CLIQUE AQUI

Athletes from around the world are gathering to find out who really is the best at the summer games. Can the newcomers overcome the vetrans and write their name indellibly in the annals of history? Or will they just be the little ant snuffed under their cleets? Unfortunatly, we'll not know on 3DO.
Yes this is another beta title for 3DO. Studio 3DO nearly had this one done right as 3DO announced their plans to close shop on their console. Had it not been for a small handfull of errors, this one might have been finished and pumped out as a last hurrah.

3DO GAMES: DECATHLON shows so much promise, and realisticly shows why the 3DO still had a fighting chance in the console market. For it's time, the graphics were top notch, and even today, they're still pretty good. Incorporating a broadcast TV like presentation not done (well, not done really good) again until Dreamcast's 2K sports series, it gives a real feeling of watching classic olympics.
A large variety of sports that required skill, and less that required just simple fast fingers, make this one more than the average level of fun. However, the afforementioned issues keep this one from being really enjoyable. Again, keeping with our policy of not bashing beta titles for their problems, we'll instead just point out highlights & lowlights and let you make the assessment. Bear in mind that the beta reviewed is one of the last produced.

Starting off on the control front, that is the only really major problem that kept this one from seeing release. While sharp and dead on in most of the games, a few like inthe various foot races, the control just seems to lag to the extreme. Falling to either being non-responsive, or so far behind in the response that you're liable to wonder if the computer is just doing whatever it wants. (though you probably would guess from how well I did in the 100m dash below. heh)
Control on the Pole Vault, Discus, Javeline and all are pretty dead on. So really it just required a bit of refinement in the other events to fix that lag issue and I'm sure it would have been all around perfect.

Javelin had one extra disadvantage though as occasionally a FAULT would freeze the game. This only happened about 1 in every 5 faults... but still its annoying.

I must applaud Studio 3DO in one reguard, this one really does take advantage of the 3DO's multiplayer feature, offering up to 8 players the chance at olympic gold. Too cool!

Visually, all that can be said was WOW! Very good looking athlete models, realistic looking event locations, and some really snazzy visual presentation effects make this one look really good. Graphic overlays, and smoothly shifting camera angles really give this one a nudge in the right direction.
This is where another issue does creep up though. Certain effects were not properly implemented to work on the 3DO, so they caused errors and they'd disappear. As you can see in the image below, the doves that were to appear instead show an error message.


When it came to sound, this one was ok. Effects ranged from clomping feet to the strain of throwing the javelin are all pretty decent. No in game music, but at the character select screen and awards stand... each country's national anthem is well done.

In the final months of 3DO's life, ELITE SOFTWARE had several titles in the works. While it is slowly being discovered how many unfinished titles from various developers there are out there, this is one that would have had little competition on the 3DO. A rally style racer. Originally thought to be a top down racer similar in style to Neo Geo's THRASH RALLY (due to preview pics in a few game mags), I really wasn't that thrilled at yet another in the genre. However, once I got my hands on the beta, I was pleased and surprized to find it was to have been a fully 3-D game.
Keeping with our policy of not knocking a game for not fixing things while it's in beta format, I will only provide an overview of the beta I was provided, pointing out details, some intresting facts, and sometimes comedic points that happen to be part of the program's charm. So, here goes :

First and foremost, I will point out that sound was not active in this beta. However, I have sampled the sounds and music that was to have been used in the game. It did show alot of potential.
In game control was still early in development, but definitly seemed on the right track with the Rally feel, including a drift effect. Flightstick and steeringwheel are optimized for already. Menu interactivity seemed to be nearly done. Mostly just needed the info for each racer & track finished.

Some funny effects do happen in this beta visually. First, and most easily noticable... your car has no tires. Heh. Hover racing? Ha!
Second, while the beta does allow for two players to try to play it... player 2 cannot lag behind at all, as player one controls all the environment.... stay still, and the world will drive away and leave player 2 in the void, watching the polygons around him race away with player 1.

Well, being a racing game fan, this was a treat to get to try out. The potential for this one was quite high, and realisticly, it could be raised from it's level by programmers of sufficent tallent. Most of the tools and program pieces are already on the disc.
Virtually unknown to the average 3DO gamer, this one sort of got lost in the shuffle behind the announcements & cancellations of bigger name games like Ultimate MK3, and of course the M2 fiasco. However, as any good game manufacturer will tell you, 3rd party support is essential to selling your system. Elite was trying to put it's best foot forward, after releasing the meager title VIRTUOSO, but got it caught in the door slamming shut on the 3DO. R.I.P. Elite Software.

GOLDEN GATE : TREASURE BY THE BAY

Theres treasure hidden somewhere in San Francisco! Can you unravel the mystery and figure out where it is. Throughout the city, you'll find bizzare clues, and visit dark, strange places no one has been and survived. No I'm not talking a theater showing GIGLI, I'm talking something much, much more intresting.

GOLDEN GATE : TREASURE BY THE BAY is a game in the same vein as MYST, HELL and others. A graphic story adventure with mysterious characters, and a strange, detailed world with alot of 'pointing and clicking' to get done. Personally, this genre of games usually leaves me flat. However, when given a near complete beta of it, I just couldn't resist giving it a go.

Normally, I woudn't give a beta a review, but more a preview. However, this one was pretty much finished, just un-released, so I figured it'd work out ok. If they ever produce a final release with corrections made, I will re-review it. That being said.... on to the review.

Visually, this one really sparkled. Some very nice imagry, though to conceal any true-to-life locations, several outdoor shots look to have been intentionally blurred a bit. Not too bad overall, most objects and indoor shots are quite well detailed. Cinematics, were only mediocre at best, with I think at least 1 missing. The video quality seemed to pixel out more than usual in a couple of the more 'active' scenes. Forgivable in the long run though as most cinematics didn't last that long, and really were just to let you know you were eventually moving the story forward.

Control is what you would expect of a point-and-click adventure. The slow phasing from one place to another, and occasional load time seemed to muddle the controls some times. Interaction with the puzzle elements seemed easy enough, but there was a bit of lag between some controler clicks and the action on screen. Mostly its just when first interact with a puzzle, after you start solving the puzzle, the delays disappear. Possibly this is due to lack of optimization for a final pressed game.

In summary, this is a fun, but all too brief adventure. Really, the puzzles just weren't that tough to solve, and even with the surprizingly large area to walk through like San Francisco, a reasonable player should be able to conquer this one within a few hours... barring long load times. If this ever got released, I could see this one more as a rental, than a purchase.