Return Fire 2 - PC Review - Gamecenter

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Return Fire 2
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CNET Gamecenter Review
By Hugh Falk
(11/17/1998)

Game at a Glance
Recap: Action shooter with capture-the-flag play; just like the first, only better
Ups: Beautiful graphics on high-end systems; adds Internet multiplayer options
Downs: Graphics get chunky on D3D or low-end systems; jet's physics seem buggy
Multiplayer: Very good
Single player: Very good
Demo: Available
Patch: N/A
My theory is that everything is circular: atoms, planets, and fashion trends. Even a square is really just a circle with corners. (At least that's what I told my high school geometry teacher after I flunked an exam.) So I'm never surprised to see a good game come full circle on my utterly round hard disk. About two years ago, I reviewed Return Fire, a fun two-player game developed by Silent Software/Prolific Publishing. And now it's back.
The basic gameplay of the original Return Fire is maintained in RF2. It's an action-shooter based on capture the flag, in which players use various military vehicles to blow each other to bits. The original Return Fire suffered from two main drawbacks--lack of Internet play and lack of a computer opponent--which meant it was best played by two people on one PC. RF2 addresses both of these problems and delivers first-class solutions.
First, RF2 can now support four people on one PC with the split-screen interface that made the original such a welcome anachronism. Two people on one screen can be distracting, and four players are twice as distracting, but the feature is a valiant attempt to make the PC a more social experience. Return Fire 2 Besides adding two additional people to one PC, RF2 now handles up to 16 players via a TCP/IP or IPX network. RF2 will also be supported by Mplayer.com for Internet play, but unfortunately, it isn't available as of this writing. Still, using TCP/IP over the Internet produced good playability results. Direct modem-to-modem and serial-cable games are also supported.
RF2 has also added a computer opponent (simply named Foe) who challenges players when no friends are available. Foe's difficulty can be set from nasty to nonexistent, allowing players to get comfortable with the various vehicles, which is the game's most challenging task.
The series now features some new vehicles, making the learning curve a bit steeper. RF2 adds a jet and a PT boat to the original four transport options---tank, jeep, helicopter, and armored support vehicle. The jet, boat, and helicopter are launched from an aircraft carrier, which is also new. Because the aircraft carrier now holds all of this valuable equipment, it becomes a highly desirable target for the enemy. If the aircraft carrier sinks, so does everything on it. It's very difficult to sink the carrier, but with a concentrated effort among team members, it is certainly possible.
Also new to RF2 are the great 3D accelerated graphics and multiple viewpoints. If you have a Voodoo Graphics card on a high-end PC, the game looks stunning. If you're simply running Direct3D and have to resort to software rendering, however, the graphics are more like the soup that eats like a meal (chunky, that is). In fact, the last time I saw so many chunks on a screen, Linda Blair was upchucking in The Exorcist. In other words, RF2 is not for the weak of hardware. The new viewpoints (especially the first-person view) are welcome additions that make the game both more playable and challenging.

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