Tom's Pick: Enemy Engaged: Comanche vs. Hokum
 If
it takes the death of flight sims to bring out a game like this
one, I say let's kill more genres. Enemy Engaged has it all, which
is no surprise considering some of its developers go all the way
back to Digital Integration's revered Tornado. Here you'll find
detailed, sharp, clear graphics. There is a fistful of dynamic campaigns
bustling with activity and options that can be played from either
side. You can even just let it run and watch it like a modern war
movie. Perhaps most importantly Enemy Engaged hovers delicately
over that fine line between realism and playability. It may not
have the meticulous avionics of Falcon 4.0 or Longbow 2, but you'll
hardly notice. Oh, I suppose I should point out that it's not built
for accessibility. This is a game for people who are a) serious
about their sims or b) curious about serious sims.
Mark's Pick: Baldur's Gate II
 Ok,
this game places highly on sheer weight in many ways. It’s
a bit like the 280 fatty beating out the 175 skinny for the starting
left tackle position. It’s just bringing quite a bit more to
bear at the point of attack. It’s pretty amazing nonetheless,
and sometimes I wish it was a little less. It has dozens and dozens
of new spells, monsters, items, and more. It’s got terrific
battles. It’s a more tightly controlled game, which means less
wandering to just uncover the map. It’s games like this that
show us just how far the industry has come. A small team could never
have made Baldur’s Gate II. Lucky for us it only takes one
person to play it.
Best Game of 2000, First
Runner Up
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