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A.P.I Review: RE-BOOT
Developer: Electronic Arts OPTIONS: S.SHOT
SCREENSHOTS:
No.1   No.2   No.3
Distributor: Electronic Arts 1 Player
Game Type: Shoot-em-up Memory Card
Review Date: April 1998 Analog Compatible

Setting the Scene

You take on the role of "Bob" and must battle the destructive forces 
of a robotic villain known as Megabyte. The action is set in Mainframe, 
an expansive futuristic world which exists inside of a computer. Derived 
from the television series of the same name, the games action centers 
around Megabytes obsession to take control of Mainframe.

Bob's mission is to stop Megabytes "tears" from destroying the computerized 
cites.

Genre

The game is a 3D Shoot-em-up with Platform and Strategy elements.

Graphics

The game contains loads of FMV. Right from the opening sequence to 
level introductions you are treated to a feast of cartoon-like video. 
Some of it appears to be quite grainy - probably just a sign of the 
compression needed to fit it all on one C.D.

The in-game graphics are truly state of the art. Each city is a 
completely 3D polygon world packed with nice little details everywhere. 
The Style is similar to that of G-Police and the games designers have 
used the same technique of blurring out the objects in the distance. 

Another great accomplishment is that there appeared to be no "Break-up" 
or "glitching" of the graphics. Better still when you move very close 
to the walls the resolution of the graphics was not blocky at all. 
Proof - if we really needed it, that games programmers are starting 
to harness the full power of our console at last.

Sounds and Effects

Hooray for E.A, they continue to be one of the few companies who 
know that the sounds contained within any game can contribute massively 
to the overall atmosphere that is created. Once again they have 
incorporated crystal clear surround sound effects into the game giving 
it a far greater 3D feel than would otherwise be possible.

The background tunes are very DooM'esque in their feel and a few could 
be quite easily be mistaken for those used in the star Wars movies!

Playability

With any 3D game that involves moving around in a gravity free 
environment, its essential that the control of your character is easy 
to master. E.A have done the right thing and kept things very simple - 
so much so that the game still plays very well using the normal Sony 
digital pad.

You first enter a game level with no objective other than to get familiar 
with the city its-self and gun down a few of the robotic enemies that 
lay lurking in a few of the back alleys. Shooting your enemies, or 
indeed many of the trash cans and boxes lying around will reveal 
power-ups that range from health to weapon rechargers. Further investigation 
will reveal symbols (usually located in harder to reach areas of the city) 
that will give you additional; lives or completely new weapons.

Within a few minutes the arrival of the first "tear" is announced, a 
timer starts to count down and your real mission begins....

So what is this "tear" thing? Well think of it as a computer virus that 
needs to be killed very quickly before is wipes out the whole computer 
generated city with you still in it!

Using your radar you need to quickly find this thing, zooming up ramps, 
lifts and jumps to get you up to the higher levels of the City. 

You have full freedom of movement due to the entire city being stored 
in memory and the speed and grace that your character moves is a joy to 
behold. 

The Platform "feel" to this game is created by the elevated walkways 
that need to be very carefully navigated - often one careless move will 
send you crashing from the sixth level back to the ground with a bump. 
Walkways often need to be jumped between - requiring a good run-up 
followed by a blast of the jets on your hover board. To make life a 
little more interesting there are also various enemies located at 
different points on these platforms - some stationary, some that form 
barriers to areas of the city and some who will pursue you firing at will.

On arrival at the "tear" you must use your special repair unit to 
neutralize it. Sounds easy, but if you stand too far away your repairer 
wont work and standing too close sees you zapped by an electric bolt as 
the tear protects its-self.

Once two or three of the tears have been located and removed you will be 
asked to find a number of "Pass Keys" that will let you leave the city 
and move to a new area, where you will face tougher enemies and more 
difficult to reach "Tears".

The game has the following Features:

	*	21 Levels
	*	8 Bosses
	*	More than 30 enemies
	*	Multiple Weapons and gadgets

Value for Money

I found the difficulty level to be a little on the tough side, 
by level 3 the cities were becoming very maze-like, with numerous enemies 
and some very difficult areas to reach. Needless to say I don't think 
that you will be completing this game within a few hours of owning it.
Opinion
MARTIN
GRAPHICS: 18/20 A very slick game with loads of FMV and some nice sound effects. The in-game visuals are also very impressive.

The game should appeal to fans of the DooM genre and those who like 3D platformers. Expect to throw down your Joypad in frustration a few times during the course of the game, although I feel sure that you will keep coming back to it time and again.
SOUND: 9/10
PLAYABILITY: 45/50
VALUE: 16/20
OVERALL 88%

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