Relentless

(Adeline/Electronic Arts, 1994, PC)

This was an imported title, by a French husband and wife game design team. The premise of Relentless (aka, Little Big Adventure, the name it was sold by in Europe) involves the evil madman, Funfrock, who has taken over a kindly planet, far far away. It's up to you, as Twinsen, to stop him, although that is far from easy; you begin the game in a jail cell! After a challenging escape, you travel practically the entire planet (no joke; there are dozens of places to explore here!), as you search for the power you need to defeat the villain once and for all!

The game played much like Diablo, yet with polygon characters; while backgrounds are angled-perspective 2D, the objects and people you meet are all 3D polygons. The resulting well-designed game interface allowed for great diversity in 3D action, and adventure puzzles. Even the most banal walkthrough of this game could not prevent a gamer from spending their money's worth; there are so many things to do, and places to explore. Cutscenes after major events enhanced the fun, including a fantastic, very-happy ending (an ending so well designed and inspired, it rivaled most movies and TV fare). The enormous fun I had with this game thrust it squarely into Techtite's list of Top 50 Multimedia Classics, and with very good reason. The only people who'd disagree just never played the game...

Rating : Deep Impact

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