KA-52 Team Alligator (PC)

CNET editors' rating: 2.5 stars OK
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Overall score: 5.6 (2.5 stars)
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Gamespot editors' review

• Reviewed by: Bruce Geryk
• Reviewed on: 04/07/2000
• Updated on: 05/01/2000
• Released on: 03/31/2000

Ka-52 Team Alligator is the follow-up to Team Apache, which UK developer Simis released about two years ago under the imprint of SSI/Mindscape. This time around, the publisher is GT Interactive, and instead of the AH-64 Apache, the star of this particular simulation is the Kamov Ka-52 Alligator, a two-seat command/attack helicopter of Russian manufacture. The game comes with two scripted campaigns and a variety of stand-alone combat missions, which you fly as a member of the Russian armed forces. While the Ka-52 is a two-seater, Team Alligator puts you in the place of the pilot, while the weapons officer is controlled by the computer.

Team Alligator is billed as an "action sim," which should immediately tip off hard-core simulation fans that the game is not meant to compete with more technically accurate sims like Longbow 2 or Apache/Havoc. Instead, Team Alligator attempts to provide a reasonable facsimile of helicopter flight while concentrating on creating an interesting and immersive environment. This approach worked well for its predecessor, Team Apache. Unfortunately, Team Alligator's stripped-down flight model is a spectacular failure that taints all other parts of the game, making it much less than what it could have been.

Team Alligator's focus is on running a squad of six Alligator helicopters while progressing through two different campaigns, one set in Belarus and the other in Tajikistan. You're tasked not only with flying the lead helicopter in each mission but also with managing the pilots under your command. To this end you can even discipline your pilots or offer them "treats," such as American candy bars (of which you have a limited supply). This role-playing aspect is actually quite enjoyable, and it gives a good feeling of overall command. There are also plenty of wingman commands to help direct your squad's attack while the mission is actually in progress. However, there's no mission builder, so you'll have to be satisfied with the campaigns or the stand-alone and instant-action missions. The game also supports up to eight players in head-to-head mode, and cooperative multiplay can accommodate up to six.

Team Alligator's terrain graphics are very crisp and effective, especially at low altitudes. However, the effect is marred slightly by melting terrain on the horizon. The object detail is very nice in Team Alligator - for instance, the game looks particularly impressive when you're lining up a close-range shot at a tank. But the cockpit is blurry and difficult to read in 3D mode, meaning that many players will opt to fly in "HUD-only" mode, which detracts from the sim's visual realism.

The avionics are clearly simplified and are meant to get new gamers quickly into the sim. To this end, the game includes a manual that not only explains the basic functions of the helicopter's weapons and controls clearly and effectively, but also explains the basics of helicopter performance and flight characteristics for those unfamiliar with rotary-wing aircraft. To top it all off, there are some good training missions that will have new pilots flying quickly and easily after one session with the game.

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