ECTS - 3DO round-up

3DO are best known for churning out countless derivative Army Men games, but their line-up at ECTS this year showed that the company is trying to establish a reputation for publishing more serious games as well. Heading up the list was Four Horsemen Of The Apocalypse, a gratuitously gory action game in the vein of Devil May Cry, but with the added advantage of a storyline rather loosely based on Biblical stories of the end of the world. Throw in voice acting from the likes of Tim Curry and Lance Henriksen, not to mention design work from comic book artist Simon Bisley, and you have a game which should be well worth a look if the whole is equal to the sum of its parts. 3DO were also highlighting two brand new motor racing games. Street Racing Syndicate does exactly what the title says, giving players the chance to compete in both illegal and sanctioned events on city streets. The stakes are high, with everything from cash to your opponents' cars and girlfriends up for grabs, and naturally any prize money you earn can be spent on upgrading and customising your vehicles. Jacked, on the other hand, is an action-packed motorbike racing game where players are encouraged to drive dirty, smashing rival riders with bottles, chains and golf clubs in an effort to claw their way to the front of the field. As if that isn't dangerous enough, there's also talk of saw blades, fire pits and car crushers. Motorbikes Of Might & Magic this ain't. Naturally 3DO aren't abandoning their old kiddie-friendly catalogue though, and along with the more adult fare there were some reassuringly familiar faces. The robots from CG-animated cartoon series Cubix will be returning for another outing in Cubix Showdown on PlayStation 2 and GameCube, while several more Army Men games are also on the way for Nintendo owners. Sarge's War on the GameCube is a third person action game in which Sarge has to take on the entire Tan Army single-handed (again) in a variety of real world and outsized locations. The graphics are certainly a step forward for the franchise, although it remains to be seen whether it will have the gameplay to match. Also on the Cube is Air Combat - The Elite Missions, more helicopter-based plastic action in locations ranging from a Japanese garden to the wild west. And finally there's Army Men: Turf Wars on the GameBoy Advance, with (you guessed it) Sarge single-handedly taking on the Tan Army in various "backyard environments" such as sand pits and ponds. I sense a pattern emerging here... Related Feature - UK Release Date List