Top Ten Atari Simulations

#### The greatest simulations of all time!

Welcome to the second outing of our top ten series. Last month, we covered the best Atari platformers of all time, this month it is the turn of the Simulations......

10. Utopia, Gremlin

This is essentially Sim City in space, you take the part of the leader of a colony and it is your job build and develop its defences and economy. You have a wide selection of building ranging from living quarters and stores, to Space Moss converters and Power Plants.

You job is made more difficult by alien races who inhabit the planet you are trying to colonise. You must defend and attack, the overall aim being to become the superior race on the planet. You have access to tanks aswell as up to five different space craft. The graphics were well drawn and viewed isometrically. The interface is relatively well designed. Overall a good game.

    Rating: 84%

9. Powermonger, Bullfrog/EA

Powermonger was the semi follow-up to Populous, the fist ever 'god' game. You played the part of a general, and it was your job to conquer various terretories in order to control the world. The interface, though initially confusing, was well thought out and designed, and the graphics and sound were, as always in Bullfrogs games, excellent.

You had only semi control over your people, and could tell them where to move and what to develop. To win you had to control at least two thirds of a terretory.

Although not as popular as it's big brother, Populous, this is still one of the best designed and original games on the ST, and should be in everyones collection.

    Rating: 86%

8. Midwinter, Rainbird

Midwinter has always been considered to be one of the land mark games in Atari history. Set on a frozen island, you had to find and defeat the dictator, General Masters.

Set in a well programmed 3D environment, the game set standards when it was originally released way back in 1989. The games plot was strong, and there was plenty of character interaction. This game was a very impressive technical achievement.

The games follow up Flames of Freedom, whilst being massive, never had the same appeal as Midwinter. The game was made too complicated, and had too many things in it. Midwinter stuck to a simple idea and it worked. I would say that this could be one of the biggest steps forward in games in the 80's.

    Rating: 89%

7. Populous/Populous 2, Bullfrog/EA

Populous, as said above, was the original 'god' game. It spawned many imitators, but very few managed to surpass the playability and presentation of the original.

The game was set in a isometric 3D environment similar to that of Powermonger. The interface was intuitive and the game featured good graphics and sound. However, the games real strength was in its playability. The game, unlike others in the genre, was easy to get to grips with, and kept you coming back for more.

This game had one of the most important pieces to play in the development of Atari games.

    Rating: 89%

6. Falcon, Mirrorsoft

One of the first flight sims on the ST, Falcon can still hold its head up high.

It was the first really open ended game, and the subsequent data disks enabled users to expand the game even further. The game was, like other later games, split into missions. Each mission would be linked to the next, and they would form a campaign.

There were a wide range of weapons, and missions ranged from tracking down and destroying planes to attacking enemy bases. Falcon offered loads of variation and had that one more go characteristic.

    Rating: 90%

5. F15 Strike Eagle 2, Microprose

This is probably the fastest flight sim on the ST. You are put in the cockpit of a F15 and, as in all flight sims, you must carry out different missions for your country.

The speed of the game doesn't mean less detailed graphics, in fact, they are substantially better that most others such as Falcon above. The graphics in between missions aren't too bad either, they are exceptionally well drawn.

As with all games of this genre, there are loads of keyboard shortcuts to remember - some of which aren't too obvious. The controls, either by joystick or by mouse, are responsive and your plane handles well.

There is a large variety of missions and enough variation to keep you occupied for months.

    Rating: 91%

4. Formula One Grand Prix, Microprose

Yet another game from those masters of strategy, Microprose. This time you play the part of a top formula one driver, and surprisingly you have to take part in various Grand Prix' around the world.

The game features the usual high quality graphics usually associated with Microprose, and the game is involving. The sound is however disappointing. Luckily this doesn't distract from what is now considered to be a classic game.

There isn't much more to say about what some people consider to be one of the ST's best games. Overall, this is definitely one game that has stood the test of time, and is as playable now as it has always been.

    Rating: 91%

3. Knights of the Sky, Microprose

The third Microprose game in this issues top ten!

Knights of the Sky is quite simply THE best flight sim on the ST. Set in World War 1, you are armed with little more than a pea shooter and a few bombs and must fly various missions against the Hun. The game features some of the worlds greatest pilots including the Red Baron.

The weak weapons make this a much more personal flight sim than most. You need to be almost in the other pilots cockpit to take them out, but when you do, you get a feeling of satisfaction.

The planes are the most detailed I have seen, and move remarkably fast considering their complexity. There are around twenty to choose from, each with it's own good and bad points.

Although the missions lack depth, the game as a whole will appeal to all ST users including those who dont usually like this type of game. If you haven't got it, go and get it now!

    Rating: 93%

2. Frontier: Elite 2, Gametek

There isn't much to distinguish between the best two simulations on the ST, both are outstanding in their own respects.

Frontier is the follow up to what is considered to be the best game in the eighties, Elite. It features a massive universe containing hundreds of thousands of star systems for you to explore.

You can decide whether to trade, carry out missions, be a pirate, or smuggle illegal goods. You can work for different military organisations, or do contract killings.

This is a game with more depth than any other available on ANY computer. The 3D graphics and variety of different ships are impressive. In fact, the only problem the game faces is a slow screen update making it difficult to fight and defend yourself.

If you haven't got this game, you haven't lived!

    Rating: 96%

1. Civilization, Microprose

What a surprise, a Microprose game at number 1!

Civilization must be the best game you'll ever play on an ST. You play the part of a leader of a civilisation who must conquer the world. Civ is a turn based strategy game of epic proportions, you control almost every aspect of your empires development from deciding what things to research to the level of taxation and what each town builds.

The game originated on the PC, and this shows in the graphics - a basic top down view. The sound is equally unimpressive, however the one thing that makes this game stand out is the gameplay. You could sit down to play it, and in what seems like minutes, hours have passed!

There are loads of military units (Bombers, Chariots, etc.) and some more peaceful ones (Diplomats, Trade caravans, Settlers, etc.). Town improvements range from the basic Granary to the more advanced Nuclear Power Station!

The game starts in 4000BC, and progresses through time right up to 2100AD. Technologies available for development include things like Pottery, Iron working and Nuclear Fission. You can also develop more futuristic technologies (known as Future Technology 1, Future Technology 2, etc.). You face problems such as Global Warming, Civil unrest and Barbarian attacks.

There are a number of Skill Levels, and you can choose which nation to be at the start of the game - you can even create a new one by pressing escape and typing in a different name. Towns can be automatically assigned a name or you can name them yourself.

The game can sometimes be a bit temperamental, and if not save regularly, has a habit of crashing. There is however a handy Autosave option which saves the game every 50 turns.

Civilization requires 1 meg to run and it is recommended that you install it on a hard drive.

    Rating: 97%

So, there we have it. Four out of the ten games being written by Microprose undoubtedly makes them the undisputed kings of strategy. Other games which only missed out slightly include Oceans Epic, Microprose's Railroad Tycoon and Virgin's Jimmy White's Whirlwind Snooker.

Next issue's Top Ten will be Adventures.