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Though
the
console
systems
had
a
much
bigger
presence
at
the
show,
it
was
the
PC
that
had
the
biggest
game
there
in
Half-Life
2.
The
demo
was
so
cool,
it
took
over
the
ATI
booth
and
enjoyed
a
longer
line
of
people
than
a
bakery
in
Moscow.
A
shoo-in
for
several
Game
of
Show
awards,
Half-Life
2
hopes
to
do
what
its
forbear
did
when
it
revitalized
the
somewhat
stagnant
single-player
scene
back
in
1998.
And
so
far,
it
looks
like
it
will
do
that
and
then
some.
In
fact,
I
think
other
game
companies
should
consider
a
lawsuit
against
Vivendi
for
scheduling
a
demo
for
the
Game
Critics
Judges
early
on
Wednesday,
the
first
day
of
the
show.
Because
after
that,
all
the
other
first-person
shooters
for
the
PC
kind
of
looked
bland.
But
in
fairness,
some
other
first-person
shooters
looked
really
good,
such
as
Ubi
Soft's
Far
Cry.
The
Far
Cry
engine
made
some
waves
last
year
by
showcasing
its
unbelievable
scale
-
you
can
shoot
a
rocket
at
the
horizon,
and
the
thing
will
just
keep
on
flying
that
way
until
it
smashes
into
something,
even
if
it's
a
few
kilometers
away.
War
games
also
made
a
big
showing.
Activision's
Call
of
Duty,
developed
by
members
of
the
same
team
behind
Medal
of
Honor,
looks
pretty
sweet.
Speaking
of
MOH,
EA
showed
off
the
MOH:
Rising
Sun
expansion,
which
indeed
looks
bright.
Guess
war
isn't
always
hell.
Of
course,
no
PC
roundup
would
be
complete
without
diving
into
the
massively
multiplayer
pool,
which
this
year
looks
deeper
than
ever.
Staples
like
the
gorgeous
Everquest
II,
the
well-designed
World
of
Warcraft
and
when-will-it-come-out
poster
child
Star
Wars:
Galaxies
made
solid
appearances
all
around.
Microsoft's
Mythica
was
a
stand
out
thanks
to
its
sweet
'Private
Realms
Server'
technology,
which
essentially
lets
small
parties
leave
the
massive
world
for
a
bit
to
take
on
small,
private
quests,
complete
with
FMV
and
story
elements.
Finish
the
mission
and
you're
back
in
the
massive
world.
It's
a
nice
solution
to
the
whole
spawn
camping
problem
-
no
more
waiting
in
line
to
take
your
turn
whacking
at
the
giant
bat.
Compared
to
years
past,
there
was
a
noticeable
lack
of
strategy
games.
Vivendi
brought
out
a
nice
collection,
including
the
neato
Homeworld
II,
the
first
Tolkien-inspired
RTS
in
War
of
the
Ring,
and
a
sequel
I'm
personally
glad
to
see,
Ground
Control
2.
Sony
Online's
Lords
of
Everquest
and
Activision's
Rome:
Total
War
also
shook
things
up
a
bit,
but
by
and
large
the
strategy
market
seems
to
be
shrinking.
Or
maybe
I'm
just
getting
bigger.
For
the
most
part,
the
PC
looks
to
continue
doing
what
it
always
seems
to
do
-
offer
experiences
that
you
can't
duplicate
on
a
console.
Unfortunately,
that
theory
is
starting
to
disappear,
and
the
top
magician's
name
is
Xbox.
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It's
like
making
out
with
Brittany
Spears,
then
having
to
tell
your
soccer
mom
wife
that
her
new
lipstick
makes
her
moustache
less
noticeable.
No
offense,
ladies.
Other
interesting
titles
include
NC
Soft's