Entente: WWI the Great War
publisher: Encore
Platform: PC
Taiwan release: already available
There are numerous WWII themed 3D real-time strategy games on the market, but Encore's Entente: WWI The Great War is the first one that sets out to tackle what was once called "the war to end all wars."
While the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and ensuing global conflict wasn't the war that ended all wars, Encore's latest venture could easily be the WWI themed game to end all WWI themed games.
Featuring 60 scenarios, all of which are based, albeit loosely, on real battles and campaigns, Entente: WWI The Great War's classification as a strategy game is somewhat dubious. There is in fact very little strategy involved.
Like the war itself, the crux of the game is based on attrition. Don't bother trying to outflank, outwit and outmaneuver your enemy here, as actions that would win you medals in the real world and that account for more than half the game play in some of the leading WWII strategy games mean nothing. The crux of the game is to send your boys over the top on mad dashes toward the enemy and then sit back and watch as the AI takes over and thousands of little pixels are slaughtered.
Graphically, the game is on par with any of the 3D war games currently on the market. Uniforms, tanks and other equipment all look pretty real. The maps, while magnificently detailed, are so huge, however, that it is easy to lose track of entire regiments. And as you'll have thousands of units in play at any given time this can prove maddening. As a strategy game Entente falls flat, but it gets top marks as an illustration of how a PC game should not be designed.
Nascar 2005: Chase for the Cup
Publisher: PC, X-Box and PS2
Taiwan release: already available
If you're not familiar with NASCAR then the title of EA Sports' latest addition to its long line of sporting titles may not instantly sing out to you. Yet while nearly all of EA's sport specific titles are geared predominantly toward fans of those particular sports, NASCAR 2005 will appeal to anyone even those who have never heard of Dale Earnhardt Senior or Junior.
The game offers players the chance to create their own driver or opt to be one of 130 real drivers, participate in hundreds of different events and race on 25 official tracks and 12 fantasy tracks. It features everything any NASCAR enthusiast could ask for and includes the Nextel Cup Series, the Busch Series, the Craftsman Truck Series and the Regional Featherlite Modified Series.
The most addictive of all the game's options is the "fight to the top" mode, which takes you through multiple seasons. If you do well enough and earn enough money, then you'll have the option of buying your own team.
In keeping with all EA Sports titles the graphics are impeccable, play is smooth and glitz-less and the controls are easy to master. The bottom line is that NASCAR 2005: Chase for the Cup is one of the most addictive and true-to-life racing games on the market.
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