G-POLICE

                  Review by Michael Raven

G-Police is a game set in the late twenty-first century, by which
time humans have spread throughout the planets and stars, to find
resources to stay alive, having drained Earth of its resources
decades before.  Large corporations have taken power, and the only
official forces left is a new volunteer force known as the
Government Police, or G-Police.

The in-game movies are excellent, I must say this first.  A
stunning intro video greets you as you start up, which last for
quite a few minutes.

The game is a action flight sim. You have to follow the missions,
completing objectives. As one of my favourite games is TIE
Fighter, I admit I compared it to that, even though TIE Fighter
was regarded as one of the best games of its time.

G-Police has a set of training missions available.  They seem
playable, but it is often unclear as to what exactly you have to
do next to proceed, and the instructions can be vague. One has you
using a pulse weapon to disable three enemy bikes. Invariably, you
disable one and the other two come up AND STOP behind it, as
sitting ducks for you to fire on. However, unless you fly right up
to them, it looks as if all three are disabled already.

The helicopter is also quite difficult to fly. I used the keyboard
and mouse control option, and it was very difficult to get lined
up on target. It would have been much easier if you could use the
mouse to aim and direct the helicopter, as in TIE Fighter, but
instead all it does is fire the weapons, so you have to fly and
change direction with the keyboard.

I only played as far as the first mission, but it was quite
enjoyable.  The helicopter seems able to withstand an amazing
amount of damage, as several fighter craft and a heavily (and I do
mean heavily!) armoured truck blasted away at me. Compared to the
helicopter, the enemy fighters fell apart after only a few shots.
The truck was much more difficult to destroy, which I thought was
a bit odd, but there you go.

The graphics and sound are very good in the game, I must say, but
it feels as if too much emphasis was on making these perfect and
not on the gameplay.

Overall: 75% I got my copy on special offer, so I'm happy.  Don't
pay too much for it, but it's worth a try.










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