Tempest X 3

System: Playstation

Review

Game Type: 3D Shooter
Based on a classic vector-drawn arcade shooter and on Tempest 2000, the more recent Atari Jaguar version. The action takes place one screen at a time on a network of strands stretching away into the distance known as the Web. Enemies slide down the strands, trying to reach the Web's rim and your ship. You must hop between different strands, shooting along them to destroy the enemies.

Gameplay: 50/100
Tempest is a gameplay marvel... some of the time. You're forced to hop all over the Web to shoot down enemies, and if you let them build up, you're toast. They are of course shooting back all the while, and nothing gets the adrenaline going like hopping onto a strand, firing a few shots, and then having to dodge aside as an enemy bullet screams past.
A game demanding this level of skill also naturally requires you to see all of the enemies, all of the time. As if the 3D perspective didn't make this difficult enough, most of the later stages twist in bizzarre shapes, making the player uncertain their ship will acually go left if they press the control pad left, and sometimes hiding enemies until they're almost upon you.
Woe that Tempest has this one flaw! Aside from that it's highly addictive. Tempest 2000 added some intriguing new enemy types onto those of the original Tempest, and Tempest X 3 adds a couple more, though the bestiary still isn't that large. TX3 retains T2K's powerup system. And if you're not happy with the changes TX3 introduces, you can play original Tempest, Tempest Duel (with an opponent), and (with a code) not-quite-perfect conversions of the Jag's Tempest Plus and Tempest 2000.

Graphics: 95/100
Jeff Minter must have loved fireworks, because his Tempest 2000 graphics were composed almost entirely out of hundreds of individual sparks in all colors of the rainbow, in dazzling sphere and column shapes. Sadly the rainbow colors are mostly gone from TX3, but the same wild shapes and effects are there, and new ones have been added. The Web is coated with melty patterns that change color and light up as shots pass over them. Spectacular lens flare effects abound. The beautiful stars that race by in patterns around the Web have lost most of their color, even in T2K mode, but they're still there. Best of all, the framerate is now silky-smooth in all modes of play. Better graphically than even the Jag version, though the bleached look pains me.

Sound: 95/100
The awesome techno soundtrack has always been one of T2K's biggest selling points. Although it's still good, they unfortunately used the remixes from the T2K music CD for Tempest X mode, which I don't like as well. The original T2K tracks are (mostly) intact in T2K mode. The sound effects are loud and clear. The particle laser blasts can get annoying but fortunately music and sound effects volume can be adjusted separately. Crank the stereo up!

Overall: 90/100
This might well be a contender for my all-time favorite game if it weren't for the awkward viewpoints. TX3 is so far beyond all other games in so many other areas, though, that I have to recommend trying it. The game is as addictive as drugs and offers an equally intense audiovisual experience.

Codes

Tempest 2000 and Tempest Plus Modes
Earn the high score (the one that lets you enter 5 initials) and enter "H V S" or "YIFF!" as your initials. On the game select menu Tempest 2000 and Tempest Plus options will appear. If you have a memory card access to these modes can be saved to the card, even if you enter a different name in the high score later.

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Copyright © 1997/1998 Jay McGavren. All Rights Reserved.