113 lines
7.0 KiB
Plaintext
113 lines
7.0 KiB
Plaintext
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GUNBOAT
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Straddling the categories of simulation, tactical, and arcade game, Accolade's
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GUNBOAT proves a pretty interesting mesh of these three genres. Combine that
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with an original design incorporating both solid-fill 3-D animation with
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bit-mapped imaging (one of the first pieces of software to use this technique
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in ways that are quite different from those found in Origin's WING COMMANDER),
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and you have a ground-breaking game on the technical front. (This review is
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based on the Amiga version.)
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Released a year ago for the IBM, GUNBOAT builds upon Tom Loughry's design of
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STEEL THUNDER to provide an interesting simulation of a Navy PBR (Patrol Boat,
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River). The details provided in crewing the boat make for a varied experience
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once familiar with the system, and the three included scenarios are absorbing.
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Separate piloting and gunnery stations on the boat will leave your hands full
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once you get into the thick of things, and the included maps as well as
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control of things like guns, spotlights, boat jets, and crew command keys help
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flesh out the simulation.
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I have inadequate experience with the real thing to confirm or deny the
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claims, but the manual indicates that GUNBOAT is "accurately modeled after the
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actual stations on the PBR Mark III boats currently in use by the U.S. Navy."
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As the captain of your boat, you get a chance to engage in both the piloting
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and gunnery aspects of the simulation. Piloting involves checking views,
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radar, fuel, and rpm gauges, and searching for targets through careful
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maneuvering of the PBR along the river in one of the three scenarios included
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(Vietnam, Panama, and Colombia). From the pilot's station, you can maneuver the
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boat using the joystick (forward and back control speed, side-to-side control
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the water jets for turning). Radar can be turned on and off, to help find
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targets. Gunners can all be commanded simultaneously to open fire or cease
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fire on any identified targets (the computer then essentially runs the
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gunners, and will continue to fire until a command to cease fire is initiated.
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They will only fire at enemy targets while visible, however, thus avoiding
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needless waste of ammo).
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You can switch out of the piloting role at any time, and man any one of three
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gunner's stations as well. Each station has different capabilities, and the
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PBR in total has five different kinds of weaponry, from .50 cal heavy machine
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guns to 60mm mortar launchers. All except the mortar launcher can be
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automated; the latter must be manned by the player to be useful. Different
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gunners can take hits while you're away from their stations, and loss of a
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gunner locks you out of being able to use his station. Gunners can also use
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spotlights to reveal targets (simultaneously revealing the gunboat's location
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to enemy targets within visible range as well). Guns all have to be aimed
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before firing when in manual mode, making for real challenge when it comes to
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targeting. From the gunner's station, you can ask the pilot to perform turns,
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to speed up or slow down, or even to reverse course. In other words, the
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piloting of the boat becomes automated while you're concentrating on shooting,
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and vice versa.
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Each scenario features at least nine different types of targets, including
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non-combat items like trees and water buffalo, which makes for further variety
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in play. Graphics and sound are both fully adequate to the style of
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representation Accolade has gone for here. The out-the-boat river and
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shoreline is all done in 3-D solid-fill animation, but both boat stations and
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targets are done entirely in 2-D bitmaps. This makes for an interesting
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combination of elements that's nowhere near as exciting as the wrapping of
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bit-mapped images _around_ solid-fill 3-D modeling, but is certainly an
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improvement on the entirely two-dimensional bit-mapped designs of Accolade's
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earlier simulations (such as GRAND PRIX CIRCUIT or THE CYCLES).
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The game comes with a number of accessible views, both from within the boat
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and outside of it. A view map is always available, which does a nice job of
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plotting the boat's location within the scenario, thus helping you identify
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the locations of various targets for future reference. It's also very useful
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when you start to feel lost. Frequent accesses of the map view also help to
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contextualize the simulation effectively. A chase boat view is included, which
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makes for a more arcade-ish gaming experience. Mission assignments are always
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given at the start of play, but are available at any time during the mission
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for review as well. Finally, a damage screen is accessible with a single
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keystroke, to give you a sense of how well you're doing.
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As with all such simulations, a certain amount of time can be spent just
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getting from one place to another. The designers have provided a very useful
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time compression command to prevent the boredom of rolling down the river with
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nothing to do (the AI speeds up along with the rest of the simulation, though,
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so this can bring targets down on your boat long before you're ready for them.
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Careful use of TC is advised).
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The nicest thing about GUNBOAT is that it's complex enough to require some
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real tactical thinking during play. Running the boat fast is running it noisy,
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so learning how to sprint and drift, in order to gain best awareness of the
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presence of targets without being spotted, is the first order of the day.
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Aiming a gun from a moving boat can be really tricky; combining boat maneuvers
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with careful aiming becomes a real art, as the boat will pitch and roll when
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moving, thus throwing one's aim off. Targets aren't always stationary, either,
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so learning how to lead one's target becomes another important skill.
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GUNBOAT comes on two copyable disks, and is playable on Amiga 1000s, 500s,
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2000s, or 2500s. It requires one megabyte of RAM minimum to work, and can be
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run from the keyboard or by combining joystick use for maneuvering with
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keyboard use for issuing other kinds of commands. The game is hard-drive
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installable, and comes with a complete instruction card outlining all
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installation procedures in careful detail. A codewheel is used for copy-
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protection.
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All in all, GUNBOAT is a fascinating, original simulation with real
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depth. Many aspects of the STEEL THUNDER design have been improved upon here,
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and while GUNBOAT may not function visually in the same way that most air
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combat simulations do, the visual design is nevertheless just perfect for this
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kind of game. The combination of bit-mapped and solid-fill graphics used here
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prevents GUNBOAT from slowing down, and allows for all the necessary detail
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both on the boat and on-shore. The modeling of the boat and its environs is
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sophisticated enough to allow the imagination room for play. And finally, the
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range of included mission assignments in three different theatres of operation
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insures variety and replayability. If you want a break from air combat, but
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still prefer simulation-style fun above all else, GUNBOAT is for you.
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GUNBOAT is published and distributed by Accolade.
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