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By Contributing Writer Jimmy Payne Rating: Good Turok: Rage Wars is the best Turok game yet, but that's not saying much. I couldn't help but get the feeling that Acclaim rushed Rage Wars out the door before polishing it as much as they should have. As many flaws as this game has, there is still a lot to like about it. There are tons of multi-player arenas, and they're all very well designed (with just the right amount of strategic hiding places). In addition, it's nice that in addition to humans, you can also play as dinosaurs and half- robot, half-dinosaur creatures. Different species have different ways of killing their enemies, which adds some much-needed variety to the game. For instance, the raptors can only use their claws, but they are much faster than the other species. The weapons are another one of this game's strong points. Even though they aren't as good as the weapons found in the Quake series, they are very unique, and there are plenty of them to keep you amazed for hours. All of the weapons are nicely balanced as well, with the possible exception of the cerebral bore. Surprisingly, the control in Turok: Rage Wars is a lot less painful than it was in the first two Turok games. Rather than forcing you to use the moronic Turok control set-up, the game lets you choose between multiple set-ups. You can also tweak things like the all-important cross-hair speed. The control is better than it was in previous Turok games, but it still can't beat a good old mouse and keyboard set-up. Unfortunately, all of Rage Wars' negatives out-weigh its positives. The music is forgettable, and the graphics are only impressive if you have a RAM expansion pack. Without an expansion pack, the graphics look grainy and it becomes hard to see things in the distance. Make no mistake about it, Turok: Rage Wars is still a good-looking game any way you slice it, but the graphics might disappoint you if you're used to 3D-accelerated PC games. This game's single-player mode is pretty much the same as the multi- player mode, only you're playing against computer-controlled bots. This doesn't take too long to get old because it's just not the same as playing against a real person. The bots aren't exactly stupid, but changing the difficulty level doesn't seem to do anything except give them better accuracy and armor. The single-player mode would have been a lot more enjoyable if the bots actually got smarter and used more advanced strategies as the game progressed instead of just having their stat levels boosted. I remember playing Quake 2 and being amazed when one player would find a quad damage or a rail gun that no one else could find. Then when I finally found it, the game was all the more satisfying. In Turok: Rage Wars, the weapons are placed out in the open, with plenty of ammo for them scattered around. This makes for some really cheap games in which the winner will more than likely be the first person to grab the level's best weapon. The lack of effort that was put into the item placement is especially frustrating because the levels themselves are so well-designed. If the N64 is your only system, you love first-person shooters, and you buy them for their multi-player modes only, then Turok: Rage Wars is well worth your money. Otherwise, you should definitely try before you buy. Send your thoughts on this review to jimmy@mastergamer.com
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