System Shock - PC HD/CD-ROM.
                  Looking Glass/Origin/EA.
                           œ44.95

                 Reviewed by Colin Campbell

This was my first RPG I got for my new PC. And what an
introduction it is! I've been told that it uses the same engine as
Ultima Underworld II and if this is correct then I'll definitely
be getting that soon.

The game comes in a sexy black box and over 9 HD disks. It doesn't
take too long to install - and besides, you can use the time to
read the manual.

We get 2 manuals for our money. One is a quick reference /
installation one with all the keys on the back few pages. The
other gives a general introduction to the plot and lists the
weapons and other items that you'll come across in the game. As
manuals go they are okay.

You can play with a combination of keyboard and mouse, or keyboard
and joystick. I quite like the former method as it gives you more
control.

As my machine is quite a high spec one - I've got 12 meg of RAM,
Qemm 7.something and about 1 gig of hard drive space, as well as a
50mhz 486 processor, you may have to take my ravings with caution.
:) You might also have to create the dreaded boot disk if you
don't know about the intricacies of memory management. According
to the box the minimum spec is 4 meg RAM and a 486 processor. The
"preferred" spec is 8 meg RAM and a 50mhz 486 processor.

The plot: mad computer goes nuts and starts turning all the
inhabitants of a space station into mutants and then decides to go
and destroy Earth with a new muto-virus type of weapon. As you do.
You've been in cryogenic sleep for a while and have missed all the
gruesome fun. The authorities on Earth awake you remotely and give
you some background about what has happened and then expect you to
save humanity or die in the attempt. Blah blah.

You have also conveniently undergone some surgery which allows you
to have all sorts of nifty items plugged into your head: infra-red
vision enhancers, compasses, maps, mutant detection and
identification devices, shields etc etc and, naturally, a
cyberspace connection.

Before you start the game you can set various parameters to tailor
it. You can make the game easy - by choosing few enemies, no
puzzles and no plot, or you can make it really really evil by
having loads of enemies, really difficult puzzles and a strict
time limited plot. I chose normal amounts of enemies, normal
puzzles and a normal plot.  I'm a normal sort of guy!

So you could play the game like you would play Doom or you can
have more of a cerebral challenge with a bit of violence or even a
_lot_ of violence.

The puzzles mainly consist of the following: finding access cards
to allow entry into other parts of the station; finding access
codes to open doors or panels etc; rewiring locks to open doors,
pushing buttons and pulling levers and the most interesting - not
being killed by a variety of homicidal nutters.

If you are playing on easy level - and I hope you aren't - then
you can breeze through everywhere with minimum effort. Probably.

The actual game area is huge. I've been playing for about 2 weeks
and have reached level 4. I've got another 5 or even 6 to go! Each
level is designed beautifully with multiple levels, sloping
floors, windows, spy cameras (which you should knock out to
prevent Shodan (the evil computer) from seeing you) and a host of
dead bodies and sundry furniture. Everything is texture mapped to
a high quality.

Unlike Doom you can jump around (literally), crawl around on the
floor like a snake, and peer around corners keeping most of your
body hidden. It's this freedom of movement which is so wonderful
to see.

If you've got more than 8 meg of memory then the game installs
with more detailed graphics and sound effects. A great sense of
anticipation is created in the game, with dark areas, broken
lights, flickering monitor screens (which you can blow up...) and
some great furniture. There are also lots of mutilated bodies
lying around - and even here you can pick up bits of body and
chuck them around the place. :) A particularly gruesome sight to
behold is reading a message scrawled on one of the walls in blood
and seeing the mutilated body of the author lying sprawled upon
the floor.

The enemies are depicted well too. Robots crawl, hop and walk
around; mutants, well, slope and slime around as you'd expect and
flying things fly around. The game slows down when lots of enemies
appear at the same time (such as when you get attacked by 20
cyborgs at the, ah, no. That'd be telling!) but it's not too bad.

The game deals with sound well too. Eerie background effects fit
in very well with what you are seeing. One particularly good mix
is in level 2 where you can hear in the distance a door repeatedly
opening and closing. Investigating carefully you find that the
reason it's doing this is a body (what else?) lying there.

The other sound effects are good too. Each weapon has its own
individual sound, and each level has a load of new sounds specific
to it. The noise the cyborgs and mutants make when you, er,
dispose of them is great: a gutteral "uuraagaghhhh!" followed by
the half-human half-machine thing clattering to the floor or
toppling off a ledge.

During the game you will find lots of objects some of which are
just for show and others which you will need. Weapons and ammo are
a top priority if you are to stay alive. You can find disks
(usually near dead bodies) which are the personal logs of the
cadavers and which contain vital information. You can also find
lots of goodies on the enemies you shoot so you should always
search them. Various gadgets can aid your mission. Of particular
use are things like infra-red viewers, surround-o-vision (so you
can see what's behind you), shields, mutant detectors, compasses,
torches and jet packs. Of course you need power for these add-ons
so you must also look out for the recharging stations and spare
batteries. Nothing is more annoying to find that you've just run
out of power after using your laser to blow up some enemies and
are plunged into near darkness. The sound effects of more mutants
approaching isn't nice either! :)

One important aspect of the game is cyberspace. There are usually
a few "jack in" points on each level where you can enter a
wire-frame world of weirdness. Here you can activate software to
protect you from Shodan's destroyers and give yourself a little
time to explore.  You have a 10 minute limit before Shodan himself
finds you. You don't die if this happens you only find that the
next time you plug yourself into cyberspace you have less time
before you are found again. In cyberspace you can do many things
you cannot do in the real game... you can discover interesting
bits of information, open locked doors and defeat security traps.
If you get in and out in time that is.

I'd rate this game as one of the best I've ever played. It seems a
bit overly complicated when you first start playing but the
designers have even thought of having an on-line as-you-play help
system for the first part of the game so you don't need to worry
there. Before long you'll be lobbing a concussion grenade through
an open door, diving off to one side and shooting down a corridor.

If you like a grippingly good RPG with excellent graphics and
sound effects and a wonderful freedom of movement system then get
this game now. You won't regret it!

Graphics:               *********.   9/10
Sound:                  *******...   7/10
Atmosphere:             *********.   9/10
Difficulty:             *******...   7/10  (but user variable)
Puzzles:                *****.....   5/10
Long Term interest:     ********..   8/10
Overall:                ********..   8/10



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