<!--
	Title: (SOFTWARE GALLERY) BattleTech
	Author: Art Lewis Kimball
	Source: Run, v6(9)
	Date: September 1989
	Transcription by Steve Derby
-->

<div style="color: #004488; font-weight: bold; padding: 0.25em; float: right; font-size: 2em;">C</div>
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For years, Infocom's text-only releases caused stirrings of excitement
among the adventure gaming set. Unfortunately, my exposure to Infocom's
first attempt at including graphics has been disappointing.

BattleTech is based on the popular board game of the same name. The
computer version does contain some innovative touches, such as unique outtakes
with a distinct Japanese flavor, that occasionally appear in an inset
screen to show ground-level action and a character's responses during battle
sequences.

As the character Jason Youngblood, you start the game with 20 credits and
no skills. You have to spend some time learning how to use your BattleMech,
a gigantic fighting machine. In the midst of your training, your planet is
taken over by the Kuritans, and you must escape, hopefully with your training
Mech and lots of cash.

Next, you must explore the huge countryside to find allies and a cache of
Mech arms and supplies. Your job, of course, is to defeat the Kuritans, save
the planet and find out the truth behind your father's death.

One complaint I have is that there's no Quit feature. My only alternative was
to reboot. Another problem is that disk loading time is excruciatingly slow.

BattleTech is a good, enjoyable game, and the scrolling landscape is a pleasure
to explore. Technically, however, it's not nearly up to Infocom's standards.
But you'll probably still find yourself becoming engrossed in the game and
possibly even looking forward to a sequel. *(Infocom; distributed by Mediagenic,
3885 Bohannan Drive, Menlo Park, CA 94025. C-64/$39.95.)*
