n the distant future, a malevolent society is hell-bent on the
destruction of a planet of humans. In this case, however, the malevolent society is Earth, and the
threatened humans live on the former Earth colony, Terra Nova.
Such is the premise of Activision's Heavy Gear II, the sequel
to 1997's much-maligned Heavy Gear. This title takes
another stab at converting Dream Pod 9's board game Heavy Gear into
a computer-driven combat simulation, telling the story of the evil
Earthers who plan to destroy Terra Nova with a huge meteor. (Geez, will folks
ever give this rock-into-a-planet thing a rest?)
Players pilot large bipedal weapons chassis called Gears. But think not of the
30-foot-tall BattleMechs of Jordan Weisman's BattleTech game. These
Gears are more like the power armor suits from Heinlein's Starship Troopers...on
steroids. Although each carries a BattleMech-like array of rocket
launchers, autocannon, and lasers, they crouch behind cover, crawl past
sentries, and leap over gullies as if they were nothing more than armored
infantry.
Gamers play the part of a Gear
squad-leader in the elite Black Talons unit as they attempt to thwart an Earth
invasion of Terra Nova, which takes place over 22 missions. Pilots who shy from the
campaign experience may
choose any of the eight "historical" missions included with the game, which are based on
random battles in Terra Novan history. There are also several types of multi-player matches.
The scenarios
comprise an eclectic selection of brawling fortress takedowns, sneaky-Pete
recon missions, and weightless space sorties.
Heavy Gear II is not, however, merely a first-person combat
simulation. In addition to strapping on their own Gear, players must command
the Gears of their squadmates, establishing waypoints, assigning targets,
and setting formations via a tactical screen.
The second time is the charm
It looks like the second time is the charm for the Heavy Gear
computer license. The first game was as intriguing as a piece of slightly
undercooked chicken, and about as well prepared. This time around, Activision has brought
a solid product to the table.
The graphics are gorgeous. Sparks fly when shells meet armor, the hover tanks
raise miniature dust storms,
and the tumultuous, multi-colored skies are simply to die for. The
audio-visual enhancements don't, however, stop there. The full-motion
animation scenes are top-notch, reminiscent of the similar FMA in
Activision's classic MechWarrior 2. Likewise, the voice-overs, FMA
mission briefs, and in-game pilot commentary are well done and enhance the
realistic feeling of Heavy Gear II.
Nevertheless, graphics alone do not a good game make. Also on the plus side
of the ledger are the diverse set of missions. Not only will gamers fight
the Gear-on-Gear, tank, and Strider battles endemic to the Mecha
genre, they will also creep through buildings, roll through caverns
(jumping to avoid yawning crevices), and float through space. The scenarios
are as varied as they are interesting and certainly worth the price of
admission.
Unfortunately, the artificial intelligence is not. Oh, the enemies are not
too bad. They shoot when they should and run when they ought to. On the
other hand, the squadmates would lose an IQ contest with a frozen TV dinner.
Their AI pathing routines are weak, and they will often refuse to fire
until fired upon.
Reluctant squadmates aside, Heavy Gear II is great fun. Superb
graphics and solid mission design will give this simulation longer retail
legs than its predecessor. Now, if the folks at Activision could just
design a sharp AI to boot.
