11-Nov-2003 There you are merrily shifting crates around in your trusty mechanised loader when suddenly you're offered the chance to pilot the meanest, nastiest piece of military hardware in the navy. Well, you'd be a fool to refuse, especially when the offer comes replete with a gun pointed at your head. Thus begins your new life as the reluctant pilot of the spider-like Battle Engine Aquila.
I Know Your Game Although BEA is, without question, a superbly programmed blaster, you can't help feeling a pang of disappointment. We know that the PS2 and Xbox versions of the game won many fans with slick presentation, bombastic action and character-driven story, but this is the PC, and PC games generally try to offer more to accommodate an older and more thoughtful breed of gamer. However, that's not to say the game isn't immersive and, as PC games go, it still has plenty to offer.
Piloting a scampering, ordnance laden behemoth with a natural hatred for anything that appears on the radar as a red dot, your mission is to eliminate those dots. There's a fantastic sense of scale to the battles that rage around you, and you really do feel like you can turn the tide of these conflicts in your side's favour. Indeed, BEA is a thrilling ride from start to finish.
Arachnophobia Your ability to transform into a jetfighter (the big spider tucks its lanky legs underneath) and swoop around the sky is another boon to the gameplay. It's certainly more satisfying pumping a salvo of rockets into a bomber and watching it plummet to the ground than it is mucking about in the dirt shooting tanks.
The gameplay is further enhanced by sea missions in which you launch from a carrier and attack opposing battleships. In these instances there's added pressure to complete the mission quickly and return to your carrier before your energy depletes and you plop into the ocean. Other avenues of variety include the ability to select one of three configurations for your Battle Engine, depending on the type of mission, as well as a choice of three pilots.
From a visual standpoint BEA is not dissimilar to Gun Metal, which by sheer coincidence is also reviewed in this issue (see page 112). In fact, when you get behind the HUD and start playing, BEA is still not too dissimilar to Gun Metal, full stop. But ultimately the superior class of Lost Toys' offering does shine through. BEA is raucous fun for a few days, especially if you can hook up with a few mates on multiplayer, but don't expect to be in the pilot's seat this time next month.
PC Zone Staff
// Overview
Verdict
A thrilling, if slightly simplistic, blastathon
Uppers
Non-stop action and huge battles Looks great Good sense of scale
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Non-stop action and huge battles
