World in Conflict Preview

How I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb.

Look at this. It’s not a tiny worm, or an ancient example of cave man cursive, it’s the Ebola Reston virus, one of the most horrifically deadly organisms on the planet. Now look again, and notice how the picture, moments ago just a weird squiggle, is transformed by virtue of its lethality into something cryptic and ominous. Like the innocent light above an angler fish’s hideous maw, it’s easy to imagine if you looked long enough, you might see your own demise staring back at you.

Death has that effect on imagery, and that’s why some of the coolest looking things on the planet are the deadliest, like this, this and this little guy. Now, critters and instruments that are only lethal on small scales are still eerily fascinating, especially since you’re only one person. And really, some of these seem scarier than things like Doppler images of storms or pictures of deadly viruses, because maybe there are vicious dogs where you live, but no stray tropical storms. That you know of.

But there’s one image that really tops them all. It’s as abstract as a squiggle, as symbolic as the black widow’s hour glass, and yet representative of a force that could wipe out our entire species. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the mushroom cloud. Most recently, this striking image lent its megatons of visual power to a demonstration we saw of Vivendi's upcoming PC RPG, World in Conflict.

When launched, the nuclear missile arcs in across the horizon like any other (the game is full of missiles), but when it hits, there’s a white-hot blinding flash, followed by an immense shockwave that bowls over trees and obliterates houses. All that remains is a huge, billowing cloud with a fiery core that slowly grows and blossoms into a distinct and beautiful mile-high mushroom. It’s a sight to behold, especially since it won’t burn your eyes out or disintegrate your body.

Interestingly, the game is modeled after team-based online first person shooters such as Battlefield 1942, in that you assume a role or class, and work together with your teammates to capture strategic locations. But instead of playing just one man, you will play a regiment such as airborne, artillery, tanks, or infantry. You won’t have to build a base or mine for gold, either. Just like an FPS, your slain units will respawn. More specifically, their cost will be refunded to you, so you can immediately replace them with whatever units you desire.