Battletech II: The Crescent Hawk's Revenge - Infocom
    RRP œ32.99 but shop around for best price (œ20 or less)
               (Wargame/strategy for PC)

                 Reviewed by The Grue

This is the follow-up to the first RPG/Strategy game that Infocom
did, albeit a few years late in arriving, but was it worth the
wait? The first Battletech game The Crescent Hawk's Inception did
not really appeal to me, although I did mange to complete it. So
cautiously I installed the game ready for my first encounter...

Again you take on the role of Jason Youngblood. This time there
have been rumours that your father might still possibly be alive,
captured by the House of Kurita. You are sworn to rescue him,
relying on the extensive battle training you've received since the
age of nine. It is on the planet Lyons that you begin your quest,
for it was on this planet that your father was a member of the
Kell Hounds, a famous mercenary mech regiment. As your dropship
approaches Lyons, Kurita Aerospace fighters zero in and ambush you
and your transport is forced to crash in a lake. It seems you have
an uphill struggle if you are ever to see your father again.

The game itself is split into various scenarios or battles and you
must win each in order for the story to progress. If you win a
scene then the story unwinds a little more and off you go into the
next scene. Unlike the first game which was a bit of a mish mash
of RPG/strategy and adventure, Battletech II is more akin to a
wargame and the use of strategy is of utmost importance.

The graphics are fairly basic, the only exception is when
in between scenes, here the graphics are quite good. The sound
effects are not that bad although the speech is not always that
clear. Perhaps this was done intentionally so as to give the effect
of the various mech pilots using walkie-talkies. Either way I
quite like the speech, especially when you hear one of the pilots
shout "This is Red Bleeder"? Well, that's what it sounded like to
me.

Each scene takes place on a huge scrolling area, with increasingly
difficult tasks such as defending supplies, intercepting a Kurita
APC or breaking into an enemy city. Each of the mechs can be
instructed to move at various speeds to a number of different
locations in one command. You can select to shoot on the defensive
or at will and you can isolate a particular target if you so wish.
If your mech becomes low on power you can start a forest fire but
be careful you don't stay in the fire too long, otherwise you will
begin to overheat. You can use this to your advantage with the
enemy and trap them in a circle of fire. You can also cool your
mech off by placing him in water but this won't always work,
depending on the amount of damage your mech has sustained.

The strategies for each scene on a particular world can offer
quite a variation, different attack and defence styles, number of
mech under your command all make for quite a fun but ultimately
tough game. The story is totally linear but this is a plus for it
holds the game together nicely.


Once you have reached the year 3025 you will find the game picks
up the pace somewhat. Now you will have access to a dropship,
enabling you to receive intelligence reports, shell attacks etc
etc. You can also call up satellite maps to aid with your current
battle. Although having access to all this information is helpful
in one way, it also helps to put the player under even more
pressure because you must make the pick-up point at a precise
time, otherwise the dropship will be forced to leave without you.
Which basically means even if you can complete the scene and win
the battle if you do not make the pick-up, you lose.

As you complete scenes your experience goes up and your mech
pilots will then react better and faster to most situations and to
top it all can shoot the enemy more accurately, If you reach a
particular scene in the game that you can't seem to complete it
can be a bit difficult to decide whether your tactics are wrong,
or it was something you did in an earlier scene. Well let me say
that near the beginning of the game, perhaps the first six scenes
it is probably your tactics.

If, however, like me you rescued everyone from the prison and only
have to return to the dropship to find out if your father was one
of the prisoners but can't because Jason, the main character, has
sustained so much damage it's impossible for him to make it back,
then it is more than likely that your strategy has been just about
good enough to complete the earlier scenes but in doing so you
have gradually reduced your chance of winning the game overall.
The moral to be learnt from all this is that you can win battles
and progress but you must win them well to succeed with the
overall mission of the game.

The storyline is very fair and it all makes sense, the way a large
game has been broken down into smaller missions is well
implemented. The graphics in general are a bit of a disappointment
and have not really been enhanced from the first game. But for all
its pluses and minuses I found it a very addictive game, seasoned
strategy players would probably find it a bit of a let down but
for someone who doesn't play a lot of these type of games, I
really enjoyed it.

The system is nice and simple without bogging the player down with
hoards of options to choose from, which can overcomplicate and
frustrate some less experienced players. Would I recommend
Battletech II to someone? Well, not at the full RRP but I've seen
it in shops for as little as 18 pounds and at that sort of price
it's definitely worth a look. Anyway, it made a nice change from
playing PGA Tour Golf!