Meridian 59 (PC)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.0 stars Good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 6.8 (3.0 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Greg Kasavin
• Reviewed on: 05/15/1997
• Updated on: 10/27/2005
• Released on: 03/31/1997
• Originally published on GameSpot: Meridian 59 (PC) Review

Meridian 59 is a tremendous value for any role-playing gamer looking to engage in a vast and ever-changing 3-D fantasy world populated almost exclusively by real human players. A small monthly fee allows for unlimited play within the nearly boundless land that is Meridian, and it's a land that becomes increasingly attractive with time as the role-playing gamer grows to appreciate its subtleties and to know its citizens.

Meridian 59 looks and sounds awful by the mighty standards of today. Yet while the high-resolution 3-D engine is rudely basic, it is effective: You can clearly distinguish a player character from a monster at 50 meters, and Internet latency will never hinder your movement. You can stare a fellow citizen closely in the eye, distinguishing his facial features and expression easily. Sound is scarce and repetitive but interesting enough, while the soundtrack is a mixed bag of MIDI tunes that sound slightly better from the CD.

Its gameplay and lasting value make Meridian 59 shine. Once past the painless registration, you must determine a handful of ability scores that will shape the course of your character's existence thereafter. A helpful tutorial then reveals many of features of the game system while helping earn you some much-needed experience at the same time. Fighting is as simple as pressing and holding the Control key and watching the on-screen text and graphics reveal the course of the battle, while more advanced features such as trading goods, setting hot keys, and changing facial expression at whim become second nature in time. When in doubt about a game feature, simply ask one of your fellow players, who will provide a cordial response more often than not.

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