syphon Filter virus has been taken prisoner in this secret Russian women's prison, and is scheduled for execution at midnight. Your job is to sneak into the prison, shut off the power and escort him out safely. (n your way toward rescuing the Youll have to sneak your way past Finding the prisoner is only half the prisoner, you can stop and help some and security cameras to make it into the mission—you still have to bust him out of the inmates out if you desire. inner part of the prison. and keep him from getting shot. missions, or even affect the overall course of the game. In fact there's so much voice work, cutscenes, and FMV throughout the game that Syphon 2's 20 levels fills up two CDs. So what else is new and improved for Syphon 2? Besides a slightly tweaked graphic engine and the all-new two-player mode (see page 71), one big addition would have to be a second playable character—Lian Xing. For the first series of missions in the game you trade off playing her and Gabe, where the action for both is actually taking place at ће same time, until they eventually meet back up Of course you'd expect new weapons, and Syphon 2 doesn't disappoint, with 10 new ways to take out the terrorists like a crossbow, flame thrower, and combat knife (which you can use to sneak up behind men and quietly slit their throats, John J. Rambo-style). Aiming grenades was somewhat of a sore spot in the first game—you never knew quite where they would land. But in Syphon 2 you are given a target crosshair you can adjust to put a pineapple exactly where you want it. You can also now walk in addition to slowly sneaking and running, and even jump, although not just anywhere—Gabe or Lian will automatically leap across certain distances when they get to the edge. And everyone who was frustrated by the lack of save points in the huge levels in the first game will be happy to hear you can now save to the memory card at every checkpoint throughout the missions. But perhaps the most significant and exciting upgrade 989 is touting for the sequel is the improved artificial intelligence. One complaint people had with Syphon Filter was that many times the bad quys would just stand there as you lined up shots and took them down one by one. It won't be so easy in Syphon 2. As Darren explains, "(the enemies) are a little smarter out of places, tracking suspects, and more. Here’s a sampling of levels from @ both playable characters in Syphon Filter @ 2 and a glimpse at the different gameplay @ aspects you experience in the game. ње the Syphon Filter universe, so here's a quick Ex-intelligence and communications expert for the agency, Lian was баһе 5 main contact in the first game. She would radio him constantly with information, recon data, news updates, sports scores— just about everything. Although she was presumed dead at one point, she was act ally just taken prisoner by Rhoemer; wi Gabe's help she managed to escape, but not before being infected by the Syphon Filter virus. Now in Syphon 2 she plays a much larger role as a playable character. A new character, this Russian military officer and friend of Lian's (they served together in Afghanistan) plays a huge role in Syphon 2. Uri shows up in Khazakhanstan at the start of the game and chases off the agency soldiers, but it's too late—Lian has been taken hostage. Later, when Gabe dis- covers that he doesn't have all the data he needs on the Syphon Filter virus, it turns out that Uri has the information he is look- ing for. Lian and Uri arrange for a meeting in Moscow but things don't go quite according to plan.... gunfire and dodging moving cars...it's really cool.” Even though Syphon 2 should be keeping us all busy for awhile, we couldn't help but wonder if we might be seeing Gabe and company again sometime soon. Yager wasn't promising anything, but sounded hopeful. “We'll have to see. Syphon 2's definitely a great game, and if it does аз well as Syphon 1, then most definitely.” So what's the plan once Syphon 2 سب ships? Start work and storyboards ШІ for Syphon 3? PlayStation2 tests? A Syphon Filter movie? Cartoon? Breakfast cereal? At least for now, Yager and the Syphon team have more practical concerns in mind— "Everyone's planning a three- month vacation, and that's about it." about the head shots now. They'll duck and roll to get out of the way, and we even have snipers and other guys who pop around corners and try to take headshots on you. Plus they act more as а group and stuff. They can trap you, set up ambushes—really screw you over.” Luckily for Gabe and Lian the bad guys aren't the only ones who got smarter in Syphon 2—many levels have you co- operating with a sidekick or various non- player characters who got an intelligence boost as well. "We've got really elabo- rate prescripted scenarios for the NPCs this time around; it will definitely seem like you're interacting with them...for example, in one point near the end of the game, the player, as Gabe, is in this really bad situation, and one of our new characters, Teresa, shows up to provide cover fire for him. They both end up rac- ing through this section, ducking enemy WHO? It's not easy to keep track of all the characters in |- С) ' п of most of the major players from SF1 and 2. The real brains behind the B Agency, this unnamed man (we just call him Mr. X for convenience's sake] is the one calling the shots. He co-ordinates the efforts of Aramov, Markinson [when he was alive) and now Stephens—he's basi- cally the big bad guy running everythin Although he showed up a couple times in the first game, he takes a more active role in Syphon 2, barking orders from the shad- owy recesses behind the big desk in his Washington D.C. office. Who exactly is he? And will we finally learn of his true identi- ty in Syphon 2? The new director of the Agency, Stephens took over as the public face for the group since Markinson was killed in the first game (but Mr. X is still the man really in charge]. Although he doesn't get along with Mara Arimmov and isn't afraid to show it, their goal 15 the same—acquire the secrets to the Syphon Filter virus and destroy Gabe Logan. The sexy ex-KGB assassin from Syphon 1 returns to play a major role in the sequel. As you may recall Mara was captured in the first game, escaped, was captured again and helped Gabe and Lian, then escaped again, and finally was captured once more at the very end of the game, only to show up after the credits at the Agency with Mr. X and a bunch of Pharcom- labeled boxes. Apparently she also had time in the hour or so between the two games to bleach her hair (it was red in Ѕурһоп1). A ruthless and efficient killer, Mara handles a lot of the Agency's dirty work and cannot be trusted (or captured for any decent amount of time apparently]. Another communications and intelligence expert, Teresa basically takes over Lian's role in the sequel, updating you with info throughout your missions. Gabe is on his way to meet her at a secure landing strip in Arizona when his plane is shot down in Colorado at the start of the game. Later on in Syphon 2, she even gets into the action as back-up for Gabe. CELEBRITY DEATHMATCH One of the biggest new features іп your favorite characters and locati mal, but now you have someone to gloat ov по too, just take a look: *28 different characters to choose from eadjustable armor strength (anywhere form 25% to 200%) eseparate controller setups for each player *horizontal or vertical splitscreen ith so many characters and settings to choose from, the possibilities for exciting Syphon Filter side stories as Paus for your multiplayer battles are almost endless! Here's just a few of our favorites to get you started: *20 different Le eturn headshots о eset time and/or score limit u- 100 m one BAG LADY GOOD LOVIN' GONE BAD {setting: Disco Basement) Former partners in crime, lovers, and now sworn enemies Bag Lady and Unit One face each other one last time in the basement of the Disco where they first met. Winner should stand over the lifeless body of the loser and scream “BAG LADY! (ог UNIT ONE!) WHAT HAVE I DONE?! | STILL LOVE YOU!", and start sobbing uncontrollably. IDENTITY: с | VLADIMIR GABREK EVIL ALTERNATE UNIVERSE FIGHT (зе па: Surreal) Relive the excitement of such epic battles as Superman vs. Bizarro Superman and Captain Kirk vs. Evil Captain Kirk with your own split uni- verse scenario. Ninja Gabe takes on normal Gabe, or Lian takes on Scuba Lian, or Scuba Lian takes on Ninja Gabe, or....well, you get the idea. Wewos Sree 00%) DR. ELLA WEISSINGER corese сә 1 ы TERRORIST =" TERRORIST OPERATIVE GENERIC BATTLE #01 (setting: Caves) The world isn't big enough for two types of nameless fodder footsol- diers—Terrorist and Agency Operative battle to the death to decide who is the real king of the generic enemies! (Winner can take on monk, evil scientist, or spook.) LAWRENCE |= Leper MUJARI نس | un corpse JOHNATHAN PHAGAN MALPRACTICE NIGHTMARE (setting: Pharcom incubator lab) The corpse is back to take revenge on Jonathan Phagan for helping develop the Syphon Filter virus. Add Resident Evil-esque moans ['Muhhuhhuh" ог "uuhh") and cow- ardly whimpering ("Stay away—STAY AWAY!" or "My beard!"], depending on which character you play, Гог added tension and excitement. CHOOSE YOUR ۳ Е < AGENCY OPERATIVE n JOHNATHAN PHAGAN RUSSIAN SCUBA BODYGUARD LIAN In ancient Egypt, it was common practice to have your internal organs removed and your brain pulled out through your nose. PlayStation Сома ће next tomb Lara Croft enters be herown? Find out in Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, her latest-ádventure. With seamlessly integrated gameplay and ЕМУ sequences,new.skin апа 3-р texture mapping, diabolical new puzzles and a totally new inventory control system this is a totally new Tomb Raider. Let's just hope it’s not Lara's last. b)» rur CN LAST REVELATION tombraider.com elles Rotate the detailed, fully 30 environtments to determine the best strategic moves and attacks Over 150 hours of intense strategy and combat with two intersecting storyline scenarios Upgrade your robot's weapons, computer, moves, and more - or simply capture and use а new one Position your fighting machines carefully, then do battle with an arsenal of ranged and melee weapons A HEAVY-DUTY STRATEGY EXPERIENCE TEEN SQUA RESOFT Ы © 1999, 2000 Square Co., Ltd. All rights reserved. SQUARE SOFT and the TEEN SQUARESOFT logos are registered trademarks of Square Co., Ltd. FRONT ANIMATED ERE www.squaresoft.com MISSION 3 is a trademark of Square Co., Ltd. PlayStation and the PlayStation
Official U.S ЕЗ магагпе! Gran TurismOo2's_ “We've Got Wheels Sweepstakes cL PlayStation www.playstation.com Enter to win a Mustang GT. Mail in your entry form by March 31, 2000 to win a Mustang GT! Mail to: Gran Turismo 2/5 “We've Got Wheels” Sweepstakes P.O. Box 510, Belmont, CA 94002-1029 Name Address City Zip RACING. ON A HIGHER LEVEL. ШІ prohibited or restricted by law. KES OFFICIAL RULES must be received by April ۵ nt America Ine. All manufacturers, cars names, brands and associated imagery featured in this game are trademarks andlor copyrighted materials of their respective owners. АП rights reserved. (01999 Sony Computer Entertainment inc. The Sony Computer Entertainment logo is a registered logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Gran Turismo is a trademark of Sony Computer En trademark of Sony Corporation. PlayStation and th i PlayStation | = Radical м idway Vibration Function Action لا Compatible PlayStation including his wall-flip kick. He also has some very cool throw moves that are very helpful in throwing persistent enemies off buildings and platforms. However, the enemies do not have a monopoly on falling off platforms, which you will immediately discover. I would guess that 85% of the deaths that occur in this game come from falling off some type of ledge, building, moving train or whatever. It wouldn't be so bad if the controls were tighter, but at times Jackie has a mind of his own and off you will go. There are also many issues with hit detection and overall collision factors that really should have been tuned up before release. It's truly a testament to how enjoyable the game is that it can overcome these flaws and still get a good rating. Jackie Chan Stuntmaster is great fun and will make a lot of fans out there happy— frustrated at times, but happy. — Wataru Maruyama JACKIE Jumping on and off these subway cars (above) is just one the many obstacles you'll dread in Stuntmaster. Falling into water runs a close second as the most annoying thing that can happen to you in the game. Box Score “The game is a combination Tons of funny voice of scrolling Fast-paced action Jackie's personality is fighting action captured very well and platform jumping that has a distinct- • Controls need work ly old-school You fall off things...all the time. Very annoying • Long loading times flavor to it.” 71 5 PlaySt Hey it’s Jackie Chan! Radical did a great job of capturing his movements and mannerisms. Reviews The final word—official and unbiased Jackie Chan Stuntmaster can still remember seeing this game almost two years ago and how excited I was that someone was making a new Jackie Chan game. (The last game to feature the acrobatic martial artist was the Turbografx title Jackie Chan Action Kung Fu, developed by Hudson). It's gone through many stages since then and for a while its future looked mighty shaky. I'm glad to report that Stuntmaster is a highly enjoyable game. The game is a combination of scrolling fighting action and platform jump- ing that has a distinctly old-school flavor to it. It would be a big disap- pointment if that's all there was to the game, but fortunately (like his movies) Jackie Chan's personality elevates the whole experience. Lots of voice samples highlight the title and it seems a large portion is lifted directly from the movie Rumble in the Bronx. Throughout the game, the enemies will taunt you in very cheesy one-liners and Jackie himself lets loose with some hilarious zingers. The comical banter is matched by the on-screen shenanigans as well. Jackie has lots of different attacks that are usually very dazzling, March 2000 Official 1٩٢.1 ено мевае $) => PlayStation Ies not driving Its a moto: down. Dust your fellow drivers on 25 different tracks. Survive the hair- pin turnsand score а TURBO boost. Unless you get 86'ed bya TNT crate. Plug in the MultiTap adaptor and up to four players can reduce each other to roadkill. With over 12 play- able characters in all. Buckle up. Once he gets behind the wheel, things get ugly. Reviews The final word—officlal and unbiased Ері ‘Analog Control E Compatible e Vibration Function Compatible Developer Acclaim Publisher Acclaim Genre Action ECW Hardcore Revolution ۸ rebellion that deserves to be disbanded PlayStation hen the high-stakes game of wrestling musical chairs their attention into loading the ECW up to the brim with extras, but ended, Acclaim was left with ECW—the bottom-feeder forgot that there actually should be fun game in place as well. Just of wrestling leagues. Instead of trying to make the best about everything about this game seems rushed, from sloppy control of the situation, Acclaim took the easy way out and made to the poorly drawn characters and drab arenas. The most atrocious a bad game out of a lame league. thing is the wrestlers’ horrendously digitized battle cries that seem Customizability is this game's strongest suit. Like WWF Attitude, as out of place as Calista Flockhart at a hamburger-eating contest. Acclaim's previous brawling game, ECW allows a ridiculously deep Why go through the trouble of capturing all of these wrestlers’ sound amount of possibilities when it comes to creating your own wrestler. bites only to have them sound like crap during gameplay? Facial features, body type, garb, moves and even pre-match intros can Only Acclaim knows the answer, but maybe it's because they knew be configured to your liking. You can even modify the “Pay-Per-View” that this game was а lost cause and couldn't be bothered with trying event and the venues that they take place in. There is a small caveat to resurrect the dead. Either way, however; cycling between each proposed attribute takes an annoying even if you are a die-hard ECW second or two to load (so that you can see them), so putting together fan, you should stay clear of this the “perfect” wrestler takes an annoying amount of time. But with this дате. Your love for this renegade game, it's akin to postponing a death sentence. league shouldn't sway you into After you're past ECW's bevy of customizers, the game takes a buying such a poor PlayStation dreadful turn. Quite frankly, it almost seems like Acclaim put all of wrestling game. —Kraig Kujawa E SUM MOM Whenever | needed inspiration to get me through the day, | simply loaded up this lovely wrestler | created (above). Official U.S (HEVAL AOIN ۸ه March 2000 P ros “Acclaim took © Awesome customizability the easy way * Lots of characters out and made * Great selection of game a bad game modes out of a lame league." Cons * Crappy graphics/animation • Crappy sound • Crappy control The introductions of each wrestler are somewhat amusing, especially when they come out waving chairs (above). Ріау5Ғабоп 00000 It's more than run and gun. It's blow and бо. Evil super battle ship Dante has been dispatched to blow up the planet. You've been dispatched to stop it. After all, that's vili jou've been genetically engineered for. Armed alm, gravity, fire and paralyzer bs, yowre the only thing standing between her and total destruction of an entire race. With 26 explosive missions, it's action so infense you won't LU fo fear | yourself away, Bathroom? Maybe next year. DAPALM BOOBS, с PARALYZER 6 THIS Gf JITV BOMBS. 5. FIRE BOMBS. BAN | DAI = e 8. ©1999 Bandai America Incorporated. Program ©1999 Bandai Co., Ltd. Distributed by В "a Katella Avenue, Cypress, California 90630. All Rights Reserved, PlayStation and Play trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Used under license by Bandai 0 о 0 ; په “ Fora 010561:100100 to eidos.com ООЛ 7” 10 ХІРШӘРЕДІР Si SOU ШЕГІ ЕШ біо au 000 ‘ou, "ам e Play lof 2 main characters - D'arci Stern - an agile, street-savvy female cop or Roper McIntyre - a mysterious ex-soldier. e Multiple modes of combat. Engage in hand-to- hand fighting, heavy-weaponry face-offs, vehicle chases and building shoot-outs. ® Command а variety of vehicles. Take control of police cars, vans, motor-bikes, hang- gliders, ambulances, trains and helicopters. e 3D volumetric fog, rain, snow, night and day , »ssimulation, wall-hugging shadows and real- times tion, of crashes enhance the е and ас ene ғ Сарсот Сарсот Fighting PlayStation У own independent attacks, but not both. I can see why they had to do this for the PS, but it bothers me greatly. The music and sound effects are well done, at least, but the voices are not as pronounced. All of these are relatively minor grievances compared to the real culprit of this game...slowdown. In comparison, Marvel vs Street fighter on the PS did not slow down as much—although it's under- standable considering how much more is happening on screen in this title. The eye candy is nice, but gameplay has to come first. And you should be warned that Capcom dropped more frames than usual to try to speed up this title. 2D fighting fans should only consider buying this title for its added value features. Casual Marvel fans have plenty more to choose from to get their fix. — Wataru Maruyama A “new” feature for the versus series is the blown up screen (above) when one charac- ter throws another. This was last seen in the Street Fighter III series and met with very unenthusiastic responses. Expect the same level of head scratching when gamers experience this first hand. Box Score “The eye • Lots of extra options and candy is play Шара пісе, but • Gallery Collection гатеріа; • Great music fa d y come first." * Slowdown, slowdown and a little bit more slowdown * Missing animation frames * Voices are a bit muted Official 5. PlaySt Lots and lots of things fly through the air causing your eyes to get all crossed. This is a good thing. Reviews The final word—official and unbiased Marvel vs. Capcom E apcom made some great strides with the last Versus title on the PlayStation and, of course, the stellar conversion of Alpha 3 is still a fresh memory. One's expectations would naturally be a bit higher for Marvel vs Capcom and in some areas these hopes have been met. Like the previous Versus titles, there are plenty of extras to make up for missing elements from the arcade version. You can press start to shortcut into the next fight, for example, and there are gameplay tweaks like super cancels and counters which make things more interesting. A new gallery collection allows you to unlock artwork and endings, plus secret fighters can be saved as selectable charac- ters simply by defeating the game with their alter ego. Not all the tweaks are welcome—the extreme close up when char- acters throw is one I find highly annoying. (Why anyone would want a large view of blocky pixelated characters is beyond me.) What I found especially limiting is that you can select either a partner who helps with super special attacks only, or a helper who performs their Official U.S. (ДР ө ٠٠٠٠٠٠٢) 8) March 2000 GRAND THEFT AUTO IS BACK "СТА? is an arcade gamer's dream come true." - GameFan January 2000 f entertainment could be measured, GTA2 would bust the scale" • Gamespy.com October 9 "Fun? Yes. Funny? Sure. Obscene? Hell yeah." = ЕСМ January 2000 FREE Rockstar Motorola Pager with [^ сече а purchase of СТАР. MATUDE PlayStation ® ОМА Design Ltd. тіп prepaid numeric air time service at $10.33 per month (total 24.00). p 10.00 shipping/handling and ail here claimed by 12/91/00. Offer ¢ е at an additional cha ice provide Wordline аге nology not avail Games EX t nd the ОМА logo are tradema the O 1оғ2 (ГІ Players >. Memory Card ә {block Y Analog Control Compatible Vibration Function Compatible Codemasters SCEA Properly tuning your car is crucial to your success. Use the view tracks option to survey upcoming courses and tweak Вох $соге * Slight polygon accordingly. * Fantastic con- trols break up * Realistic tracks * Some pop-up * Captures the too essence of rally | e Graphics are оп racing the grainy side OPM Rating Wild Ambition ith the myriad of 3D fighting games available for the PlayStation, the only reason someone would look into this title is that they are an SNK fan or follow the Fatal Fury series. Let it be known that I am both a huge fan of SNK in general and a follower of the Fatal Fury series. Granted, the series has been in sort of a decline as late with the faithful mainly flocking to the King of Fighters series, but with a fresh start in 3D, anything could happen. Unfortunately, it was the worst possible thing to ever befall the Bogard clan. First off, the graphics are just horrible, having been ported over from the under achieving Hyper NeoGeo 64 arcade board. The voices are muffled like the characters have tissue in their mouths and the sound effects are similarly bland. The remix background music at least takes advantage of the PS and sounds quite nice. All of this could be forgivable if the gameplay was tight, but it’s far from it. There is a very noticeable lag in moves which totally throws off the rhythm of the game in general and the play balance. From the standpoint of rating it strictly as an arcade to PS port, Wild Ambition is quite good. The graphics are identical and the only real dif- ference is the loading time. It's just too bad the home version replicated all of the coin op's horrible faults too. — Wataru Maruyama Reviews The final word—official and unbiased Colin McRae Rally odemasters have already come up big this year with their fabu- lous TOCA 2 and now they unleash Colin McRae Rally. Put simply, this is the best rally sim ever. The car handling is there, the tuning aspect is perfect and the tracks truly mirror authentic rally courses. It's hard to describe how the game just “feels” right. Once you grab the controls you are totally immersed in the race. Similar to the tweaks on TOCA 2, the game is very easy to get into and the rally school mode gets you acquainted with the controls. The graphics are not quite as detailed as Gran Turismo 2 or even V-Rally 2, but it does boast more convincing parti- cle effects. The car selection is a bit slimmer as well, but the difference in handling between them is far more noticeable. The difficulty is just right, with many courses and stages to complete. It will take a while to go through the entire championship ahead of Colin McRae though. The two-player action is also outstanding with the only drawback being minor slowdown and some pop-up. The game walks the line between a straight sim and arcade racer with the perfect amount of each element. Along with TOCA 2, McRae is destined to go down as a PlayStation clas- sic....if it doesn't get overshadowed by GT 2. —Wataru Maruyama "CT 1or2 Players | Memory Card | ٥٠٥٢٠ Vibration Function Compatible SNK SNK Fighting March 2000 Geese Howard (right) is one of my favorite characters. Repuken! Double Repuken! ox Score Official ۰.۹٧ ۸ه • Fatal Fury in • Delay in move 3D execution • A few new • Horrible characters graphics * Geese Howard * Equally horrible is back...sort of voice and sound effects in meg к TEAM VER п CARCER Un 150 m gy fm اس ان чы) а Зе = Мау ав 6 m ARCHER, 1012380 OR VALKYRIE; OR, PLAY ШИН FRIENDS іп UP fü FOUR PLavem action!* Each with er SKILLS апр ون IPLL take more Тнап vol've cot to 06۶631 THe FORCES DF емі апр RecLaim THe WORLD. With 03001161 LEGENDS, tHe nonstop 3553111 is 0 intense, vou can’t ро it агопе. "Up to four players on Nintendo 64 and Sega Dreamcast versions. MIDWAY www.midway.com Sega (^ Dreamcast. يس GAUNTLET® LEGENDS ©1998 Atari Games Corporation. All rights reserved. MIDWAY and the M IN А CIRCLE DESIGN are trade- marks of Midway Games Inc. Distributed under license by Midway Home Entertainment Inc. Licensed by Nintendo. Nintendo, Nintendo 64 and the "№" logo аге trademarks of Nintendo of America Inc. ©1996 Nintendo of America Inc. PlayStation and the == سه Playstation | PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Sega, Dreamcast and the Dreamcast logo are | | ас either registered trademarks or trademarks of Sega Enterprises, Ltd. Кетапгех ef The Ther Ки Koei Strategy pz Romance VI allows you to create your own officers (above), who you can then assign to lead your armies or help rule your territories. * Tons of depth * Information not for strategy easy to navigate buffs • Too much stuff • Scenarios of dif- to keep track of ferent lengths • Graphics are • Interesting his- horrible torical places and figures OPM Rating Memory Card اخ (Е 4 block Analog Control Compatible Vibration Function Compatible Silent Bomber ow, did this one ever come out of nowhere! Leave it to Bandai to release with almost no fanfare one of the most promising new action games I've seen in quite some time. Silent Bomber exists somewhere in the middle of a triangle comprised of Einhánder, Bomberman and Intelligent Qube. You could call it a shooter, but considering the hero lays bombs rather than firing weapons, that's not quite accurate. It does have the frenetic pace of the best shooters, as well as the gorgeous, effects-laden polygonal environments seen in the modern classics like Einhánder and R-Type Delta. But there's also a great deal of strategy involved in the placing and timing of your charges, as well as in the innovative "E-Chip" system, which lets you adjust your gear to provide longer-range attacks, better shields or more abundant firepower. The significant challenge is definitely one of the high points; this is one tough game, but in most areas it's not so tough that it's frustrating. It's also nice to have a shooter-style game with a real story, though Silent Bomber's is a bit disjointed, with some awful voice acting. In fact, other than the possibility of monotony over the course of this extensive game, there's not much to complain about. Check it out. —Joe Rybicki Reviews The final word—official and unbiased Romance of the Three Kingdoms VI ood strategy games feature plenty of options and depth, but Romance VI goes a bit too far. Between drafting soldiers, setting traps, making allies, giving out rewards and titles, hiring new officers, keeping your people happy, keeping your enemies unhappy, fighting, making money, and much, much more, there's just too much to keep track of. It doesn't help that, despite all the different information you have on each territory, there's no quick and easy way to look through the stats you really need to see each turn. Talking to your advisors helps steer you to some extent, but even more casual fans of the genre will find the game overwhelming. Romance VI does do a good job of representing second and third century China—seven full-length and seven shorter scenarios to play, each with small historical dramas and folk stories woven throughout. Not so hot are the graphics: Sure, visuals are probably the least important part of a strat- egy title, but this is just pathetic. You could have told me this was a 16-bit Super Nintendo game and I would have believed you (just look at the screenshots). Hardcore history and strategy buffs are the only ones with the time and patience needed to enjoy this one. —Mark MacDonald CyberConnect Bandai box art not available The overhead perspective of Silent Bomber (above) really accentuates the immense size of the enemies. Вох Sco Official U.S Зее СТӨ Магсћ 2000 • Innovative * May get gameplay monotonous • Gorgeous • Terrible voice graphics acting * A real story * Two-player * Two-player mode overly VR Arena simplistic PlayStation | Ге ЖЫ Т” په м 7” БЕСІ - PE м È | Ж 2:75 01900 the Playstation logos аге геі51еї 1 аетаткз of Sony uter Enteridinment Inc. ШШ а Шу а of OFT sensed tro ШП шана, ine by Worl зате @Hüman Entertainment, Inê. 1998. English Translation © Working 01c3:1:99/2000. "Ууу Паш EX ee dS dca trademark of Working ШЕЕ, Ino Allvights reserved) B HERA PEA I1 йаг, 60 ПЕ? Web Address: http: ingdesigns.com. For a dealer near you, call (680) 243-34 i, а а i Pc nins ‘TPS LIKE WINNING THE Су YOUNG, ROOKIE OF THE YEAR, AND MVP AWARDS ALL IN ONE SEASON. COMING THIS SPRING. әре www.3do.com © 2000 The 300 Company. All Rights Reserved. 300, High Heat Baseball, and their r are trademarks and/ar service marks of The 300 Company in the U.S. and other countries. © MLBPA Official Licensee - Major League Baseball Players Association. Major League arks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc [majorleaguebaseball.com]. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. “Rawlings” and "Gold Glove Award" " are registered s marks of Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc. in St. Louis, Missouri. All other trademarks belong to their respective owners. ALL QUOTES AND RATINGS REFER TO HIGH HEAT BASEBALL 2000. Reviews The final word—official and unbiased )| 1-8 Players Lx. | Memory Card LH 1-6 blocks 1 Analog Control Compatible Vibration Function Compatible i PlayStation 989 Studios МВА ShootÜut 2000 89 Sports usually has no trouble churning out their sports games like clockwork, but over the span of a couple of years, getting a new edition of NBA ShootOut out on the hard- wood gave them an absolute fit. It's difficult to figure out why ShootOut took so long to sur- 1 «il face since it really doesn't offer anything that I haven't seen before, save وور M (буч the notable Create-A-Dunk AMET КА that is a pretty innovative ТУРГ } ٧ Box Sco re addition to a basketball game, but it doesn't make up for ShootOut's 4 other various shortcomings. When compared to ЕА'5 Live 2000, ShootOut looks a bit like а light- Une Fone Lles THE ВАЕАКІАУУАУ Bend, مره نو 1 ET! ShootOut's Create-A-Dunk is an innovative feature that let's you devise your own personalized show-boating moves (above). * Create-A-Dunk | * Too many weight. Although it has everything a basketball game needs, it doesn't feature blocks and go the extra mile. The features aren't nearly as in-depth as Live's and the * Solid gameplay steals id gap in the artificial intelligence in each game is even wider. The graphics p cien are solid, but aren't nearly as detailed, and some of the animations animations (particularly when a player attempts a steal), look silly. Some of this may sound nitpicky, but there's so many of these nagging things that it puts ShootOut in a clear second place behind the much more solid NBA Live 2000. --Кгаід Kujawa БУ Ч Analog Control отраные per 3DO 3DO enre Adventure PlayStation © March 2000 Crusaders of Might & Magic have to admit that Crusaders is a more solid title than I expect- ed, in spite of the fact that it's a severely simplified take on the Might and Magic PC franchise. I think it's easy to underestimate this game based on the badly rendered, horribly cliché intro with the cheesy guitar rock and overly excited action-flick voice-over. But once you get into it, you realize this isn't just a toss-off game designed to capitalize on a familiar name; there's actually some substance here. For one thing, Crusaders does a fairly admirable job of incorporating The detailed faces in the character models (right) are surprisingly impressive. Вох 5соге Good use of • Awful camera Official U.S ЕЧ ө] СӨ . traditional RPG | • Sluggish frame- traditional RPG elements into a 3D adventure environment. A number of elements rate spells, potions and attacks add some simple strategy to the mix, and the ٣ гы тсе x Е surprisingly detailed character models add some personality. Тһе graph- i 2 3 Eu strategy out of place ics are generally above average, though the frame-rate could use some work and the camera is in some places just awful. The writing and voice work (other than in the intro) is pretty adequate, though a less contrived story would have been nice. The challenge level is even fairly solid. Personally, I would rather have seen a real RPG based on this engine rather than yet another 3D adventure, but for what it is it isn't all that bad. It's well worth a rental, at least. —Joe Rybicki * Good challenge 348 0} dn 10) uonoe зојешај Suipnpur 38031242 505 pue Áejg wea, Mau apow Ja|Mog-v-3]?21) 3 быға Suymoq А ЫТ __ KIM CANADY 016053۷ 53//У7 ۸ ۲ ۴ TIVAV ҮС КТ Reviews The final word—official and unbiased Analog Control Compatible + Vibration Function Г Compatible Tremor Ent. Take 2 Interactive Strategy Railroad Tycoon о some people, building a model train is still fun, but to others, building an empire around one is even better. Just don't expect it to be easy. Upon starting a new game, Railroad Tycoon recommends “you read the full manual for full information on how to play"—and for good reason: This game's controls are hard to get a handle on. Railroad Tycoon was originally designed for the PC long ago, and its clunky layers of buttons and sub-menus can't hide that. An in- game tutorial makes learning the game a little easier, but the curve is still a little too steep, even for the best locomotive engineers. иј : pretins aso To say Railroad Tycoon graphics are lack- luster would be a gross understatement. Box Score • Very in-depth • Tough to get The game itself is quite good once you get into the swing of it—it just simulation up to speed takes awhile to get swinging. Once you have a few routes and trains set y ERE E ame graphics up, it's a lot of fun—sort of like Sim City, but with trains and more of a К شا با it оте purpose. Тһе graphics аге drab and unbefitting of the PlayStation hard- ware, but the real rewards come from taking over other train companies and enveloping the world in your iron grasp. That is, if you don't mind spending as much time fiddling through menus as you do executing business decisions. —Kraig Kujawa Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Action March 2000 Vibration Function Compatible Road Rash: № | Jail Break па P ometimes I wonder if game companies are really able to evalu- ate their own products. You'd think that the company respon- sible for the excellent Need for Speed series would be able to look at a product like Jail Break and realize that it just doesn't have what it takes to compete. But I guess that's not the case. Of course, the Road Rash games are in a completely different league from the Need for Speed games, but certain standards still apply. A reasonably smooth frame-rate, for example. Responsive controls. And at least adequate graphics. the Sidecar mode (right), in which two players team up on a single vehicle. Official U.S ЕЗ (5) * Some nifty * Sluggish frame- special moves rate Jail Break has none of these: The game feels like every race is being * Five-O mode * Unresponsive run through mud, turning and attacking your fellow bikers is pitifully 5 ерус, controls slow, and the graphics, while not completely unredeemable, can get m. * Weak graphics bad enough that they're distracting. * Mindless fu n The game does have a few good points. It's always fun to see bikers get run down several times following a wipeout, for example. Special moves like wheelies (allowing you to jump oncoming traffic) are somewhat fun. And the Five-O cop chase mode offers some diversion, as does the hysteri- cal two-player Sidecar mode. But overall it's a forgettable rental that merits a purchase for die-hard Road Rash fans only. —Joe Rybicki Aloha...Hawaii is under siege from terrorist fanatics. | As Eagle One, command the searing action and fly 5 ۴ different attack planes, including the Harrier Jumpjet, into the latest hot spot. Turn’n burn, baby...it doesn't get much Harrier than this. * Pilot your fully loaded Harrier Jumpjet through 25 adrenaline- pumping, missions. е Attack enemy planes, ships and ground forces in frenzied anti-terrorist action. • 151 & 3rd person views capture the non-stop heat. 4 * Choose Асһоп ог Sim Modes to experience the battles іп 2 different ways. TN о Split-screen 2-player action puts you in the middle of head-to-head dogfights; ШШ “B51 www.eagleone-thegame.com Resident Evil 3 Nemesis Metal Gear So VR Missions If for some reason you didn’t like MGS, this game won't con- vert you, but if you did, you'll love this puzzle-game take on the PlayStation classic. The game offers plenty of challenge throughout the 160 mini-levels, ranging from the cerebral to the reflex-oriented. OPM Rating 60000 NFL Blitz 2000 The main improvements with this sequel lie within the multi- ple layers of depth that have been added. The most signifi- cant feature is the four-player two-on-two competition, since the addition of a human teammate completely changes the game. Though the graphics aren't similarly enhanced, they're more than adequate. This is one pigskin title that's simply a blast to play. OPM Rating NFL GameDay 2000 If football games were judged solely on pizazz, GameDay 2000 Rs; would be rated the best ever. The atmosphere is without peer, from the play-by-play to the television-style presentation. But the game- play is not nearly as solid; the game is riddled with bugs, as well as enough inaccuracies and general silliness to drive any hardcore football Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver Graphically, Soul Reaver looks like it shouldn't even be possi- ble on the PlayStation. Great textures, exceptional level design and brilliant character models and anima- tion make this game a joy to look at. The game- play isn't quite as superlative: Enemies are too sparse, and the great graphics bog the game down a bit. Still, it's a fantastic game overall. OPM Rating 09 Madden NFL 2000 EA has managed to signifi- cantly improve the Madden engine so that it runs faster, cleaner and more smoothly. But it’s in AI and realism that Madden 2000 really stands above the competi- tion. Truly, this is the best football game ever. orm د:۸ 6 Medal of Honor After playing just a few levels, it becomes obvious that a lot of effort went into making this game feel authentic. While Medal of Honor could have been just a Wolfenstein 3D rehash, this realism makes it an extremely compelling game, with plenty of stealth action to keep the tension levels high—and plenty of atmosphere in the form of top-notch graphics and sound. The biggest problem is the so-so multiplayer. ОРМ Rating 6 = PlayStation) recap pick of the month Gran Turismo 2 Let’s just get this out of the way right now: Gran Turismo 2 is the greatest racing game ever made. Consider: nearly 600 cars. Twenty- seven unique courses. And the most accurate racing engine we're likely to see in our lifetimes. The licensing system has been expanded and modified to ensure that it's both helpful and fun (well, as fun as a license test can get), a number of new special-event races have been added, and the engine has been tweaked to offer even more realism, just to name a few of the many improvements. Now, the game is seriously buggy, and lacking in some significant features that even the original had, testifying to the fact that it was rushed out for Christmas. But GT2's strengths far outweigh these not-insignificant flaws. This is not a game for arcade-racing fans, but any auto afficionado will want to A roundup of the most notable games of recent months Review Recap The final word—official and unbiased Crash Team Racing CTR is one example of a mas- cot racer that is so solid as to make the use of the familiar mascots nearly irrelevant. The game has an excellent racing engine, with solid controls and a ton of different courses. Though it may seem a typical cart-style racer, the innovative Turbo system adds a great level of strategy. And the exceptionally robust multiplayer options just sweeten the deal. or 60060) @ PlayStation Dino Crisis As you might expect, Dino Crisis bears a strong resem- blance to Resident Evil, though ЈЕ there are a number of signifi- cant differences. Tougher ene- mies, more challenging puzzles and more excep- tional graphics are the major points; the game also excels in story, music, and even voice acting. OPM Rating ӨӨӨӨО Driver It's a brilliant idea: Conduct any number of suspicious car- related activities in locations modeled after four real-world cities. Throw in one of the = most entertaining driving engines around and you've got a truly exceptional game. Sure, it's a bit unpolished, but you'll love it anyway. ОРМ Rating (OO 0O Final Fantasy VIII Somehow this game manages to exceed the high expecta- tions set upon it. The game features an epic story, mind- blowing graphics, and the innovative Guardian Force system. Some ele- ments of the battle system can get tedious, but they don't hurt the game enough to matter. ори rating 6 Grandia Though packed with unique ideas and new features, Grandia somehow feels as comfortable as your favorite older RPG. An innovative battle system makes combat interesting, and an elegant character advancement system encour- ages players to seek out battles, which can be a chore in other RPGs. Unfortunately, the dialogue and voice acting is depressingly awkward. ОРМ Rating (OO 00 Е El 5 n ES үз Магсһ 2000 Official 1٢۱.۹٧7 Hagzzie( 2) Ratings at a Glance Ape Escape 00000 Activision Classics 00000 Bloody Roar 2 00000 Brave Fencer Musashi ӨӨӨӨО Breath of Fire Ш 00000 Bugs Bunny: LiT ©0000 Civilization II ©0000 Contender 00000 Crash: WARPED 00000 Demolition Racer 00000 Dukes of Hazzard هو Ehrgeiz 00000 Fighting Force 2 @0000 Final Fantasy Anth. 0000€ Gex 3 ©0000 Guardian's Crusade ӨӨӨОО Jade Cocoon 00000 Jet Moto 3 00000 Legend of Legaia 00000 Lunar: SSSC 00000 Metal Gear Solid 00000 MLB 2000 ©0000 Mortal Kombat 4 هه NCAA Mar. Маа. 2K ФФОФООО Need For Speed: HS 0000€ NFL Xtreme 2 ОСООО OW: Abe's Exoddus ФОООӨӨ6 Pac-Man World )همه R4 00000 R-Type Delta )هه SaGa Frontier 2 o00€O Sled Storm 00000 Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage ООООС Star Ocean: 2nd Story 9000€ Star Wars: Ep I-TPM ФОӨОО Street Fighter Alpha 3 90000 Suikoden II 00000 Thousand Arms ره Tomba! 2 o000O Triple Play 2000 00000 Wipeout 3 همه WWF Attitude روه Tomb Raider The Last Revelation Lara's last adventure is finally supported by a solid story, challenging puzzles and more focused gameplay. And though the game isn't a huge leap graphically, it is the best looking edition in the series. It's also packed with bugs and frustratingly nasty challenges. Not for the impatient or faint of heart. OPM Rating @OOOO Tomorrow Never Dies Though it seems like this game was in the works forever, the finished product is pretty satis- factory overall. The espionage- laden story is broken up by occasional minigame- style segments that help keep the story moving along. Unfortunately, when the action heats up the frame-rate drops unpleasantly. OPM Rating (ФФФСО Tony Hawk's Pro Skater This may very well be the best skateboarding game on any system yet. A hearty and intu- itive trick system provides the А ИДЕ И соге of this game, while convincingly spacious environments set the stage for the skating good- ness. Excellent graphics and loads of replay value round out the package. OPM Rating 9 Twisted Metal 4 989 Studios did a nice job of recovering from the weak Twisted Metal 3. They threw in a bunch of new features, like the ability to build your own vehicle, and cranked up the speed. There's still some slowdown, and the four-way split screen is all but useless, but it's а more solid game overall. OPM Rating Vigilante 8: 2nd Offense Though the graphics are every bit as good as the original and the engine is every bit аз robust, the Quest mode in V82 is missing the flair that made the original so entertaining. Plus, the auto-aiming weapons make this one too easy for auto-combat veterans. ОРМ Rating (ФФФОО WCW Mayhem Though this isn't the best wrestling title we've seen, it is a promising first foray into the ring for EA. The game sports detailed character models, quick and realistic (though a bit jerky) animation and lots of extras. Occasionally sluggish controls and an inferior Create-a-Wrestler mode could be improved, but overall it's a fairly solid game. OPM Rating (000 CO fan mad. If you're a casual fan, though, you may find it more enjoyable than the more serious Madden 2000. OPM Rating (O0 0900 NHL 2000 With NHL 99 having come under fire for its sluggish framerate and game speed, it seems that EA may have over- compensated with NHL 2K: The game moves so fast that it actually interferes with the control. But the overwhelming number of features—from the great atmosphere and pre- sentation to any stat a hardcore hockey fan could possibly want—make it worthwhile anyway. ОРМ Rating ӨӨӨӨО NHL FaceOff 0 This may be 989 Sports’ most improved game yet. To start off with, they did a great job of balancing game speed and control. Add the superb graph- ics and you have a game that's nice just to look at. Though FaceOff doesn’t have the same depth of features as NHL 2K, it’s still a solid game. OPM Rating (ӨӨӨӨО Quake И Hammerhead amazed everyone (including id, the game's origi- nal designers) by unleashing an entirely adequate port of a very processor-intensive PC title. The game enjoys a solid frame-rate throughout, even in the four-player split-screen mode. It's an extraordinary multiplayer shooter—but as bland as the original when it comes to the single-player missions. Still, it's a great achievement. OPM Rating 2997 Resident Evil 3 Nemesis Atmosphere is critical to a game like Resident Evil, and Nemesis sets the mood beauti- fully. It’s filled with unexpected surprises, swarms of enemies (sometimes up to eight zombies crowd around you at once) and a good balance of hold-your-breath suspense and shotgun-pumping action. OPM Rating (O0 00€ ووا رر ېب PlayStation Ва Æ PlayStationi Thrasher: Skate & Destroy This game faces some stiff competition from the begin- ning in the form of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, but man- ages to stand up reasonably well in spite of Tony Hawk's enormous success. The emphasis here is far more on realism than on spectacular, insane tricks. This means the game's a good deal harder, with a more complex trick system and a higher level of challenge overall. OPM Rating (ODOCO < > М ? INSANE: „тут оп! ji 5 لل ) % 9.11600 Imagine the battle: Spider-Man vs. Mega Man. . .Incredible! Or, who would stand Victorious in Strider vs. Captain America? Amazing! Now, Capcom brings this #1 smash arcade fantasy fighter to the PlayStation® game console and Sega Dreamcast’: Experience the world’s most insane battles between your favorite legendary Capcom characters and Super Heroes of the Marvel Universe. Sega 81 Dreamcast. Illustration by Allan 9 »»199909 Editors Award With the tantalizing promise of PlayStation2 looming ever closer, the pipeline of quality games shows no sings of drying up. 1999 was an exciting year of refinement, where games such as Tony Hawk's Pro Skater, Medal of Honor, Crash Team Racing and Ape Escape showed the very best of what the PlayStation could do. And while not every game could be an original one, impressive follow-ups such as Gran Turismo 2, Final Fantasy VIII, Madden NFL 2000 and Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver were show-stoppers that used—rather than abused—their big-name lineages. 1999 is the last year in which the PlayStation will exist only as one platform, for in 2000 everything will change—in a very big and exciting way. So enjoy, if you will, the last incarnation of these awards as they are today. ACCEPTED BY SCEA Whenever a sequel to a wildly successful game such as Gran Turismo i the works, critics eagerly await the final product with extremely high expecta- tions. We are very proud to stand before the gaming industry knowing that we have exceeded these expectations. The vision for Gran Turismo 2 was much more than simply taking a good thing and making it better. Polyphony Digital was challenged with taking a great game and elevating it to new heights. Once again, they have succeeded with flying colors. It is with great honor that we accept this award on behalf of one of our leading development teams from Sony Computer Entertainment Inc., Polyphony Digital, for their commitment to excellence and ingenuity. GRAN TURISMO 2 Driver's Ed, 612 is easily the most true-to-life racing game we've ever seen. Add to that the huge selection of races, licenses and special events, plus the excellent Rally mode, and it's not hard to see why we recognize GT2 as our Game of the Year. Now, some folks may point out the many bugs in the game and wonder how we could give this title to such a flawed product. And believe us, we're well aware that the game is far from perfect: Numerous graphical glitches abound, as well as a few that are significantly more serious. But let's face it: 11 we only gave awards to perfect games you'd be looking at eight pages worth of empty space. GT2's many strengths still outweigh its weaknesses enough to earn our highest honors. RUNNERS UP: GAME OF THE YEAR № his year’s choice for Game of the Year 0 was ап exceptionally tough one. Because of the huge selection of extraordinary games released last year, there was no single title that stood out as an unquestionable leader. But among all the great titles, Gran Turismo 2 is such an amazing feat of design that it deserves that special recognition. The very fact that the game includes such a staggering number of vehicles is enough to make anyone stand up and take notice, but it's the fact that each car is noticeably different from every other that really hammers home the impressive nature of this fine game. And with a racing engine so realistic that it could be used as a primer for CTR: Crash Team Racing & Tony Hawk's Pro Skater Final Fantasy VIII Ape Escape GT2's long-term play- ability just barely nudged CTR out of first place. Its revolutionary controls weren't quite enough to earn the highest honors. А bit more challenge and replayability might have snagged the top spot. The greatest RPG, sure, but the game certainly isn't for everyone. alone are better than many of the stand-alone titles we saw over the last 12 months. Finely balanced and polished to a shine, Ape Escape is a showcase title no action-loving PlayStation owner should be without. ACCEPTED BY SCEA available (swimming, jumping, flying, crawling, driving, climbing and more) the game never gets confusing or complicated. It's no accident this game was also nominated for overall Game of the Year—heck, the mini-games hoosing a single best game in a broad category like action is usually a tough call, but this year Sony made it a lot easier with the incredible Ape Escape. Starting with the basics all great platformers share—crisp graphics, memorable characters, all kinds of interesting levels to explore— Ape Escape then took everything in a whole new The action genre is traditionally crowded with some of the best games PlayStation has to offer, so it is truly an honor for Ape Escape to be recognized as the best game of 1999 in this competi- tive category. Ape Escape represents the creative culmination of more than three years of work and perfectionism, and is a proud testament to the development team’s mission: to boldly push PlayStation platform gaming where no game has gone before. Ape Escape sets a new gameplay standard, reaching well beyond the definition of a traditional action game and challenging players to use every ounce of their skills and intuition. We are genuinely honored to accept this award on behalf of the development team direction, blending awesome controls and unique gameplay into one seamless mix. As the first PlayStation game to require a Dual Shock to play, Ape Escape showed everyone what the controller was truly capable of. Slingshots, boxing, rowboats, an R.C. car—each one using a totally original but instantly intuitive con- trol scheme that make you look at at Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. | Р" ВЕ5Т АССЕ55ОКҮ GAMEDOCTOR ACCEPTED BY JOHN SCHAPPERT, EXECUTIVE IN CHARGE OF PRODUCTION It's a thrill for us to be rec- ognized as the sports game of the year by OPM. We always listen to feedback the analog sticks in a whole new light. And even with all the moves ACTION GAME BEST ПАРЕ ESCAPE RUNNERS UP: Spyro 2, Medal of Honor, Driver BEST SPORTS GAME MADDEN NFL 2000 NFL Blitz 2000, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, FIFA 2000 balance of realism and game- eing a PlayStation magazine, © it's only natural that we'd have a closet packed full of just about every peripheral ever released for the system. But guess what: This past year, it seemed the only thing anyone ever raided our closet for was our handy GameDoctor. This nifty device can from gamers and what we heard loud and clear last year was that the passing game was solid, but we needed to make the running game better. So with Madden NFL 2000 we con- centrated on tuning the game so that you can actual- play, Madden NFL 2000 is light-years ahead of the com- petition. The game plays smoothly and seamlessly, with no expense to the polygonal graphics that are as detailed as anything seen on а PlayStation sports game. And while features remove all but the most fatal scratches from any disc—including games, music CDs and even DVDs. And along with the honor of being the most used accessory (besides the Dual Shock, of course), the GameDoctor is the only опе to save us money and heartache by rescu- ing everything from worn copies of our favorite games to battered copies of our beloved music discs. ly see holes open up in the line. You can juke both left and right with your backs. A balanced attack is key for a fun football game and we worked to give people the ability to both run and pass with Madden NFL 2000. I know it sounds simple, but the game just feels right. never overshadow gameplay, it should be noted that the new Madden Challenge is one of the most innova- tive features to hit sports gaming in a long time, further solidifying Madden NFL 2000's W grasp as OPM Sports Game of the Year. RUNNERS UP: ne of the main gripes 0 football players had with the decade of Madden football games is that there weren't enough new features or that there were one or two annoying things that kept it from being an elite sports game. But that isn’t the case this year. Thanks to a completely rebuilt engine and an eye for innovation, Madden NFL 2000 marks a true renaissance for a series that was in dire need of a shot in the arm. Sporting an almost perfect И March 2000 Official и.5.{ УДА өп СТӨ The 3 Rest of BEST “KIDS” GAME: 40 winks With its fun characters, sharp, cartoony graphics, and game- play that’s naturally simple rather than artificially dumbed- down, 40 Winks was one of the few bright spots this year in a sea of mediocre and horrible children’s titles. WORST USE OF A LICENSE: ACCLAIM WITH SOUTH PARK It takes talent to execute the hat-trick of crap, but Acclaim managed to do it with South Park, South Park Rally and Chef's Luv Shack. MOST INNOVATIVE: MTV MUSIC GENERATOR Who would have thought that the PlayStation could actually support an honest-to-good- ness music sequencer (albeit a rather simple one)? Kudos to Codemasters for “thinking outside the box” GAME MOST LIKELY TO MAKE YOU PULL YOUR HAIR OUT: RC Stunt COPTER This game was billed as the simulator that would save you thousands by teaching you the ins and outs of remote control choppers without the costly wrecks. The result is very chal- lenging game that shows you exactly why flying RC copters is a hobby that can make you go broke faster than day-trading. BEST PC CONVERSION: QUAKE П Although key- board-heads might shun Quake И as being old hat (for those living ina cave Quake Ш Arena is now on the scene), there’s no denying what a brilliant job Activision did in faithfully bringing this multi- کي 2 E 2 ~ player bonanza to the PlayStation. / STREET FIGHTER ALPHA 3 RUNNERS UP: Ehrgeiz, Fighter Maker, Bloody Roar 2 not have been as impressive if the conversion from arcade to PlayStation were any less magnifi- cent than it was: virtually no loss in any area except for loading times (which is something you just have to live with). The best fighting game of the year and one of the tops of all time. BEST FIGHTING GAME E m „457, fog Sl ж t's not а stretch to call the Street Fighter series leg- endary, but it is surprising that on a console that is laden with top-quality 3D brawlers, 2D would ге-етегде victorious. Тһе third installment in the Alpha series is easily the best yet, with an outrageous amount of selec- from any of the previous SF games, giving fight fans incredible flexibili- ty. Almost everything that can be improved upon was—like character animation, background graphics, music, play balance and so on. Of course all of these features would and a vast ocean | of play modes. | You can even select specific play-style parameters ACCEPTED BY NORETAKA FUNAMIZU, PRODUCER Thank you very much for this award. With SFA3 we tried to keep the gameplay very close to arcade-perfect while incorporating as many extra features as imaginable. Unfortunately there are no current plans to expand on the SF Alpha series—I'm concerned about the future of 2D fighting games...are they destined to dis- appear? | don't wanna believe it... BEST RPG FINAL FANTASY VIII لد RUNNERS UP: Lunar: SSSC, Grandia, Star Ocean ACCEPTED BY YOSHI- NORI KITASE, DIRECTOR | would like to thank the entire FFVIII team—so many people worked diligently on this title for over two years. Without each and every one of them, this game would not have been possible. | would like to say thank you to the fans. Without them, we wouldn't have the opportunity to create the games that we do. games put together all these ele- ments quite like FFVIII. With a strong story, likable characters, an all-new Guardian Force battle sys- tem, and that highly addictive card mini-game, FFVIII managed to outshine the competition. Finally, while graphics should never outweigh gameplay—espe- cially in an RPG—we'd be remiss if we didn't comment on the jaw- dropping images of FFVIII—both in-game and FMV. The cine- matic angles, stunning artistry and style of FFVIII helped add yet another layer of polish to an already great game. Quietis 3805 — Susi 8627 Rinoa 7493. hat а difference a year makes! When Square’s Xenogears took home the Best RPG award last year, it was one of just a few games worthy of that honor. This time, though, the choice is much tougher, with plenty of topnotch titles to choose from. But despite the more crowded playing field, Square managed to win yet again with the brilliant Final Fantasy VIII. This wasn't an easy decision to make. Why? Lunar had a better story. Grandia had a more rewarding battle system. Star Ocean had that remarkable depth. And Suikoden II had that brilliant score. But none of the GRAN TURISMO 2 RUNNERS UP: Crash Team Racing, R4, Need For Speed IV strengths: You take your pick from one of almost 600 real-life vehicles (and if your own car із one of the 600, so much the bet- ter). You take it out on the track, getting a feel for the ultra-realis- tic physics engine. You compete in a huge selection of events, bringing home credits with which to upgrade your vehicle or buy new ones (and sometimes bring- ing home a new vehicle as well). Then you take your new vehicles out on the courses and work out the intricacies of the new car, slowly learning the difference in handling between front-, rear- and all-wheel drive cars; between gear ratios and clutch mecha- nisms; between different tires and different suspensions. And you proceed through a series of license tests which gradually teach you how to drive these incredibly powerful machines. If all this doesn't make a game the top racer of the year, we don't know what does. RASH TEAM RACING RUNNERS UP: You Don't Know Jack!, Quake Il, NFL Blitz 2000 ACCEPTED BY DANIEL AREY, DESIGNER The entire staff at Naughty Dog is very pleased and proud to accept this award. From the beginning, we set out to make a game that had continued playing power, fueled by what you the gamers brought to each race. To hear the Screams, groans, trash talk and laughter makes us confi- dent that Crash Team Racing has tapped a deep vein of human competitiveness which will last for some time. BEST RACING GAME stand why this excellent game was worthy of this award. If you haven't played the game yourself, here's a brief rundown of its eeing as how we named GT2 our Game of the Year, it should come as no sur- prise that it also earns the award for Best Racing Game of 1999. But this wasn't as easy a choice as it might appear: CTR's light- hearted style and multiplayer options made it an exceptionally strong contender, likewise with R4's balls-to-the-wall arcade for- mat and gorgeous graphics. But if you've spent any time with GT2, you no doubt under- AC TED BY SONY CEA Strict attention to detail has truly been the main key to the over- whelming success of Gran Turismo 2. First and foremost our goal was to develop a game that would not only offer an unprecedented number of cars and tracks to select from, but would precisely mirror realistic components of racing such as handling, sound effects and track design. Knowing the high expectations of die- hard racing gamers, Polyphony Digital painstakingly saw to it that Gran Turismo 2 would deliver the best, pushing the racing genre to an entirely new level. For all of the hard work and attention to detail, we are proud to accept this award on behalf of the Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. and Polyphony Digital partnership. BEST MULTIPLAYER GAME hen it comes to naming the Best Multiplayer Game of any year, it's impor- tant to consider nomi- nees from every genre, which sometimes makes this a particularly tough category to call. But when the time came to cast our ballots for this year's award, Crash Team Racing ended up as the easy victor. First of all, consider the fact that this action-intensive game manages four-player split-screen without a hiccup; that's a feat unto itself. But then add to that a substantial selec- tion of different tracks and arenas and a wonderfully customizable ж Ваше mode, which allows players to choose the method of scoring, pick teams and even select which weapons will be avail- able once the competition begins. The result is a multiplayer game that excels both in presentation and in content. No other game stood up to ٩ impressive list of features. ٩ ' ~ А, A~ М Ü “Be 1 о ЖҰ * / = f / The Rest of '99 (cont.) WORST GAME: SHADOW TOWER You know a game has problems when more than one person asks if it was made on a Yaroze home development system. Sub- first-generation graphics, clunky framerate, horrible gameplay and buggy to boot. Bury this one next to Bubsy 3D and The Fifth Element. BEST ORIGINAL SCORE: SUIKODEN П Sure, lots of RPGs have sweep- ing, cinematic musical scores, but no other game even comes close to the beautiful composi- tions found in Suikoden II. These pieces really get the blood pumping, and prepare you for the revolution ahead! BEST COMEBACK: TWISTED METAL 4 Admittedly, after Twisted Metal 3 disappointed us, we almost left this franchise for dead. 989 managed to reverse most of the problems and put the sugar back in Sweet Tooth. The big question now is whether the next Twisted Metal will appear on the PS, Р52, or both. Either way, we'll be ready to play it. BEST PARTY GAME: YOU DON’T KNOW JACK! We can’t believe it took so long Тог this дате to come ош, би! now that it has, hordes of game show fans can turn their atten- tion from Regis and his tired, millionaire spiel. UGLIEST CHARACTER: YOUNG LARA You would think Eidos would have been more careful as to how they made their money-printing vixen appear in her youth. Instead, she looks like a Keebler elf beaten to a pulp with the ugly stick. My how she’s aged. SEXIEST CHARACTER: ZAN (ОЕ RISING ZAN) Agetec, the makers of his game, described Zan as a “super ultra sexy hero; and we couldn't agree more. We’re not sure if it’s his floppy Western hat, the mysteri- ous Chinese symbol on the back of his jacket, or his aura of confidence that makes him irre- sistible, but one thing is certain: Zan is definitely the ladies’ man. BEST MISCELLANEOUS GAME Г YOU DON'T KNOW JACK RUNNER UP: MTV Music Generator different styles of game, so it's not an easy category in which to pick a winner. Nevertheless, You Don't Know Jack!, being easily the best game show-style title the PlayStation has seen yet, earns top honors with its excel- lent writing, hysterical (and dis- turbingly lifelike) host, and huge selection of questions. MTV Music Generator was a close sec- опа pick, but YDKJ!’s more uni- versal appeal won out, since Music Generator is definitely for more of a niche audience. ap he category of "Miscellaneous" can include a number of radically Za) Come Together, Right سا few. Over ме Е лао Following the example of the тап who unified Germany іп 1871, which of these simitarly-named rappers might unity the warring hip-hop factions on America’s coasts? BEST PUZZLE GAME BALLISTIC ure it was a super- slow year for puz- zle games, which seemed to totally fall off the map. In fact, our win- ner was one of only four puzzle games we rated this past year. But by no means does that take anything away from how excellent Ballistic is. It received a four-out-of-five rating from us and addicted the heck out of staffers. Very similar to the Bust a Move series, Ballistic has you shoot at encroaching balls that must be matched to be eliminated. Simple yet challenging—all you can really ask for or want in a puzzle game. BEST ADVENTURE GAME LEGACY OF of “To Be Continued...” inspired, not outrage, but rather anticipation of the forthcoming sequel. One might argue that Nemesis or Dino Crisis offered a more solid, complete gam- ing experience, but seeing as how both were grounded in the basic Resident Evil formu- la, Soul Reaver's originality— not to mention the unbe- lievable presentation— edged out these strong con- tenders when it was all over. 3, PRODUCER/ DIRECTOR an ex-vampire seeking vengeance on his former mas- ter, doing a little fratricidal housecleaning on the way. Soul Reaver includes a num- ber of innovative puzzles, a nice collection of moves and abilities for Our Undead Hero, and a giant world free of the nasty load times that plagued the first Legacy of Kain. Most stunning, however, are the eye-popping graphics. Deft use of texture and light- ing combine with realistic, dramatic architecture to cre- ate one of the most visually пећ games of the year. Granted, we have our com- plaints about this one: The world is a bit less populated than we'd like, and the engine is prone to periodic slowdown. And then there's that ending... or more specifically, the lack thereof. But for us, the ending ast year was a great one for adventure games: RE3, Dino Crisis and Silent Hill represented some of the finest specimens of the "survival horror" sub- genre, while Syphon Filter mixed Tomb Raider with Metal Gear Solid to create one of the most promising new franchises of the year. But it was the long-awaited arrival of the much-delayed Soul Reaver that turned the most heads around this office. The game starts with a dark premise: You play the role of Even after all the hard work, and despite our faith in the project, we're still stunned (and gratified) to hear that Soul Reaver has struck such a chord with the gaming public—l guess Raziel represents the disaffected, jawless blue guy in all of us. We'd like to thank the gaming press (and particularly the folks at OPM, of course) for all their support and enthusiasm over the last couple of years. The editorial praise really buoyed the team's spirits during the bleaker periods of Soul Reaver's development. We're hard at work on the sequel, and look forward to the official unveiling at this year's E3. As we're in the midst of development, gamers' feedback is not only welcome but appreciated: Post your feedback to the Soul Reaver Forum at www.eidosinteractive.com. We read the message boards regularly, so it's a great forum to get your input directly to the team. So thanks адаіп--аНег all the effort, it really warms our cockles to know that so many people have genuinely enjoyed the game. ACCEPTED BY DANIEL AREY, DESIGNER After pouring our heart and soul into a game for well over 12 months, there is no greater joy than having the game be so well received by players and press alike. From the programmers whose technology allowed the look to be so solid, to the fantastic artists whose aesthetic eye made the Crash Universe come alive yet once again, to the won- derful support from our friends at Sony, we would like to congratulate everyone who worked so hard in making this game what it is. the game's graphical team. Oh, and it should also be noted that the game continues to look great even in four-player split- screen mode (though some effects are dropped to keep the frame-rate up). Neither Soul Reaver's textures and architecture nor FFVIII's melding of real-time and rendered graphics were enough to overtake this visual treat. BEST STRATEGY GAME CIVILIZATION Ii RUNNERS UP: Warzone, Worms: Armageddon, Vandal Hearts 2 Q or a long time, Sid Meier's Civilization II has been known as one of the best PC strategy games of all years ago), Civilization II's game- play is so rock-solid that it easily shines through any lackadaisical effort—and luckily the control though CTR does boast a bevy of Naughty Dog graphical standards like real-time reflections, vertex- morphing animations and real dynamic z-buffering for water effects. What CTR is possibly most notable for is what isn't in the game: Specifically, there's no pop- up, draw-in, fogging or other such unsightliness that tends to plague racing games. That's a feat that no similar title has yet accomplished, and it testifies to the excellence of ACCEPTED BY JOHN HEINECKE, BRAND MANAGER This award is a testament to the strength of Sid Meier and Brian Reynold's original design for Civilization |. The key to success is that the inherent fantasy of the game is compelling to gamers on any platform- you are a leader of a great civilization that must rise above the others by master- ing science, military and diplomacy. Every decision you make has repercus- sions, and the game is dif- ferent every time you play it. That is why Civilization || is 50 unique. scheme is PlayStation-friendly (unlike many PC ports). The game is as complicated or easy as the player wants it to be, and not just through the stan- dard means of adjustable diffi- culty levels. For example, you can conquer the world through force, or embrace it and explore the stars through diplomacy and superior technology and com- merce. This game doesn't just let you conquer the world, it also serves as a hell of an entertain- ing encyclopedia that teaches you quite a bit as well. Oh, and bombing natives with Stealth Fighters is fun too. time, which makes it all the more surprising that it took this long for someone to bring it to the PlayStation. The age of this classic game made it a bit difficult for us to hand the award to Civilization II, but reason prevailed: Why should such a timeless gem be penal- ized for outlasting the shiny, new competition? Instead, it should be rewarded—even if the game's trophy case of accolades is already filled to the brim. Іп spite of Activision porting it to the PlayStation with mini- mal effort (the graphics are prac- tically the same as they were BEST GRAPHICS CRASH TEAM RACING RUNNERS UP: Final Fantasy VIII, Soul Reaver, Omega Boost, 4 aughty Dog has produced some of the best-looking PlayStation games since they first launched the original Crash Bandicoot, way back in '96. So it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that CTR boasts the best graphics of any game of 1999 (especially considering that Crash 3 earned top honors in this category last year). What is surprising is just how deftly the game is illustrated. It's not just what's in the game, BEST RETRO GAME , FINAL اچ FANTASY ANTHOLOGY RUNNERS UP: Pong, Arcade Party Pack, Lunar: SSSC ither one of the two games in this collection (Final Fantasy V and FF VI) by themselves would be a contender for retro game of the year, but together it's no contest. Anthology may not have the aesthetic sparkle or shine of modern RPGs—after all, both of these games are direct ports of the 16-bit Super Nintendo versions—but for pure gameplay there are few better titles on the PlayStation, this or any year. FFV's groundbreaking job system, VI's epic storyline and unforgettable characters, both games' classic combat, tough boss- es, and wholly immersive atmos- phere—are all things that allow Anthology to stand the test of time. 492» Official 5۹۷ ههه March 2000 The Rest of '99 (cont.) С j a ~ WORST CHARACTER DESIGN: THE ENTIRE SHADOW MAD- NESS CAST What the hell happened here? These guys look like they belong оп а cocktail napkin or stuck to a refrigerator. Seriously, we get reader art from 5-year-olds everyday that looks better than these characters. BEST VOICE ACTING: SOUL REAVER OK, perhaps it is а ИНе melo- dramatic in places, but that’s really more the fault of the script. When you have a cast of several accredited voice actors (some of whom can be seen on episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Lois 8 Clark- see if you can pick them out yourself!) you’re bound to come out far ahead of the pack. WORST VOICE ACTING: GRANDIA Sure, most games are plagued with bad voice acting, but the cast of overeager third-rate talentless simps who lent their ۷٥66.۶ їо 6۲۵0138 тападед їо take this category to a new low. Breathless proclamations, bizarre inflections and painful pauses are just a few of the problems. Forget acting-this doesn’t even deserve to be called speaking. MOST IRRITATING VOICES: JOHN MADDEN AND РАТ SUMMERALL Although he’s the icon that rep- resents the best sports game of 1999, John Madden is quickly becoming the low point of this franchise. His repetitive, blustery remarks anti-punctuated by Summerall’s zombie-esque mumbles often bleed some excitement out of the game. BEST STORY LUNAR: SSSC RUNNERS UP: FFVIII, Syphon Filter, Suikoden II ometimes it’s not the o story itself but how you tell the story that makes all the difference. That's certain- ly the case with Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, one of the most engaging and well-written games we've ever played. Sure, the plot wasn't the most origi- nal, and we can't deny that the Nall & Co. was occasionally youthful exuberance of Alex, Luna, grating. But with a nearly flawless script, intelligent ACCEPTED BY VICTOR humor, endearing charac- ters, solid pacing and a plotline that holds togeth- er, Lunar stands out as a prime example of why story matters. Plus, the dia- logue is so good that it's worth your while to seek out every character and speak with him or her at least twice to see what that person would say next. IRELAND, PRESIDENT WORKING DESIGNS Thank you! This award is quite gratifying to receive. We all worked very hard to bring Shigema and Hasebe-san's vision of Lunar to life in English for U.S. consumers. The fact that the involving story and well-defined charac- ters have captured the imagi- nation of a quarter-million And then there's the best RPG fans hopefully will call part of all: an ending that attention to the difference that puts some of Hollywood's attention to detail in an RPG finest to shame. Another story can make! fine effort from Working Designs. BEST SOUND MEDAL OF HONO RUNNERS UP: Silent Hill, MTV Music Generator, Soul Reaver ven though plenty of movies, but it also changes to movie studios have react to the on-screen gameplay. hopped onto video gam- The war hymns are so riveting ing's bandwagon by throwing that they will surely make even out plenty of titles, none of them Һе most frail pacifist want to have managed to use their cine- | take up arms and become а matic resources to raise the qual- _ Nazi-busting hero. ity of their games. Dreamworks While the music sets the tone, has not only broken this sad the game's crisp and authentic trend, they have utterly shattered sound effects are equally as it by presenting a game with one — effective at making Medal of of the best audio mixes ever Honor seem realistic and found in a PlayStation game. Medal of Honor's rousing classical soundtrack not only rivals that of many A-list to the thunderous, booming rum- ble of a machine gun blazing in a bunker, you'll feel like you're dramatic. From the Nazi's really on the battlefield, Saving „battle cries during combat, ^ Private Ryan-style. EPTED BY ERIK KRABER, SOUND DESIGNER Thanks to OPM for this great honor. It has been excit- ing to see how people have reacted so positively to the sound in MOH. Thanks to: Michael Giacchino for his beautiful orchestral score; all the voice actors | for their strained voices (I apologize for any perma- P nent damage from all the screaming); the entire MOH team for their dedication to this project; and / my Wife, Tara, for her undying patience. Let's keep 4 pushing the sound envelope іп 2000! v Strategy % Гор БА МЕН АЈ jim_mazurek@zd.com he long wait is finally over. The sequel to Sony's genre- defining racer is here, and it once again promises to raise the bar by which all other driving games are judged. Sporting more options, more tracks, and a simply obscene amount of cars to choose from, Gran Turismo 2 caters to almost any driving style imag- inable.While the game looks similar to its predecessor, the sheer number of events will keep even the most hardcore drivers busy for months to come. Gran Turismo 2 takes everything the first game did right and improves upon it ten-fold. Welcome to the best racer in console history. This guide is written for the Simulation Disc of 612, and the following techniques are best applied to that disc only. While some of this stuff can be used for arcade-style driving, most of it relates to parts setup/tuning and how to maximize performance. Be sure to check the March issue of Expert Gamer for the Arcade Mode update! a : 2 the Class % Most of the horsepower (HP) restrictions are placed with a fair deal of slack cut into the figure itself. If there is a 400 HP limit on a race or cup, then most of the drivers in that class will be racing around 325-350 HP cars. If it’s a 500 HP | limit, then the drivers will be driving 400-450 HP cars. To S) / take advantage of their stupidity, always outclass the com- puter drivers with added HP when possible. If a class has a set limit of 400 HP, then you need to find a way to get your car up to 399 HP (beating most of the computer drivers by at least 50). There are exceptions to this rule, since the cars change each time any given race is entered. * Another problem that arises when dealing with class pre- requisites is finding a darn car in the first place. If you're racing in а 4WD class, then you need a good 4WD саг. That's not so hard. But if you're racing in a mid-engine class, you'll need to find a good mid-engine car. That could be a little more difficult. Because of these restrictions (along with the HP limitations), I decided to list a good choice for each race next to the races themselves, saving you both the time and frustration of having to search for them yourself. As you progress through the game, you will learn how to use the better cars for more than one class entry. т @ Spinout Prevention % As you race progressively faster and adjust those very same parts to take faster cars, you'll start to spin out more full advantage of them. Setting your 555% - Y NEL A and more. With all of that gained ride height lower and stiffening up the power and acceleration comes loss spring/dampening rates will help. The of traction, and with loss of traction Brake Balance Controller can help comes big trouble. To negate this, tremendously by setting up your front you'll not only need to buy parts that brakes to be much stiffer than your (e improve your traction and handling, rear brakes (preventing your car from but you'll also need to learn how to getting "loose" in the turns). cpio • GT2's computer drivers are good. So 2. using them as cushions when taking ایج سپ good, in fact, that I'm not sure if it's turns too fast. It may seem cheap to KACO # тюосо مت shoddy AI or if they're actually perfect bang into another car and use it to м drivers. Either way, these tricks will let hold your speed during a turn, but it you control them and keep them out of works, and it works well. The computer your way when trying to finish a race. will always follow the optimal path You can foul up their game plan by through any given turn, so if you know using cheap tactics like 1. blocking where they're going, you can block them during the last lap of a race or them out or smash into them. 3 ® Just as each car has its own distinct slowing to a near halt just to exit the handling style, each turn has its own turn alive. I've seen far too many applied technique. You'll want to take gamers до full-steam into a turn and — standard turns slow, using early brak- crash, only to do the same thing on the ing and a bit of the feathered throttle very next lap. The key is to always fol- to get the most speed while exiting the low the computer cars through the turn. Hairpins and chicanes should be turns first. That way, you'll know where taken with extreme caution (especially to gauge your entry and exit speed for on Laguna Seca) and often require any given turn. PlayStation Magazinel тей, Маге Рай/Саг Benefit Mitsubishi FTO 4 Performance Chip Sports Sus acing Soft Tires ke Kit +6 214(+47) N/A 49,319 Use it to access ər your save dat: Basics of Cornering 1 © • The first real turning test, this requires you to learn how to feather the brakes as you follow the little yellow line through the turn (hey, the original GT didn't have those!). It's not hard to pass, but it can be a pain if you're shooting for the gold medal. Well, looky here! They even draw you a nice little racing [0:24.650 | 0:25.200 ВИСЕТЬ iine to follow. Basics of Cornering 2 * This is the first test where you'll be thrown into a moving car (from the get- go), so it's key to have your finger on the accelerator even as the track is loading. Once you're rolling, build speed and feather the brakes through the turn. When you exit, try to keep : — В your adjustments to a minimum. It's easy to get off course and veer into the dirt, so watch | 0:20.750 | 0:21.300 BREZE your exit speed. i iffi xou: Basics of Cornering 3 Q е E * This is a lot like the previous test, except this one has a right-hand turn instead of a left. Also, note that you won't be thrown into a rolling start (which is why the pass times are all a bit higher than the previous test). озса) dmm us This is an extremely wide turn, and it requires a bit of brake [| 0:25.310 | 0:25.800 ЕЕ feathering to master. Ы f Cı ing 4 Hm B asics of Cornering © eo : % Conquering the S-curve сап Бе а сит- bersome task the first time through апа even more so if you insist on taking it with your foot to the floor. Try backing off the accelerator as you move through the second half of the first turn, then drive deep into the second turn and leave with a high exit speed. 17277757٢ ۶7777۶ 0:26.000 | found it best to ride оп the inside of the dotted yellow line. ense Te Basics of Cornering 5 % This is the same test as the previous one, except you'll be starting with a 62 mph entrance speed. Because of this, you'll want to hit the brakes harder when entering the first turn. Pass it and you've got yourself a B-License. Now go race some GT League races and make some money! Don't be afraid to get up on the rumble strips-they provide [:0:20:300-| 0:21.100 MEZ excellent traction. ГЕ B-LICENSE TEST u started, but by no matter of minute: Strategy t of training wheels for your first bike. in GT2 and you'll | ted all of the lice Start, Acc Braking 1 * The start is the most critical time of the test, so you'll need to learn how to effectively launch your car if you want to win a gold medal. The best bet is to rev this car up as high as it can go, since it has an unbelievably low HP overall. You should aim to slam on the brakes anywhere between 940 and 950 meters. Gold Silver Bronze [75:88:50 28.5۶ ШЕЕ Start, Acceleration, & O @ > Braking 2 * This is just like the previous test, but with a much more powerful car. Because of this, you'll need to get your speed much higher and brake a bit ear- lier to make it into the goal area. It's really easy to overshoot, but you're almost guaranteed to make it by your second or third try. KEA 0-27 550 0:50.500 Hit the brakes hard at the 875 meter mark and slide ап the way into the goal area. Start, Acceleration, & Braking 3 * I'm still boggled as to why they make you do three separate start/stop tests. To win, just hit the brakes at the 875 mark and coast on into the goal area. It seems like only Grandma and Uncle Chester will have a tough time with the start/stop tests... KEE 027.300 EELS This car is much faster, but it also has a much better set of sports brakes. Circle Track 1- Acceleration Basics е * This one teaches you how to control your acceleration through a set of tough turns. Actually, this is one continuous turn. You'll need to feather the brakes to keep your speed at an acceptable level. Hug the rumble strips and 1727777 TEN оог ооо ٠ Circle Track 2 – Acceleration Basics % Two laps around an 80 meter track without stopping or wiping out? No problem, right? Well, it shouldn't be— especially since you just beat an identi- cal test with a slightly weaker car. To get the gold, you'll need to really push the car to its limits, staying in 3rd gear the entire time around the course. 17777557۳ 933550” o Again, hug the rumble strips and feather the brakes if nec- essary. 300 с о 2 S 5 N > 26% a гра uable. You'll have access to some of the better special g your save data! ле get-go by transferi Intermediate Cornering 4 * think this test is actually a bit easier than the last one because of the car itself—it's simply much easier to pre- dict. Powerslide your way through the turn while feathering the gas on your way out. Driveability plays a huge role in GT2, and if a car doesn't have it, it sucks. | 0:12.500 | 0:13.200 ДТ) You сап actually 6 and cut right through this turn like a hot knife through butter. Applied Cornering 1 ( ) وه s * There are two turns in this test that offer you two chances to screw up. Most 4WD cars are better known for their handling and stability than they are for their precise turning. Because of this, you'll be forced to enter turns a bit slower than you would with a rear- wheel drive car. 172757 ۶2727۶ RETA Applied Cornering 2 ( ) مه 1 % This one is kinda tough at first; pri- marily because the Supra has some whack acceleration. The real key to this license test is to exit the final turn with a lot of speed. It's fast, it's yellow and it's Japanese. Is that car a Toyota Supra or a Pikachu? Don't assume it turns better just because all four wheels are spinning. Yuck, the Supra still sucks like it did in the first GT. And it still takes turns like crap. [0:24.000 | 0:24.400 ٧۱ Applied Cornering 3 ( ) се : • Don't go too fast into the first turn— it's unbelievably sharp. Try it out at low speeds first, then visualize the optimal line through the middle (those dotted yellow lines would sure help ћеге!). Enter the last turn deep, then cross the apex and hit the throttle hard toward the finish. 944190: TES 8 і iffi. مهه Applied Cornering 4 ( ) ео У d [cs Don't be afraid to cross the rumble strips on the entrance to this series of turns. * This one's a mess if you're a lead-foot- ed driver. If you get heavy on the gas, you're only sure to drive yourself insane by failing this test time after time. 1 found it best to rely on light braking and power steering to muscle your way through this wickedly evil 90 degree turn. | 0:13:700 | 0:14.800 ٧۱ It's all too easy to get sideways with the Supra (because it stinks). al GT, you'll al * They start you off at a much higher speed than the previous start/stop tests, and because of that, you'll need to hit the brakes much earlier in the track. I usually hit them around the 865-875 mark to slide in with ease. If you're going this fast (147 mph) at the 900M mark, you're toast. Early braking! Gold Silver Bronze | 0:18.800 | 0:19.200 ШЕТУ) * The braking on this car is substandard at best, so don't overshoot the goal area by taking that last turn too fast. Start braking early and stop toward the front of the goal area for the best possi- ble time. It's good to go fast, but not too fast! Hit the brakes as you exit the last turn. KEEN 0:1500 م8 Intermediate ( ) е Cornering 1 • Your main troubles with this track will be taking the initial turn at such a high speed. I found it best to induce a pow- erslide so you can then exit the turn at full throttle (a powerslide is where your car breaks traction and slides into the turn). It's key to exit the turn with at least 70 mph carrying you to the finish line. ٧187 200 | 0:20.000 | ТТ] • Losing the rear end isn’t tough to do with a powerful rear-wheel drive car like this (just wait until you get in а 600НР Corvette). You should practice with the overall feel of the car—as opposed to the front-wheel drive cars—since there are certain races in the game where you can only drive a car with this drivetrain. [0:19.300 | 0:19.900 11 Intermediate ( ) eoe Cornering 3 % Although it’s sharp, the key to run- ning smoothly through a turn like this is to keep a circular approach going throughout. It’s true that your car will naturally want to break traction and go into a spin, but your job is to keep the braking smooth enough that this does- n't happen. 15725777 073200 ЛЕТ Your first cornering test та rear wheel drive can be “hella hard" if you're not used to it. A common mistake of first- time drivers is to take this corner too fast. (ез 1-С LICENSE TEST iring this Practical Cornering 2 © сә | * This test is a longer version of the last test. It forces you to accelerate hard down the main section in between the two turns. Even after you exit the sec- ond turn, you'll have quite a ways to go before you reach the finish line. Again, it's important to use those rumble strips as guides | 0:22.500 | 0:25.300 | 0:24.700 | for your turns. Practical Cornering 3 Q ве ы * With its annoying chicane that leads into a hairpin turn at the back end, this one is a real pain. It's very easy to screw this one up the first five times you try it, so don’t get discouraged. The best technique seems to be braking as you leave the chicane, then sliding left as you boost through the turn. 18757۴571 0:15:700 | БЕТ] If you carry some speed through the chicane, make sure to slide into the fast turn. ense Te Practical Cornering 4 * It's easy to slide up a little too high and lose all of your acceleration due to excessive wheelspin. To prevent this, try feathering the brakes with some “Роог- Мап'5 ABS.” Try lightly tapping the brake button as fast as you can instead of just jamming on it with one big hit. СТИ 05:200 AT Practical Cornering 5 © е * This test can be passed by simply putting your foot to the floor and muscling your way through the turns. Because of the barriers, there’s no worry about falling off the track. I really can't believe how easy this test is. Poor Man's ABS works well on this turn. You might need to brake a bit before entering this turn. 0:20.150 0:22.500 Practical Cornering 6 • The final I-C test is a kicker with its combination of crappy саг and crappy course. Use the width of the track to your advantage by straightening the turns and accelerating hard out of them. This should be more than enough technique to get you the bronze... Slippidy-sliding your way through the turns isn't so bad [20:22500 | 0:25.500 ВЕЕТ in the ‘vette. Strategy А т 0 Diffi Advanced Cornering 1 са • The corner is tough, but the target times aren't too bad. Follow the line and start braking early or you'll find yourself pulled off the track by the pow- TA ers of inertia. Inertia is evil, and you emo should make all attempts to destroy it. gem = P ч Gold sit в This corner is brutally decep- o ver. ronze tive. It just keeps going and 0:16.050 | 0:16.600 DII going... Advanced Cornering 0 са 2 • Enter the turn hard and exit with finesse while lightly feathering the brakes. Once you're past the peak (ог apex) of the turn, get back on the throt- tle and light up the track. Get on the brakes if you need to, but don't induce a power- [015.450 | 0:16.000 БЕЈ slide into the grass! ifficulty (селе 75 Multiple Corners 1 e * Both turns on this test are sharp. You can take them cleanly, however, if you straighten out the rear end of the Camaro while going through them. Granted, the Camaro isn't so hot when it comes to handling, so it might be easier said than done. To get the silver or gold medals you'll need to exit the final 17202571 021500 PREETI turn with gobs of speed. Multiple Corners 2 О е У_Ё * I found this test to be easier than most of the others in this class because of the barriers that seem to “keep you on the track." I mean, it's really hard to fail this one by going off the track itself. Just prevent the spinout and you'll be fine. You'll learn how to "see" - through corners even when you | 0:20:200 Т 0:21.600 | 0:25.500 can't technically see anything. anta Ta Practical Cornering 1 * This one isn't too bad if you master the powerslide. Just remember that chi- canes tend to induce the rear end of your car to kick out from under you, and if you don't correct for it, you'll enter a spinout. Spinouts are bad. Powersliding with the Supra? - How odd, I've never done that [:0:11:400 | 0:12.100 ERT vetore... C.) LB LICENSE TET Concentrating on Rally and advanced cornering techniques, the 1-8 License will be your hardest test yet. Earn this puppy if you want to race most of the tougher tracks within the GT League and the Special Events series. icense Te Diffi Low Speed Slalom © еш * To master the slalom, you'll have to apply some decent accelerator control through the open spaces in between the blocks. Don’t just get on the throttle and try to mash through ‘em. That doesn't work too well. You've got enough time, so you shouldn't be rush- ing out of control. 1157771557 06:21:00 | 0:22.900 these stupid slalom courses... i iffi Ges Multiple Corners 4 ее • If you take the first turn too hot, you'll slide off the track and fail. The key is controlling the weight of your car and getting it to shift from one side to the other. Once you feel it change over (you'll know what I mean), go full throt- tle into the finish. Жыл у, = 2 Ugh! I have nightmares about The most common mistake is to take the first turn way too fast. 0:20500 ЙТ] AR High Speed Slalom • The real key to this track is keeping your front grille off the tips of the slalom obstacles. It's so easy to natural- WEN vd ly want to increase speed and nip one 2 9 of the edges near the end of the course. A og Just remember that you should have ^ pi enough time to control your car if you wish. Keep the speed moderate, although still a bit faster than | 0:18:650 | 0:19.500 | 0:21.700 the previous slalom test. icense Te Practical Cornering 7 (9) e * The RX-7 slides all over the track, so it's a bit hard to push it through the chicane while retaining a lot of speed. I found it best to simply get a good angle d on your entry into the chicane, and the = FUN angle will automatically flow from there. 5 42 It OK to hug the bottom of the track here. It actually sets you up for the final turn. 1277777 ۶7777۶ EID 5-а Ta Practical Cornering 8 09 * [ hate this turn with every bone in my lanky little body. I can't stress how important this turn is (you'll be racing here A LOT), so you better learn to deal with it. The key is to keep your cool and drive extremely slow. I'm talking like 40- 50 mph slow. Any faster and you'll be riding the sand into a sheet of concrete. 110827126011 0:24.800 175 Dodge Viper + Hardest Turn іп the Game = Death! License Test (F ) —Pifficulty _ مهم Rally Techniques 1 е • The rally tests are ridiculous. Not because they're tough, but because the target times are so lenient. You can slip-slide all over the place and still make the silver medal on your first try. Rally racing isn't as exact as road rac- ing, but it sure is fun... 7 You'll get air with the rally Gold Silver Bronze cars, 50 you better learn how to [[0:27:100 | 0:29.000 ЕЕ] keep them under control. Rally Techi је еса niques 2 а an • Another super easy test, this опе هه SEL IES takes you through a series of three small S-curves. This test will teach you how to lead your car into the next turn when racing on a dirt track. Carry some speed through the last turn and you're golden. ETE 0:20.800 | ЕТТ] Oversteer 1 G «о Y * Compensate for the crappy car on this test by correcting the oversteer—accel- erate at the very moment you feel your car start to slip. Doing so will make it kick back into the turn and get back on track. This car has a tendency to oversteer and spinout easily. |29:25:500-| 0:26:300 ETAT icense Te (4) рін Oversteer 2 7 * With a rear-wheel drive саг that likes to spin out, you need to use extreme caution when hitting the gas pedal. Instead of getting on the gas as you start to slip, you'll need to counter steer first and then get on the gas. Step one, step two... Mid-engine cars like the NSX are notorious for spinning out 0:24.300 | 0:25.200 MEZEY of control. Multiple Corners 3 (5) ео * The Mustang powerslides very well, so you'd be a fool not to try it. The only problem is keeping it off the top end of the track (it likes to ride up high) as you take the first turn. Slow down your entry speed if need be. The Mustang has some wicked power, but it falls short with its sluggish handling. يج 9:16:800 7۷ 1777 Strategy Ї 1-А LICENSE TEST The I-A License brings back fond memorie t n Turismo. Swearing, ur fore and hurdling across the room go hand in hand with these 8 x them on y Circle Track 3 Q ео * This track will give you a crash course in handling powerful rear-wheel drive cars. Obviously, they are easy to spin out in a turn (and this track is one BIG turn), so your objective should be to avoid spinning by learning to feather the throttle. ense Te Downhill Techniques ® Since it’s a downhill race, the Peugeot will be much harder to stop than nor- mal. I found it easiest to just bounce and slide your way through this one. This is without a doubt the easiest chance at a gold medal that you're gonna get, so make the most of it and race smart! The Peugeot is the wizard of Pike's Peak, proving it's actual- [:0:39.600 | 0:41.000 | 0:43.000 ly a decent car for rally racing. i Pp iffi Зее» Practical Cornering 10 «ә نتا Gold Sil в The Viper's got gobs of power, ос. دا ronze, but keeping it from spinning 00 | 0:32.500 200 out is another story. Super Fast Corners ® It seems like only slight adjustments are necessary to keep your car on the road in this test. If you try to oversteer, you'll just end up eating the walls or spinning out of control. Take a minimal- istic approach and fine-tune your opti- mal line through the turns. • The elevation plays a huge role in this test. Teaching you how to deal with downforce is the reason behind this test, as you should be able to determine how much grip your car is getting based on the amount of slippage through the turn. 2 This car is a lot to handle, but if you keep it off the walls you'll be fine. The Griffith isn't all that hot of а car, but keeping it under con- 1277077۲ 025000 ШЕЖЕ trot is actually quite easy. Practical Cornering 9 0 ео * This track isn't too hard until you real- ize that the target times are a bit tight. You'll need to really push this car to the limits and ride the inside of the track if you're looking for anything higher than a bronze. * This is a long series of turns that ends in that now infamous chicane/hairpin combo. Keep the Jaguar off the dirt by applying light brakeage through the chicane. Get on the accelerator hard as you enter the hairpin and powerslide to the final straight. Use early braking with the NSX to prevent spinouts. The Jaguar handles like a dream, so it's possible to pass [0:22.900 Т 0:24.000 240 this test with a few mistakes. 172777۷۲ ET 0:52.600 مه Practical Cornering 12 HR ADO • If you can clear the corkscrew with this car, you can do anything. This is THE hardest test so far, and with 663HP at your disposal, it won't be easy. This brings a new meaning to the word “overkill.” Remember to slow down to a near halt when entering the turn, then get on the throttle to create downforce. Just keep it out of the sand and you'll be fine. Sand + GT- 17755011 TET ШШЕ ONE Car = Spinout. Super Fast Corners 2 0 auo У * Luckily, the final I-A test isn't аз bad as the previous one, but it still requires a bit of concentration and effort to pass. If you get on the outside of the first turn, you'll be properly set up for turn two. It's important to enter the first turn up high while braking, then exit the turn with maximum speed. If you make it through the second uphill turn, you're [[0:17.750 | 0:18.700 Ж home free. Rally * Another easy rally test, this one takes you through a series of small turns. Again, the barriers are your saving grace. The only "danger zone" is when entering the final turn. You need to take it a bit slower than the others or you'll find yourself eating the concrete real quick. The tires seem to bite extraor- dinarily well for being on such messy terrain. ense Te Hill Climbing Techniques * This is the hardest of the rally tracks so far, partially due to the overwhelm- ing power of the Escudo. Try to stay off the fences as much as possible (obvious- ly) by feathering the throttle instead of putting it to the floor. This thing is a rally driver's dream come true. Too bad we [ 0:27.000 | 0:29.000 0:31.000 don't tell you how to get it. Yet. Once you beat all of the previous license tests, the Super License will be available. Although it doesn't give you any higher access than the I-A License, it does па you're well on your way to becoming a hardcore GT guru. ense Te Rome Circuit Full * The Rome Circuit is the hardest track in the game when raced in its entirety. Lucky for you, you get a halfway decent car to get you through it. Utilize the car's handling and take turns at higher than normal speeds (don't be afraid to take some of the regular turns at 90--mph). EE EES | 1:36.000 Try to pull through this hairpin while retaining speed. nsa Ta Laguna Seca e I can't believe they keep giving you the Dodge Viper as a test car on this track! It's probably one of the hardest cars to keep on the road. Combine that with a full lap at Laguna Seca and you're in for a real treat. You know the drill on LS by now, so just drive like a grandma and hope for the bronze. | 1:13.400 | 1:16.000 | 61 And just when you thought you'd never have to race at Laguna Seca again... Tahiti Maze e * This is the last of the rally tests and it's definitely the hardest of the bunch. You can't fail because of leaving the track (the barriers keep you in), but it is much easier to lose concentration and hit a wall too fast out of a hard turn. To save time, cut your turns short and slide through them if possible. Your only danger of failing is by hitting the barriers if you take a turn too fast. Rome Night * The combination of nighttime driving and blind corners (corners that you can't see around), make this a tough track. On the flipside, the Alfa-Romeo АМО is an excellent car. There is а real- ly tough hairpin that you'll need to slow down for at the end of the track (I sug- gest taking it slower than 60 mph). KEE 132.000 EHED If you can make it through this hairpin, you're home free. ance Та Apricot Hill Speedway e This one’s got some tough combos of high-speed turns leading into decep- tively sharp uphill hairpins. Most of them force your car off the track. It sounds easy, but with this much power at your disposal, it's way too tempting to get carried away and floor it whenev- er the chance arises. [71:08:900- 1:12.000 ЕБЕТ The Toyota GT-ONE car is wickedly fast, so be careful when the track gets narrow. open up the secret Event Generator in the GT League menu. Complete this final set of tests ense Te Tahiti Road * You shouldn't have much trouble if you're like me and you like small front- wheel drive cars with a decent amount of HP. The Mini tears up the track if you apply light braking through the turns. A gold medal shouldn't be too tough to саға get on this test. г Ls š В Believe it ог not, the Mini actu- Gold Silver Bronze ally takes this test course with [1:14:00] 1:17.000 ЕШШ Cale. ense Te Seattle Circuit Full • The 6140 is a great car, but this is ап extremely tough track to race. The only thing that you can do to get your times down is to utilize the width of track in certain areas. Straighten out the turns and control your braking over the bumps and jumps. The rear wheel drive GT40 actually handles quite well. KET 1:34.000 BRETT icense Te / ‘Smokey Mountain North (2) * Like the rally tests in the previous couple of classes, the ones in the Super License are pretty easy. Don't adjust your steering when landing a jump, аз you'll immediately be thrown into a spin. If you hit a jump at the wrong angle, land it first to regain traction, then correct for your mistakes. | 1:22.200 | 1:24.000 11 Keep your car from losing trac- tion when landing a jump. ense Te Midfield Raceway * It's not hard to run а 1:10 at Midfield with a 700НР 4WD monster like the Nismo GT-R. If you take the first set of corners while retaining speed, you'll have no problem exiting through the high-speed section thereafter. This thing has got it all: handling, speed, and excellent traction. | 1103.400 | 1:06.000 11 епсе Те Grindelwald * The Lotus ranks low in driveability. It's always hard to control due to the mas- sive weight shifting in the rear end. There аге no sharp corners, so it's important to retain speed through as many turns as you can. The Lotus isn't exactly the саг | had in mind for this chicane- heavy track. 1727557۲ ETT 8 SO MANY PARTS, SO LITTLE TIME The key to upgrading your cars effectively comes from the general knowledge of the parts that you'll be equipping them with. If you aren't aware of what you're doing to your car, how сап you expect to maximize performance? So in other words, learn what the parts do and you'll know what's best for your situation. Below is a breakdown of all eight major parts categories, along with prices and my own recommendations for each part. Rating Em жөн Rating ж ж ж ж Rating kk dai ж Rating Stats: N/A You'll Notice: +Braking, Easy Cornering Parts to Equip Price For those of you who drive with Sports Brakes 5,000 a realistic approach (applying Balance Controller 11,000 early braking into corners), the sports brakes are a good buy for only 5K. The Balance Controller is IDEAL for controlling spinouts, as it lets you adjust the balance between the front and rear brake pressures. Stats: -Weight You'll Notice: + Just About Everything Parts to Equip Price Weight Reduction is essential Racing Modification : 85,000 for adding power and accelera- Yaw Control System 0 tion without actually adding Active Stability Cntrlr. : 50,000 HP to your stats (see "Making TCS Controller 50,000 the Class" sidebar on pg. 115). Weight Reduction Price The rest of the mods are Stage 1 1,500 quite expensive and should Stage 2 6,000 only be applied to your high- Stage 3 25,000 end supercars. Stats: + HP You'll Notice: ++ Massive Acceleration Parts to Equip Price If you've got a turbocharged Sport Intercooler 2,000 : car, this is the place to go ۴ Racing Intercooler 3,500 : massive HP gains. Don't just buy | Turbo Kits Price a Stage 4 turbo and think that Stage 1 5,000 you're done. The rest of your car Stage 2 14,500 needs to be balanced as well, or Stage 3 45,000 the turbo won't be able to work Stage 4 74,000 to its full potential. Each turbo has its own powerband; some rev harder at low RPM, some rev harder at high RPM. Stats: N/A You'll Notice: ++Напайпа, ++Cornering Parts to Equip Price If adjusting the dampening Sports Kit : 3,500 force and overall ride height Semi-Racing 8,000 seem pointless to you, think Full Customization : 20,000 again! The often overlooked sus- pension parts are probably one of the biggest improvements you can make to your race car. Full Customization is REAL expensive, but it's defi- nitely worth every credit. Stats: ФНР You'll Notice: +Acceleration, +Top Speed Parts to Equip Price Sports Muffler 1,800 Active Stability Control: 3,000 : Racing Muffler 5,000 : Rating * When you're looking for a cheap and effective HP boost, the exhaust system should be the first place to look. Upgrading in tiers will only end up costing you more in the long run (9,800 credits versus 5,000 credits), so you're better off just buying the Racing Muffler from the get-go. Stats: +HP You'll Notice: Acceleration, * Top Speed Price Parts to Equip Performance Chip Engine Balancing Port & Polish Bore & Stroke NA Tune Ups Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 e: Handling, ++Cornering Parts to Equip Price — Rating Sports Tires 7,000 : = Racing Hard : 11,000: ** Racing Medium : 13,000: ** Racing Soft : 15200۹ Racing Super Soft 18,000: ** Dirt Tires 8,000 : ** Simulation Tires 2,000 : * e:_+Acceleration, +Tweaking Parts to Equip Price Rating Carbon Driveshaft 3,500 : * Transmission Price Rating Sports 6,000 : ** Semi-Racing 16,000 : *** Full Racing 111,000: tree Flywheel Price Rating Sports 500 :* Semi-Racing 700. :* Full Racing : 1,200 ; = Clutch Price — Rating HD Single Plate 2000 : * Twin Plate 3,000 : * Triple Plate 5,000 : = For Professionals Price — Rating 2-Way Limited Slip :5,000 | ** 1.5-Way Limited Slip : 5,000 : ** 1-Way Limited Slip 25,000: +“ de Full Customization : 7,000 Expensive is the word when you talk about upgrading your engine. It takes big dollars for small results, but when you've got no where else to turn (espe- cially for non-turbocharged nat- urally aspirated engines), this is the place to squeeze those extra couple HPs out of your car. Stats: N/A_You'll Notic Traction plays a very important role in GT2, as it’s the one thing that you can never seem to have enough of. It pays to have sev- eral sets of tires for your better cars. They never wear out, hence their steep price. Stats: N/A You'll Монс If you're a true “gearhead,” this is the place for you. Buying a Race Transmission gives the ulti- mate in system tweaks, allowing you to change individual gear ratios all across the board. It also lets you fine-tune your rear end gear (remember that higher ratios will make the tires spin faster, and vice versa). All parts ratings were determined on a "performance to price ratio” conceived by the author of this guide. They are his opinions based on experience, not fact. US Nationals Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO 4 b- e \ Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) © Laguna беса 246 4,000 М/А © Laguna Seca 295 5,000 N/A © Laguna Seca 394 7,000 М/А Laguna Seca is the second hardest track in the game, period. К has two turns that are just plain ridiculous, along with a whole slew of bumps and elevation changes to throw off your car's suspension. Take the downhill chicane at no more than 50 mph. Once you get into the sand, you're losing some serious time. Practice this turn until either your controller breaks, or your fingers fall off—whichever comes first. US Nationals Suggested Car: Mitsubishi 3000GT Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) © Trial Mountain 197 4,000 R Castrol Supra GT (J) 96 © Midfield Raceway 345 5,000 N/A © Midfield Raceway 395 7,000 N/A Returning from the original Gran Turismo, Trial Mountain lovers will always remember this track for the deadly set of turns near the front half of the track. Once you learn to take this set of twists and turns slowly (and with caution in traffic), you're well on your way to mastering the track. There are a few places to build up speed— namely, the back straight that winds through the tunnel. US Nationals Suggested Car: Mitsubishi 300067 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) Q Deep Forest 216 4,000 N/A Ө Deep Forest 295 5,000 N/A Ө Deep Forest 443 7,000 N/A The front half of this course is all twisted up, making it seem like another one of those slow-ass tracks where handling runs the show. But the back half—whew boy! Talk about speed! It takes a good hybrid car with speed AND handling (that's why I chose the 4WD 3000GT) to master this track. As usual, the AI isn't all that bright, and I found that they can be thrown around like halflings if you hog the track. • All GT Leaque races must be completed before entering any of the Euro-Pacific races. Pacific League Suggested Car: Daisin Silvia СТ Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1 0 Midfield Raceway 542 10,000 R Nissan 300ZX GT (J) '97 Ө Seattle Circuit 542 10,000 R Mazda Rx-7 LM Edition Ө Laguna беса 542 10,000 R Drag 1805Х (J) Again, the Silvia dominates the field if you race it well. Although it’s only harnessing 413HP, you have to remember that it only weighs a mere 2,160 lbs. I'd say that's a pretty darn good power-to-weight ratio. The easiest of the bunch (surprisingly) is Laguna Seca (LS). Race LS for the R Drag 180SX repeatedly! It sells for an amazing 250,000 credits. That's a lot of dough this early in the game! • All Euro-Pacific League races must be completed Before entering any of the International League races. This race should Бе put off until you've acquired a whole fleet of cars in your garage. Specifically, one of the Arta GT-R GT caliber. If you don't have a car like this (or the money to buy опе), it will probably take you a while to even find a car that can hang with the high-pow- ered supercars that rule the GT World League. Knowledge of tuning and the tracks themselves will be essential, along with some of the old patience and persistence. You've raced all the tracks before, so apply the same techniques with a faster car. THE GT LEAGUE А 5 = с = $ (2 5 S E с т Е ^ 3 ey © £ 5 È INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE Techniques R Castrol Supra GT (J) 96 R Zexel Skyline GT (J) 7 R GT-ONE Race Car '98 Japan Nationals Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO '94 и Васе # НР МАХ Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) @ Midfield Raceway 197 4,000 N/A @ Midfield Raceway 295 5,000 N/A © Midfield Raceway 345 7,000 N/A The front half of the course has a decent straight that takes advan- tage of cars with raw HP, but the back half requires a little more finesse. The most notorious of the turns is the slow winding S-curve that leads you into the tunnel. Unless your car has wicked handling, this turn is deadly—even when taken at intermediate speeds. Just remember that you don't need to fly through every turn to win. French Nationals Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO '94 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) Q Tahiti Road 246 4,000 N/A Ө Tahiti Road 295 5,000 N/A Tahiti Road is set up like an oval with a few left-hand turns thrown in for good measure. About 95 percent of the track is raced with your foot to the floor, and getting into the grassy rough doesn't seem to effect your car much. Straightening out from turns plays a huge role in mastering the track, and along with a little brake feathering, you'll be on your way to domination. Japan Nationals Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO 94 HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) Race # @ Rome Short 197 4,000 N/A 9 Rome Short 295 5,000 N/A The absolute hardest track of GT2, Rome Short (and Full) offers an evil blend of high-speed straights and dreadfully slow hairpin turns. It's weird trying to find a car that works well for this course. You usually try to look for either handling or HP, as few cars excel with both. In the case of Rome, however, that's exactly what you need to win; HP and handling. At least it's not bad with under 300HP. Euro League Suggested Car: Daisin Silvia GT Race # © Apricot Hill © Grand Valley 591 © Rome Circuit 591 HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) 591 10,000 10,000 10,000 R Kure R33 GT (J) 97 Even though you'll be outclassed HP-wise, the Silvia more than makes up for it with some awesome handling and predictable/con- sistent response times. The prize money is minimal, but the racing modified cars are one heck of a prize for a single race. Even if you already have better cars, the racing versions tend to sell extremely well (fetching between 125,000-250,000 credits a pop). GT World League Suggested Car: R Arta GT-R GT Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) Race # HP MAX © Trial Mt. Free 25,000 N/A © Laguna Seca Free 25,000 N/A Ө Apricot Free 25,000 N/A © Rome Circuit Free 25,000 N/A ӨМ. Raceway 6 25,000 v S (ар = 3 к а 3 E = iE 5 =. А 3 G = E = Techniques LINES * All races for one championship * 750,000 credit bonus for winning the championship Clubman Сир Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO '94 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) @ Rome Short Free 5,000 N/A Ө Grindelwald Free 6,000 N/A © Rome Circuit Free 7,000 N/A One step up from the Sunday Cup, the Clubman Cup doesn't offer any special cars to unlock either; however, it does reward you with about twice as many credits for the low-HP race (though Rome Short is indeed a much harder track than Tahiti Road). FR Challenge Suggested Car: Skyline 25GT (2WD) Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) @ Clubman Stage R5 295 5,000 Sileighty (J) Ө Special Stage RS 443 6,000 Nismo 270R (J) © Midfield Raceway 493 7,000 Mazda Rx-7 GT-C (J) 99 The 2WD Nissan Skyline is one of the most underrated cars in the game (since the Skyline is generally thought of for its 4WD perfor- mance). As such, you can upgrade the heck out of it with just a few credits. Try it, I think you'll like it. 4WD Challenge Suggested Car: Nissan Skyline GT-R Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) © Seattle Short 345 5,000 Legacy Wagon 61-8 (J) 96 Ө Seattle Circuit 394 6,000 Nismo 400R (J) © Laguna Seca 690 15,000 R32.5 Skyline GT-R (J) The Skyline again, but this time I chose the 4WD version for its over- all compatibility. Good from the factory, the easy to upgrade GT-R is a well rounded car suitable for many races throughout the game. A good investment, bar none. Compact Car Cup Suggested Car: Mitsubishi ҒТО "94. Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) © Rome Short 246 4,000 Vitz F (J) 99 Ө Seattle Short 246 4,000 Clio 16V Ө Autumn Ring 295 4,000 Lupo 1.4 A relatively low HP class makes your original purchase the best choice to race this series. The prizes are weak, but the race experi- ence proves itself worthy later on in the game. Muscle Car Cup Suggested Car: Corvette 427 Stingray Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) @Seattle Short Free 0 PT Spyder Ө Seattle Short Free 8,000 Shelby Cobra 427 "67 Ө Laguna Seca Free 10,000 Phaeton (concept car) The "Free" HP class seems intimidating at first, but luckily, you'll be going up against a whole bunch of crappy handling muscle cars (no one ever said they were made for road courses!). The 427 seems to be the best of the bunch, although it is pretty expensive. Historic Car Cup Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO '94 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) Q Tahiti Road 246 7,000 Mugen CR-X III (J) Ө Rome Circuit 295 7,000 Europa Grindelwald 394 8,000 XYR '99 (New Celica) Like the Luxury Sedan Cup, the Historic Car Cup lets you race almost anything that you so desire. For that reason, I simply chose to use one of my existing cars instead of purchasing an entirely new one. I suggest you save some credits and do the same. Techniques |) 7 3 5 £ ЕУ = © Tahiti Road 295 5,000 Mugen Accord SIR-T (J) @ Midfield Raceway 345 6,000 Tom's Т111 394 7,000 Mugen Prelude Type-S (J) Since the FTO was my original purchase, I wanted to milk every last two races in this category, although it was starting to get outclassed @ Grand Valley East 345 5,000 TRD2000GT (J) @ High Speed Ring 493 6,000 Tom's 1020 (J) Ө Red Rock Valley 591 15,000 R Ford GT40 Race Car @ Rome Short 147 5,000 Mugen Beat (J) Ө Seattle Short 98 6,000 Mazda Demio А-5р. (J) 7 © Tahiti Road 8و 7,000 Mugen CR-X II (J) The Beetle is relatively cheap (unlike real life), and the competition in extreme speeds that reach all the way up into the 70-90 mph range. Ф Rome Circuit 394 5,000 Accord Type-R © Special Stage R5 493 6,000 Chaser TRD Sports X-30 Ө High Speed Ring 591 10,000 GT-R 4 Door Nismo (J) For some odd reason, it doesn't require you to use a so called "luxury race car and blow the doors right off the competition from the get-go. © Tahiti Road 246 7,000 МХ-5 Miata A Spec (J Ө Grindelwald 396 8,000 MR-S Show Version (J) 7 R Concept Car LX Edition Strategy Sunday Cup Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO 4 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) @ Tahiti Road Free 3,000 N/A @ High Speed Ring Free 4,000 N/A Ө Red Rock Valley Free 5,000 N/A Although it doesn't offer any special prizes, this set of races is a good way to get some credits built up when you first start out. Get your car hopped up and ready for the Clubman Cup. 3 = Е 5 2 FF Challenge Suggested Car: Mitsubishi FTO "94. Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) © Trial Mountain = A 1 race that I possibly could with it. It does extremely well for the first (HP wise) in the third one. Mid-Engine Challenge Suggested Car: Acura NSX Type S Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) Mid-engine cars don't seem to be “all that” in 672, so be prepared for a lot of handling setup/tuning. Prone to spinouts, all MR cars should have a Brake Balance Controller. Beating Red Rock Valley gives you the classic Ford GT40 Race Car! Lightweight K Cup Suggested Car: New Beetle 315 2.0 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) all three races bring new meaning to the word “turtle.” Expect Maybe extreme was the wrong word to use... Luxury Sedan Cup Suggested Car: Daisin Silvia Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) car” when entering this event. I found it best to just use a modified Convertible Car Cup ‘Suggested Car: Cobra 427 "67 Race # HP MAX Credits (1st) Special Prize (1st) © Trial Mountain 591 15,000 The Cobra does pretty well on the Grindelwald and Trial Mountain races, especially if you modify it. The suspension, handling, and tires should be your focus (as the car already has gobs of HP at its disposal). А = 558 = ЕЗ = CLASSIC JACKIE WEAPONS THAT INCLUDE CHAIRS, BROOMS AND MORE! TONS OF ENEMIES AND HIGH- POWERED BOSSES TO KICK AROUND! MOTION-CAPTURED ANIMATIONS OF THE REAL JACKIE CHAN! PlayStation UNBELIEVABLE STUNT SEQUENCES PERFORMED | BY JACKIE CHAN! MOVIE SEQUENCES THAT FEATURE HILARIOUS JACKIE CHAN OUTTAKES! INNOVATIVE FIGHTING SYSTEM INCLUDES THROWS AND COMBOS! MIDWAY www.midway.com لټ چا ESRB JACKIE CHAN STUNTMASTER developed by Radical Entertainment Ltd, Name, likeness and appearance of Jackie Chan used under license, MIDWAY is а trademark of Midway Games Inc. Distributed by Midway Home Entertainment Inc. under license. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trade- ‘marks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Бу Gary Steinman gary_steinmanezd.com 56 No question, this should be in your home СХ Аб Recommended, very cool 36 Pretty good, check it out 2G Below average 1G Very lame Hot Bots As if playing Front Mission 3 isn't cool enough (just check out our preview of the game on page 50), now you can get your grubby hands on these mechs thanks to Palisades Marketing. We've only seen pre- view pictures, but we're sure the figures will be up to the high standard of Palisades’ other collectibles. Look for them in April. Palisades Marketing $25 www.palisadesmarketing.com GF Goodies OPM's Best RPG winner continues to spawn great toys. Palisades has recently released a second set of Final Fantasy VIII Guardian Force figures, including everyone's favorite eight-armed, crimson-caped tough guy, Gilgamesh (pictured at left). Also available are Shiva, Diablos, Odin and several others. Palisades Marketing $11-25 www. palisadesmarketing.com adgets, electronics, arts and recreation 9.е.а.г. Shooting Gallery When it comes to light guns, nothing beats Матсо'5 masterpiece, the Guncon. This became even more apparent when we tested it against three recently released guns. The main prob- lem: All suffered from lags between pulling the trigger and registering the shot on screen. So why bother with any other gun? Well, some have extra features like rapid fire or recoil, and many are compatible with games that don't support the Guncon. Moreover, you can only buy the Guncon packed in with Namco's shoot- ing titles, so if you need an extra one or want a different game, you're out of luck. Scorpion Lightweight and com- fortable, this pistol is the best of the pack. The accuracy is superb, and aiming is cinch. Placing the Special (B) button on the gun's hammer is ingenious, making the Scorpion a true one- hand controller. It still suffers from that аппоу- ing delay, though. Not quite the Guncon, but not a bad alternative. Blaze $24.99 www.blaze-gear.com Virtual Light Gun While some of us really liked the soft : trigger, rubberized grips and unique placement of the Special (B) button directly across from the trigger, others found the Virtual Light Gun to be awkward and uncom- fortable. But even fans of the setup had too much trouble aiming with this gun. On the plus side, this is the only gun to include a battery- free rumble feature and an extra-long cord. Pelican $29.99 www. pelicanacc.com Erazer If you think this rifle is ugly, just try using it! Big and bulky with bizarre but- ton placement, the Erazer is a true beast. And while the Erazer has a real kickback feature, it's so loud and obnoxious (and it requires four AA batteries!) that you'll be kicking the Erazer back to the store for a refund. Ugh. Blaze $34.99 www.blaze-gear.com and "Ву Gamers. For trad sol www.interplay.com Ademarks and сс cing as ing peacaghants Tibetan Monk: РО .د single-player made takes you through 1 Ly progressivé’3-D environments where all hell'breaks ose as you discover new routes аца а ۱ 7 e Start'With 4 different characters, each with their own si т, devastating combos, jug: \ ^ • Anything is а weapon, and the interactive environments are го м both _ traditional painmakers like rocket launchers, guns and creative wea مه like 1 / soda machines, ой canisters and other “surprises” ©1999 М.А P.S&TEAM SNC. АН rights reserved. Distributed under li N.A.P.S. TEAM SNC. ©1999 INFOGRAMES. All right ^ Gamers.” are trademaiks of Interplay V Alb ric ў / || ЕЛЕС: PlayStation Infogrames Entertainment ЗА. All aeos Compute: Entertainment Inc. All БАСТЫ бб \ Eidetic 989 Studios Adventure 1 Developer soldiers you meet. When the train enters a tunnel and you see two sol- diers leap down in front of you, dis- patch them quickly; there’s another soldier trying to ambush you from behind. Eventually, you'll come across two distant soldiers clad in flak jackets. Your normal weapons barely do any damage....but wait! They're not wear- ing flak jackets on their heads, are they? So take out your sniper rifle and pick off their most vulnerable spot. By now you should have reached the checkpoint. Continue along, using your shotgun to fell opponents. Feel free to switch to your M-16 if you’re running low on shotgun ammunition or just want some variety. When using the M-16, lock on with R1, then fire at your oppo- nent while strafing around them with L2 and R2. You'll come across a grenade-tossing, flak jacket-wearing sol- dier; this time, run up to him and use your knife to knock him off. Once the night-vision goggles kick in, fin- ish off the soldiers that swarm in from both sides. Hop, skip, and jump to the front of the train, and the demo will end. Gabe's Weaponry 9MM: Fairly accurate and fairly powerful, this handgun makes a good secondary weapon. M-16: Fast and furious, but less powerful. Its rapid rate of fire keeps enemies from launching a counter-offen- sive, but it sucks up ammo like it's going out of style. Shotgun: Slow but steady wins the race. With its mas- sive blasting power, this weapon does the best job of taking out soldiers. Make sure you have your shot lined up before you fire. Silenced sniper rifle: Takes a while to set up, but the range and accuracy is sec- ond-to-none. Great for head shots from a distance. Knife: Up close and personal. Deadly accurate, but the limited range forces you into the dangerous thick of battle. OPM psychic sez: With expanded gameplay, more missions and more action, Syphon Filter 2 looks to improve upon the origi- nal in almost every way. This is one to watch. Availability (012000 Publisher Analog Compatible Yes Genre Demo Disc На picture is worth a thousand words, a playable demo is worth a million Players phon Filter 2 What is it? E Kneel/Lower Gabe There's no denying Syphon Filter's influ- pps, ences: a little bit of GoldenEye, a little bit Roll/Zoom out of Tomb Raider, a lot of Metal Gear Solid. Fire Yet developer Eidetic combined bits Climb/Interact/Reload/ and pieces of these various titles into Contact Lian Xing/Zoom In an enjoyable experience all its own. With 8/2 the sequel, Eidetic takes the adventures Sniper Mode of Gabe Logan to the next level. Strafe Left Target Lock [3 Strafe Right What to expect in the full game: Lian Xing playable; two- player deathmatch mode; advanced scripting technolo- ду between player and NPCs; ride in (and on top of) a variety of vehicles; check- points; 10 new weapons and high-tech gadgets such as automatic shotguns, night- vision rifle, flamethrower, explosive grenades, silenced pistols, tear gas, night-vision goggles, binoculars, a crossbow and combat knife; 20 levels in three worlds across two discs; battle top commandos and U.S. Intelligence agents; multiple targeting modes; motion- capture; real-time lighting, explosions, and environmen- tal effects; real-time dynamic MIDI score; intelligent enemy AI and varied mission objectives. Check out the full details in this month's feature. Our advice: Lian Xing needs a vaccine—fast—and Gabe needs to get to the front of the train. That helicopter flying overhead will be dispatching troops throughout Custom targeting was never so much fun. the level. You can't outrun it, ignore it and let it fly on. Immediately drop down to the floor of the first car and open the box at the back (use the Triangle button). You got the shotgun! This boomstick will be a great boon in skir- mishes to come; a single, well-placed round is enough to fell most opponents. Just lock on with R1 and fire. Climb back to the roof and start jumping from car to car. Your shotgun should do the trick against the E ” PlayStation - Players 1-4 Developer Naughty Dog Crash Team Racing Availability Now Publisher | Sony CEA Analog Compatible Yes Genre Racing What is it? Once you get the hang of the turbo sys- e Accelerate Sony takes their carefully scripted, tem, you'll constantly replay the course, planned and manufactured mascot determined to eke out every drop of ө Use Special Weapon and drops him and his friends possible speed. Brake into a carefully scripted, planned and manufactured go-kart | When you're not turbo boosting, you'll a Toggle Speedometer & Map racing game. The result? A =| be performing the two cardinal game- Car Hop or Power Slide surprisingly good kart title far play tasks of go-kart titles: driving and using weapons. Both are improved by picking up apples. Our best advice is to focus on crashing through the crates. The first crate can be found on the right side of the track, right before the “square” loop. A second crate can be found near the final third of the track, on the left side (you'll Change View better than anyone expected. GB Car Hop or Power Slide What to expect in the full ЕЗ Use Special Weapon game: Adventure mode to defeat evil racing alien Nitros Oxide; Arcade mode with four cups and 17 courses; Versus mode for one to four players; Battle mode (free-for-all or teams) for one to four players; Time Trial mode; eight characters plus secret characters; assorted weaponry with upgradeable power levels; scandalous customization options; no slowdown. 1 have to jump across а small chasm to reach a thin elevated strip). Getting 10 apples Our advice: juices up your weapons and increases your top speed. While Crash Team Racing offers gameplay very similar to Mario Kart and Diddy Kong Racing, it does offer one major gameplay enhancement: turbo boosts. Power slide into a turn by using R1 and left or right directional. Continue holding R1 in the slide, then press L1 when your exhaust turns black. You can "chain" up to three bursts in a row, zooming you past the compe- tition. You should also press R1 just before hills and jumps to get more airtime and a bit of a turbo boost. The more If you have a friend and/or multitap, give the multiplayer modes a whirl. Not only are they tons of fun, there's not a whit of slowdown to be seen. Did you try? Pressing and holding the accelerator just before "go" lights up? You'll get a much- needed turbo-boost and burst into an early lead. time you can OPM psychic sez: Here's the first apple crate... spend Original? No. Inspired? No. and the second is on the ledge airborne, the Rock-solid and tons of fun? to the left. better your Yes! CTR is a great racing turbo boost when you land. game, a great party game, and a great value. 1-8 Developer 989 Sports Availability Now Publisher 989 Studios Analog Compatible Yes Genre Sports What is it? scheme; ESPN's Quinn Buckner with play-by-play e Shoot Block College. Basketball. 2000. NCAA, no less. n ien playbook design by Georgia head coach e Pass Switch Players What to expect in the full game: @ Steal Protect Exhibition, season, tournament and arcade modes; four Our advice: levels of computer difficulty; new character models with It's Duke vs. the University of Connecticut, so take your ө Auto Defend | Pump Fake more than 200 animations; new, detailed control positions and get playing. When shooting, hold down the shoot button until the “Touch Shooting” meter fills to the top, then release. The com- puter steals like a fiend on the higher diffi- culties, so be cautious. Intentional Foul Not Used Speed burst (while running) Not Used OPM psychic sez: Good, solid, NCAA basketball. It may not be the best college hoops game on the PlayStation, but it’s a decent offering with all E. the trimmings. Insomniac | Sony CEA Action 1 Developer Now Publisher Genre progress. To keep the doors open, head butt the lum- bering, larger tortoises until they sit on the switch. Once you've killed 11 enemies, you'll gain temporary access to Spyro's super- breath. This lets you blast open the metal casks seen earlier in the level. Also, late in the level, you can challenge a cook to save some turtles from becoming turtle soup. Direct the turtles away from the pot and into the water on the top of the screen. Skelos Plains offers a more prehistoric field in which to test Spyro's mettle. Master using the first-person view (Triangle button) to carefully aim swallowed rocks. Making it to the end of the level is enough to earn this stage's talisman, | but you can also collect golden dinosaur bones and save hapless vil- lagers from a saurian attack. Once you've offed 16 enemies, Spyro can gain temporary invulnerability to lava flows. Use this to reach previously inaccessible areas. OPM psychic sez: With expanded gameplay options and a variety of minigames within each level, Spyro 2 does everything the original did better. level, bomb the environment to reveal hidden Napalm charges. Oops, were those innocent civil- ians? That must really suck. Seven years later, Jutah is much more of a badass. Drop and explode bombs with extreme prejudice. Try to stay constantly moving, one step ahead of your chained explosions. Some of the larger targets may take several volleys to completely obliterate, so be cautious before forging ahead. The spider droid at the end is easily dispatched by running between its legs and dropping explosives. Good luck! OPM psychic sez: If you can get past the language barrier, you'll find that Silent Bomber speaks the universal language of BIG EXPLOSIONS. It may not be the deepest title around, but it's lots of fun—and it sure blows stuff up real good. Availability Analog Compatible Yes Players 1 Developer Availability Now Publisher Analog Compatible Yes Genre If a picture is worth a thousand words, a playable demo is worth a million Players What is it? Spyro the Dragon was an enjoyable, if overly simple, PSX platformer. With the sequel, Insomniac games hopes to address some of the original's shortcomings, adding gameplay, mini- games, and inspired level designs while expanding the world of gamers' favorite dragon whelp. What to expect in the full game: More stages, more gems, more talismans, more minigames and more adventure. Our advice: After a storybook introduction, the demo gives you your choice of two levels: Sunny Beach or the Skelos Badlands. Sunny Beach is a simple level that helps you get your bearings and master Spyro's гап tot ту ‘you so 903 сга gat over thers, controls. Your primary goal is to lead the herd of baby turtles to the end of the level. They can mostly take care of themselves, but you've got to open the doors throughout the stage that impede their What is it? “We are proud of the skill to express explosion," read Bandai's press materi- als. And express explosions this game does! Take the role of one-man demoli- tion army Jutah Feit as you battle the evil Dante Group to free the Judicial Planetary Alliance. What to expect in the full game: Four special bomb types; CG cut-scenes; two-player battle mode; immense environments; lots and lots and lots of explosions. Our advice: The first mission serves as a sort of training. Practice your moves as you go through the level, placing bombs where the "target" signs appear. You can "triangle" jump off the walls by jumping again in midair. When you pick up the Lock-On unit, press and hold the bomb button to latch onto a target. When you face the multiple helicopters at the end of the Silent Bomber Demo Disc Jump (hit 2x to glide) Flame Attack (spit out item) Charge (in water Spyro dives) Free Look/Drop (while gliding) Spin Camera Left Spin Camera Left Spin Camera Right Spin Camera Right Spyro 2: Ripto's Rage! ® © ® ® Т It's a lot of world for just one dragon. Jump (2x to escape) Set Special Bombs Set Bombs/Lock-on Unit Explode Bombs Switch Bomb Type Not used Switch Bomb Type Not used Official U.S. ЖЫ ДА ө] )اه March 2000 < | PlayStation 1-4 Developer 989 Studios Now Publisher 989 Studios Genre Action they'll continue blasting away at each other while you speed off to safety. Learn to circle around an enemy, keeping him in your sights at all times. The machine gun may look weak, but even the strongest foe will fall if pep- pered with enough shots. Twisted Metal 4 has several undocumented "combos" that you can use in addition to your weapons. With these tricks, your opponents don't stand a chance. Left, Right, Up, Up will Freeze your opponent, leaving them susceptible to your most powerful attack. Up, Up, Down, Down warps your vehi- cle to another "safe" part of the level. Up, Up, Left gives you a jumping turbo boost, while Up, Up, Right activates your shields. Finally, Up, Down, Up, Down, Up does a massive and devastating attack. OPM psychic sez: While not quite up to the series high point of Twisted Metal 2, this game is almost good enough to make us forget Twisted Metal III. Almost. Fans of vehicular com- bat should definitely give this one a look. 1-4 Developer Codemasters Now Publisher Activision No Genre Misc. mu songs; save and load songs to Memory Card. Our advice: MTV Music Generator is a free- form expression of your cre- ativity, so we'll try to keep the advice to a minimum. Be sure to use the shortcut keys of L1 for the Riff Library (all riffs) and R2 for the Riff Palette (riffs currently in use). Most of your samples will be found in the "House" category. Layer, test, repeat. Try putting together samples you wouldn't think would sound well together; sometimes the strangest combina- tions make for the most interesting songs. Also, give the Music Jam Mode a try for some free-form musical jam- ming. This mode is great for those times you don't want to think, plan, or strategize—and just want to make some music. OPM psychic sez: If you have any experience with a profes- sional music-editing suite on the PC, MTV Music Generator may seem awkward. But if you're a PSX diehard who's looking for a relatively inexpensive way to arrange some tunes, MTV Music Generator may be music to your ears. Availability Analog Compatible Yes Availability Analog Compatible Players What is it? When Twisted Мета! 5 developers left Sony to join with GT Interactive, 989 Studios took control of the license—and Twisted Metal III managed to undo everything the first two titles had per- fected. But with Twisted Metal 4, 989 Studios is putting right what once went wrong. Most important, the level design is more inspired and the physics engine is actually playable. What to expect in the full game: New storyline, battlegrounds, weapons, vehicles and characters; unique and larger level designs; improved graphics and vehicle physics; 30 frames per second graphics engine; lots of hidden characters and vehicles; multitap support; music by Cypress Hill, Cirrus, Skold and Rob Zombie; deathmatch-only levels. Our advice: You start out with a massive arsenal and three very angry opponents. Familiarize yourself with each incendi- ary device; it takes a lot of firepower to permanently disable an opponent, and you're going to need every- thing you've got. A good strategy is to lure opponents toward one another, then get out of the way. With luck, Players What is it? Rapped with PaRappa? Jammed with Um د سا Jammer? Ready for the next level in music [Em “games” on your PlayStation? MTV Music Generator is a full-fledged (well, half-fledged, at least) music simulation tool for your PlayStation console. Choose, layer and arrange riffs, add video accompaniment, and voila: you're making music. What to expect in the full game: Thousands of professional-quality premade samples, riffs and video clips in the styles of house, techno, trance, drum'n' bass, hip hop, rock, and indie; use your own CDs to create samples from scratch; 24 audio channels and near "limitless" video channels; tons of video clips to mix and match; comprehensive online help; up-to-four player Music Jam Mode; 11 demo Statisties 1/1 Twisted Metal 4 e Gas @ Look Back @ Quick Turn/Hard Turn e Reverse Previous Weapon ЕВ Use Weapon KB Next Weapon Machine Guns 1 Mec I love the smell of... I'm sorry, I can't do it. МТУ Music Generator Ф Action/Place a Riff ө Display the menu for this screen (8) Delete a riff @ Go back to previous menu (ЕВ Shortcuts E Shortcuts Shortcuts (ЕЗ Shortcuts You are the DJ; here is the beat! Layer it like a naughty bean-dip. Demo Disc If a picture is worth a thousand words, a playable demo is worth a million Players 1 Developer Namco Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere ыы dE Fire Machine 6 o p id VUES Namco's flagship Ridge Racer series has e Fire missiles always thrilled driving fans. But what of ® Ground map display gamers whose dreams reach to the sky? Ch | For them, Namco has Асе Combat. Part о ange lock on аге arcade-style shooting and part flight simu- Decelerate lation, the Ace Combat series has always Left yaw been a great way to burn up the skies. The controls are slightly more advanced than in Ace Combat 2, so practice a few barrel rolls and sharp banks before engaging the enemy. It’s hard to hit things with your rapid-fire machine guns, so you'll undoubtedly turn to your missile arsenal before too long. GBB Accelerate Right yaw Stunning CG and hand-drawn animation sequences; unique ship designs; light sourcing, horizon draw-in, It's a bit more simmy than series fans may be used to, and environmental effects. but it’s still a blast. = Players 1 Developer Infogrames Test Drive Cycles Availability Q1 2000 Publisher Infogrames Analog Controller Yes Genre Racing The Test Drive legacy gets infused with motorcycle In recent months there seems to be a real trend of mania. Thirty-five licensed bikes including Harley retro-footage spliced against gameplay footage and Davidsons; a dozen real-world locations; streaming rockin’ music. While the backgrounds look a bit three-dimensional track engine with shortcuts; repetitive, the bike models and engine sounds championship mode with upgradeable bikes; two- appear to have been nailed right on the head. player capability. Hopefully the gameplay will make it worthwhile for racing aficionados. Thumbs up. Players 1-4 Developer Luxoflux Availability Now Publisher Activision Analog Controller Yes Genre Action cooperative and deathmatch modes, and a funky ‘70s The original Vigilante 8 merged the quirky world of the soundtrack, and you have a winner. PC driving simulation Interstate '76 with a mess of Twisted Metal-style action. The result was a remarkably enjoyable vehicular combat title. The sequel adds a Sure, other series make cars go boom, but only time-travel twist, allowing for even more insane Vigilante 8 does it with such bell-bottomed aplomb. The weaponry, flying vehicles and crazier physics. Toss in game itself may not be better than the original, but the upgradeable cars, mission objectives, two-player video gets a hearty thumbs up. Players 1 Developer Contrail Availability Q22000 Publisher Activision Analog Controller Yes Genre RPG and ToiletMania. (ToiletMania will likely be flushed Alundra is infamous for its insanely difficult level design, before the game reaches U.S. shores.) spot-on controls, and 2D graphics. The sequel brings the series into full 3D—for better or for worse. The isometric adventure RPG gameplay appears to be The game itself appears to be only average. Hopefully, unchanged. Alundra 2 also features four elements to the final title can match the cult-like, maddening game- master, 10 minigames, and the characters PuzzleMania ^ play of the original. Tentative thumbs up. DEMO DISC Derek Rayla Mike Tyau i PRODUCERS Ken Chan CHIEF BUSINESS STRATE- [5,212 E Hillsdale Drive, Jessi Harrison PROGRAMMING AND GIST All titles shown herein Gary Barth INTERFACE ARTWORK BY Wes Harris سور واوو Perry Rodgers LIFELIKE PRODUCTIONS, DIRECTOR OF OPERA- ^ copyrights of their respec- PRODUCT MANAGER С. TIONS | tive publishers and/or Shelley Ashitomi LEAD PROGRAMMER Ryan Ramirez their licensors. EXECUTIVE PRODUCER William Bohan SPECIAL THANKS See individual screens Andrew House 30 ARTIST Jon Manahan for details. 92000 Sony AUDIO Philip Williamson Michelle Manahan Computer. Buzz Burrowes Jason Robinson Kathleen Lynch Етене Пеле Chuck Doud PRESIDENT Karen Borowick Americanos MUSIC COMPOSITION Katherine Williams Kerry Hopkins Please submit all Nathan Brenholdt TECHNICAL DIRECTOR | Riley R. Russell related demo disc QA SUPERVISORS Tim Edwards OPM Demo Disc is inquiries to: OPM Demo Chris Caprio CD ANIMATION ublished monthly Disc, Inquiries, 919 E. Charles Dela INTRODUCTION ву фу Sony Computer Hillsdale Drive, Foster LEAD TE: Secret Weapon Entertainment America City, CA 94404 Tim Duzmal CREATIVE DIRECTOR Va 117 Specials are limited to stock on hand and іп most cases quantities are limited. Prices are subject to change without notice. Shipping and handling are extra. Returns subject to evaluation and re-stock fee. Import PlayStation games are not compatible with newer systems. Call or visit www.gamecave.com for details. Artwork copyright their respective companies. All rights reserved. 4 Wheel Thunder $40.99 | NBA Showtime 542. Amy Men Sarge's Heroes | Bass Fishin $59.98 | NEL вис 200 $4 W's Gate Caesars Palace 2000 NFL Quarterback Club 2000 $44. Caesars Palace 2000 Need for Speed 5 | Dark Angel: Vampire Apocalypse Rayman 2 $4 Carmageddon 53 DES Creatures 2 | Dead or Alive 2 33899 | Roadster Trophy $3 Crusaders of Might & Magic Boy. Deep Fighter $43.99 | Sega Rally 2 $4 бесеріоп à $57'38| Rosaster торһу Draconous: Cult of the Wyrm ,99 | Shadow Man $44.99 | | Disney World Racin 3499) Rugby 2000 Slave Zero $44.99 | | Eagle One: Hamer tack 39 5 Боје Soul Fighter $38.99 | | Earthworm Ji 34.991 Баба Frontier 2 South Park Chevs шу Shack 4492) | ECW. Hardcore Revolution ,99| Shao Lin 0 Striker Pro 2000 ios | Eternal ses $34.99] Sim Theme Park Hidden & Dangerous $4339 Test Drive 6 Extreme Hockey: Rock the Rink Incoming, Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation 9 Fear Effect у McGrath Supercross 2000 E E {oy Son 2 Formula One Championship : King of Fighters 99 Virtua Fighter 378 ШЕЯ Legends 534: ass Challenge Legacy of Kain; Soul Reaver КҮЧӨ $36.99 | | Gekido :99 | Urban Chaos KZ 9:99 | | Jackie Chan 34.99 | Wild Wild West $37.99 | Wild Metal Country NBA 2K 545.99 | WWF Attitude Jeremy McGrath Supercross 2000 53559 WWE Smackdown! iQ сан ог visit gamecave.c com for details MK Special Forces. NBA in the Zone 2000 NHL Blades of Steel 2000 РА Стагу Тах! Perfect Dark PGA European Tour South Park Rally Starcraft 64 Tony Hawks Pro Skater Call] Top Gear sar Hyperbike World League Soccer 2000 Jeremy McGrath Supercross 2000 $48.89 | Worms Armageddon ECW Hardcore Fear Effect $36.99 $34.99 Vinyl Figure Series 1. Selphie 2. Rinoa |100 Years of Field & Stream — $77.99 | Mission Impossible Amen $45.99 | MLB ESPN: Sports Center 3. Seifer E ‘Anachronox 533.99 | MTV Music Generator 4. Squall 4 (БЕН о E ҚЫНА ерлере Dia Racing - Soul Calibur Evangelion 52 Final Fantasy 4 | |Breatneck © edis Es o oa, 30 52158 | Oficial Fomula One Rachg 99 سا NS i runswick Pro 2 8.99 | Orient Express Original Works 6CD Celtic Moon Senses Ba Gare He’ Sp Pack 51738 | Prince Ею Cabela's Grand Siam $9 | Pro 18: World Tour Gol $19.99 $72.99 $19.99 | (cse Name Ege $4039 | Pro Pool 3D 2 [Croc 2 $: Rancho Extreme 4x4 Dagger Extreme Whitewater $1 Reach for the Stars Во Hazard 3 Last Escape Og, $3200 Ро Fantasy 4 Celio Moons $19.99 | | Dark Reign 2 5: Rising Sun Be Seed VOL1 On $14.99 | Final Fantasy 6 Grand Finale $19.99 | | Dawn of War $21.99) Risk Blue Stinger Orig $27.99 | Final Fantasy Pray $28.99 | Diablo 2 $44.99 | Rollcage Extreme Brave Fencer Опа! 200 32939 | Ghostin the Shel Anime Org, 32899) _ Die Hard Trilogy 2 $23.99] Silent Hunter 2 Bust a Move 2 Original $23.99 | Ghost in the Shell PS Orig $28.99 | | Extreme Drag Racing $1539 | Skip Barber Racing ‘Chrono Gross Call | Gran Turismo Rock Arranged $28.99) | Fakk 2 Heavy Metal 9 | Soldier of Fortune Chrono Trigger Orig. 320 $42.99 | Panzer Dragoon Azel Complete 200 $39.99 | | Giants 82255 | Sar Trek Amada Cowboy Bebop Blue $17.99 | Princess Mononoki Original §19.99| | Hitman: Codename 47 $32.99 | Star Trek Klingon Academy Dracula X PS Original $14.99 | Sailormoon Memorial Song6CD $62.99) | Imperial Conquest $40.39 | Siar Trek Voyager Dragonball & Dragonball Z 548.99 | Serial Experiments Lain Original $19.99 |КА-52 Team Alligator $26.99 | Star Trek: New Worlds Evangelion Death & Rebirth $1839 5и Озат Sead Soy Cogs о $82.88 KISS Psycho Circus: The Nightmare Chid $40: : Star Wars: Force Commander وو Ғіпа! Fay 8 Guardian Series 2 1.Gilgamesh | $24.99 2. Diabolus $24.99 3. Bahamut $24.99 $11.99 |Le Mans 9 | Super Hornet F-18 Ere oce ы $2030 iden Fag Toumament О ӘӘ | Legend of the Blademasters БАНАНДЫ Ha Lite Squadron Evangelion Refain $1639 Wanne پر 51299) | Мое Sunger! TPS Exrene Sibal. $17.99 | Tribes Extreme 5 Evangelion 52 Works 6CD $72.99 | Xenogears Original 2С0 $29.99 | | Max Payne $54.95 Vampire есап ول Vs Canea w Fun For 886591 Wid Metal ‘Metal Fatigue 36.99 | Wings of Destiny ‘Aero Dancing Тодогокј5 HD 54.99 Langrisser Millenium $54.99 | | Beast Wars Metals $54. АП Japan Pro Wrestling 2 $54.99 | Lune Caster $54.99 | | Bio Hazard Gun Survivor 9و 2 Вапдаю 54,99 | Мегсипиз Pretty $54.99 jhtis 5 Jo Јо Adventure 4 Batman erserk $54.99 Metal Мах 3 $54.99 Koudelka . Battletanx Black Matrix AD $54.99 | New Japan Pro Wresting 4 | $5499 | Countdown Vampires $58.99 | Legend Of Mana $58. Bubble Bobble i i Carrier $54.99 | Panzer Front $54.99 | | Dark Tales From the Lost Soul $58.99 | Macross Remember Love 5 Carmageddon $23.99 | Ralley Racing Dancing Blade Complete $48.99 | Rainbow Cotton $54.99 | | DDRevo Append Club Мег 1 Macross УЕХ 538. Carnivale 3 522. аутап 2. Death Crimson 2 $54.99 | Revive $54.99 $58.99 | Macross VFX 2 : Dark Angel; Anna's Quest San Francisco Rush Pew uma ce. ШЕП scis Щр gu | اون له سا Rovot Got lemental Gimmict аг 5 ice Grit Hamlet 54.99 'atlabor the Game 4 ў Eternal Arcadia 55499 Speed Devi 35499 LUFA Thrasher: Skate & Destroy World Grand Prix $5439 Sr Giaditor 2 35499 358.99 $58. MR Вава Card Tomb Raider $54.99 Street Fighter 3 W Impact 56499 Rockman 4 Special x $54.99 | Super Producers $54.99 Rockman 5 Special $54.99 | Super Runabout Мерт Winter Sports Gundam S8 0079 gen 58299 Undercover AD 2025 ee $2239| |Mummi $ liyruu No Кеп Retsuden. 6 irtua Оп 5 5 5 Y Jo Jo Adventure $54.99 | Zombie Revenge : 99 | Wil 2 : NBA în the Zone 2000 .99| WCW Mayhem NBA Live 2000 $24.99 | Wicked Surfing NBA Showtime .99] Xena Street Fighter 3 W Impact Vagrant Story Street Fighter EX 2 Digimon Кё Nina. اس 982 Xenogears Sreet Fier $42.99 $59.99 $59.99 $19.99 $19.99 $14.99 $14.99 $19.99 519.99 Movies - Codes ine Ordering - Review: Previews - Pictures Advertiser Index Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine 26-27, 28-29, 51, 53, 76-77, 96-97 www.3do.com 989Ш6105................ 0. 23, 33 www.989 Studios.com Acclailr].......... ии 40-45 www.acclaim.com Activision... www.capcom.com Crave Entertainment ............... 62-63 www.cravegames.com Ecko Unlimited .... www.eckounlimited.com Eidos ......... 16-19, 72-73, 88-89, 142 www.eidosinteractive.com Fox 16 35, 37: 39 www.foxinteractive.com Game Cave.... www.gamecave.com Infogrames Ml. A... 101 www.infogrames.net Interplay. rresia AN: 131 www.interplay.com Midway 5502226 93, 129, 140-141 www.midway.com Namco Hometek...................... 64-65 www.namco.com Р<уапо516........... аран... 11 www.psygnosis.com опу СВА 2-3, 83, 85 www.sony.com Square/EA ............. 8-9, 46-47, 74-75 www.squaresoft.com Take 2 Interactive................... 59, 91 www.take2games.com ОА И ү... В 12-13, 99 www.thq.com [Uc o www.ugodirect.com Working Оезїдп$........................... 95 www.workingdesigns.com Wrigley www.wrigley.com www.zd.com Next Month A look ahead at our next issue April 2000 On sale March 14 y the time you get to this page, we're sure m you've been whipped up into a frothy mess in anticipation for Syphon Filter 2. But what you really want to know is whether SF2 is better than the first game, right? We'll be back next month with a full review of 989's hot new action game, along with reviews of other big titles like WWF SmackDown and Ace Combat 3 Electrosphere. Plus, you'll get all the latest PlayStation news and previews, tons of tricks, help- ful strategies, spankin’ new PlayStation2 screens and an awesome De isc jam-packed with plen- ty of topnotch games. Check Out Our Next Demo Disc! eLavas.es: HOT SHOTS GOLF 2; GEKIDO, SPIDER- Man, COLONY Wars Кер SUN, ROLLCAGE STAGE ІІ, EAGLE ONE: HARRIER ATTACK NON-PLAYABLES: GALERIANS, WWF SMACKDOWN Editorial content subject to change» On sale now We bring you the first big exclusive of the new millennium. Reflections and GT Interactive are already well on the way to finishing the followup to one of the biggest games of 1999. We have the first look at the game, along with interviews with the team and news on the future of the Driver franchise. Driver 3 on PS2 anyone? Also in this issue: * The big Dreamcast games for 2000 and beyond. What's the next big thing? ® Pokémon lunacy continues. Each month we'll bring you all the latest | Pokémon info. When will the back- lash begin? ¢ Tricks for all the hottest games. XG can't seem to get out of the fast lane— especially with awesome driving games like Crazy Taxi and Gran Turismo 2. Our Crazy Taxi guide will have you ringing up the big fares, while we update our GT 2 coverage with a complete car list. RPG fanatics can race ahead to our complete event guide to SaGa Frontier 2. For you “Monster Freaks” out there, we've got Pokémon Gold and Silver and Dragon Warrior Monsters. Finally, break out the chips and dip, because its time for Mario Party 2. Downloads | Developer Net www.zdnet.com Reviews | Shopping Wechnology may not replace your family pet. But it is all around you. And it can be whimsical, fun. or even Friendly. ZDNet is dedicated to every single little bit of technology. from the meanest virus to the Wutest gizmo. Which is why ZDNet was named “Best Overall Online Site" by the Computer Press Association. Wherever technology takes you. whether it's games, music. family computing or «овог dogs. ZDNet has something for you. SIGN UP FOR ANY OF ZDNET'S 25 FREE NEWSLETTERS AND JOIN TECHNOLOGY'S PREMIER WEB COMMUNITY. хабе of ZD lnc. Other products and brand names are trademarks of their respective owners > 9 unique turbo-charged boats with an unquenchable thirst for speed! 9 treacherous courses through the world’s most exhilarating terrain! Split-screen action for up to four. и players simultaneously!* ' »№ Real Newtonian physics. model makes you feel every wave! » Bonus boats, bonus tracks, boos power-ups tshortcuts galore! |, "ES MIDWAY Dreamcast. - то = pm 4 Ww. midway “...А mix of death-defying ps tight racing action, “апа thrill-a-minute-turns and burns? - GamePro “ .* “Great № more!” ics, great tratks, ri&ed we say бга ) 3671 -Next Generation ^^ : "МОНО THUNDER тм & © 1888 Midway Home Entertainment inc, Al i Sega, Dreamcast and the Dreamcast logo are either registered trader ights reserved. MIDWAY is a trademark of Midiway Games Inc. Used by permission, PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment - marks ‘Or trademarks of Sega Enterprises, Ltd. Nintendo, Nintendo 64 and the “N” lego are trademarks of Nintendo of America Inc, ©1996 Nintendo of America Inc. Licensed by Lh pestis 1^. < ІҢ | Playstation | | | e پک ҒА“. Remember, the only thing to fear is fear itself. Especially in this deadly mercenary mission where your own emotional responses determine what happens next. So go ahead, make your move. Just be sure to keep your fear in check. pas Lt Breakthrough sUSPENSE/ACTION ADVENTURE MOTION FX TECHNOLOGY. Pre-rendered, NON-INTERRUPTED GAMEPLAY. for more game. Beyond your realm of fear. Beyond fully animated backgrounds intense action and debilitating power. any 3rd person game created. creating a frighteningly real world. Comes in handy for the THREE RUTHLESS MERCENARIES whose destinies you control. EIDOS ТЕМАХ АТО eidos.com . EIDOS, EIDOS INTERACTIVE, and the EIDOS INTERACTIVE LOGO are all registered trademarks of Eidos Interactive.Fear Factor is а trademark of Eidos Interactive. PlayStation and the PlayStation logos are registered trade- == marks of, Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. The ratings icon is a trademark of the Interactive Digital Software Association. ~