SHELL SCHLOCK
A Review of Shell Shock
by Robert Coffey
It's 1997 and the world is in chaos, dominated by druglords, terrorists, and barbaric dictators. Into this global tumult step Da Wardenz, a multi-cultural, street-smart group of urban commandos charged with "Keepin' Da Peace". As a member of this elite squad you pilot your M-13 Predator battletank through various war-torn battlegrounds, smiting down those who would corrupt the world and generally blasting away at everything in sight.
This is the premise behind Eidos Interactive's SHELL SHOCK, a well-meaning but ultimately inconsequential action-shooter. While by no means terrible, the game simply fails to deliver the goods in almost every aspect, continually falling short of a pleasurable gaming experience. SHELL SHOCK gets most everything just about half-right.
On the technical side, the game installs easily through either DOS or Windows 95, but it is here that SHELL SHOCK first gives an inkling of some of the frustration ahead. In spite of having the WIN 95 "autorun" feature the game cannot be played in Windows - trying to play it is to invite frequent and aggravating system crashes. Why did they even bother? It's kind of like including dog leashes with new cars. Nice leash, but what good is it? While SHELL SHOCK can be played by up to 8 players over a network, there is nothing in the documentation explaining how to set it up. The game can be played with either keyboard or joystick and though the default keyboard controls are sort of weird, they can be reconfigured. Not so for the joystick - in fact, there isn't anything in either the documentation or the game to let you know what the joystick controls are. It's the beginning of an endless litany of things done just halfway.
Gameplay begins in the Wardenz headquarters, Da Pen. From there the player can customize controls, start the network game, attend mission briefings prior to shipping out, or upgrade their tank. This last option is a nice little addition that sets SHELL SHOCK apart from most 3D shooters, introducing an element of strategy, albeit a limited one. By picking up supply crates during missions, the player can purchase tank improvements back at the base. Faster engines, better treads, more armor, missiles and more are available. The current state of the tank and its upgrades can be viewed as well, though again the game doesn't really follow through with an idea. I would have liked to see the appearance of my tank change with each addition. Instead, a wire- frame model of the tank only highlights the selected tank component and presents a bar graph indicating the current state of improvement. Not exactly imaginative stuff.
The meat of the game is in the missions and there are 25 of them, taking place in hotspots all over the world. Combat takes place in a first person perspective over scrolling 3D terrain that changes depending on location. You could be barrelling over baked desert flatlands or charging through steaming jungles. The graphics aren't jaw-dropping standouts, but they're not horrible either. Just sorta pedestrian.
While each mission has a stated objective, there's really only one goal - blow everything up. Every location is loaded with enemies - the odds are always decidedly against you. DOOM maniacs accustomed to running and gunning through a game will be in for a rude surprise - to succeed in this game you'll often have to proceed slowly and surely, blowing away your foes at a distance. Don't get me wrong, there are many moments of fast and furious fighting, it's just that even a fully upgraded tank is a sitting duck when lots of enemies are around. This long distance destruction isn't exactly a drawback, but it's difficult to execute since you basically can't see your enemies from a distance. Your radar will pick them up, your targeting reticle will change to indicate they're lined up for blasting, but you don't really see them blow up or anything - it's a lot of vigilance with little reward. Still, it provides plenty of tense moments.
Along with the enemy tanks, helicopters and ships, there are lots of buildings sitting around ripe for explosion. Indeed, destruction of a certain buildings is a common mission goal. Not only is blowing up structures just good clean fun, but it's a pretty good idea - supply crates are frequently revealed after levelling a warehouse. If you like big explosions, there's a lot to like in SHELL SHOCK.
You have a fair amount of help in accomplishing the missions. The tank automatically targets the nearest enemy and one of the Wardenz, D-tour, is forever nattering away telling you to "Turn left, Jack, Turn left!" Helpful? Sometimes, when turning left doesn't run you right into a building blocking your way, one of the several building that DOESN'T blow up. Seems our little friend can't tell when a target is on the other side of an obstacle. It wouldn't be so bad if only he'd tell you once, but the little nag never shuts up. Finally, you can call in an air strike to bail you out if you have the money for one, though I never noticed much difference in my situation after ordering one.
The game interface is nothing new, except it does find new ways to irritate. There are only 4 game save slots, they can't be named, and the game can't be saved during missions, only after successfully completing one. Failure in a mission returns you to the start of a whole new game, not the beginning of the failed mission. This means you have to reload a saved game and sit through another mission briefing before trying again - it gets old pretty fast. Trying to quit the game either during or right after a mission is even more baroque, forcing you to cycle a succession of screens before actually having to start the game all over again before you are finally allowed to leave.
If there's one truly bad thing about SHELL SHOCK, it's the music, an assortment of hip-hop monstrosities by Bar None, aka William Floyd of the San Francisco 49ers. Man oh man is the music awful! This talentless hack should stick to football, . Syncopated hiccups and sheep bleating would be more welcome and appropriate than this noise.
With a little more thought SHELL SHOCK could have been a pretty good game but as it is, it's just a so-so diversion. While it may have some promise as a mulitplayer game, players without access to a true network are going to have an awful hard time finding any games on KALI - I know I never did. If you're dying for a tank-based shoot 'em up then SHELL SHOCK is for you, but the vast majority of the gaming public would be well-advised to look elsewhere for things to blow up.
Gamer's Zone Scorecard
| Product: |
Shell Shock |
| Company: |
Eidos Interactive
|
| Cost: |
$49.95 |
System Requirements:
486/66MHZ or better, DOS (Windows 95 supported for
installation only), 8MB RAM, SVGA graphics, mouse or joystick, 2X CD-ROM drive
Breakdown:
Fun Factor 3
Graphics 2
Sound 2
Interface 2
Replayability 3
Overall Score:
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