JAGGED ALLIANCE: BACK IN ACTION

JAGGED ALLIANCE: BACK IN ACTION
A FUN GANE WITH SOLID ELEMENTS THAT SADY MISSES OF ITS HERITAGE

Hollywood has a thing for re-inventing old movies, and the trend seems to be progressing to games too - the original Jagged Alliance games are classics that well and truly have earned their place in the hall of fame, although if you played them today you’d likely be unimpressed with the graphics.

Which is where JA:BIA comes in. Re-invented for modern PCs by German developer Coreplay, Back In Action is quite literally the same game only on a newer engine that gives the JA universe a chance to shine. But as fans of the original series, we’re in two minds about BIA. On the one hand, the engine brings us JA like we’ve never seen it before, with higher resolution graphics combined with physics ragdolls.

Also to its credit, BIA adds a new system called Plan-and-Go, a mix of turn-based and real-time play in one seamless engine. And it does actually do it really well, letting you watch fire- Hghts play out in real time, pausing only when you need to issue more orders, and then let the action fly again. Big Hghts are fast and frantic, and are ajoy to play.

Also honoured well are the merc’s dialogue - hearing them boast skill shots, cry out in pain when wounded, or simply finding shiny items; each has their own unigue personality. Bu then there’s the character portraits. In the original games these were brilliant artwork, and while in BIA Coreplay has attempted to modernise them by making them animated BD models, the effect is appalling. Most of the faces are too similar to really show any individuality.

So does JA:BIA live up to its heritage? Unfortunately, no. But on the tlipside, it is still a fun game to play and has enough ofthe core JA experience to keep you going. Modernising with a new engine and Plan-and-Go system are what save this seguel, and it’s priced about right for what you get
Ashton Mills
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