Wild Wild West
Published By: SouthPeak
Reviewed By Circe & Doctor K
9/8/99

Article Discussion Forum

Doctor K and I were invited over to SouthPeak within the cool pine tree laden forest of the SAS campus for an exclusive preview of the upcoming game Wild Wild West slated for November 1999 release. I had driven by the campus before several times but had never been inside the "hallowed" facilities themselves. You see, Southpeak Interactive is a mecca for game developers in this part of the land. Sound editors, graphics designers and animators, and game engine programmers all dream and drool at the prospect of using one of the largest studios on the East Coast.

We met our contact Bob Chase who whisked us around the building, graciously giving us a tour of the extensive $16 million facilities. We walked past a myriad of editing studios with humming machines stacked from floor to ceiling. We walked (quietly) into a 4500 square foot sound stage where they were filming a multimedia software title about Ellis Island. Our guide told us that many of SouthPeak's products have been created in association with major entertainment companies including the History Channel, Sony Signatures, The Sundance Institute , and Warner Bros Interactive Entertainment. Their software titles include family entertainment, games, creativity software and reference/utility titles such as "The Civil War", "Body Voyage", and "Library of Congress: Eyes of the Nation". (NOTE: We will be reviewing these titles in our upcoming FamilyZone section of the website.)

After our tour, we went a met with the Game Producer for the game Wild Wild West who was as excited about the game as a kid is about a new toy. SouthPeak Interactive is publishing separate PC and Playstation games based on Wild Wild West-The Movie. He told us that in the game, players will embark on missions as James T. West and Artemus Gordon as they battle the conspirators behind the Lincoln assassination who plan to murder another U.S. president, Ulysses S. Grant. Southpeak has licensed the high-quality orchestral music from the movie which greets you as soon as you pop in the game to begin playing.

Gameplay
What I thought was the most interesting thing about the game was the Action/Adventure Options that were included for those who are more of an adventure gamer rather than an action gamer or vice versa. Wild Wild West has elements of both Action and Adventure games. There are puzzles and character questioning as you would find in adventure games as well as 1st person shooters like one would find in an action game. The game options allow one to toggle one's preferences for either game element. For example, one who prefers the puzzles to the shooting can toggle the action setting to low and the Adventure setting to high.

Even the 1st person shooter part of the game forced one to really think about how to outwit one's opponent. "Instead of just pointing and shooting at the enemy you have to take in your surroundings," the producer said. "Ask yourself if you can you shoot the pole holding up those wooden barrels and have them roll over the enemy."

We were both introduced to the game's antagonist whom I shall not say any more about since it would spoil the mystery for you Wild-Westers-to-be out there. Let's just say that there will soon be a new addition to the Digital Women section.

We were told that in the final climactic assassination scene the player plays *both* Artemis and Jim West at the same time. "It really builds up the anticipation at the end", the producer said, with a sparkle in his eye and a big grin on his face. "I can't wait to see it", I said smiling back at him. And I mean it.