Tuesday, January 04, 2005

You, Sir, are a Captain of Industry



Another year, another donut. And if you think you would enjoy making donuts, albeit virtual ones, you might want to check out JoWood's Industry Giant 2, a game as large as its name implies. Set up factories, distribution networks, and stores, and don't let the competition get there first. But be warned: if you sit down to play for an hour, you will almost definitely spend 8 or 9, and quite possibly ruin your life. To make matters worse, there is no way to efficiently manage your truck fleets. The lesson in supply-chain management is amply clear (that is, you have to adjust your factory output to keep production going smoothly), but having to micro-manage a fleet of 300 trucks simply to change a few routes or to eliminate those trucks assigned to carry whiskey doesn't seem terribly realistic. I could go on and on about this game, explaining its minutiae in excrutiating detail, but my readership would surely plummet as a result. Suffice it to say that IG2 is a flawed but extremely entertaining diversion, and suitable for children due to its "educational" content.