Netmonkey Weekly Report
Issue LXXVIII
March 29th, 2000

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                   `Y$  [ n ] ETMONKEY [ W ] EEKLY [ R ] EPORT

Well, we are a day and a week late, so what. You expect that from us. But anyhow, we are back and spicin 
up the mag again for the first time in a long time. New features include, cool person of the week, our 
photographer is back in full force, 2 pics this week, one of the person of the week and just another neat little pic. 
Anyhow there will be some misc bullshit added throughout the coming weeks, so long as I don't lose
interest. <g>

First up, gotta give a quick shout to Stile project, he's up for this years webbies and you all should
go check out his page and vote for him. 
www.stileproject.com

The 2nd pic is of Edge and rook, caught in a moment of bliss.


Cool person of the week:

This award goes out to Jess for the second week in a row, as nobody else was very impressive, and
she also was so kind as to pose for yet another Jess pic, check it out in the zip.


Loser of the week: 

Well, this goes to Glen, as I imagine it will always go to him.


Observations and Grumblings:

I have a question for anyone who drives, do you find yourself in the fast lane on the freeway
doing a mere 65 or less mph? Do you find yourself slowing down and craning your neck to see
an accident or just a mere car on the side of the road with flashers on?  Do you merge into other
lanes completely oblivious of other cars in that lane? Do you flash your lights at someone who
merges in front of you without cutting you off? Do you tap your brakes every 10 seconds for 
no reason whatsoever? Do you say to yourself, i'm not going to get over, I'm doing the speed
limit, even when a car is riding your ass and flashing lights? Do you get on the freeway at about 
40 mph and attempt to force your way into traffic?


If you answered yes to any of these questions, then get the FUCK OFF THE FREEWAY#@!

The fast lane is FOR FAST DRIVING. If you are doing the speed limit, that is NOT fast enough,
you go do the speed limit in another lane. If someone comes up fast and wants you to get over,
get the fuck over. The only exception to this is if you are already speeding excessively, and this
means 90+ mph, and a car comes flying up behind you, it is his responsibility to figure out the best
path to get around you, going that fast he ought to be able to maneuver it, otherwise get the fuck
out of the way.

Hey, we've all seen accidents before, and if you need to see blood and guts, go watch the news when you
get home. The rest of us would like to continue on an even driving pace irregardless of the car stalled in 
the right lane, it doesn't fucking concern you, if you wanna glance and maintain your speed, be my fucking 
guest, if you want to pull over and get out and stare, hey more power to you, but dont fucking slow down in the 
middle of the god damn freeway and cause everyone else to do the same. You know who you are, knock
it the fuck off.

ok we all took the fucking driving test right? If you need to merge, then you turn on your blinker and look 
over your shoulder for oncoming cars, now also take into consideration whether or not someone is coming
up fast in that lane, and that someone will be forced to slam on his brakes because your doing 35 as you merge 
over.  Merge like a normal fucking person, and just because you see your exit approaching 2 miles off, doesn't 
mean you need to slam on your brakes and make a beeline for the right lane, you have plenty of time to get 
over without encouraging fellow drivers to shoot you.

Now, if you need to hit your brakes, so be it, but if a car 5 cars ahead of you touches his brakes, that does not
 mean you need to, or if a car 3 lanes over, slows down, you don't have to, you only have to fucking slow down
 when a car in front of you is doing the same thing, and you don't need to touch your brakes every 15 seconds 
because your so fucking nervous about being on the freeway with all these cars or whatever the fuck your 
problem is, this also goes to tailgaters who speed up and hit the brakes, speed up,brakes,etc..if your going to 
tailgate, do it properly, get the speed down and ride comfortably on their ass, you only need to release the gas 
and slow down somewhat to match their mood changes, brake lights are evil things, they indicate traffic, 
only use when appropriate@!#

Lastly, if your getting on to the freeway, get your speed up to the flow of traffic before merging your stupid
ass into the freeway lanes, thats what that onramp is for, you dont have to just turn left and your on the freeway, 
you get a nice little stretch of lane to pick up some speed and make a smooth transition!#@

---

That will do it for our driving education for this week. I'll have some other thing pissing me off next week
to talk to you about.



Enjoy the rest of the mag and see ya next week with the monthly iso review and some other goodies.

Les


-----------[ index ]-----------

   I.)   Intro 
               a) Lester
               b) ndetroit

   II.)  Quotes of the Week  

   III.) Stats - Ndetroit's Weekly Stats, and comments on Sites.
   IV.)  (Your Name Here)'s Biased Courier Report

   V.)   Articles 
               a) The Gaming Report 
               b) Bud's Biased Utils Report
               c) Iso Monthly Utils Report
		   d) Lesters Moview Reviews
               e) VCD Group and Movie Reviews
               f) Da' Game Review(Not to be confused with TGR):P

   VI.)  Scene News - All the news thats fit to print 
    
   VII.)  Rumors! 

   VIII.)  Closing



---------------------[ Quotes of the Week! ]---------------------



-----------[ sites and stats section ]-----------


Pick up our good friends at CWS's magazine this week for the stats.

 

-----------[ Articles ]-----------


=----------------------------------=--------------------------------------=


-----------[ The Gaming Report ]-----------
===============================================================================================
 OMG YET ANOTHER GAMES REPORT ISSUE #8
 -------------------------------------

 Note: This report is best viewed in DOS Editor, AcidDraw, some other
       good ASCII editor, or on the chest of a Playboy Bunny.

 Well it was kind of hard not to write this week. I just HAD to comment
 on the most recent events. Mainly, new "rules" for the rip scene (games
 only of course, utils groups seem to have enough brains to rip independently
 without needing any help, and generally do a better job of it). Don't take
 that the wrong way - the games scene is my true love, providing endless
 hours of mindnumbing entertainment - plus I get to play games!


                                                        - The Preacher Kane

 The Points:
 -----------

 * Games will be scored on a scale of 0 to 5, points being awarded according
   to the quality of the title. And not just quality by name - after all,
   an anticipated "blockbuster" can suck as badly as the worst budget
   schlock.

 * A fix will result in a loss of .5 (one half) of a point. If the fix
   is released by a group other than that which released the game, they
   will earn the extra point.

 * Addons such as Movies and Music will earn between 1 and 2 points,
   depending on the title AND whether or not they actually ENHANCE the
   gaming experience. Addons released by groups other than the group
   who originally released the game will not be considered. Addons of
   essential features (IE Textures, 3DFX, stuff that should not have
   been ripped to begin with) will result in the loss of 1 point. Which
   means certain titles can earn points even if some people consider them
   "rapes" - I'm on a modem after all!

 * Retail addons will recieve a score of between 1 and 4 points if they
   are developed by the original developers of the game, or are officially
   licensed. Unofficial addons will not be considered. Standalone addon
   packs are always preferable to a standard addon release. If a group
   releases an addon which is later released as a standalone, only
   the standalone will recieve points.

 * Update patches and trainers will earn 1 point each provided they
   are fully working. A trainer released by a group after an existing
   trainer has already been made available in an earlier release will
   only be considered if it offers something NEW, otherwise it will be
   considered a DUPE.

 * Cheat codes will be worth .5 (one half) of a point. Since updates and
   trainers take more skill to produce, simple cheat codes cannot be
   assigned an equal value.

 * A DUPE of a game will result in the loss of 1 point, with the
   following exception: A game that was lost during a race between two
   groups will not result in the loss of any points (we do need some
   competition in the scene!).

 * Repackaging of a game will result in the loss of .5 (one half) of a point.

 * Non-English games will not be considered. Sorry, I only speak one
   language.

 * I retain the right to bend the rules any way I see fit!


 * DATES *

 This time around I'm including all the releases since my last report - 03/07/00 thru
 to 03/20/00. Or something like that. 
                                                                  
 Now on with the report...


 The Groups:

          RELEASE NAME (c) COMPANY     [xx/??]
 ßßßßÛÜßßßßÛÜßßßßÛÛ ²Û ÛÛ ²Û ßßßÛÜ ÜÛßÛÛßßß ÜÛ
 :²ÛÜÛß ²Û ÛÛ ²Û ß  ÛÛÜÛß ÛÛ ²Û ÛÛ ßÛÜÜ  ²ÛÜÛÛ
 |ÛÛ Û² ÛÛßÛÛ ÛÛ Ü  ÛÛ ÛÛ ÛÛ ÛÛßÛÛ ÜÜ ÛÛ ÛÛ ÛÛ
 ³ÛÛÜÛß ÛÛ Û² ßÛÜÛÛ ÛÛ Û² ßÛÜÜÜ Û² ²ÛÜÛß ÛÛ Û²
 ÀÄÄÄ[ RELEASE DATE: ??/???/1999 ]ÄÄÄÄÄroyÄÄÄÄ

 BACKLASH:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:


 Total: Nada.

 Comments:

 Nothing by the next report and I'll just give up on them. 

 The Good: N/A
 The Bad: N/A
 The Ugly: N/A



 
          RELEASE NAME (c) COMPANY
    ______  /|  ___   /\______ /\______
   /      \/ | / _ \ /   _____/   _____>1
  /    |_ /  |/  |  \\____  \ \____  \  9
 <     | <   /   |   /   |   \/   |   \ 9
  \  _____\_<____|___\_____  /\_____  / 9
 +=\/hh!===================\/[XX/??]\/==+

 CLASS:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:
 
 Need.For.Speed.High.Stakes.v4.43.Cracked-CLS             0
 Panzer.Campaigns.Smolensk.41.v1.03.Update.Cracked-CLS    1
 Life.or.Death.2.Cheatcodes-CLS                           1
 Majesty.Money.Trainer-CLS                                1
 Majesty-CLS                                              1
 Risk.2.Trainer.Working-CLS                               1
 Scrabble.2.v1.20.Update.Cracked-CLS                      1
 Twelve.OClock.High.Bombing.The.Reich.v1.04.Update.Crack  1
 Formula.1.Championship.2000-CLS                         -1 
 Risk.II.Fix.for.CLS.rel-MYTH                            -1
 Risk.2-CLS                                               3
 Might.And.Magic.VIII.Mega.Trainer-CLS                    1
 Die.Hard.Trilogy.2.Win2k.FIX-CLS                         1
 Rogue.Spear.Urban.Operations.+4.Trainer-CLS              1
 Freespace.2.Sci.Fi.Sim.of.the.Year.Addon-CLS             1
 Freespace.2.Sci.Fi.Sim.of.the.Year.Edition-CLS           3
 Tomb.Raider.3.The.Lost.Artifact.+3.Trainer-CLS           1
 Tomb.Raider.3.The.Lost.Artifact-CLS                      3
 CC2.Firestorm.Money.Trainer-CLS                          1

 Total: 20
 
 Comments:

 Busy week with a lot of ups and downs for Class. Wonder what they think
 about this new limit. 

 The Good:
 Won on some store pickups, including Tomb Raider 3: The Lost Artifact
 (basically TR3 Gold, same idea as doing Gold for 1 & 2, new levels make
 some quick cash for Eidos). Also Majesty, a not-great-but-ok RTS style
 game that just doesn't cut it with some of the better games of the genre.

 The Bad:
 
 A few fixes. And I gave the NFS patch 0, since it didn't work on my system, 
 but I didn't knock it a point because I'm not sure if anyone else has reported
 the problem.

 The Ugly:
 Formula 1 Championship 2000 was a pretty obvious beta - I haven't tested
 it but I've been told that along with the really obvious version (v.99 or
 so while the final was 1.04) certain teams have the wrong colors (yes,
 racing teams have colors, for those not into the sport).



           RELEASE NAME (c) COMPANY     [XX/??]
          ÜÜ                         1999-??-??
 ²ßßßß²ß ßÛ² ßßß²  ²ßßßßß²ßß ÜÜß ßßß²ÜÜ ÜÜ²ßßßß
  °  ÜÜÜÜ Û² ÜÜ ² ßß Û²Û ÜÜßÛÛÜÜÜÛÛÜ    ÜÜÜÜÛÛ²
  ÜÛÛÛß   Û² ÜÜ ß °  Û²Û ÜÜ ÜÜÜ  ßÛ²ÝÜ²ÛÛß  ÛÛ²
 Û²Û²Ý °  Û² Û²ÞÛ   Þ²ÛÝ Û² Û²Ý ° Û²ÝÛ²ÛÝþÜ
 ßÛÛÛ²Ü Ü Û² Û² ÛÛÜÜÛÛß° Û² Û²Ý   Û²ÝßÛÛÛÜ  MtD
    ßßßßß Û² ßß  ßßß     ßß ßßß   ßÛÛÜ  ßßÛÜÜ
 ßßßßßßßß ßß ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ßß  ßßþ
           Dominate as to erase

 DIVINE:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:
 
 Hunt.Challenge.Series.Regfile.Fix-DVN                   -1
 Browning.Turkey.Hunter.Deluxe-DVN                        2
 Pheasant.Hunt.Challenge-DVN                              2
 Turkey.Hunt.Challenge-DVN                                2
 Deer.Hunt.Challenge.Special.Edition-DVN                  2
 Virtual.Skipper-DVN                                      2
 Quake.3.Arena.Patch.1.16n.FIX-DVN                       -1
 Quake.3.Arena.Patch.1.16n-DVN                            1
 Croc.2.Trainer.Plus.3-DVN                                1

 Total: 10

 Comments: 

 Not one but TWO big turkeys from Divine this week, literally! The masters of
 hunting titles are back in action with FOUR hickware games in a span of about
 three days.

 The Good: 
 Divine has solidified third place. Precise/Scar/Razor/Backlash aren't much of
 a challenge, so if there's an underdog it's these guys. Five games this week.

 The Bad: 
 None of the five games were any good. Well, Deer Hunt Challenge SE wasn't bad.
 Good graphics if you've got them cranked on full (at the minimum the background
 is just a blue screen, there's a wide range of GFX settings in this one). Problem
 with the graphics though - on full, the game runs at a snail's pace. Many 3D
 accelerator cards are not supported in the game - but hey it's hunting. On the
 up side, you're in a full 3D hunting world with plenty of room to move around -
 you can explore and walk around, drop to you knees and hide, unlike most of the
 lesser-known hunting titles where you just rotate in a circle on one spot shooting
 at little furry creatures. All three games in the challenge series are from EA,
 so you know the quality's decent.

 Turkey Hunt Challenge and Pheasant Hunt Challenge are basically the same
 game as Deer Hunt Challenge SE (which has new levels not in the old DHC). Same
 engine, scenery, backgrounds, sound, but different animals to shoot at
 and a handful of different options.

 The Ugly:
 Two fixes. One for the Quake 3 patch, and one for ALL the Hunt Challenge games.
 The latter is a reg fix that apparently not everyone needs. So only certain hicks
 should download it.

 
                          Ü  °           °
     ßÜÜ°      ÜÜÜß    °   Û²²   ßß Ü  ÜÜ²ßþ
      ÛÛ²²Ü Ü²ÛÛÛ²²Û  Û²²ßßÛÛ²ßßÛÛ²ß   ÛÛÛ       
      ÛÛ² ßÛß ÛÛ² ßÛÛÜÛÛ²  ÛÛ² ßßß ÜßßßÛÛ²²ßþ
  °þß²ÛÛ² ±±± Û²² ÜÜ  ÛÛ²ß ÛÛ² ± ²ÛÛ ±°ÛÛ² ±±°
     °ÛÛ²     Û² ÛÛÛ²ÜÛß  ²ÛÛ²   ßß²   Û²²
      ÛÛÛÜþ  ß   ÛÛ²ß     ° ßßßÜ   °  Üßß±
     þß °          ± Frx                 °
                   °

 MYTH:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:

 Need.For.Speed.5.Music.Addon-MYTH                        2
 Need.For.Speed.5.Porsche.Unleashed-MYTH                  4
 NFS5 Size Issue                                         -1
 Formula.1.Championship.2000.Suzuka.Track.fix-MYTH       -1
 Life.or.Death.2-MYTH                                     2
 Formula.1.Championship.2000.Music.Addon-MYTH             1
 Formula.1.Championship.2000.FINAL-MYTH                   4
 Risk.II.Fix.for.CLS.rel-MYTH                             1
 Chessmaster.7000.Update.v1.06.Cracked-MYTH               1
 Fishs.Revenge-MYTH                                       2
 Die.Hard.Trilogy.2.Cheats-MYTH                           1
 Subspace.The.Captains.Chair-MYTH                         3
 Age.of.Wonders.V1.36.Update.Cracked-MYTH                 1
 Die.Hard.Trilogy.2-MYTH                                  3
 Die.Hard.Trilogy.2.Win2k.FIX-CLS                        -1
 Rollercoaster.Tycoon.v1.08.183.Update.Cracked-MYTH       1   
 Castrol.Honda.Superbike.2000.Tnt2.Geforce.Update-MYTH    1
 Seven.Kingdoms.2.v1.18.Update.Cracked-MYTH               1
 Seven.Kingdoms.2.v.1.16.Good.Version.Update.Cracked-MYTH 0
 Army.Men.Air.Tactics.Cheatcodes-MYTH                     1
 Sammy.Sosa.High.Heat.Baseball.2001-MYTH                  3
 Rogue.Spear.Urban.Operations.STANDALONE-MYTH             3
 Army.Men.Air.Tactics-MYTH                                3
 Delta.Force.2.v.1.06.15.Update.Cracked-MYTH              1
 
 Total: 36

 Comments:

 Apparently the people in Myth read and value my opions greatly. Yeah right,
 I'm not that full of myself! They did get a better DIZ though. A big week for
 Myth, not even considering the fact that they're tried to single-handedly
 raise the disk limit. While it probably won't work out exactly according
 to their rules, they've set a process in motion (read the editorial later).
 But even discounting that ploy, we saw a lot of action from Myth again.

 The Good:
 Plently of action, some good titles. Sammy Sosa High Heat Baseball 2001 is
 from Interplay, who also spread Sammy Sosa Softball Slam. HH 2001 is much
 more of a serious baseball game, but it has many of the same failings.
 Dennison had an in-depth review of it last NWR so check that out for info.
 I'll note that this is two Sammy Sosa endorsed games now - someone was
 really throwing the cash at him.

 Die Hard Trilogy 2 and Army Men Air Tactics are both decent games, though
 neither offer much new to the gaming experience, and the Army Men series
 has really played itself out.

 The Bad:
 Myth and Class seem to love fixing each other's mistakes. DHT2 fix from CLS
 for Myth, Risk 2 fix from Myth for CLS. Hey guys, why not just make your own
 stuff work?!

 Two Seven Kingdoms patches close together, only one will recieve points.

 Remember Deer's Revenge? No? Not suprising. Fish's Revenge is the same
 idea, same developer. Watch out hicks - now the fish is trying to catch
 you!

 Life or Death 2 is a really crappy English version of an Asian game.

 The Ugly:
 Rumors of BETA. Urban Operations, an addon for Rogue Spear, REEKS of beta.
 It's way too early, buggy, and there's still no ISO of it. I scored it three
 points but don't be suprised if in a few weeks Myth looses points due to it.

 Need for Speed 5 - again, I've scored it. But it broke the limit, although
 Myth tried to avoid the issue by suddenly changing the rules on their own.
 While they may succeed (the rules WILL have changed by next week, though
 probably not exactly to what Myth proposed), they still released a game
 at 62 disks which most are now saying can be done within 50. And under Myth's
 own proposed rules, other groups have 36 hours to do a smaller rip. So maybe
 they shot themselves in the foot.

 NFS 5 also REEKS of beta - the version number on the game has apparently been
 REMOVED, presumably by Myth, for reasons unknown. They already watermarked
 the cracked EXE, so there's really no reason. And there's no ISO of this one
 to judge by. It is fairly close to the release date however, about six days off.

 In the end I gave it points, docked one for breaking the limit and trying to
 masquerade the breach as a "change" in the rules, and left it at that. If it
 turns out to be beta or someone gets it smaller, I'll fix that next issue.


  ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ
 Û Game Name: [ RELEASE NAME (c) COMPANY   ] Û
 ÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛßßßßßßßßßÛßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßÛßßßßßßßßßÛÜ
 Û ÛÛÛßßßÛÛÜ ÛÛÛßßßÛÛÜ ÜÛÛßßßÛÛÜ ÜÛÛßßßÛÛÜ ÛÛÛ ÜÛÛßßßÛÛÜ ÜÛÛßßßÛÛÜ Û
 Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û
 Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û
 Û Û°Û   Û°Û Û°Û   Û°Û Û°Ûv64Û°Û Û°Û ° ÛÛÛ Û°Û Û°Û   ßßß Û°Û   Û°Û Û
 Û Û Ûßßßßßß Û ÛßßßÛÛÜ Û Ûßßßßßß Û Û °     Û Û ßßßßßßÛÛÛ Û Ûßßßßßß Û
 Û Û°Û °°°°° Û°Û ° Û°Û Û°Û ° ÛÛÛ Û°Û ° ÛÛÛ Û°Û ÛÛÛ ° Û°Û Û°Û ° ÛÛÛ Û
 Û Û±Û °°°°° Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û±Û ° Û±Û Û
 Û Û²Û °°°°° Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û²Û ° Û²Û Û
 Û ÛÛÛ °°°°° ÛÛÛ ° ÛÛÛ ßÛÛÜÜÜÛÛß ßÛÛÜÜÜÛÛß ÛÛÛ ßÛÛÜÜÜÛÛß ßÛÛÜÜÜÛÛß Û
 ÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÛß
 Û RLSDate: [??/??/99] Û                    Û Disk Count: [XX/??] Û
 ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß                    ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß

 PRECISE:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:

 Boarder.Zone-PRECiSE                                    -1
 SubSpace.The.Captains.Chair.Money.Trainer-PRECiSE        1

 Total: 0

 Comments: 

 Precise is new, so I'll just assume they don't keep up to date with Euro/US
 releases which are identical to one-another but have different names. 

 The Good: 
 Trainer for the new Subspace game.

 The Bad:
 Boarder Zone is actually Supreme Snowboarding, BZ is the US release. Game's
 the same.

 The Ugly: 
 No new DIZ yet. Come on guys, Myth did it!


          RELEASE NAME (c) COMPANY    [XX/??]
 /\______  /\______  ____/\______     __
 \____   \/  \__   \/  _ \____   \ __/  \____
  / _/  _/    \/   /   /  / _/  _// / / / / /
 /  \   \  /\ /   /\  /  /  \   \/ /\  / / /
 \__/\   \/RTX______\___/\__/\   \/ / /_/_/
 =====\___)===\__)============\___)=\/=======

 RAZOR:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:

 Risk.II.Trainer.Plus.1-RAZOR                            -1
 Alien.Invaders.2000.Plus.2.Trainer-RAZOR                 1
 The.Alchemist.Plus.1.Trainer-RAZOR                       1

 Total:  1

 Comments:
 Trainer 1911 as opposed to Patch 1911. 

 The Good: 
 Two working trainers.

 The Bad:
 One broken trainer.

 The Ugly: 
 Still no games.



 ___________   __________    _________________________
 \    _____/___\    ____/____\______   /\    _       /
  \_______    //   /       /           \/    \      /
  /          //           // .          \     \_____\
 /___________\____________\\____________/______\
 ..........................................s.c.a.r.. .

 SCAR:

 RELEASES:                                             POINTS:

 
 Total: Nada.

 Comments: N/A

 The Good: N/A
 The Bad: N/A 
 The Ugly: N/A



 Group Rankings:

 RANKING:    POINTS:    TO DATE:    RANK TO DATE:

 1) Myth     (36)       (72)              3
 2) Class    (20)       (191.5)           1
 3) Divine   (10)       (77.5)            2
 4) Razor    (1)        (25)              5
 5) Scar     (0)        (43)              4
 6) Precise  (0)        (5.5)             6
 7) Backlash (0)        (2.5)             7

 Top 3 Releases This Report:

 Need for Speed 5 (IF it's FINAL) (MYTH)
 Tomb Raider 3: The Lost Artifact (CLS)
 Army Men Air Tactics(MYTH)

 Springerish Final Thought:

 Well, judging by the output of the groups outside of the top three (CLS, MYTH,
 DVN), this report could suddenly get a lot smaller. 

 Myth is hot on DVN's trail in the points race and will soon overtake them.

 Rules have "changed" according to Myth... they will probably change again soon,
 but this time they'll be official.

 I don't count, care about or like IND, DD, TRDogs, Specter, or any of the other
 junk labels. DD was once Prozac's BBS and a fun label but he is incognito and
 there's really no reason for some of the junk put out under it recently, aside
 from Deer Hunter 3 Gold perhaps. TRDogs has also been around a while but as with
 DD, while it was fun it the past, it's idiotic now. The recent TRDogs NFO series 
 looks to be written by someone with a grade one education, and actually includes
 mother jokes. Now all we need is Blade Runners to come out of retirement. Suddenly
 I miss MiniMe.

 CFL Football 99 is a legit game, but the rip of it (released 3 times in about five
 minutes) is crap, I have no idea why it was so fucked. But if there's a full
 version around try it, it doesn't look that bad. Oh and this again is why
 nameless front-groups need to be done away with.

 With all the absolute CRUD coming out lately, I wouldn't download anything that
 doesn't say CLASS, MYTH, or DIVINE on it. Or maybe RAZOR if they ever get a game.

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

 SPECIAL FEATURE JUST TO FILL SPACE AND KILL TIME: 

 YET ANOTHER EDITORIAL: THE NEW RIP RULES
 ````````````````````````````````````````

 Around a month before Christmas, the five major games groups had a semi-decent
 dialog going about rip rules. This was in response to a number of "unrippable"
 and "hard-to-rip" games that hit the market (UT, WOT, U9). While some of them
 did get done, it was clear that rule changes were needed in order to make rips
 playable. And besides this, a change to the disk limit was required. Now, this
 wasn't the first time groups had been talking - there's been chatter for over
 half a year, probably more. This week with a rather hefty release (size and title 
 wise) Myth has proclaimed new rules.

 Now lets get one thing straight. Despite some confusing wording, these rules
 were devised by Myth, although many of the ideas were proposed by other
 groups. Neither CLS nor any other group has agreed to them. So this set of
 rules is a mute point. What Myth has done is set a course of events in motion
 - they've acted as a catalyst. You can expect, within a week, that an official
 set of rules will be adopted by all groups.

 So there's not too much to debate here. Some of these rules are decent, some
 are a bit off - 70 disks is a tad large for any game if you're a modem user,
 as is 35 disks for an addon, however the re-rip rule if used correctly could
 prevent abuse of the inflated limit.


 ---

      Myth's PROPOSED Rules 

      This ruleset-draft was written in an attempt to restore fair competition 
      and at the same time encourage all groups to make the best possible rip.
      Quality AND speed should be the main motives to rip a game.
      The BEST rip is the one  that includes ALL the essential gamedata at the
      SMALLEST size in a TIMELY manner  and not necessarily  the one that gets
      released first.

      1.  The disk  limit  is as of  now  70 x 2,915,000 bytes. This equates  to a
      total  of 204,050,000 bytes of compressed  data. 
      Acceptable   compression formats at this  time are ACE  or RAR, followed
      by the traditional PKZIPing. 

      The limit for standard game addons is 35 x 2,915,000 bytes. This equates
      to a total of 102,025,000 bytes for the addon. ONLY the group that won a
      rip is  allowed to release addons for it,  as too many times in the past
      addons that were released by third parties did not work.  

      2.  Every release  under  this  limit MUST be  a functionally  and  playably
      complete  game.  This  means  that  included  will  be  every  component
      necessary for the successful completion of the game e.g.:
         
      - all game executables that are needed,
      - every level (single AND multiplayer),
      - every track or course,
      - all actor graphics etc, 
      - all registry entries used by a game (for Zone-multiplay etc).

      Not necessary to  complete a game are usually manuals, editors etc,  but
      those should stay inside a rip if possible, else released as an addon.

      3.  Any lossless compression method to reduce the size of selected game data 
      is ALLOWED (e.g. uharc).

      4.  Lossy compression is ALLOWED for  sound, videos and non-texture graphics
      (e.g. jpeging of menu screens).  Lossy compression of textures is expli- 
      citly FORBIDDEN to  prevent the  many  problems inherent to that.

      5.  Sound effects WILL and MUST be included. To reduce the size of rips when
      possible, standard waveformat files (PCM) should be mp3-compressed.   If
      the soundfiles exist  inside a bigfile its  highly regarded when time is 
      invested to extract those files to compress them.  Groups are not to re-
      quired to index bigfiles though (for further comments read rule 13).

      It is allowed to rip music, commentary/speech and ambient sounds as long
      as the game remains playable.  Speech files  MUST be  included if  there
      exist no on-screen subtitles. 

      If  possible,  ALL sounds and music should be included in a rip  and not 
      intentionally as addons.

      6.  It is ALLOWED  to remove gamedata that exists in multiple resolutions or
      formats as long as the  game remains playable on a typical system  which
      is defined by a PII-300 with a D3D-card and soundcard.  This means it is
      ALLOWED  to rip the folowing  gamedata as long as it gets released in an
      addon not more than 4 hours after the main rips release: 

      - low-resolution textures for lowend systems,
      - high-resolution textures for highend systems,
      - high-screenresolution graphics data (above 640x480 or 800x600),
      - hardware-dependent data (e.g. Glide textures).

      7.  Movies (intros, cutscenes) should be removed if they are not game-related 
      Movies must be  ripped in a  way so that the  gameplay experience is  not
      compromised, e.g. framing of movies is highly regarded.  It should always
      be avoided  to  create  situations in  which  user-input is  necessary on
      black screens because the video normally shown has been blacked out. 
      When movies/cutscenes  are necessary to understand the game they MUST be
      included in the game.       

      8.  Other allowed addons for games include:

      - cutscenes/movies,
      - commentary/speech,
      - music,
      - manual,
      - editor. 

      Intro addons are EXPLICITLY FORBIDDEN.  Not more than 2 addons should be
      typically released for a game.  

     9.  Children's games (aka  Kiddie  games) and  Edutainment  software  do not
     qualify  under these rules  guidelines for acceptable  releases.  Kiddie
     games are usually definied via the game target audience of  '5-12 years'
     as stated by the game's producer.  Common  sense should  be used by  all 
     groups to identify what really is a kiddy game. 

     10.  Levelpacks, game addons etc. for rips are only allowed if they are offi-
     cially released/authorized by the  same company/developer/publisher that
     put out the original game. That means e.g. an Age of Empires II addon by
     some lame-o-webstuff company is EXPLICITLY FORBIDDEN, while an  addon by
     Microsoft / Ensemble Studios is ALLOWED. Also allowed  would be an addon
     that was 'officially authorized' by Microsoft/Ensemble.

     11.  In regard  to games  distributed  in the  United States  that are  LATER
     distributed in Europe  or vice versa under  the same or different name /
     publisher.  These games  if released  AFTER another group's  release are
     counted  as DUPES  unless  it can  be  proven that  there  is  a clearly
     noticeable  PLAYABLE  difference in the  latter release  (more than just
     tiny differences in graphics or sound). Differences in filedates between
     Euro and US releases are NOT a good enough reason to  rerelease the game
     (example: Supreme Snowboarding and  Boarder Zone are the same game, with
     different Euro/US names and filedates. But as there was no PLAYABLE dif-
     rence in the games, the release of Boarder Zone was a dupe). 

     12.  If two or more rips of the same game get released, the first working rip
     wins.  Sites should not nuke any  release until the winning rip has been
     proven to work correctly and follows the above ruleset.

     13.  To prevent sloppy rips, a rerelease of a game is  ALLOWED and defined as
     the winning release if:    

     a) it can be ripped in >=10 disks less than the previous release by using
        only lossless compression methods. 

     b) it can be ripped in >=15 disks less or <50% of the size of the previous
        release by using mp3-compression. 

     That means all the essential gamedata must be still included in the rere-
     lease. If data gets removed, the rip-nfo must state why that data was not 
     essential to the gameplay. 
     The rerelease of a rip must be done in at most 36 hours after the release 
     of the original rip, as possibly every game is rippable in a smaller size
     if enough time is spent.

 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

 Once the rules get finalized, I'll do a better editorial. I had one written, but
 then rumors of an official rules change from all the groups started spreading,
 and they came from several sources in several top games groups, so I decided to
 wait.


   							- The Preacher Kane.

=----------------------------------=--------------------------------------=

-----------[ Bud's Biased Utils Section ]-----------

  Bud's Biased Utils Report #50
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Yes, NWR was nowhere to be found last week. Yes, it's my fault. That may
 soon become my standard disclaimer.... =)

 I reeaalllyyy need to stop writing with freakin' happy faces all over the place.
 Just a personal observation.

 For those of you who weren't aware, Zion's Hideout was busted some time ago.
 Earlier in the month, the case was in court, and a guilty plea by the
 defendant was entered. Though I respect the privacy of all those involved, 
 I suggest reading this article, presented with the appropriate bia by our 
 "good friends" over at the SIIA. You can view it at:

 http://www.siia.net/piracy/news/zionshideout.htm

 Should any information come availble about the poorly named "Operation
 Cyberhook" (it seems the FBI is no more creative in naming than most scene
 members) it will be included here. And if you don't know what the hell I'm
 talking about, go read the article. See, this isn't JUST for utils gimps.

 Disclaimer: It's BIASED moron. My opinion. So don't send me a bunch of mail
             & messages bitching about this or that. If you don't like
             it... SCREW YOU =]

 Rankings: Groups get a score out of 10. Points are given for amount of
           releases, but QUALITY titles will give a group a much higher score.
           Nukes for duping, broken releases and just plain CRAP will lower
           a groups score. However on the occasion that a title is nuked which
           I don't feel should have been, MY OWN JUDGEMENT TAKES PRECEDENCE.
           Cuz I'm writing this. Groups can also get points for any other
           reason I see fit.

 Week: Week is based from 03/21/00 to 03/27/00. I'm in the EST time zone so
       dates/times run according to it.


 Groups: (In no particular order)
 
 Ü ßßÛÛÜ Ü        Ü      Ü
  ßÛÜ ßÛÝßÛÜ Þ  ÜÛß  ÜÜÛÛÝ A Group
   ÞÛÝ ÞÝ ÞÛ ÛÝÞÛÝ ÜÛß  Û That Gives
  ÜÛÛÝÜß ÜÛÛÝßÛÛÝ ÛÛ    ÞÝ Slightly
 ßÛÛÛ   ßÛÛÛ  ßÛ ÞÛÛÛÜÜ  Û Less Than
  ÞÛÝ    ÞÛÝ   ÞÝ ßÛÛß    ßÜ A Fuck.
   ß      ß     ß  ß          -XeN

 PIRATES WITH ATTITUDE:

 Releases: 

 BESTColor.XXL.v4.0-PWA
 Rhinoceros.v1.1.SR1.Update-PWA
 Modsim.III.v1.3-PWA

 I didn't even notice that Rhinoceros update till today, I probably should have
 given the amount of time I've spent on the app. Not sure if it will work with
 the non-English platform crack that Shock put out a few weeks back, so if you
 apply this and you're not on English Win9X/NT, make a backup of the main files
 first. All in all I can only say one thing - it's good to see PWA still releasing.
 Total: 5/10

 
 ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ[XX/XX]Ä
 ÜÛÛ ÜÜÜ °  ÜÜÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜ ÜÜÜÜÜÜ  ÜÜÜÜ   ÜÜÜÜ
 Û²Û Û²Û ± ÛÛß Û²Û Û Û²Û ÛÛ Û²Û Û ÛÛÛ ÛÛ Û²
 Û±Û Û±Û   Û°Û ßß ÜÛ Û±Û ÛÛ Û±Û Û ÜÜÜ ÛÛÜÜ
 ÜÛÛßÛÛÜ ß Û±Ûßßß ÛÛ Û°Û ÛÛ   ÜÜÛ Û²Û ÛÛ ÜÜ
 Û±Û Û²Û ² Û²Û ° Û²Û Û°Û ÛÛ ° Û²Û Û±Û ÛÛ Û²
 ÛÛÛ Û±Û ± ÛÛÛ  ßÛÛÛÛÛßÜÛÛ ± ßÛÛÛÛÛß ßÛÛÛÛ
 ÄÄÄ ÛÛß ° ÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄÄ ² ÄÄÄÄÄ sikos Ä

 X-FORCE:

 Releases: 

 FULCRUM.PC.DOCS.V4.0-XFORCE
 CCMAIL32.8.5X.WIN9X.NT-XFORCE
 PL.SQL.DEVELOPER.V3.0.2.329-XFORCE
 C.FORGE.V1.5.4.1.LINUX-XFORCE

 X-Force seems unable to make any solid steps forwards. For the past few
 months there's been some internal rumblings about crackers who are 
 unwilling to put effort into utils they aren't personally interested in. 
 Take that as rumor though, since XF has some excellent people. They've 
 just been unable to come through for soem time now. This week we saw some
 uninspiring apps, with rather minor versions of PL/SQL Developer and 
 C-Forge's Linux version. PC Docs 4, a business/organizational tool,
 is decent, Lotus CCMail 8.5 will be popular as well. 
 Total: 5/10

      /\______/|                   ___/\_
    _/ ______ :|; . __/\  ____/\ __|   //
 %%%\____  \   |__:_\__ \/  ~~ :\_ | __/%%%%
 iii_/ :|  \\_    \  ;|  \_ |____/    \iiiii
 :::\__   ; _/ |  \\_ :  // |  \\_ |  \\_:::
      \____/---|____/____/_______/-|____/kaz

 SHOCK:

 Releases:

 MetaIP.DNS.v4.1.SP3-SHOCK
 Embarcadero.ER.Studio.v4.0.FINAL-SHOCK
 Bill.Power.v7.3.139-SHOCK
 Sax.Setup.v6.0.2447-SHOCK
 Sax.Comm.Objects.v7.0.2163-SHOCK
 Sybergen.Secure.Desktop.v2.0.REPACK-SHOCK
 EndNote.v4.0-SHOCK
 EnterNet.300.v1.34-SHOCK
 Symantec.pcAnywhere.v9.2-SHOCK
 VSI.Fax.Server.v4.01.with.Clients-SHOCK
 Genitor.Surveyor.v4.50.309.FINAL-SHOCK
 Call.Attendant.Pro.v1.0.2-SHOCK

 Shock had a decent week, despite a repack that I for some "odd"
 reason won't dwell on. They did get some respectable titles out,
 with pcANYWHERE 9.2 and the finals of both Genitor Surveyor 4.5
 (309 is the date of the final, the company stamps it into the
 version number) and ER/Studio. For those of you wondering
 about ER/Studio because they saw Demon's release - the
 Demon rel was a horrible job, it was RC1, said beta ALL over it
 (I counted about 4 mentions of beta before the install was finished)
 so I don't know what those guys were thinking. Plus file date and
 size discrepinscies... shall I go on? Shock's is 100% final.
 Also worth noting is VSI Fax Server, though not much has changed
 since 4.0, and MetaIP DNS 4.1 SP3, and I have no idea what's new
 in there, MetaIP seems to have been gathering dust since Check
 Point took over the original developers, MetaInfo.
 Total: 7/10

             ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ
              Û ÜÜÜ  ßßßÛÜÜÜ   [xx]
   ÛßßßßßÛÜÜÜÜÛÜÜ ßÛÛÛÛÜÜÜ ßßßßßÛÜÜÜ   ÜÜÜÜÜ
   Û ÛÛÛÜÜÜÜÜ ßßßÛ ÛÛ  ßßßÛÛÛÛÛÜÜÜ ÛÛßßß Ü Û
   Û ÛÛ ßßßßÛÛÛÛÜÜ ßß ÛÛÛÜ   ßßÛ ÜÜÛß ÛÛÛÛ ßÛ
 ÜÜÛ ÛÛ ÛÛÛÜ  ÜÜÛÛÛÛß ß ÜÜÜÛÛÛÜ  ß ÜÜÛÛÛÛßß Û
  ÜÜ ÛÛ ß ÜÜÜÛÛÛÛÛßßÞÛÛÛßßßß ÜÜÜÛÛÛßßß ÜÜÜÛßß
 Ü ßßÛÛÛÛÛßßßßß Ü  ÛÛ ÜÜÜÛ ßßß Ü ÛÛ ÛÛÛÛ
 ßÛÛ ÛÛ ÜÜÜÛßßßßß ßÛÛ ÜÜ ßßßßßßÛ ÛÛ ÛÛÛ  °°°°
  ÛÛ ßÛ ÛÜÜÜÜÛÛÛÛÛ ß ÜÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜ Û ÛÛÛ
 ÜÛÛÛÜÜÜÛßßß    ßßßßßßßßßßÛÛÛÛÛÛÛÜÜÜÛÛÛÛ
  ßÄÄ pENTIUM fORCE tEAM ÄÄÄÄÄßßßßßßb1Û

 PENTIUM FORCE TEAM:

 Releases: N/A

 Where's PFT?
 Total: N/A


          Ü          Ü        Ü
     Ü ÜÜ²ßß  Ü ÜÜÛßßÛÛ²Ü ÜÜÜÛßß²ÜÜ
      ÜÜÜÜÜ    ÜÜÜÜÜ ÞÛÛ²Ý ÜÜÜÜ ÞÛ²Û
      Þ²ÛÛÝ    Þ²ÛÛÝ  ÛÛÛ² ²ÛÛÝ  ÛÛÛ²
       ²ÛÛ   ²Ü ²ÛÛÝ  ÛÛÛ² ²ÛÛÝ  ÞÛÛ²Ý
      ÞÛÛ²  ÞÛ²ÝÞÛÛ²  ÛÛ²ÝÞÛÛÛ²  ÛÛÛÛ²
      ßßßß  ÛÛÛ² ÛÛ² ÞÛ²Û ßßßßß ÜÛÛ²ß  mg
     ß ßßßßÛÛÛÛ²Ý ßß ÛÛ²ß ß ßßßßßß
 ß ßßßßßßß   ßß²ß ß ßß   ßßßßßßßßßßßßßßß ß
 :: <LEGENDS NEVER DiE> ::: <xx * 2880> ::
 Ü ÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜÜ Ü

 LEGENDS NEVER DIE:

 Releases: 

 CFX.5.3-LND

 LND got a release out! They'll also have at least one in next week's
 report, should I manage to get it finished. So at this rate they should
 have a full thirty or so releases this year! ISO users, LND put the ISO
 of CFX 5.3 from AEA Tech out as well.
 Total: 2/10
 

  .__________.                     [xx/xx/00]
   \_  ___   )  Da ToP oF Da LiNe!  .___.
 ===/   _/  /=======================/  /=====
 .:/  _____/__./(___.____/\.______./  /_____.
 :/  /__/  .  )  .  )____  )  _   )  /  __  )
 /__/  /  /  /  /  // __  /   /__/  /  /___/:
 .:/  /__/__/__/__/(______\____ /__/_____ /MO
 =/__/========================\/========\/===
 = THE PINNACLES OF RELEASING (C) PNC 95-00 =

 PINNACLE:

 Releases: 

 VisualSoft.Web.Project.v1.1.for.WinNT-PNC
 Bid.Blazer.v1.1-PNC
 WhizBase.v2.000.Enterprise.Edition-PNC
 AudioPoint.System.v3.0-PNC
 SDS.Helpdesk.v4.7-PNC
 McAfee.VirusScan.v5.0-PNC
 Screen.Saver.Studio.Deluxe.v4.01-PNC
 Omnis.Studio.v2.4.for.Windows.NT-PNC
 Omnis.Studio.v2.4.for.Windows.9x-PNC

 Screen Saver Studio is pretty much as lame as it sounds - make your own
 screen savers. I think the deluxe version gives you the rights to sell
 what you make. Yay. On the up side, it does cost quite a bit, so maybe
 PNC saved someone a few hundred bucks.

 VirusScan 5 is the best release from PNC this week - say what you want
 about McAfee tools, a lot of people want them, and it is a retail
 app. And this is a major version increment. So when I saw this nuked
 on a site with "AVS SOFTWARE SUCKS" I almost shit myself. The same
 thing happened with some recent Norton AV rels. What, suddenly people
 are immune to viruses? Some nuker is now delegating to the public what
 they can download based on what he likes? On this basis I can nuke
 just about every game since frankly, most of them are rushed out,
 boring, overpriced, and are about as stable as some alpha apps I've
 tested.
 Total: 6/10
 
  _______________ ____________ ____________
  \_    ___      \_  ___      \   ___      \_
 _/      l/       /  l/       /    l/       /
 \______ /       /   /       /____ /       /|
 ======\________/\__________/[om]\________/==
 d(*)d D r i n k   O r   D i e  2 0 0 0 d(*)d
 ===================== [ DOD * xx-xxx-00 ] ==

 DRINK OR DIE:

 Releases: 

 MediaWare.Solutions.M1.Edit.PRO.v2.2.Win9x-DOD
 DRCauto.Smart.Architect.2000.for.Autocad2000-DOD
 Abirnet.SessionWall.3.V.1.4.1.12.KEYGEN.ONLY-DOD
 M2.Edit.Professional.v2.2.Win9x-DOD
 Innovativecad.Inc.CAMTastic.99.v2.5.1.Win9xNT.REPACK-DOD
 Abirnet.Sessionwall.3.v1.4.1.12.Win9xNT-DOD

 Drink or Die continues its recent resurgance with some decent
 video editing tools in M1 & M2 Edit, as well as Smart Architect 
 for ACAD2K. Would have been nice if the SessionWall keygen had
 gone in with the original release, but it's a nice afterthought.
 Total: 6/10
 
  _______________________________[xx/xx]
  \_ _  \_ ____/_ _  \_ ____/ |_\  ___/
  /    _/  ___)/    _/  ___)  | \___  \
 /   |  \_ |  \   |  \  |  \  :  \  :  \
 \___|   /___  \____  \___  \___  \___  \
 ====|__/===\__/===\__/==\__/==\__/==\__/
   REBELS: WE MAKE ALL DAYS PARTY DAYS
   >> RELEASING WITHOUT PERMISSION <<

 REBELS:

 Releases:

 Visual.Basic.for.Applications.6.0.SDK.v6.2-RBS
 PADS.PowerPCB.BlazeRouter.v3.5-RBS
 Microsoft.Interix.v2.2.5.for.Win9xNT2K-RBS
 KANA.RESPONSE.v4.0-RBS
 NAT32.V6.4.5.1107.Incl.Keygen-RBS
 SAGE.MAS90.v3.41-RBS
 Expert.Estimation.v3.0.001.010.incl.Keygen-RBS

 The Rebels crew had a decent week, although I get the feeling
 next week for RBS might be a tad more interesting. This week
 we see some a new version of the VB6 SDK, as well as MS Internix,
 which was also released by UFO, I don't know who won, but
 frankly Internix is a big piece of junk, just another ploy
 to get users away from the *nix hierarchy. Internix lets you
 run Unix apps in WindowsNT/2K. Lets hope Corel does well with
 it's new Linux offering so we can watch the pendulum swing
 in the other direction.
 Total: 6/10
 
 ..._______________________.___  ____.____... 
 ::/   _______/    ____/   |   \/    |    \:: 
 _/\____    \/    /___/    |    \          \: 
 \      >    \         \         \/     \   \ 
 :\__________/\________/_________/|_____|___/ 
 ::.. .:[ SCUM ]:. .:[SCUM]:. .:[SCUM]:. ..:: 
 ````````````````````````````````````````````
 SCUM:

 Releases: 

 DELCAM.POWERSHAPE.V2.426-SCuM
 NETSCAPE.APPLICATION.SERVER.V4.0.SP2-SCuM

 Both these releases are decent, but lets face it - this was a pretty idle 
 week for SCUM.
 Total: 3/10

   _______________________       ____________
 __\    _______/   ______/______/__        /
 \       __/ /     /      \/      /       /
 /_______\  /______________\____ /________\
 -------------------------------\/-----------
  (*) F a t i g u e - Couriers Network (*)
 ___________________________________________.
           
 ________________________________________wK!.


 FATIGUED COURIERS NETWORK:

 Releases:

 Component.Set.v1.07a.for.Windows.NT.for.Delphi-FCN
 Videosoft.VSspell.v6.0.0.12-FCN
 WebApp.2.5.Professional.and.Server.Edition.for.Delphi.4.and.5-FCN
 Bold.v2.0.20.for.Delphi5-FCN
 Bold.v2.0.20.for.Delphi4-FCN
 GM.Components.v3.40.Incl.Source.Code-FCN
 TZipTV.v2.52.Source.Code.Only-FCN

 A slow week compared to the standard FCN "Lets-rel-a-ton-and-crash-our-HQs"
 outing. Ummm... not too much to say here. I'll touch on the source code
 issue. A lot of people have mixed feelings about it. Most developers in the
 scene (and outside) are against releasing source code, for obvious reasons.
 Aside from the open source community, few developers want anything to do
 with it. That said, I'm of the opinion that IF a company is SELLING their
 source code, as some tend to do, then it's fair game for a warez release.
 I have no idea if that's the case with TZipTV however. If it's not being 
 sold, however, I don't see a need for it - let developers package their
 product as they see fit, I'm much happier stealing what they officially
 offer.
 Total: 5/10


 ---Ï-----------Ï-----------
      _   _       _   _
 Û_Û Û_Û Û Û Û Û Û_ß Û_ß ßÛß
 Û Û Û Û ÛßÜ ßÜß Û_Ü Ü_Û  Û
  
 ---Ï-----------Ï----[xx/xx]

 HARVEST:

 Releases: 

 NOTHING.REAL.SHAKE.NT.V2.2.0324-HARVEST
 PHOENIXTOOLS.YELLOWCD.FOR.SI.V3.8SP2.AN.UP.REPACK-HARVEST
 PHOENIXTOOLS.PARTICLESUITE.FOR.SI.V3.8SP2.AN.UP-HARVEST
 DELIRIUM.FOR.AFTER.EFFECTS-HARVEST
 HOLLYWOOD.FX.V4.02.GOLD-HARVEST
 STAGETOOLS.MOVING.PICTURE.V3.16.2000-HARVEST
 STAGETOOLS.ONSTAGE.V2.15.2000-HARVEST
 ANIMATEK.WORLDBUILDER.V2.2056b.UPDATE-HARVEST
 MAXMAN.V1.2.FOR.3DSMAX2.5.AND.3.X-HARVEST

 I missed the week where Harvest released LightWave 6 from NewTek,
 so I'll congradulate them now, that was an EXCELLENT score, and a lot 
 of people were expecting to see XF tagged on it, though the way X-Force
 is going I don't think we should be expecting much of them period.

 This week was fairly busy for Harvest, and it was pretty much an
 all plugin week with a very few exceptions, so I won't get into it. 
 Total: 7/10

 .      )\_______)\__)\_______)\_______ .
 .   __/   __  _/  _/    ____/     ___/ .
 .   \__    / _\   \_____   \    ___/__ :
 .   :/         \   \   /    \   /     \|
 :   |\___/     /___/_____   /___      /|
 :   | \_/_____/\____ /_____/___/_____/ |
 :...`---\_____\/----/_flr_/---/_p^D_/--'

 Really Into Spreading Elite:

 Releases:
 
 DASSAULT.SYSTEMES.CATIA.V5.R3.SP3-RiSE
 REIUSA.STAAD.PRO.DESIGN.STUDIO.2000.WORKING-RiSE
 ALDEC.ACTIVE.HDL.V4.0.579.XE.FINAL-RiSE
 ALLDATA.CAR.V3.2-RiSE
 ARC.PLUS.RENDER.PRO.V7.1.RELEASE.1-RiSE
 ALLAIRE.HOMESITE.V4.5.1.RELEASE.CANDIDATE.2-RiSE
 RATIONAL.ROSE.2000E.ENTERPRISE.EDITION.BETA.1-RiSE
 CADLINK.PHOTOSCRIPT.PLUS.V6.0-RiSE
 ACTUATE.DEVELOPER.WORKBENCH.V4.0.6-RiSE
 ACTUATE.REPORT.SERVER.V4.0.6-RiSE

 Two RC's and a Beta was the only thing that prevented Rise from winning
 the week hands-down, since they don't get full points. Some good stuff
 here though. I was rather suprised to see HERITAGE release the final of
 STAAD Pro Design Studio 2000, despite a recent resurgance in that crew.
 Seems their crack wasn't working however. Other notables are Catia 5R3
 SP3 and ARC Plus Render Pro 7.1, and CADLink Photoscript Plus 6.
 Total: 8/10

 __ ______
 \//     /    _______      _______________
 _/    _/____/   _   \_____\_    \   _    \
 \     \    \    /    |    _/   _/   /    /
  \__________\________|____\_____    ____//\
 - - imo -----------xx/xx/2000- |____| -- ¯¯
   d$$""""ü$¼" """""$$b """""$$b $$"""¼¼ü"
   $$$     `   ü$$  $$$ $$$  $$$ `""""$$b
   $$$ ø¼""$$ü" $$  $$$ $$$  $$P ,d,  $$$
   $¼üø"""""`  """""""` """"""` $$$"""""`
   """""""""""""""""""""""""""""""`d$$[Y]
 The Corporate Gods:

 Releases: 

 VISSOFT.ENGINEERING.GEOMETRY.ASSISTANT.v1.3.4.0.WIN9xNT2K.CORPGODS

 Yawn. Maybe some students will enjoy it.
 Total: 1/10

  __________________________________________________________
 /                                                          \
 \                                                          /
 /                                                          \
 \__________________________________________________________/
 /     ___    ________   _________________   _______ _____  \
 \    //  \  /        \ ( !        /   /  \ |   \__//     \ /
 /   /'    \(#  ÄÄÄ   /  \    ____/ÄÄÄ |   \|   |__/   ___/ \
 \  // ÄÄÄ  \    __   \___\   \(       |?       /. \  (___  /
 / /   ___   \   \ \   \       \   ÄÄÄ |   |\  /    \     \ \
 \=\__/===\__/___/==\__/________)______\___|=\_\____/_____/=/
 /==============================================-sleighty-==\
 \__________________________________________________________/

 ARSENIC:

 Releases:

 Total: 

 FME.2000.Beta.ARSENiC
 Animation.Master.2000.v8.0J.ARSENiC
 Stress.Check.v5.0.26.ARSENiC
 Cadsi.DesignWorks.99.For.SolidWorks.99.ARSENiC
 FME.v2.3a.REPACK.ARSENiC
 Ketiv.Bom.Plus.v4.0.For.AutoCad.Mechanical.Desktop.ARSENiC

 FME 2.3a and FME 2K Beta in the week. Best here is Designworks 99 for SolidWorks
 99, nothing else worth mentioning.

 New this week: N/A

 Idle this week: PFT

 Quote(s) of the Week: <AMNBOT> <FlapperUK> make me leet

 <nickeee> [21:11] * nickeee jizzes on stix
 <nickeee> [21:11] <nickeee> :P
 <nickeee> [21:11] <Stixy> *slurp*
 <nickeee> [21:11] * nickeee pets stix
 <nickeee> [21:11] <nickeee> :o
 <nickeee> [21:11] <Stixy> :D
 <nickeee> quote that
 <nickeee> :P

 | Pikachu (vol@wonders.when.nintendo.will.sue.him.for.registering.pikachu.org)

 * LS is away, FUCK, movie, +AMN*CWS*DQF*USCR+ [log:OFF] [page:OFF]
 <Bud-> FUCK movie?
 <Bud-> Is he watching porn
 <Bud-> or is he pissed that he has to watch a movie?
 <Stixy> he always does that
 <LS> heh
 <LS> no
 <Stixy> FUCK, sleep
 <Stixy> FUCK, food
 <Stixy> FUCK, wank

 Looking back, RiSE did win hands down. Boring week overall.

 Yeah I know I gave PWA 5 points for relatively little, but hey, I'm happy
 to see them releasing, and I do believe the word BIASED is used somewhere
 in the title of this report.

 Some gimp from SWAT has been bugging me to mention them... well msg'ing me
 asking for inclusion never works. BUT. I have noticed SWAT has really picked
 up the pace after a LONG idle period. So that is nice to see, hopefully it
 will continue. So ok maybe messaging me did work, it reminded me to mention
 that anyways. As for people asking for their group to be included on a weekly
 basis, well, no one new is being added until I can get the damn thing done
 on a weekly basis again. It's enough work now!

 Next issue, WHENEVER it may be - notice I'm not promising next week - I'll
 tally up the scores of groups who have been here the full fifty weeks I've
 had reviews out. There aren't too many left, but it should be interesting.
 To bad I'm far too lazy to come up with some sort of handicapping system
 for groups who've gone idle for long periods of time.

 Everyone else who hasn't been here since day one, I'll do the last ten 
 weeks or something.
 

                        			                 - Bud


=---------------Monthly Iso Utils Review------------------------=


Next week.



=---------[ Lester's Movie Reviews ]----------=

   Sure he's a prominent scene member, leader of the #1 courier 
   group, and former "Miss Scene 1995".. But did you also know that 
   in real life, Lester's real name is "Roger", and he hosts a popular 
   syndicated television show, where he plays a big fatass who has 
   nothing better to do with his time than go to every single movie 
   ever released?  Well.. now you know.. 

Romeo Must Die
Starring: Jet Li, Delroy Lindo, Aaliyah, AND DMX@#!)* :)
Rating: 2 out of 4 Stars

well, Jet Li kicks alot of ass, and there were funny parts, but this
martial arts adaption of Romeo & Juliet, lacks any real acting power. <G>
It's kind of laughable in points, but I mean if you sum it up as a martial
arts movie trying to be a serious film as well, it's not so bad an attempt.
Jet Li is the shit as always and surprising Aaliyah wasn't as terrible as
oh say, Brandy. But as a whole it's not that great of a film. <g>



----

Whatever it Takes
Starring: Jodi Lyn O'keefe, and some other people and that guy from the juicy
fruit commercial where they strip the pants off each other.
Rating: 2 1/2 out of 4 Stars

Well in our latest installment of the teen guy wants girl who doesn't want him
flick, we get a cast of relative unknowns again. Though this one isn't as bad
as oh say, that movie with Prinze Jr. and the chick from 10 things i hate aboutyou
whatever that was called, that was dismal. This is kind of cute, and the chicks
are indeed very hot, no nudity though. It has good moments, but dont go in
expecting anything more than every other teen movie you've seen.

--------

Here on Earth
Starring: tall guy from American Pie, Lelee Sobieski, Josh Hartnett
Rating: uhm..2 out of 4 stars

Well, this is most definately a chick movie. The only real highlight is
Hartnett who is actually pretty good in this and I like anyways from Faculty.
Until about the last 30 minues, it's not much fun for a guy, but it's bonus
points for taking your girl. The end is decent, but it's not really worth the first hour 
to get to it. <G>


---- FIN

Oh yea

Drowning Mona vcd

i watched maybe a 3rd of this incredibly horrific film.

---




=----------------------------------=-------------------------------------=    

=---------[ VCD Group and Movie Reviews ]----------=

VCD Group and Movie Review

We would like to begin by explaining some of the common terms used in VCD 
releasing. These formats are:

CAM - A cam is  usually a handheld camera snuck into a full theatre. The base 
is shaky, the audio is poor, you can hear  people laughing and talking. A cam 
is distinguishable  by usually  having a combination  of all three or more of 
these flaws. Most sites nuke cams for their general poor quality.

Workprint - An early release of a movie.  These are usually stolen  or leaked 
copies of movies that have made their way onto  VCD from VHS or a  variety of 
other sources. These will usually contain running time codes as well as other 
identifying  marks used in  movie production.  The quality on  these can vary 
from bad to very good depending on the quality of the source material used to 
encode the VCD.  Note: This category is  also used for very  bad screeners or 
copies of movies that just didn't fit into any of the other categories due to
defects or problems with the quality of the VCD's audio/video image.

Telesync - Basically a very good Cam. A steady base such as a  tripod is used, 
the  theatre is empty or  very close to empty, and the audio and video are up 
to par. Although, you can usually detect some  flaw with a TS.  You may see a 
random head pop up, the screen edges are noticable, or the audio isn't always 
crystal clear. While not perfect, the quality in general of a telesync ranges 
from good to  very good and is  usually the first  type of VCD  made of a new 
movie.

Screeners - These are the top quality VCDs. They can be in  either widescreen 
(letterbox) or in full-screen (pan and scan) with excellent audio  and video. 
These are made from video distributors demo tapes,  reviewers copies, insider 
copies of the film or from any number of sources. Most screeners will contain 
"1-800-NO-COPIES" or "Property of.." messages somewhere in the film, but it's 
not a  requirement  to fit  into the  screener  category.  These most closely 
resemble a VHS or LaserDisc copy of the movie. They're easily identifiable by 
their top quality.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------



=----------------------------------=-------------------------------------=
---------------------[ Da' Game Review ]--------------------------------=
DENNISON'S GAME REVIEW
----------------------

Welcome note from dennison:

Ok Senator decided to team up with me in reviewing games so he'll also be doing
this on a regular basis, and so I guess this section needs a new name, but I'm
too lazy to think of one.. hehe.. I know we're one week late, heck last week
was a very busy one, not only for me, but I guess for everybody else as well.
Gaming companies are on a releasing season again since the summer vacation has
arrived, and we can expect more games to come out.. but well, the only games
I've been waiting for that hasn't gone gold yet are Diablo 2, Soldier of Fortune
and Daikatana.. argh !@#!@#!@# I also noticed a lot of games are adapting to
this Title: Subtitle thingy ie. Star Wars: Force Commander, etc.. maybe this is
a trend..? - dennnison

Games reviewed this week: (in descending order)
 9/10 - Star Wars: Force Commander
 9/10 - F1 Championship 2000
 9/10 - Thief II: The Metal Age
 8/10 - Need for Speed 5: Porche Unlimited (also known as Need For Speed 2000)

Ok I know my computers suck, here are the specs. I will be mailing them over to
my great pal JEFFK after I type this report so he can "haxxxx0r" my "computrar"
and my AOL cos I hear he's good this shit, so with luck my Pentium 550 will be
"overclocked" into a "PENTUIUM 99999 GIGAHERZ COMPUTAR" by JEFFK

Test system (singleplayer): Windows 98 OSR2, Intel Pentium 550, 64MB RAM,
32MB ASUS Riva TNT2, Sounblaster AWE64 PCI, 52x CD-ROM

Test system (multiplayer): Windows 98 OSR2, Intel Celeron 300a, 64MB RAM,
32MB ASUS Riva TNT, generic 32bit PCI soundcard, 32x CD-ROM, 10Mbit generic
PCI LAN card, 100Mbit HUB


Welcome note from Senator:

After doing a few reviews for dennison I got the hang of it and wanted to 
continue reviewing. Dennison asked me to join the mag and I said yes right 
away. So you can expect reviews by me in every issue from now on.

This week was a great week for gamers, allot of games were released. 
Unfortunately we didn't have the time to review them all, but we still made 
enough reviews that will keep you reading for a while.

My sucky test system:

Windows 98 OSR2, Intel Celeron 400, 64MB RAM, 16MB Diamond Viper V550 + 
12MB Voodoo2, Soundblaster AWE64 PCi, 40x CD-ROM, 10Mbit PCi LAN card



Comments, suggestions, constructive criticism, money email dennison@ucf2000.com
Flames, insults, curses, spam, fanmail, or sex email root@127.0.0.1



Star Wars: Force Commander
--------------------------
review by dennison

Publisher...: Lucas Arts (http://www.lucasarts.com)
Homepage....: http://www.lucasarts.com/products/forcecommander/default2.htm
Genre.......: RPS (role-playing strategy)
Accelerated.: YES (required)
Price.......: $37.99
Demo........: Not Available
Requirements: Win9x, 266 Mhz or faster Pentium, 64MB RAM, 4x speed CD-ROM drive, 
              3D accelerator video card required, 16-bit sound card
ESRB Rating.: T (Teen 13+)

Graphics....: 10/10 - The graphics are simply splendid, the 3D engine is fast,
                      and the units do a very good job in capturing the real
                      Star Wars world. The game is almost real, whenever I play
                      it I feel like I'm watching a star wars movie. There are
                      a lot of objects and persons you can interact with, and
                      little effects such as gusts of sand, a trilobyte speeding
                      by, little jawas and desert creatures you can encounter,
                      and skeletons buried in the sand make this game a real
                      eyecandy.
Sound.......:  7/10 - I have no complaints about the voices, they sound perfect.
                      One thing this game is lacking, though, are ambient and
                      environmental sounds-although you can hear your footsteps
                      walk through the sand, some things are lacking such as the
                      sound of the wind blowing, or sounds of people talking in
                      a camp, or the sound of the vehicles as the pass by. I
                      don't even think I can  hear the clunkin sound of metal
                      hitting the ground as an AT-AT walker walks by, that could
                      be another fine addition.
Control.....:  8/10 - The controls are fine, althought it may be difficult to
                      control the camera at first, once you get used to it then
                      controlling the camera would be easy. The rest are point
                      and click, with a few keyboard shortcuts to handle
                      unit movement and actions.
Gameplay....:  8/10 - It could be boring for some people because the game doesnt
                      tell you things like where to go, where the camp is, etc.
                      so you might end up searching the whole map for hours, but
                      overall the gameplay is fantastic, a bit slow though for
                      people who are used to playing games like starcraft at its
                      fastest setting, but I guess this game is more into the
                      action rather than building massive amounts of units, and
                      it's also hard to gain congrol points (the resource you
                      need to build units) so that your building expenditures
                      are limited, and you must also take good care of your
                      units since resources is scarce. I don't think there is a
                      food cap either cos the most number of units i was able to
                      control at one time is only around 20. I can see in this
                      game what Warcraft 3 could be--an RPS or Role-Playing
                      Strategy game which is more focused on battles and quests
                      rather than just building massive units to attack, and its
                      a slow game which gives for more time to think than just
                      build units and sending them to the enemy camp.
Story.......:  9/10 - In order to understand what is going on, a certain amount
                      of knowledge from previous Star Wars movies would help in
                      greatly appreciating and understanding the story. Like,
                      who knows who Darth Vader is if you've been living under a
                      rock for the past century? The story unfolds progressively
                      as you play the game so since I was only able to play 6
                      missions so far, I can't say what the whole story is, but
                      basically it's uh.. the rebels versus the empire, what
                      else do you expect? :P
Movies......:  9/10 - The intro rocks, one thing I just love about this game is
                      the use of the game engine for the movies, I guess this is
                      cheaper or easier to produce than creating an fmv (full-
                      motion video) but the engine itself is so realistic that
                      the movies using the engine don't suck at all, although it
                      lacks the changing of camera angles, etc. I assume they
                      used fmv only for the intro and ending and the rest uses
                      the game engine.
Replay......: 10/10 - Aside from the deeply immersing singleplayer games, the
                      package also offers multiplayer which greatly adds to the
                      re-playability of any game. And the singleplayer missions
                      are so immersive and intriguing that you may find yourself
                      playing mission after mission just to find out what's
                      going to happen next.
Gender Bias.:  9/10 - Tis a guy's game but hey it's Star Wars and there are no
                      blood or bad language, etc. that could be distasteful to
                      females, it's just that all I ever see in this game so
                      far are male soldiers, etc.. darn, where did Princess Lea
                      go? @_@
Fun Factor..:  9/10 - Could be a bit boring because of the slow gameplay, I wish
                      they added the feature to be able to adjust game speed so
                      that fast-paced players like me could enjoy it more but
                      it's still a superb gaming experience overall.
Multiplayer.:  8/10 - Multiplayer is all about teamwork if you want to achieve
                      victory. You can assign up to 4 teams consisting of.. I
                      haven't tried yet but maybe up to 2 players each so that
                      makes 8 players max. overall. The game just has a lag
                      problem once there are a lot of units and I don't think
                      you can create a dedicated server either which could have
                      been added to reduce lag.
Overall.....:  9/10

Like I said, I feel this is what Warcraft 3 is going to be like-a game more into
fighting and action than building, I find it hard to build a lot of units with
the control points being diffult to earn so that it's more about managing your units' 
attacks rather than micromanaging your base. There is a hero, too, in the
single player missions who you have to keep alive or else the game is over.. heh
if you've been reading about Warcraft 3 then you know what I'm saying... if not
then I don't care :P Overall, this game is definitely one of the best Star Wars
game out there, if not the best, I remember playing Jedi Knight, Star Wars Pod
Racer, and other first-person Star Wars shooters out there and none of them
comes close to the amount of detail and story which this game gives you.

-
The Bottomline:
What do you mean you ain't buying it? I did, and I'm proud of it :P
-


F1 Championship 2000
--------------------
review by Senator

Publisher...: EA Sports http://www.easports.com
Developer...: EA Sports http://www.easports.com
Homepage....: http://www.easportsf12000.com/
Genre.......: Racing
Accelerated.: Yes (required)
Price.......: $39.95     
Demo........: Not Available
Requirements: Pentium-2 450 Mhz, 128 Mb RAM, 500 Mb hard drive space,
              16 x CD-ROM, Direct 3D Compatible 3D card Steering Wheel 
              or Joystick, Force Feedback Supported (Recommended)
ESRB Rating.: Unrated, my rating: E (Everyone)

Graphics....:  9/10 - The graphics are awesome, even though I don't have a 
                      state-of-the-art 3D card, they still looked great. And
                      I didn't expect anything else form EA. The graphics are
                      sure photo-realistic.. The cockpit view, chase view they
                      all kick ass! 
Sound.......:  7/10 - Most F1 fans remember GrandPrix 2 and I must say that
                      game still has the best engine sounds of all games,
                      including this game. In particulair the sound when
                      braking for a corner and you get the hard bangs out of
                      the exhaust when shifting back. But the F1 2000 sounds
                      aint bad at all..
Control.....:  8/10 - One thing, damn hard to control the cars! After running
                      some laps with all the help stuff on, I thought it was
                      time for me to drive fully manual (except shifting). A
                      bad choice, first corner I went off the track and crashed
                      the precious Ferrari into a wall :P I put the anti-lock
                      brakes and some others back on and gave it another try,
                      with more succes! I also thought the controls were a
                      little sensitive so I got back to the configuration and
                      put it some percentages  down. Back in the game I noticed
                      it made alot of difference. Once you fully got the
                      controls configured in the way you like, the cars run
                      like a dream, so fast!
Gameplay....:  9/10 - This game is made for die-hard F1 and Racing game fans.
                      It takes some while to get used to it, but once you have,
                      you can't stop playing. One thing I love in the game is
                      that EA did a great job on the crash realism. Every part
                      of your car can be damaged, the car can even roll in the
                      air, this is the first F1 game on the PC that has this
                      possibillity. The computer controled cars run very
                      realistic too, they spin, crash and overtake too.. The
                      car setup menu is pretty advanced too, with alot of
                      options for the people that really want their car too
                      handle as smooth as possible. I can keep talking hours
                      about the gameplay, but there is other stuff to be
                      reviewed!
Story.......:  */10 - Story? It's Formula 1!
Movies......:  7/10 - Like with any other EA Sports game there is always a very
                      cool intro movie included. I didn't see any other movies
                      in the game so far. But maybe that's because I can't
                      finish on the podium! :)
Replay......: 10/10 - If you really like the game and got the hang of it you
                      can't stop playing. You wanna qualify first and also
                      finish the race, maybe the season, on that spot.
Gender Bias.:  8/10 - Well I even think girls would love to race on these
                      awesome tracks with speeds upto 340km/h+ and feel the
                      sensation of racing! Don't you girls? :)
Fun Factor..:  9/10 - For true F1 and Race game fans this game will be total
                      fun. It's the best F1 Sim made on the PC so far.
Multiplayer.:  8/10 - What can be more fun that racing your friends, maybe
                      enemies, in this thrilling F1 sim?!
Overall.....:  9/10

This game rocks and is simply the most complete and realistic, not to forget
best looking F1 race sim ever made until now. EA Sports did it again! Like they
did with so many sport games before. They managed to make the game as realistic
as possible, and they succeeded in my opinion. Thing I want to know now is how
MicroProse's long awaited Grand Prix 3 will stand up to this great game. Guess
we all have to wait some time to find out! One thing that GP3 probably wont
have are the teams of 2000, like this game has.

-
The Bottomline:
GET IT!!
(I can't express myself more clearly :P)
-


Need For Speed 5: Porsche Unleashed
---------------------------------
review by Senator

Publisher...: Electronic Arts (http://www.ea.com)
Homepage....: http://www.needforspeed.com/porsche/index.htm
Genre.......: Racing
Accelerated.: YES
Price.......: $39.95 (Estimated)
Demo........: Not Available
Requirements: Win9x (WinNT is not supported) 200 Mhz or faster, 32MB RAM, 4x
              speed, 150MB Harddisk space, Hardware accelarted D3D compatible
              4MB videocard with DirectDraw support.
ESRB Rating.: Everyone

Graphics....:  8/10 - The graphics are good, especially the environment. It
                      looks alot like High Stakes. The dashboards are 3D
                      rendered, no photos. EA made some nice improvements. If
                      you know how High Stakes look, you will now how this one
                      looks :) The graphics improved some. But don't expect
                      major changes.           
Sound.......:  7/10 - The sounds are well done, every porsche has it's own
                      engine sound. The shifting gear sound is good too. Not
                      to forget the different horns the cars have.
Control.....:  8/10 - Well, the controls are done just fine. I played it with
                      my keyboard and got my dusty Thrustmaster T3 out of the
                      closet and tried it also :) There are alot of options
                      that involves the control configurations. Nice deadzone
                      option for steering wheels too. The cars react very
                      direct on the controls, which is very good..
Gameplay....:  8/10 - As mentioned above, the cars handle very good. Once you
                      have driven a few laps you can control the car perfectly,
                      avoid spins and others. A cool thing that's new to this
                      NFS is that when you press the horn you actually see the
                      hand of the driver press the center of the steering
                      wheel. Same with shifting gears. A small improvement but
                      it adds some more realism. 
Story.......:  7/10 - Doesn't Need For Speed say enuf? :) Well, this NFS title
                      needs some special explenation, because it's a little
                      different than the others. This title (like the name
                      says) is focused on the german car manufacturer Porsche.
                      The game features 3 modes: Quick race, Porsche Evolution
                      and Factory Driver. Evolution will take you through the
                      Porsche history, you start out in one of the oldest
                      porsches and end with the newest porsches made. The
                      factory driver is a very cool mode. You need to complete
                      a small course on a test track to get hired. Once hired
                      you start testing cars takeon challenges and demonstrate
                      people the power of the porsches.
Movies......:  7/10 - As aspected from a game by EA this game also features a
                      kickass intro. 
Replay......:  8/10 - Once you started to play this game you can't stop play it
                      especially in the factory driver mode.
Gender Bias.:  7/10 - I don't think this type of game is especially aimed at
                      men, but it's a fact that the race game genre game is
                      more popular with the guys then the girls. But the game
                      is fun for everyone :)
Fun Factor..:  7/10 - The game is very good and it will keep you busy for a few
                      days maybe weeks. I rated the Fun Factor a 7, because
                      sometims it could get pretty frustrating when you have to
                      deliver a car without making a scratch on it and you
                      crash your porsche into another vehicle and have restart
                      all over again.
Multiplayer.:  7/10 - The game features it's classic multiplayer support with 8
                      players on a LAN game. EA promised it will have better
                      online gaming support than the other titles.  
Overall.....:  8/10

I found it very hard to overal rate this game, because when you are a real
Porsche fan you would love the game and rate it 8 maybe. On the other hand for
some people it can be disappoiting to only have Porsches to drive in. But it's
another top quality Need For Speed title.

-
The Bottomline:
If you are a true Porsche fan you would love this game. Also the people that
are NFS fans need this title in their collection, that also counts for people
loving race games. 
-


Thief 2: The Metal Age
----------------------
review by dennison

Publisher...: Eidos Interactive (http://www.eidosinteractive.com)
Developer...: Looking Glass Studios
Homepage....: http://www.eidosinteractive.com/thief_metalage/index.html
Genre.......: FPS (first-person sneaker)
Accelerated.: YES
Price.......: $34.99
Demo........: ftp://ftp.eidosinteractive.com/pub/thief_metalage/demos/demo1.exe
Requirements: Win9x, 266 Mhz or faster Pentium II CPU, 48MB RAM, 4x speed CD-ROM
              250MB free harddrive space, 3D accelerator video card required
              DirectX 7.0 compliant sound card
ESRB Rating.: M (Mature 17+) - contains animated blood, animated violence

Graphics....:  8/10 - The graphics are a whole lot better than those in the 
                      previous Thief: The Dark Project. There are a slew of new
                      effects that add to the mood of the game such as fog,
                      rain, lighting, sky effects, and much more. One complaint
                      I have about ever since Thief tho is that the surroundings
                      look awfully plain and very smooth. Also, whenever I play
                      Thief II I always get this eerie feeling of loneliness, as
                      if it's just you and 2-3 AI guards. It's all too simple.
Sound.......:  9/10 - Sound? or no sound? :) the environment sounds are just
                      fantastic, and it helps make you become aware if you're
                      making any sound or not. You can also eavesdrop on conver-
                      sations, which I think is very cool and a very original
                      concept.
Control.....: 10/10 - Controlling your character is very easy, you can configure
                      the game to use your favorite controls, but the default
                      WSAD controls are allright as well.
Gameplay....: 10/10 - Thief introduced a new gaming concept called "first-person
                      sneaker". If you're expecting a fast-paced "first-person
                      shooter" a la Quake, then you're in for a surprise. The
                      game is very slow-paced and would require a huge amount of
                      thinking, as opposed to the fast-paced, shoot-all-that-
                      moves idea of games like Quake and Unreal. In Thief II
                      the producers were trying to get away from combat, and
                      although that is inevitable, you find that you spend more
                      time solving puzzles and trying to figure out a way to
                      do something undetected. The AI has also improved, they
                      are more aggressive and will pursue you until you are
                      stopped.
Story.......:  9/10 - Basically the story is a carry-over from Thief wherein you
                      need money again to survive, and there's this new dark
                      officer (he's some sort of high-ranking police officer)
                      who appears to be a good person but is actually corrupt
                      and so the main character (Garrett) is out to stop him and
                      survive at the same time.
Movies......:  8/10 - I haven't seen many movies from this game but what I've
                      seen so far are decent fmv's that add flavor to the story
Replay......:  9/10 - Although a slow game, it leaves you wondering what will
                      happen next and challenges you with puzzles that will keep
                      on bugging you even after you turn off the computer, add
                      that to the great outdoor graphics and big levels to
                      explore, you will just want to keep combing back for more.
                      (hehe now that's a rhyme)
Gender Bias.:  8/10 - This is another boy's game which might attract a few
                      ladies out there to play, and they already added female
                      characters compared to the all-man's world in Thief which
                      adds to the realism of the game
Fun Factor..: 10/10 - I sure do take a lot of fun in looting, sneaking, and
                      hiding, and that's what this game is all about :) There
                      are also a lot of new weapons to choose from, such as
                      throwable remote cameras that allow you to observe things
                      from a safe distance, the Vine Arrow which allows you to
                      climb up walls, the Frog Beast, the bow and arrow, and of
                      course, the blackjack club from way back in Thief. There
                      could be more in the later missions which I haven't found
                      yet, tho.
Multiplayer.:  n/a 
Overall.....:  9/10

Everyone else probably knows by now what Thief is, a revlotuionary game that
encourage more thinking and skills than plainly slaying enemies like in first-
person shooters. Branded as a first person "sneaker", Thief II offers a lot of
never-before-seen enhancements over Thief: The Dark Project, the most obvious of
which are the AI and the Graphics. Also, the levels have grown bigger so that
there is more to explore in a level than just a stupid building, and the game
is more focused on stealth than its predecessor, which would force you to hide
better and avoid battles as much as possible. Also, Thief II: The Metal Age
introduces some new things such as machinery, there are robots guards and new,
high-tech equipment which would greatly help you in your missions as a thief.

-
The Bottomline:
Even if you're more into fast-paced mindless killing games, this game is still
worth a look, and if you're a Thief fan, well I guess my review says it all :)
-
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03/29/00