Zzap


Corporation

Publisher: Core
Machine: Amiga 500

 
Published in Zzap #68

Corporation

Corporation has you in the guise of a Zodiac agent (espionage a specialty) in the Libra chapter (signifying balance). The latest area of Zodiac interest is UCC, famous for its range of robots used in the home, industry and in agriculture. News has reached you that, via biogenetic research, UCC and developing the ultimate killing machine. This must be stopped.

However, such is the delicate nature of the problem and the importance of UCC to the planetary economy, the matter must be dealt with in a subtle manner. You must infiltrate the corporation complex, therefore, and remove the embryo which will herald the arrival of the killer. Only then will UCC be persuaded to desist from this crazy research scheme.

Seen in a first-person perspective, Corporation includes some interesting natural light effects, 'realistic' movement (characters 'roll' when they move instead of gliding, and turning can be achieved on a curve instead of the usual 90 degree turn). Monster animation is smooth and the graphic and aural quality is very high.

Corporation

Character selection (male, female, android) includes a variety of abilities (strength, dexterity, etc) and skills (combat, mechanical, etc). After character set-up you choose weapons and equipment such as armour, bionic arm, gun, gas-mask, medikit, etc.

I tried hard to like this game but failed. The whole project appears to have had a great deal of effort poured into the graphics and presentation and little into the rest of the game.

For a start I hated the 'realistic' movement. It is a gimmick; there's certainly nothing realistic about it. Well, are you aware of rolling from side-to-side when you walk? Are you conscious of swinging around corners? No, I thought not. You do these actions subconsciously, of course. I found it very off-putting.

Corporation

Also, movement control is poorly implemented. Core have attempted to squeeze every directional command into a very small area which leads to confusion as you find yourself disorientated due to a slip of the mouse pointer. Couple that with the fact that you move faster the further away the mouse pointer is away from the directional indicator and it's fun and games all the way.

I found it nigh on impossible to quickly duck into a doorway after spotting a monster walking down the corridor. I needed to stop, think, carefully position the mouse pointer, forward a bit, no a bit to the side, okay turn slowly left and... oh, I've died (another gripe - you die too often).

Great. A long learning curve for the interface - all I wanted to do was to play the game!

But then there's not that much to do in the game once you're into it. Kill lots of slow, lumbering monsters and do a few bits of simple manipulation. The character stats do not appear to do a lot so the role-playing element is out. The puzzle factor is very low so adventuring is minimal. What you're left with is a simple shoot-'em-up with brilliant graphics. Shame.