SCANNER
PLAYSTATION PREVIEW Silent Hill
Although it is generally accepted that PCs are for ‘grown ups’ and consoles are for 'kiddies’, there is a huge discrepancy when it comes to software. The slick, speedy, superficial arena of 3D shooters, ideal for distracted young adrenaline junkies, is ruled by the PC. Yet horror, the viciously frightening, nerve-shredding adult section of the market remains almost exclusively within the domain of the console. From early terror titles like D, or even Legacy Of Kain, through to the Resident Evil twins, the consoles have commanded the creepy.
Konami's upcoming release Silent Hill adds another clawed finger to this stranglehold. Crawling from the wreck of a car accident, you discover your daughter Cheryl has wandered off into the mist of the local town. Dutifully, you follow. From then on, everything gets very weird. The plotline swings around wildly as you search for your errant offspring. Demon midgets walk the streets and new-found friends become enemies. It may be confusing, but what nightmare isn't? The storytelling cut-scenes are a joy to watch and succeed in heightening the
overall feeling of unease.
To further increase the tension, your view of the town is restricted to the sweep of your torch beam or the transparency of the all-enveloping mist. The sound is also used to great effect, piling paranoia upon dread as the musical score bursts into life or wings flap ominously in the distance. In fact, everything about the game is designed to leave you wary of switching your light out at bed time. There is a slight suspicion that this nightmare may not last as long as you’d hope but time, and a review copy, will tell. (lain Davidson)
II Silent Hill is released on Konami in July, around I 39. 99.
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nothing here to keep anyone interested for longer than an episode of Pingu. Asterix might be for kids only, but surely no-one hates their kids this much? (ID)
Blood Lines
(SCEE) £34.99 ir it
Remember those days of running breathlesst round the school yard, chasing the innocent love of yOur life in the vain hope of a kiss, a cuddle or (Junior 5&lv1 fans ahoy') some torture? Well, Sony have released a game which inadvertantly recreates those heady days.
Choose a character, learn their speCial moves, then enter the arena to face yOur enemy in a VICIOUS game of tig. |n top-down 30, the ObJGCI is to touch all the shining bases While av0iding y0ur opponent If they catch you, they become the active player and try to tocich the bases While you take on the role of chaser. And that is it. The arenas change, as do the power-ups, but chasing and catching remains the name of the game. This becomes tedious Within seconds and the off button soon shines in glorious release. Blood Lines offers no kissing or Cuddling, Just unrelenting torture. (ID)
KKND: Krossfire (lnfogiames) £39.99 at it
Another real-time strategy game and another sorry attempt at Command 81
Conquer. This is set in the future and, With resomces dWindling, the dominance of the world is being contested by small bands of warriors. Choosmg one of these factions — human, mutant or machine w you must command yOur armies and conquer your enemies. Beginning With rovmg hordes, you slowly gain access to buildings, technology and resources, which must be managed along With y0ur grOWing army. Each faction has its strengths and weaknesses and must be played properly to progress.
The graphics are paltry and lack the clear, crisp definition you requne for proper control. Organising fighting groups is a long, irritating affair, and your goals are unimaginative and totally arbitrary. A pOInt-and-drag interface has been replaced With shoulder button usage and a great deal of swearing With so many prettier, smarter and friendlier strategy games Out there, the only reason to buy KKND Krossfire would be a sign round your neck reading 'clinically insane’. (ID)
REVIEWER THIS ISSUE: lain DaVidson
STAR RATINGS
it it a: a air Unmissable
t i t it Very good
t t it Worth a shot
ii i Below average
‘k You've been warned
Totally wired
The weird world of the Web.
The Simpsons3 Unofficial UK Site
http://www.wetware.demon.co. uk/simpsons/ Woo-hoo! If you’re a fan of America’s
longest-running and arguably funniest cartoon ever, then this site is gold. If you see the same episodes every time you turn on the box, then a qwck trip here Will give you the entire listings for BBC2 and Sky for each channel a Whole month in advance. With a full episode gUide, you need never have a cow again when you sWitch on the telly.
The Internet Anagram Server http://www.wordsmith.org/anagram
This Site is not new and is not Visually eXCiting, but it can be very, very funny, It's a fast, often surreal, anagram creator. There’s a train of thought that believes anagrams speak the truth, For best reSUIts, enter your name and it's pretty much certain that there Will be ten anagrams that Will have you wetting your pants - even better, try it With a friend and you’ll be wetting each other's pants.
Martin's Music
http://www.martinsmusicfreeserveco.uk/topAO
Yet another retro music site, but a very good one nonetheless. A guy called Martin picks out some of the ’best’ hits from every week of every year going back to the 50s. Pick out your early teenage years for the best effect. It’s like gOing through your friends' embarrassmg record collections, except you get to see the ones they didn't have the c0urage to buy.
The Comedy Butchers http://www.comedybutchers.com Originating somewhere in Glasgow, this is a vast comedy site encompassing everything from audio sketches you can download to an array of bogus news items. There’s an interactive news story about HG. Wells, which is never the same tWice, to the ’Padded Sell’ section Where you can see the rarely mentioned Windows 45 operating system and never mentioned Encarta 7545. A very graphically intensive Site that repays time spent probing around it. Viva butcheryl
The Goddam George Liquor Program http://www.spumco.com
Multimedia fans ahoyl This is the latest offering from Ren And Stimpy creator, John Kricfalusi. Equally CiaZy, it Will be immediately recognisable to fans of his work, It's a cartoon in seven parts (click on 'preVious episodes' and start With Episode ll. You Will need the Shockwave plug-in to View them, but full details are included. In order to View the current episode, you need to enter into an interactive game »- putting a duck up Jimmy The Idiot Boy's bum, (Hint: put the funnel into him and grease up the duck).
The Cable Tie Fan Page
http://wwwxx.net/cabletiefanpage
When y0u're down and troubled and you need a helping hand then Just go to a website like this and y0u'll feel tons better. Dedicated entirely to the wonder of cable ties ~ there are pictures of cable ties tying cables, on their own, and computer-generated pictures of them. What makes this speCIal, however, are downloadable sounds of cables actually being tied, and one, labelled ’cool’, of a cable tie being cut. Also 1001 uses for cable ties (use 1002 is tying cables) and the words ’cable tie' translated into different languages. Check the ’About' section for a very funny explanation. One for the enthusiast and nowce alike.
The Infamous Exploding Whale http://www.perp.com/whale/
This was once thought to be an urban myth, but now here is the footage to show it actually happened. How do you get rid of a 40ft, eight ton, rotting, beached Whale? Bury it? Nah — cover it in half a ton of dynamite and blow it up Watch it go horribly wrong (RealPlayer is recommended unless you want a long download). As bits of the mammal land close to the camera, I swear you can almost smell it. (Steve Blair)
Windows
29 Api --13 May 1999 THE “ST 101