User Reviews (1 - 11 of 18)

Show these reviews first:

Highest Rated
Lowest Rated Newest
Oldest Most Helpful
Least Helpful

Buy or Rent the FULL GAME - Dont bother with the Demo !

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 11
Date: October 20, 2000
Author: Amazon User

First of all, make sure you patch up the game before you play it. A friend of mine beta tested it and complained like crazy about numerous problems - many of which are FIXED with the latest patch. YA YA we all hate games that are rushed to the store before all the bugs are worked out. But give the FULL version a try. The demo doest do the game justice.

Just about every negative review of this game on amazon.com is from someone who obviously DIDNT bother learing the controls, or actually playing the full version.

Nicholas Van Tassell said: "I wish Pandemic would have allowed the freedom to rotate the camera a full 360 degrees (maybae by holding the Shift, Alt, or Ctrl keys while moving the mouse." -Hold down the middle mouse button while you move the mouse and you can turn the camera 360 degrees! Did this guy read the manual?

Matt Dunphy (see more about me) from Portland, OR said: "Gameplay is a real snoozez, Tons of dicking around and not much combat. Everything is just deliberately slow--aircraft move as slowly as infantry on foot, et cetera. If you are looking for fast, furious, exciting gameplay, this is not the place to find it." - Not much combat? Try a multiplayer game (you vs computer bots or against real people) against an oponent and the ONLY way you can win the map is to destroy their command center. And you cant do that without mashing some turrets, infantry, tanks, etc etc etc. The battles are all over the place...some for the base, some for "talen" (like spice in dune) etc. And the planes move at least 50% faster then infantry and the slow moving tanks are VERY slow. Different units move at different speeds.

Alex Kutsenok (see more about me) from IN said: "This game reinvents real time strategy with such revolutionary concepts as resource gathering and the mother of all tactics: The Tank Rush!" - Again, this guy didnt play against anyone good. There are DOZENS of different ways to avoid a huge tank rush. Ive seen 3 or 4 "regular" gun turrets chew up armies of 10-12 scorpion tanks. It just depends on where you position them. And why not use mojo against the tanks to blind them? Why not try placing some mines out there? Why not use an army of fast infantry to attack the slower tanks? It seems like all the negative reviews come from little cry babies who got their butts kicked at multiplayer and didnt understant why.

James Axsom (see more about me) from San Antonio, TX United States said: "buildings take up too much map real estate, and resource run dry to quickly." - Oh brother. What map did this little boy play on? There are over a dozen maps that come with the game and YOU can set the resourse to WHATEVER amount you want! If the resources run out to fast for you, then YOU need to stop being lazy. Besides, there are hundreds of maps available for download from the internet, and if thats not enough, MAKE your own with the editor. Dont be lazy!

Now I dont work for the game company, nor do I think this game is 5stars like I gave it (its 4) but I wanted to try to cancel out all the idiot reviews that its been getting.

Dark Reign 2 = Near perfection!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: November 12, 2000
Author: Amazon User

This game rocks. Other strat games can't touch DR2. The editor is also top notch. I made a map the day after I started the editor for the first time. DR2 is a total joy to play because of the awsome balance Pandemic put into it. The best part is that there isn't a offense that can't be defended well if you think it out. Difficulty is just right if you ask me. You put the AI on easy and you will win fast. Put the AI on hard and you are in for the fight of your life! DR2 is a winner!

THIS GAME GOT GAME!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 30
Date: June 11, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Although I have not yet played the game (release isn't 'till July) I know for a fact that the game will be one of if not THE greatest games of the year. I have played the original Dark Reign, and the sequels before and they were really interesting and totally fun. The game is easy to learn to play and was a smash hit. With the free floating camera, campaign editor, multiplayer levels, and everything else, I know for a fact that THIS GAME GOT GAME!

This game is better than all other RTs's

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: November 06, 2002
Author: Amazon User

...I got this game at a local store. I was expecting something that would only be fun for a couple hours. I was way wrong. This is the most SPECTACULAR strategy game I have ever played. The lighting effects are great. The terrain looks great. The graphics are real 3D (like FPS's.) Some ppeople say the recources run dry to quickly. This is sort of true. In the single player campains there is more than 2 tmes the recources to finish each mission. In the skirmish games you can choose how much money you start out with (one to 1 million!) However I wish that the recources regenerated. The unit blances are some of the best I ever seen. resource gathering is at a good speed not to fast or tooo slow. I have never been a fan of upgrading. However in this game the upgrading(you only upgrade the buildings) did not get boring or seem repetative. Each side has 23 or so units (which is a good number.) Each side has unique units and tactics. The sprawlers can lay andd one of the 4 different kinds of mines anywhere on the battle field. I sugest running this game on a computer with a 1.3 processor just like I am. The graphics are spectacular and so are the huge battles. The main difference between this game and most other games is that you wage FULL SCALE warefare. The are tons of unique strategies that you can use in this game. You can also change views from first personn to thiird person and rotate the camera 90 degrees or 360 degrees. There are lots of things in this game that are not in your average RTs for example Tire tracks(left by units with tank treads) and wheather. There are a good amount of defensive structures and buildings for each side. This game is way better...than any of those other overrated games. The controls are simple put powerful. Each unit has tons of ways that you can use it and can accomplish lots of tasks. The highly varying terrain adds to the tactics that you can use. The naval battles look good. I could say lots more bu t I doubt you would be willing to read on so lemme wrap this up. If you don't have this game then you are missing something very big. Get it. I can promise you will stop doing anything else inorder to play this game. This game is so addictive. After playing this game any other game seems to lack everything. You will stop playing any other game.

Think Again

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 4
Date: July 11, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Now that I have played the full version game, my previous review was written based on the beta version, I have changed my mind DRASTICALLY. THIS IS THE BEST RTS EVER MADE. If you are a beginnging rts player this game can be made easier with amazingly easy to operate difficulty settings. But for hardcore gamers and rtser this game offers so much. Superb lighting, special effects and realistic day night system make this game excellent its very easy to control your camera once you get the hang of it,(Which usually takes about 5 minutes to get the hang of) it is great because you can go from top down to directly behind a unit(YA is does look sick). The multiplayer is very easy to start and to get playing in games. I love this game, but my opinion doesn't matter unless you want a good one so but the game. Right now dont wait if you do your only hurting yourself, see I dont care if you buy the game but you should. Oh ya and if you need any help my email is spencer@joesmail.com and my screen name on the game is Joe Grady. Hope to see you there.

Gorgeous & stately, not fast paced

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: July 13, 2000
Author: Amazon User

There's probably a strategy game for every type of gamer, and as gaming guide for BellaOnline, I've seen quite a few. Dark Reign 2 is gorgeous, and is for the thinking strategist.

The game sets the forces of the JDA against the Sprawlers. Each side has similar units - 'guardians' and 'rumblers' as ground units, trikes, tanks, medics, you name it. The uniqueness for this game isn't in its basic makeup or the thought behind it - strategy games by their nature share a basic manner of working. What really makes the game stand out is its design, and its graphics.

Instead of the old pixel-based systems, where graphics were drawn dot by dot (and therefore looked very fuzzy on high quality monitors), newer games are done with actual objects being drawn. Dungeon Keeper 2 is an example of this. With an object having sides and textures and angles, it will look crisp no matter how high you resolve the screen. Also, objects of this type can easily be modified to react to game events.

Meaning ... you can blow craters in the ground! You can climb up gorgeously rendered mountains, with slight crevices for you to fit through. Your units range themselves along hilltops to fire down at fortifications. The snow falls as your troops sneak along a treeline, concealing themselves within its branches.

What a treat to watch and play!

The general layout for the interface is well done - you probably can't go too wrong with this after all of these years of strategy games. People have pretty much figured out what works and what doesn't work. However, how many strategy games let you zoom in and out and around as much as you wish with the observer camera? Your map shows the general location of troops and bases, and within that map you have complete control of your camera - zoom in close to the action, from floor level. Look high overhead a full assault. Follow along behind your troops as if you were really there!

What general could ask for more - a way to coordinate large groups of troops easily, plus the ability to see the action from a soldier's point of view. It's great!

The sound and day-night cycles are equally as good. The personality of the troops is well done - the Go Go trikes call out, "Yeah, Baby!" when you give them orders, and you're alerted when "The Sun emerges from its sleeping place." The cut scenes help build the atmosphere and get you involved in the various plots going on. This isn't just about killing off the enemy. It's about preserving your way of life, and discovering what has been hidden.

I agree that for the Command & Conquer-style action lover, the excitement simply isn't there. Units chug along. Units get stuck on each other. The pace is much slower, more like chess than a battle scene from "Ran".

I definitely enjoy this game not only as a great game in its own right, but also a good indicator of what strategy games to come will look like, as machine speeds catch up to the ingenuity and creativity of modern day game designers. With the bar raised on display, perhaps all styles of strategy game will shortly look this gorgeous.

SP look elsewhere -- MP read on

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 6
Date: August 06, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Matt Dunphy and the amazon.com reviewer obviously don't play online multiplayer games (nor do they understand the RTS genre very well). For an RTS game, DR is very good at the one thing online gamers care about -- online multiplayer. The single player missions are terrible -- if you want single player, stick with Starcraft and you'll be pleased. If nothing less than fluid online games of 3 v 3 will keep you happy bring on DR2. The balance is good (too early to say great) and the net code is very solid. Games involving over 10 people are anything but rare on WON.net. Lots of customization for community made maps and "mods." Not the fastest paced RTS around, but definitely faster than Total Annihilation and Tiberium Sun -- on par with Starcraft.

Bottom line -- its a good buy for now and could be the last solid RTS game for a long time. Much better than Earth 2150. Ground control is a different game (real time tactical rather than strategy), but is a better choice if you enjoyed Myth more than Starcraft. My $.02

Almost a classic...but still a good game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: July 17, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Let me start by saying that Dark Reign 2 isn't the only 3D-RTS game out there. There are at least two others - Ground Control and Earth 2150. Both games are getting good reviews, and it looks increasingly as though Dark Reign 2 is the going to be the only 3D-RTS to get some very bad reviews. Why? Part of that is due to bad timing, since Ground Control and Earth 2150 were released first. The other reason is because there are deficencies in gameplay that should've been corrected before they were released.

This game was made by Pandemic, the same people that created Battlezone 2 (BZ2). This was a game that was prone to crashes (especially on NVIDIA videocards) and was infested with all manner of game-crashing bugs. Basically, BZ2 was a game that could've been a classic if it hadn't been for those horrible bugs.

Fortunately, Pandemic have obviously learned from their mistakes. Dark Reign 2 isn't the crash-prone mess that BZ2 was. In fact, it's the only 3D-accelerated game that can be played straight out of the box - no patches required. So the extra months of quality testing were definitely worthwhile.

However, Dark Reign 2 does fall down in one important area - gameplay. The developers have obviously put a lot of effort into the appearance of the game, but failed to pay attention to gameplay. For instance, many of the missions require your units to navigate narrow valleys, and the pathfinding AI isn't up to the challenge. It's ridiculous seeing a squad of scorpion tanks jostle for position in a narrow valley. The poor pathfinding AI really shows in the last two missions, which take place in a large (and very beautiful looking city). I had to bring a scaver (which is a repair bot) to a particular location. Instead of making a beeline for that location, the unit careered over the entire map...and then got blown up by enemy units.

The other deficiency is in the very short single player campaign. The Sprawler campaign only has ten missions, whereas most strategy games give each side at least 15 missions. I suspect that either Pandemic is relying on players to create their own missions, or they're going to release an expansion pack. Nevertheless, that's no excuse for creating such a short single player game.

And finally, my least favourite aspect of Dark Reign 2 is, oddly enough...the graphics. This is purely a matter of personal taste. I've noticed that Pandemic give their objects a rounded soft-focus look that I'm not too comfortable with. I've never really liked the polygonal look of most objects in 3D-accelerated games...even Quake 3 has the same appearance (curved surfaces notwithstanding).

Let's not forget that DR2 is still a real-time strategy (RTS) game. And there are plenty of classic RTS's that it will be compared to. The original Dark Reign is an obvious choice. So is the now-classic Starcraft, which is the true benchmark that any Science-fiction RTS must aspire to. Starcraft had an excellent storyline, but the unit control was too primitive. Dark Reign 2 has the opposite problem - a poorly thought out single-player storyline but excellent unit controls.

In conclusion, Dark Reign 2 could've been a classic. It's the only game I've bought in the past two years that can be played straight-out-of-the-box, which even Diablo 2 can't lay claim to. And it has an excellent graphics engine. But it's the pathfinding AI and the too-brief single player game that really lets it down. Dark Reign 2 is, unfortunately, no Starcraft. But that shouldn't stop PC gamers from giving this one a fair go.

Unit Bloches, Gameplay Ups, SP Downs, MP Good

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 3
Date: December 18, 2000
Author: Amazon User

Dark Reign 2 is awesome game. They have really outdone (and sucked) at this game.

Pros: This game has a brand new engine, which can run as smooth as an Unreal Engine on one of those new Gigahertz PCs...Units are detailed up close and still appear detailed from far away (but aren't...nice) Units are well balenced. JDA has the Guns, Sprawl has the Defensive. Also, nice Map Studio.

Cons: Use of Formations. They suck. You get 4 Formations, which they take 4 Minutes to get in a 5x5 Box Formation. Even after that, they are still not in full formation! NEED FIX! Group Ops. If you move someone in the middle of a group, they won't get out for 5 minutes. Units Slows. These units are super slow. On SP, there is in the readme a 'speed up' command. It hardly works. It speed my Guardians, to get from the bottom of the map to the top of the map, from taking 5 minutes, to taking 4 1/2 Minutes.

Buy/Rent: BUY! You can't do everything in 3 days.

As good as I remember it

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: October 02, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I had played this game years ago when it first came out, but since had moved and lost my CD. For a while now I had the urge to play again. There are not many games out there that allow such a simple thing as building fences or walls around your base, yet that is the main reason I fall back to this game from time to time.

Review Page: 1 2 Next 

Actions