I had heard about the Volunteers series moving on to this scenario, so I reinstalled it off a helpful CD I once made with a collection of maps. The actual first post caught me by surprise, but it didn't take me long to get through the first level.
: Another important thing to remember about this scenario is that it's a
: product of its time. It was made with the quirky 3rd-party map editor
: Pfhorte, before Infinity was released, and back then computers were slower
: and had less RAM, maps were simpler, and most of the things we take from
: granted had never been done before or were considered unusual displays of
: mapmaking prowess. The maps aren't going to be as complex as the ones we
: just finished in Tempus Irae. The views are simpler, there are fewer
: details, and so on. Of course, the gameplay is the important part.
And the gameplay was fast-paced and entirely adequate for me. I appreciate the appeal to historical perspective, but I found enough clever touches in the layouts to keep the map interesting, including the "vehicle" that carries you into the compound and the miniature map underground with switches to turn off the power to parts of it. Unfortunately, there's no indication as to what switch turns off what part, and I wound up permanently disabling the first pattern buffer and shield terminal.
: Compound was a bit confusing as the initial terminal contains a huge amount
: of information.
That, though, ties into a criticism I have of this scenario, that the writing in the terminals is far from polished and frequently amounts only to lists of things to do next. I didn't have trouble deciphering it, but I suppose my interest in Marathon's story (the name of this forum, after all!) and my inner copyeditor work against my full enjoyment of this scenario.
