E3 2005: Level Up
Monte Cristo Offers Wide Menu
Product: Monte Cristo Lineup
Company: Monte Cristo
Date: 05/25/2005
Avaliable On:

Most people outside of Europe are probably not familiar with Monte Cristo, but the Paris based development studio can sometimes surprise with its unique lineup of offerings.

Coming out for the PS2 and PC is another take on the ?vice? sims that have been growing in popularity. 7 Sins allows you to customize your character and then pursue the simple things in life, namely money, fame, power, and sex. You create relationships, both positive and negative, and engage in over 20 mini-games in places like the dance floor, the gym, and even the bedroom.

City Life is a city building game for the PC, very much in the vein of the classic Sim City. Aside from the usual problems of traffic, crime, pollution, etc? you will also have to deal with unique cultures living in the city. The idea is to please all of them without seeming to favor one over another. This unique aspect of a classic game style should keep sim fans entertained.

On the Role Playing front, Monte Cristo is offering a PC Role Playing Game entitled Incarnation. ?The Gods have orchestrated the ultimate clash of primeval forces on the most misfortuned of battlefields: the peaceful society of Aarklash. The player is the sole incarnation of hope.? Featuring highly stylized graphics and unique action oriented combat mechanics, Incarnation looks to please RPG fans who are tired of the same old thing.

If real world based RTS?s are more your thing, take a look at Mockba to Berlin coming for the PC. Based around WW2, apparently the favorite war of the video game industry at this point, you can take control of some of that war?s most famous European battles. Multi-player will, of course, be a main focus.

An infiltration title named The Plan will be coming out for PC, PS2 and Xbox. The most interesting thing to mention about The Plan is a claim by Monte Cristo. ?The first single player multiplayer game enables gamers to control up to three characters at once.? The screen is split into three parts, with the currently controlled character most prominently displayed. Clearly, teamwork will be a big part of this game.

Finally, Monte Cristo is also working on another Real Time Strategy game for the PC. Entitled WOFOR: War on Terror, this game takes place in the not too distant future as a multinational strike force has been formed to combat the increasing threat of terrorists. With 30 missions in real settings, War on Terror is pushing realism, real locations, real weapons and real anti-terrorist warfare. The game also uses a fairly attractive engine for an RTS and allows you to get up close and personal on the street level.

Alucard aka Stephen Triche

GameVortex PSIllustrated TeamPS2