SCANNER
PC Nerf Arena (Atari) £29.99
,."V¥3L~h i1 ‘ wmwmne w. . ‘ I.“ 1 Blast your rival and snaffle his balls
For childish minds, whatever their age, the Nerf products have been nothing short of true brilliance. The variety of foam-flinging firepower has turned bedrooms into battlegrounds and gardens into gladiatorial arenas. For those ignorant of Nerf, they are ridiculously colourful contraptions designed to propel a piece of firm rubber foam through the air. Ranging from tiny pistols to monstrous bazookas, they are accurate, powerful and as much fun as a ferret down the britches. And now they are on your computer.
Nerf Arena is essentially Quake Arena with sponge munitions. It is a multiplayer first-person shooter, pitching your combat skills against either computer-controlled or human opponents. The visuals are as absurdly garish as the Nerf weapons themselves, while adversaries and arsenal vary wildly in size, accuracy and speed. However it is the gameplay itself which makes Nerf Arena such a joy.
Where Quake revels in Deathmatch, Nerf Arena offers a couple of new game types that, though simple, are a complete riot to play. First up is Speedblast, a race to touch seven coloured flags spread around the level. This is fast, very fast, and though initially disappointing develops into quite a battle of wits. Next is Pointblast, the closest Nerf Arena has to a Deathmatch. Pointblast is point-based combat, with points awarded for shooting targets, sharp-shooting opponents in the chest or, when one is knocked out, collecting the bonus point marker. Last is the Ballblast, a wildly different version of basketball. There are six balls, of differing value, which must be shot through a target. Once one player has collected and scored with all six balls, a seventh appears and it is a race to find and slamdunk it. Ballblast is merciless and there is nothing better than blasting a rival and snaffling his balls. (Ooooer!)
Nerf Arena shows that a game need not be hip, cool and futuristic to be enjoyable. Colourful, unsubtle chaos is just as much fun. Nerf Clan Wars anyone? (lain Davidson)
DREAM CAST
Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation
(Eidos) £39.99
Resident Evil 2 (Capcoml £39.99
It is a hit of a snarne that Dreaincast, the best (o'isole available at the moment ‘l’SX imports do'i't (Olllllr, s not l)(‘ll‘(] sr‘o‘.'.'ed .i'ide" ‘.'«.'itn quality titzes Indeed, the best t\.‘.‘o (tirrent releases are both late arr'imls, “avinrr done their tune on PlayStation and P( helore Tomb Raider Hie last lskn/e/at/on, lara's latest are possibly last adventure, iooks glorious on the Drearnc as’. Granted it as exac tly the same (rarrve
This is ( lassic Lara and any self- respec llll(] DC oWner‘ Will buy it \.'.’llll()lil hesitation The same goes for Resident [vr/ 2 Again, the Visuals are glorious, dripping gore and (ranking tip the suspense lac tor another notch It really is criminal that everyone else has Reside/rt Evr/ 3 at the moment but, as all the Resident fvr/ games are essentially the same, the second chapter feels very lresh on the D( If Code Veronica can live up to this standard then the [)rearncast (ou'd well turn out to he the liittire home of stirvrval horror “lain [)avrdson,
STAR RATINGS
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Very good
\"Jortl‘ a shot
Be'ox'. average You've been --.'-.‘arned
as on other platforms but the sharper, (learer grapl‘ics ol Seqa's "‘-(r( l‘ill‘(‘ really do it Jtisti(e
Totally wired
The world of the Web.
11 O'Clock Show
http://www.l locscom
This is the companion Site to the TV show. Still very much in its infancy, it already contains highlights of week's output, With on-Iine tongue-in-cheek polls and a chance to submit interesting facts to the show.
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Yes, that's right — they're all here. All those reCipes we've been told are top secret -- mostly American from cola drinks to burger pint products. All recipes have been recreated in their 'test kitchen' and verified for an authentic taste. Now you can spend hours lab0uring away in your kitchen to create your own convenience food.
Notes And Queries http://wwwguardianunlimited.co.uk/
What to the Why are How do I~ notesandquerieS/ origin of corned gut 0 mm the term beef tlno nerd? such The ultimate forum for difficult questions. Reflecting the best of The Guardian's weekly column, it inVites Hmi Han Why do you to take part in its ethical 7 . ll. :czggfw gfé‘mtmp" conundrums, and philosophical knyn? of )londrm? meanderings. You'll never realise you boredom?
wanted to answer so many stupid Questions.
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Wl‘y you’d want to search for a cliche is anyone's guess. Everyone knows that they sliould be avOided like the . erm. Well they’re all here, and what is really
interesting is what the general (American) public perceive to be cliches. “That sucks' " and “Cooll” I think not.
The Hollywood Reporter
http:Ifwtivirv.hollywoodreportercom
WWW—El?-
Click here for the latest Tinseltown tittle-tattle, and keep up to date With current rereases Stateside, and of cOurse all the celebrity gossip.
TV Cream
http:/tvcreamorgf
This is a real gem of a site. It’s a TV gurde of olde, and will trigger off memories of programmes you'd forgotten yOLi'd had. From old BBC and ITV idents between programmes, to comprehensive giiides to Grange Hill, T/swas, Magpie. the lot Even. if you don't think you'll find something of interest, trust me, you Will.
Constructor http://wwwsoda.co.uk/soda/constructor/
One of those sites that serves absolutely no purpose, but is pretty much set to become a classic. It simulates a mechanical movement of levers and springs, and lorrns strange organic, insectOid shapes that move about and are unnerVingly real.
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27 Ao~ll 2000 THE LIST 107