System Requirements

OS: Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows ME CPU: 466mhz AMD/Intel processor RAM: 96 MB (64MB recommended) HDD: 150 MB VIDEO: 32MB DirectX compatible graphics card SOUND: DirectX compatible sound card Age: Teen

This is a war strategy game similar to Command and Conquer except there\'s a catch. It\'s pigs vs. rabbits. It\'s a funny and original idea. They both have unique accents and humorous quotes like \'I love the smell of bacon in the morning.\' S.W.I.N.E is a little different than other strategy games by its resource management. Units are assigned at the start of each mission but you can purchase or sell additional units, resources and special capabilities for them. You can also purchase additional units during each mission if you have sufficient Strategy Points (SP). You can repair, re-supply and refuel your units if you have the appropriate resource trailers. The resources trailers are an important element of the tactical and strategic elements of the game so use them effectively. You can also take units with you to later missions.

Here\'s the story for the demo. This is actually the forth mission from the rabbit campaign in the full game. On August 3, under the orders of General Iron Tusk, the NATIONAL ARMY OF PIGS crossed the border without warning and penetrated deep into Carrotland territory. Within two weeks, they\'d burned everything to the ground and laid siege to the capital city. As a result of the surprise attack, the rabbit army was decimated. Towns and villages are deserted. The defense\'s determined efforts were not met with much success, and the severely weakened rabbit army were not able to stem the hordes of swine. In desperation, the government and the staff of generals reach the following decision: Because of the overwhelming might of Iron Tusk\'s war machine, success via a frontal attack will be impossible. The rabbits will have to resort to subterfuge to have any chance of success. From the remains of their reserves, the rabbits create a powerful fighting force. Without suffering too many losses, this force must harass and stage skirmishes against the enemy until they lose all their supply lines and military objectives. Now, all that remains is to find a capable officer who can lead this operation.

You have to use your resources and terrain wisely. Each side gets fifteen vehicles with many special abilities . For example some can lay mines, tow trailers, go in water, call air strikes, or go underground adding more armor etc. You also have the fog of war effect, you may not always see the enemy right away so stay on guard. Get to know the terrain because you can also use mountains, valleys etc. for cover. The demo is both fun and challenging (that rabbit mission is hard!) You can only play the rabbit campaign. The full version offers both pig and rabbit campaigns as well as multiplayer play. There are twenty two missions total, twelve missions in the Rabbit campaign and ten missions in the Pig campaign. You get to choose from three difficulty settings easy, medium and hard. There are four game play modes and ten maps for online or LAN multiplayer games.

From a Christian perspective there are a couple things to mention. This a war game so there is violence. No blood or gore though. Also, in the intro movie one of the pigs is peeing on a skull. You don\'t see anything but, it\'s up to you if you want your kids to see that. The game was easy to install, it uses your typical install shield. The graphics were good, it has awesome map textures. Very detailed terrain and the water effects were excellent! It has good sound effects and music. Very funny sayings from all the characters. For controls you can use keyboard commands and/or a mouse. You use mostly the mouse though, it\'s very easy to maneuver. The game ran very stable, no lock ups at all. It is a little slow when you end missions, other than that it ran fine. Overall a cute strategy game for $20.

Final Ratings

Graphics A Game play B+ Sound A Interface A Stability B Offensive Content B-

Overall B+