G Nome
PC CD-ROM minimum system requirements: Pentium 90 mhz; 16 MB RAM; 30 MB hard disk space; Quad speed CD-ROM drive; Windows 95; SVGA.
£29.99
MECH WARRIOR has a lot to answer for. If it wasn't for the people at Activision, these oversized walking mayhem makers would probably never have seen the light of day. Ever since they introduced these to the game playing world, their popularity has increased beyond all bounds and Mech Warrior type games have become increasingly more mainstream.
Earthsiege 2 and Shattered Steel are other players in the field, offering their own particular angle on this theme and G Nome, from 7th Level, is the latest recruit to this army.
G-Nome is a genetically-engineered fighting machine the "Scorps" are developing to give them the edge in the battle against humans for a piece of space rich in minerals: whoever secures the rights to these will become a superpower.
You play Joshua Grant, a retired special forces agent who is called back for one last fling. While tending to your seedy bar on the outskirts of some galaxy, you get a call from on high to take command of humanity's last throw of the dice.
Your task begins in a wasteland but as the game progresses through sweeping grasslands, fields of lava and icy tundra, G-Nome gets ample time to display all its luscious graphics - although to see them in all their glory you'll need a Pentium 166 and preferably one that uses MMX technology.
You begin the game, which has more than 20 missions, standing alone in the desert and must run the 100 metre dash to board your HAWC (Heavy Armour Weapons Chassis).
Standing alone in the desert? Now this is something new. This is called Soldier Mode and you can, at any time during a mission, activate it by pressing the eject button. In fact, in some missions you have to leave the comfort and safety of your HAWC to undertake tasks necessary for a successful completion. This can involve entering a building to activate a bridge or gathering crates of weapons, for example.
Furthermore, if things are really getting you down and you have nowhere else to run, you can hitch a ride with some of your colleagues who are out on the battlefield. This feature, combined with the ability to pilot more than 20 vehicles (including tanks, hovercraft and multi legged HAWCs), provides a variety of gameplay never before seen in games of this type.
And, as games of this type go, G-Nome is certainly competent and fun, if not a new benchmark. Now that is fairly hefty praise for any game but G-Nome is just so easy to get into and the gameplay so enjoyable ... But it's not without flaws and the more serious fan might prefer the more technically minded Mech Warrior.
Graphics: 90%
Sound: 90%
Gameplay: 92%