At the recent Tokyo game show the big question was whether Sega's Dreamcast console can succeed now that Sony has announced plans for the PlayStation 2. The answer is "maybe".
Sega hopes to have enough time to gain a significant market share before the PlayStation's successor arrives. With this in mind, Sega plans to spend about $100 million on the Dreamcast's European launch.
In Tokyo, Sega was showing Namco's beat 'em up Soul Calibur, Konami's Airforce Delta, Capcom's 3D fighter Power Stone, the rpg adventure Shenmue and video footage from Biohazard Code Veronica (or Resident Evil 3) on the Dreamcast.
Sony, on the other hand, didn't display the PlayStation 2. Instead, it showed current and soon to be released titles. Um Jammer Lammy, the sequel to Parappa the Rapper, was given a high profile. Other titles of interest on show where Omega Boost (a 3D space shooter), Dino Crisis (Resident Evil with dinosaurs), Racing La- goon (a racing game with a role-playing twist) and Silent Hill (also inspired by Resident Evil).
Bandai's WonderSwan and Neo Geo's Pocket Colour made it clear they would both be challenging Nintendo's Gameboy in the handheld market. Neo Geo is using the slogan "I'm no boy" to attract potential customers away from Nintendo's baby.
There were also a few unusual games on show. Argonaut, for instance, is an ambulance-driving game set in the future where the aim is to compete with other drivers to take patients to hospital. Some other "odd" games only seem unusual because they simulate real life. These included horse-racing simulations, fishing games (complete with rod peripherals), dancing games (with sensory floor mats that require the user to physically dance to the rhythm). Fortunately the train-driving and gardening simulations don't require peripherals.
Not all of these games will appear on the European market. One can only hope that if the school romance simulation Little Lovers: She So Game ever appears on these shores it will, at the very least, arrive with a name change.
Wipeout 64, Nintendo 64, £44.99
THE PC and PlayStation classic Wipeout has finally made it to the Nintendo 64. A classic? It doesn't seem long since Wipeout was the future of racing games rather than the past. Either way, speeding around futuristic, neon-lit tracks with music pumping was adrenaline-inducing gameplay of the highest order.
Fortunately, the Nintendo 64 version conveys that excitement and more. The music is by Fluke and The Propellerheads (the Chemical Brothers and the Prodigy did the PC and PlayStation versions). The race tracks are new and with the N64's analogue stick, control of the anti-gravity craft is far more precise.
The game supports the rumble pack and up to four players and, despite some evidence of pop-up, the graphics are more than adequately rendered. Weapons and power-ups can be picked up from the track to improve the chances of winning, but ultimately navigational skills will decide the player's fate. With Wipeout 64, Nintendo owners can finally see for themselves what all the fuss is about. Meanwhile, Psygnosis has announced plans for Wipeout 3 on the PlayStation.
LOOKING Glass Technologies (publishers of Thief The Dark Project, Flight Unlimited, TerraNova and System Shock) is offering a chance to win a place on the unfortunate crew of the UNN Von Braun as one of the victims of SHODAN. The winner's name and face will appear in the much-vaunted Sys- tem Shock 2 game. It is not often you get the chance to be erased by a rogue megalomaniac artificial intelligence unit. To enter, visit www.lglass.com/ p-info/shock2/ sshock.html and enter your name and email address. A name drawn at random will select a person to have their name and image included in System Shock 2. Willing victims should hurry as the closing date is today.
To catch the wave of hype surrounding STAR Wars: The Phantom Menace, Lucas Arts will be releasing two games around the same time as the film. One is an adventure based on the movie, while the other is a racing game inspired by the film's pod racing sequence. Lucas Arts has already created several excellent Star Wars games such as Dark Forces, Jedi Knight and X-Wing - so the latest ones should be worth a look.
games@irish-times.ie