_{Cover of the July 1999 issue of PC Zone}

PC Zone has the distinction of being the first purely PC games magazine published in the U.K. It was published from 1993 until 2010. In 1999, when this issue was published, though Windows 98 was the common OS, it was still DOS based and most games were as well. The July 199 issue includes:

Previews

• System Shock 2 - Classed as an RPG here, I always thought of it as a first person shooter with some RPG elements. In any case, definitely an underrated game.


• Diablo II - One of the most successful games of all time, this isometric action adventure game has virtually unlimited replayability.


• Carmageddon: The Death Race 2000 - The third game in the Carmageddon series.


• Cutthroats - A real-time strategy game featuring pirates.


• Star Trek: New Worlds - A Star Trek: The Next Generation era real-time strategy game.


• FA Premier League Stars - A soccer game by EA Sports.

_{Table of Contents from the July 1999 issue of PC Zone}

Reviews

• New Games
• Total Annihilation: Kingdoms - This highly reviewed fantasy themed real-time strategy game required a Pentium 200 MMX and 32 MB of RAM. Recommended was a Pentium II 333 and 64 MB of RAM.


• Tanktics - An odd but humorous strategy game featuring "tanks". This one requires a Pentium 166 and 16 MB of RAM.


• Mechwarrior 3 - I always had a blast with the Mechwarrior games though I think I mostly played the second one. This one requires a Pentium 166 and 32 MB of RAM. Recommended is a Pentium II 266, 64 MB of RAM and a 3D card.


• Breakneck - A racing game that's fairly highly reviewed here. Requirements are a Pentium 166 and 32 MB of RAM.


• Malkari - I don't remember this one but it looks interesting. It is a strategy game set in space that can support up to 40 players in multiplayer mode. It requires a Pentium 90 with 16 MB of RAM. Recommended is a Pentium 166 with 32 MB.
• Star Trek: Birth of the Federation - A real-time strategy game with a Star Trek theme. This one requires a Pentium 133 with 16 MB of RAM with a Pentium 166 and 32 MB recommended.


• Cricket World Cup 99 - What sport doesn't EA do? This one requires a Pentium 166 with 32 MB.


• Jack Nicklaus 6: Golden Bear Challenge - A golf game from Activision that gets a good review here. A Pentium 166 and 32 MB is required but Pentium 200 and even more memory is recommended.


• Blood II: The Nightmare Levels - A rather mediocre expansion to the FPS Blood II. A Pentium 166 with a 3D accelerator and 32 MB is required. Or a Pentium 233 with no 3D accelerator.


• Pro 18: World Tour Golf - A golf game from Psygnosis that gets a much lower review score than the Jack Nicklaus game above. A Pentium 166 with 32 MB is required.


• Tunguska: Legend of Faith - A mediocre 3D adventure game requiring a Pentium 133 and 32 MB
• Budget Reviews
• Championship Manager 2 - Classic football (soccer) management game. Requires a Pentium 90 with 16 MB.


• Worms 2 - I played the Worms games on the Dreamcast but on any platform they are outstanding. What's not to love about a turn based strategy game featuring worms blowing each other to bits? Requires a Pentium 75 and 16 MB.


• Toonstruck - A decent graphical adventure game that is somewhat similar to the Monkey Island series. Requires a 486/66 and 8 MB.


• Screamer Rally - A slightly older (at the time) but still decent racing game. Requires a Pentium 100 and 16 MB and a 3Dfx card is recommended.


• Postal - Controversial at the time it was released, this violent action game turns out to be pretty terrible anyway. It requires a Pentium 90 and 16 MB.


• Red Baron II - A World War I fighter sim that holds up well. It requires a Pentium 133 and 16 MB with a Pentium 166 recommended.
• Supertest
• Football Management Games - A comparison of various soccer games including Championship Manager 3, FA premier League Football Manager 99, Football World Manager, Premier Manager Ninety Nine, and Sensible World of Soccer 96/97.


• Readers' Reviews
• Feedback - Readers' comments on Championship Manager 3, Warzone 2100, Dune 2000, Alpha Centauri, X-Wing Alliance, Turok 2: Seeds of Evil, NHL 99, Test Drive 5, Thief: The Dark Project and more.

_{Table of Contents from the July 1999 issue of PC Zone (continued)}

Bulletin

• Bulletin - News this month includes Lucas Arts announcing a sequel to Dark Forces II, an announcement of Civilization III, four new Star Trek games, the first mission pack for Half-Life, Grand Theft Auto 2 and more.


• The PC Zone Charts - Top games this month include Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast, X-Wing Alliance, Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri and more.


• UK Games Championships - This competition features Unreal, Age of Empires, Total Annihilation, Quake II, Motocross Madness, Need for Speed III, Actua Soccer 3, and Jimmy White's 2: Cueball. The computers used in the competition featured AMD's K6-III processors with 3DNow!


• Tech-Head - Microsoft plans to standardize PC gaming labeling, Intel hold "PC fashion show", Sinclair rumored to be releasing a new Linux powered computer and more.

Features

• Obsessed with Carmageddon - One man's obsession with Carmageddon...


• Fighting Fantasy - An argument for fewer futuristic and fantasy based games and for more "realistic" games.

Regulars

• Mailbox - Letters from readers this month feature a defense of the PlayStation, the advantage of computer fairs, comments about a previous article titles "How To Get Your Girlfriend Interested In Games" and more.


• Hardware Zone - A review of the 3Dfx Voodoo3 2000 and Voodoo3 3000 2D/3D graphics cards. Both feature 16MB. The 2000 comes in PCI and AGP versions while the 3000 is AGP only. The Voodoo3 2000 runs at 143 MHz while the 3000 runs at 166MHz. There are also some preview of upcoming cards including those featuring the Matrox G400, S3 Savage 4 and Riva TNT2.


• What's On Your Hard Drive? - PC Zone asks random people what they are playing now. Baldur's Gate, Resident Evil 2, Duke Nukem 3D, X-Wing Alliance, Rogue Squadron, Tomb Raider III, and NASCAR Racing are just a few of the games mentioned.

Troubleshooter

• Cheatmaster - Cheats for Alpha Centauri, TOCA 2, Grand Theft Auto London 1969, Heroes of Might & Magic 3, South Park, Roller Coaster Tycoon, Beavis & Butt-Head Do U and more.


• How To...Play Games Online - Part two of a guide to playing online games. It includes hints like restarting your PC before starting an online gaming session, tips for specific games like a configuration to reduce ping times for Half-Life, how to find the fastest servers, and more.


• Civilization: Call to Power - A strategy guide on how to build your civilization starting at the beginning.

End Zone

• Extended Play - Expansions an other things to extend the life of various games, all found on the cover CD. Included are maps, factions, and other tools for Alpha Centauri; updated (and apparently very difficult) missions for Commandos, and various editors and patches for Championship Manager 3.


• The World According to... - Bruce Shelley, the man behind Age of Empires, talks about the future of PC gaming.

_{Back cover of the July 1999 issue of PC Zone}

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