It is up to you to piece together select bits of the meta-intrigue and prevent a murder.

If you've never tried a PC pinball game before, or if your PC isn't up to the chore of handling higher-end sims like Hyper 3-D Pinball, then Total Pinball 3D might be just the ticket to get you started with the genre.

Tracer is definitely a game to pick up if you thrive on planning your moves well in advance and don't mind the pressure of something creeping along after you.

Rage through 32 single player levels and 6 deathmatch levels of sheer terror and fully immersive sound and lighting. Arm yourself against the cannibalistic Ogre, fiendish Vore and indestructible Schambler using letal nails, fierce Thunderbolts and abominable Rocket and Grenade Launchers. [id Software]

Longbow is a fabulous piece of work, full of attention to detail and countless features. No serious sim fan with the right hardware should miss it.

Good graphics, a good interface, and gameplay that keeps you coming back for more are this product's strengths.

While the Battleground series has always featured solid gameplay, this new title adds a grace of play and significant style to the table as well.

Chronicles of the Sword takes a classic approach to a classic story—and manages to accomplish very little in the process.

The final chapter in the legendary Doom series. This is it. The end. The end of the undead Marines, the acid-drenched hallways and hell-spawned hordes. Its 2 new, 32-level episodes (complete with new stories, The Plutonia Experiment and Evilution) let you finish what you started. Final Doom. End of story. -Frighteningly realistic graphics, spectacular lighting effects and a pulse-pounding score. -More chain gun zombies, revenants, hell knights and cyber-demons than any other DOOM in history. -Over 64 new finger-twitching levels to play, including the foul recesses of hell, Egyptian ruins and UAC bases.

This game is no Galaga, but it was enjoyable to say the least.

As the old saying goes, as a PC game, this makes a great console game.

The laundry hasn't been done, the bills haven't been paid, and it's all because of this terribly engrossing game.

While the realistic driving model is unquestionably IndyCar II's greatest strength, it is, at the same time, the game's greatest weakness.

The sweat that the first Lemmings produced on your brow may not be there, but die-hard Lemmings fanatics may still get a kick out of this new edition.

Micro Machines 2 hearkens back to a kinder, gentler era of electronic entertainment.

This bizarre new title pits alien against alien in a contest where the extra-terrestrial with the greatest understanding of frivolous earthling knowledge will win the right to call Earth home.

Sierra has taken a basic, turn-based strategy game, added some beautiful graphics, fantastic sound, and great network play, and set it into their expansive Earthsiege universe.

Ocean of America's Sea Legends has painstakingly reproduced almost all the elements that made Pirates! so popular, and injected just enough new material to qualify it as a unique experience.

Strife mixes elements of stealthy espionage with ever-satisfying bloodletting to serve up one of the tastiest concoctions in the 3-D shooter market.

The War College attempts to provide the wargame fan with a system that can recreate the greatest battles in history—a good idea, but it needs more work.

Wizardry Gold takes the classic story line from Wizardry VII and "enhances" it with all new graphics, sounds, and interface.

Return to the apocalyptic world of the post-nuclear future...But this time you won't be going in alone. Now you can join in and kill everything and everyone in the ultimate multiplayer death match over LAN or the Internet. Leap across rooftops to lie in wait, ambush from the rear in your captured jeep, or attack from the sky in an HK fighter! SkyNET -- No limits! As a member of the Resistance movement, you are sent on a reconnaissance mission to infiltrate a special robot complex. What you find there leads you on a break neck series of missions, each one more critical and deadly than the last. SkyNET gives you the best of bother worlds; intense single player solo missions that push your skills to the edge and the most explosive multiplayer combat ever created!

News flash: The PC version of Battle Arena Toshinden isn't as good as the PlayStation version.

A repressive government regime has enacted city-wide bans on all vices - alcohol, cigarettes, sexual expression, music, dancing... just about everything worth living for. Enter Chaos Overlords, criminal masterminds who have exploited citizen resentment to overthrow governmental authority and establish a reign of terror. As one of the elite Overlords, your goal is to outsmart your rivals, spread your influence, and make a power grab for ultimate control of the city. Mercenary gangs such as the "Suicide Squad" and "Pain, Inc." are your chief tools of conquest. [HotGames]

Gamers new to fantasy adventuring will be disappointed by the graphics and playability, and hard-core role-players will be quickly frustrated by this game's inherent limitations.

The combination of wacky sound effects and silly character renderings harksback to the twisted trailers of Tex Avery.

If you were a big fan of the early eighties Nintendo adventure games, check this one out.

Allow Rayman to take you on an unbelievable adventure through cartoon-like landscapes packed with goofball characters and absurd opponents. As you enter this blissful, action-packed world, strange phenomena begin to occur and suddenly reality seems far too lame. Take a thrilling trip into this fantasy game and help Rayman rescue the Electoons to re-establish order in his world - if you can.

The acting isn't Oscar-quality, and it's got a few rough spots around the edges, but if nothing else, The Dame Was Loaded proves that a game can be built around full-motion video and still be fully interactive

The fortunes of Tony La Russa may have taken a turn for the worse (hello, St. Louis), but each installment of his namesake game just keeps getting better.

If you're not careful, a game like Total Mayhem might just make somebody use some of that grey matter.

Argos Gamesware's Ungaria doesn't really possess any of that nail-biting intensity that its puzzle-game ancestors had.

Even the most jaded Orc or Human will be challenged by the new scenarios.

Arthur's Reading Race centers around everyone's favorite Aardvark. Arthur is trying to teach his little sister, D.W, to read. However, she insists that she already knows how! After a heated conversation, Arthur challenges D.W to read ten different words with a promised reward of ice cream! Will D.W be able to read all ten words for the ultimate reward? Since it's first release in 1997, Living Books' rendition of "Arthur's Reading Race" has been enjoyed by countless children. Step-by-step, the reader will find the story is full of surprising encounters with many of their favorite Arthur storybook characters, providing new ways to interact with the book again and again.

The best fighters from around the universe battle in the ultimate tournament. Each win allows you to advance to the next round. Lose, and your homeworld is destroyed. Survival is your only option. Flesh ripping, blood sucking, claw slashing, tail whipping, karate kicking, fist ramming, body slamming, blood spurting action Need we say more? Rip your friends apart with 2-player head-to-head action at the same computer. By far, the largest, most detailed foes ever seen in a fighting game on the PC. Exotic characters up to 3/4 of the screen's height. Innovative screen panning, zooming, real-time scaling, shadows and special FX, like those only seen in the arcade. Eight blood thirsty characters, two bone crushing champions and a nasty surprise that you will never be able to forget. Special never-before-seen moves, concussion causing combos, resurrections, & humiliations. Customize your matches with several different options including fighter quickness, auto-blocking on/off, special moves toggle, and a dozen more. Spine tingling music by Bobby Prince (famous for Duke Nukem 3D and DOOM), with heart stopping sound and voice effects. Enjoy three different modes of play: Story Mode, Free Play Mode, or brush up on your skills in Training Mode.

Interplay has managed to combine top-notch graphics, sound, and gameplay with a detailed historical framework to create a title that is both addictive and entertaining.

It's important to understand that The Covert Operations is not a sequel to Command & Conquer, but merely a rehash of it.

The puzzles in Bolo Adventures III are the most difficult yet! Once again Mr. Bolo uses balls, water, ramps and more... to figure out how to exit each room. Packed with features and all the solutions, this one's a real brain twister! Are you up to the challenge?

For nostalgia buffs, these old games are worth your time and money, though you will miss the feel of the arcade controller.

Advanced Tactical Fighters is Electronic Arts' follow-up to U.S.Navy Fighters,and shares all of that game's strengths and weaknesses.

Stylish, cinematic and creepily atmospheric, D would be a good example to show your friends of what 3-D graphics animators can do on the computer these days.

The Heretic chapter comes to its evil conclusion with Shadow of the Serpent Riders. In a twisted medieval dimension, undead creatures and bestial horrors have done the unthinkable-callously slaughtering your entire race. Your friends. You family. Eliminated. But the nightmare has just begun. Wielding ungodly weapons such as the Firemace or Hellstaff and casting spells from the Tomes of Power, you must seek your vengeance. Or die trying.

Savage simply doesn't cut it as a game.

If you're looking to play this classic style of billiards on your PC, Virtual Snooker's the only game in town.

For the most part, VR Soccer has the style and assurance of the most poised of rookies, showing that the VR Sports lineup may soon be an all-star force in the world of video sports.

I thought Bridge Deluxe II would be a great way to start learning bridge. It's not.

He may have been unconscious for three years, but Zak has not lost a step.

For a game to be fun, there needs be a reasonable mix of challenge and reward -- and aside from the minute chance of winning a million bucks, Treasure Quest doesn't offer enough of the latter.

Exile II: Crystal Souls is the sequel to the shareware hit Exile: Escape From the Pit. Several years have passed since the events in the first game. Now, the Empire, the cruel monolithic nation ruling the surface world, has realized that Exile, the nation they created, has become highly dangerous. Their troops are now being teleported into Exile in great numbers, overwhelming the defenses of the beleagured souls below. There is hope, though. It comes in the form of a new, bizarre race of creatures, who live in the deepest of the caves. Will you be able to summon aid to your cause, before every last soul in your homeland is wiped out?

Cybrid HERCs, created by man to do men's bidding, turned on their creators and initiated a 20-year guerrilla battle for control of the earth and its distant colonies. Now they've assembled in massive numbers, preparing for a final assault on earth. For them it is victory or death, and death has little meaning to a machine.

If you aren't afraid of the dark, you should be! Can you handle the mind-blasting rush into all-new 360-degree 3D worlds of darkness?? The sequel to the mind-blowing original is here! New features make Descent II the most challenging game yet! In the full version of D2, you'll experience: Guide-Bot - Your own handy side-kick. Thief-Bot - Steals weapons and power-ups from your ship. Headlights you can turn on and off. Afterburners to increase your speed. Missile Cam and Guide-Bot Cam. Enhanced lighting. Flowing water and lava. Helix Cannon, Phoenix Cannon, Smart Mines. Energy to Shield converter. New network play features. More complex levels. Hidden doors and rooms. [Interplay]

In one swift stroke, Crack dot Com's debut game, Abuse, has changed side-scrolling platform shooters forever, and all because of this game's superior control.

Roger was about to do something bad. Unfortunately, he can't remember what it was because he has been transformed into a cockroach. In this Kafkaesque graphic adventure game, Roger (you) must scurry through the walls of a run down San Fransisco bar trying to restore his memory and his human form while avoiding spiders, a roach eating cat, and other creatures that live in the bar.

A racing sim it's not, but arcade fans should get a real kick out of it.

Chronomaster is filled with incredibly beautiful scenes, and boasts music and sound effects strong enough to back them up.

An empire-building turn-based strategy game. The game starts at the Old Stone Age in 4000 BC. Your tribe begins with a Settlers unit and has no knowledge about the surrounding area. As you found new cities and explore the surroundings, you may find hostile barbarians, villages, and other competing cultures. [Civ Fantatics' Center]

In a racing title, replayability and precision control are the name of the game, and the lack of both keep Extreme Games from finishing in the winner's circle.

Fantasy General is little more than Panzer General in a new box with some Dungeons and Drag... err… fantasy units in place of the tanks.

Grand Prix Manager gives you the opportunity to live the exciting life of the GP circuit in the comfort of your own home

The cast of Take 2 Interactive's Ripper is studded with tarnished stars, and this most recent vehicle contributes to the oxidization process.

If you're looking for an expensive screensaver, this is the title for you.

Randomly generated campaign missions, realistic settings that have you swearing at your crew, and sounds that place you IN a submarine are the great strengths that set Silent Hunter apart from its competition.

Silent Thunder is a wicked, clean, no-B.S. combat sim with enough options and realism to hold the serious gamer's interest.

This is not a game whose video segments are mere story-props that leave theplayer behind, but one designed to keep the player actively involved.

A powerful plasma storm has rocked Deep Space Nine and a Federation officer has been murdered. An omen of the chaos to unfold in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Harbringer. You are a Tirrion envoy of the elite Federation Diplomatic Corps. Joining forces with the crew of Deep Space Nine, you battle deadly unmanned drones. Track down the space station murderer and match strategies with an aggressive alien race. All in a struggle to save a Federation planet from annilihation... and prevent the Deep Space Nine space station from suffering the same fate! May the prophets walk with you. You're going to need them!

A breakthrough in outdoor 3-D action sims, Terra Nova gives mech games and flight sims something to aspire to.

Rise & Rule does a fantastic job of making players feel like they belong to their selected culture.

While Zork Nemesis may be too graphic and intense for children, adults who loved Myst or Phantasmagoria will find a lot to like about this CD-ROM.

Fable is an earnest but uneven effort.

This new racing sim from Interplay sets itself apart from the pack with tracks that hearken back to slot-car racing, featuring highly adept opponents, and competitive multi-player action.

Take off... Take aim... Take 'em out. Now that the bloody battle between the Kilrathi and Terrans has been concluded, the Confederation doesn't have to look very far for its next adversary. You - as the Colonel - will be personally vaporizing the bad guys. ORIGIN has woven guts-and-glory front line fighting with a star-studded cinematic plotline. It will take a quick mind and quicker reflexes to save the Confederation from its most insidious enemy to date. *3 flight modes for both novice and advanced players *Virtual physics with an ultra-realistic "feel" to flying *Sony dual analog and digital joystick support *Choose your own destiny - compassionate hero or merciless avenger? *5 different control layouts *Complexly woven story featuring old friends and new comrades *Top quality movies with Dolby Surround sound *Stunning sci-fi special effects *Ensemble cast of favorites, including Col, Blair, Maniac, Paladin and Tolwyn

The gameplay is surprisingly addictive when compared to other games of this genre, and should appeal to both wargamers and non-wargamers alike.