Last time I had freed the island of Lobos...in a simulation. Something that makes this entry less interesting. On the other hand, I beat that partially by taking advantage of equipment given to me by the game. Since my mode of transportation should be the same I can not make the same mistakes I did last time. There's another small problem, I've got to start a campaign, which apparently takes a fresh floppy, something I have no experience doing in an Amiga...or much of anything. This turns out to be less difficult than I give it, and soon enough I start the imaginatively named Operation Eden. I say less difficult, but naturally the game doesn't wish to cooperate. If I didn't pick out the right floppy going into the screen, I'm screwed over and have to reset. And while I possess the means to create a blank disk, I don't have the means to format it. Back...to DOS...
I'm starting to understand why this game is so unloved, considering how difficult it is to start a proper campaign in Amiga and how crap the DOS version is in comparison. At least loading times should be shorter. Oh...god, does this mean I can't just quit in the middle of a mission? Oh, if it does we'll be ending this play session right here. Right, Lobos, I know the story, and so should you.
Because I know what I'm doing, I'm heading straight for the mountain region, hopefully to knock off some enemies. As I advance more and more, I begin to wonder where the enemies are. I check my map and when I return I remember why I stopped playing the DOS version. Awful static. But at least I know where I should be looking.
The one leader of an enemy squadron I know of quickly loses his two helicopters, but enemy balloons and biplanes join the fray. As my ammo runs low, I jump from copter to another copter, then finally a plane. And let me tell you, flying a plane in this game is terrifying. I jump into a jeep at the first opportunity I get. Hopefully I can drive off the enemy planes with this. I also suspect the static issue is something in the music failing to turn off as modes are changed. This is basically confirmed as I start up autoroute.
So I handle the talking as I did the first time. My contact takes me to his master/serial killer, who takes me to the resistance fighter, who tells me of the secret base and takes me to the island's nurse. Here's where things change up a little. When I'm at the nurse's little island, the name of the island I'm on changes as do my objectives. Interesting. I guess this means I can actually hop islands? No matter, the nurse heals me and tells me of enemies nearby. I think its a target at this time, but I can't actually check.
Anyway, I just swim back. Its not that hard. I can rest up to full health while swimming. However, going full speed tires my guy out real fast. So it takes most of the night to reach the "mainland". Upon which I encounter hovercrafts. Sure would have been nice if you boys were out last night. Anyway, I grab one and start blasting. Now, despite my enjoyment of all this combat so far, I need to figure out where the other two objectives are and I don't have a boat or sub. I don't know if hovercrafts will give me scuba suits when I leave them.
What continues is mostly uninteresting. My autoroute is interrupted twice, once by a need to rest, and the second by some trucks. With those, and a rearming out of the way, I meet the farmhand my contact knows. Unfortunately, this guy needs persuading. Fortunately, he tells me of a traitor. Knowing me, I'll mess up somehow and end up talking to her. He also tells me of someone he knows, someone I remember screwing me over last time. Oh, well. Not everything can work out to my favor.
At this point, I saved and quit. Despite what this seemingly irrelevant act seems like, it is important. Saving going wrong would just be another headache, but fortunately it goes well. I go back to a town I passed on my way down, whereupon I succeed in getting someone to tell me about the people she knows. A very helpful act, but I am no closer to my objectives. I return to my previous plan, but encounter some enemy troops on the way. Bringing me to the street musician. She just offers me more information, the location of a belly dancer and a teacher. Something tells me this tangled web of thieves, whores and farmhands will give me little practical information. I guess I have to bite a bullet and get something out at sea.
One contact is near the sea, the side I think I need to be on, anyway. The lovely person stabs me in the back. I think so anyway. When I check my pictures later, oh, this was the traitor. I thought my pilot friend blew up the resistance center? After a couple of days, I break out. Leaving me on the northern side of the island with no weapons and more importantly, no transport. Transport shows itself soon enough, but I still have no weapons, and no way of traveling on the sea. And this transport isn't even moving anyhow. Time to start swimming.
My efforts pay off. I quickly get on a boat and shoot other boats. Submarines appear and I can even capture them from the boat. Unfortunately, subs are still easy to destroy deathtraps. Eventually I secure myself one, save from the prying hands of the enemy. And I begin to destroy underwater buildings. There are a ton of them. Well, two. This is going to take a while, isn't it?
This Session: 2 hours
Total Time: 9 hours
No comments:
Post a Comment