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Bam Entertainment and Spyglass released Reign of Fire, a game based on the same name film. Reign of Fire starts off in present day London with Quinn, a pre-teenage boy, as he watches his mother wake up a dragon from its long sleep. The year then changes to 2024 and the human race is about to be extinct. Human camps on earth are rare and very limited since the humans must defend themselves from the dragons that become the Earth's dominant race. It is your goal to strengthen the humans and let them win back their planet or take control of the dragons and destroy the humans once and for all.
Reign of Fire starts you playing a member of the Kentucky Irregulars. The Kentucky Irregulars are a band of human soldiers fighting for their lives under the lead of Denton Van Zan. You have to control several vehicles which include a fire truck, jeep, buddy and tank. You'll need to master each vehicle since they are required to complete the game. With these vehicles you have to follow Van Zan's orders and attempt to win Earth back for the humans.
The vehicles were made for various parts of the game, as each one has its own advantage/disadvantage. The tank is massive and with its cannon and machine gun is the most powerful vehicle in the game. The fire truck can carry up to six people from one palce to another, and can put out fires, but its military offense is mediocre. The buggy is the quickest out of all the vehicles. The jeep has a pretty powerful machine gun and is pretty quick, making it the ideal beginner vehicle. The vehicles handle well and you'll feel used to them relatively quickly.
An excellent addition to the game would have to be the fact that you can play as the dragons. Once you completed a certain amount of human levels the option to play as a dragon against the humans opens up. Besides the novelty of controlling large, fire breathing things, that adds a lot of replay value to the game. The dragons are very intelligent, more so than humans and are ready to combat the humans. The dragons don't have all those fancy vehicles but they come prepared with their lethal fire breath. Their main weapon is a fire ball which takes out the enemy not only on the ground but in the air as well. Their other weapon is the napalm breath which sprays fire over an area and affects everyone there.
Bam did an excellent job crafting Reign of Fire's visuals. The game is simply exceptional. You'll see many fire breathing dragons which are probably the best captured in a video game. The lighting and fire effects are among the best seen and really add a lot to the game. One of the game's most notable animations is when you finally take down a dragon. Dust scatters around the screen and the screen shakes. You get much sucked into the game play. The actual environments are average but they are so big that you won't really care. Sound wise the game performs average at best. The background music is decent but the voices are very, very annoying. The dragons don't have the same impact as they did in the movie, but the weapon effects are solid.
Reign of Fire is a good game and is worth at least a rental. The game will provide challenge even the most hardcore gamers. You should pick it up at least to experience how many dragons come at you and what you do in response. It's crazy and I love it. If you enjoyed the movie, you'll enjoy the game. There are plenty of extra features including movie clips and Mad at Gravity's Walk Away music video. -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Dec 15, 2002
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