Chrome

Chrome is an easy title to overlook, since it shipped with no fanfare and little in the way of a pedigree. It was developed in Poland and published by Strategy First, which ranks it somewhere between a 7-Eleven sandwich and Kathy Bates for sheer sex appeal. But this game blows Halo PC away and stands up well with better known sci-fi shooters such as Unreal 2 and Deus Ex in terms of variety, challenge, and overall polish. It��s not perfect, but it��s visually stunning, well executed, and loaded with interesting features.

Macho man

You play as Logan, a macho mercenary who takes high-paying jobs for interstellar corporations. Logan gets shafted early on and teams up with an attractive partner named Carrie, who crews the ship and feeds him coordinates during missions. The two become involved in a nasty corporate drama over a colony that��s mining a rare resource called Chrome. The story is better than standard shooter fare, and the cut-scenes and voice acting give Logan a credible presence as a crusty, cynical SOB.

Except in the first mission, Logan fights alone. The missions play out in a variety of locations, from lush tropical islands to frozen outposts to the obligatory space station. Mission goals include data recovery, hostage rescue, and even holding a defensive position against an organized attack. Despite the apparent variety, many of the missions involve the usual activities of unlocking doors and killing dumb guards. Some of the stealth missions are huge and can take hours to get through.

Your limited inventory adds to the challenge. You can carry only one long-barreled weapon, so you��re constantly deciding whether to keep the machine gun or switch to something like the sniper rifle or rocket launcher. Fortunately, there��s always plenty of ammo and health to recover from your victims. You can even find portable, working music players, but they take valuable inventory space.

All of this stuff is fairly standard, but there are several things that set Chrome apart. The big one is its use of Deus Ex�Cstyle implants, which can enhance Logan��s abilities. You can speed his reactions by slowing down the action (�� la bullet time), improve sighting and accuracy, or see enemies through walls, among other things. While you might not use all of them, you��ll have to use some to get through the game. The effects are temporary and impair Logan briefly, so you have to pick your moments.

There��s also heavy-duty hardware to play with: an all-terrain vehicle equipped with a minicannon, speeder bikes, and even MechWarrior�Cstyle walking tanks. Sometimes you get to pilot the mechs, and sometimes you have to take them out��and it��s a kick to do either one.

More than just Chrome

Chrome isn��t the year��s best shooter, but it certainly exceeds the sum of its parts. Despite spotty A.I., missions are challenging enough to keep you from finishing the game in a weekend. The language and interface don��t suffer at all from the usual translation of a European product, and occasional use of four-letter words and snarky remarks such as ��I say ��Kiss my ass���� and ��Goddamn corporations!�� give the characters some added punch. There are even three different endings to choose from, depending on how much of a mercenary you want to be. All of this combined makes Chrome more than a shiny toy��it��s a solid, entertaining game that makes us eager for Techland��s next project.

Verdict

4 Stars

A stunning sci-fi-themed shooter that makes Halo look hollow.

Publisher: Strategy First

Developer: Techland

Genre: Shooter

ESRB Rating: M

Required: Pentium III 850, 256MB RAM, 1.7GB install Recommended: None

Multiplayer: 32 players via Internet/LAN

Copyright © 2003 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in Computer Gaming World.