Reader Reviews
The PlayStation Experience - amongst other things.
Mega-Lo-Mania (Mega Drive)
by Peej
Strategy games come, strategy games go. Armies are lost bleeding in the dirt; resources are harvested and knocked up into hastily constructed villages that become towns, that become cities, which eventually become mighty empires. Is it just me or are strategy games just getting very boring and samey lately?
After a fair bit of discussion in the forums I decided to go back in time to my Mega Drive [Genesis for the yanks] owning days and dig out my trusty black piece of Sega gaming history and my copy of Mega-Lo-Mania and see how the ravages of time have treated a title I always regarded as the epitome of strategy done well. And, surprisingly, the years have been kind.
The basic set up is this: You are a God, and you have control of lots of little ugly human types who gad about all day enjoying life in the garden of Eden. Then along comes some Herbert (or even a couple of Herberts later on) intent on stealing a bit of your glory for themselves. You have but one choice, you have to go to war.
The game then progresses into a competition to see who can evolve their grubby little cavemen into elite death-dealing warriors. Time is a factor here, and you start out with the basics, the ability to throw stones or spears at your enemy's troops and fort. Reduce their base to ashes, and you've won the round.
All this sounds pretty simple but of course, there's a fair bit of resource gathering and a technology tree to research too. You set your scientists to work developing new ways of rendering people deader than Holly Valance's musical career, you gather wealth, you listen to the "hilarious" voiceovers offering you advice and counsel, and at all times you watch the myriad little villagers kicking the crap out of each other. Considering the technology this game was running on, it was pretty much a pioneer of so many elements now commonly found in strategy titles. Along with Populous and Archon, this was a game ahead of its time. You also get the opportunity to ally yourself with CPU players and gang up on hapless tribes, which makes for some cool strategising.
The only bone to pick with this game is the rather anti-climactic last level. By the time you reach it you'll have mastered the game, and be expecting an all out battle between the four "tribes", which turns out to be a rather disappointing affair, rather like watching a playground fight between protagonists who slap each other like girls. But it's a game worth playing for those strategy buffs that want to see how things were done back in Grandad's day. Compare this to the recent strategy fest, "Rise of Nations" and it's amazing to see that no matter how things change, they still stay the same...