X-Men: The Ravages of Apocalypse

Not being a lifelong comic-collecting Ian ol Marvel, it was difficult to get excited about X-Men otber than it being just another Quake total conversion. Compared with the excellent Malice, X-Men is a poor substitute, especially with the wealth ol freely available conversions downloadable from the Net.

Basically, the story goes that the X-Men have been captured by the evil Apocalypse and are being used as templates lor the cloning ol a formidable army. As the pawn of the equally malevolent Magneto, your job is to build up a weapon strong enough to defeat Apocalypse and thwart his dastardly plans.

Leaving aside the ridiculous comic book story, the problem with X-Men Quake is that apart from one or two interesting ideas, it really is nothing special. With Malice you felt you were playing a different game; with X-Men, the worst aspect ol the original game remains - namely that the singleplayer experience is too samey. The sense of foreboding in Quake is lost among a barrage ol pastel colours, and playing the game on a 30-accelerated machine the movement loses its fluidity.

The way in which your weapons morph is novel, but the weapons themselves feel underpowered, and your character really needs full health to survive the next encounter.

The mult-player game is actually very good, as you can choose your favourite X-Men, each possessing different abilities and powers, with which to do battle. Unfortunately, even with the included level designer there probably won't be enough people in the world to play against. Fans of the comic book senes might well see this game as essential, but in all honesty they won't be impressed. If you want to keep Quake alive, get a modem Failing that, get Malice.