Industrious Sim

Just when it seems that the sim market is becoming saturated, someone comes out with something new and refreshing. Even some of the earlier sim titles are being revised and released as new versions. Some are bad, whereas others work real hard to give you something well worth the purchase price. One title that I recently looked at falls in the latter category. It is Industry Giant II from JoWood Entertainment.

This game gives you an opportunity to be in big business without your own startup capitol and your house and other possessions hocked to finance the venture. Being able to be a captain of industry will appeal to a lot of folks who toil away each day just to get ahead.
The game is a sim that has you put together a company and take it through the paces to become a giant corporation. The goals are hefty and the struggles immense. The goal, as the manual puts it, is to “build an enterprise that earns more money than it spends.”

The game is set up so that you can play in three different modes. The first is Endless Game. This is a freeform game with a duration of 80 game years. But you can continue to play for a long time after that. Then there is the Campaign Missions mode. Here you will play three campaigns that are not as easy as they might first seem. There is a Tutorial mode that takes you through several short training missions to get you familiar with the game.

The game also has a Multiplayer option if you want to play against someone else on a network or on the Internet. This option is done by opening an account on GameSpy. The software for GameSpy comes on the CD along with the Industry Giant II game.

To begin the game you will need some land. Select the plot of ground at an open location by a town. Then choose an item from the Build menu like a shop, storage facility or factory. From that point you will have to make some very prudent decisions on how your company will move forward. You will need storage facilities for your product. The product will need to be transported in some fashion away from your factories and into the hands of the consumers. And you will need all the proper staffing of both occupational and management personnel. And let’s not forget the money. Budgets need to be made and stuck to. Overspending your budget can be disastrous to your business plan.

The graphics are all right but nothing too spectacular. The soundtrack is nice and doesn’t get too repetitious. There are also some pretty good sound effects, especially factory noises. There are some video clips interspersed in the game of early goods transportation that might appeal to some players.

The game is fairly easy to learn with the Tutorial. You can have hours and hours of varied gameplay. You are free to play the game just about any way you want. It is up to you whether the company becomes a success or tanks. You are also cautioned to spend your money well. Too much spending on the wrong thing could lead your company right into bankruptcy.

The game doesn’t require the latest and greatest computer to play it, which is a plus for some of us with slightly older computers. You only need a Pentium II 350MHz class PC, with 64 MB of RAM and a 8x CD-ROM drive to play the game. A 16-bit sound card and a 3D graphics card with 16MB of RAM will also be needed.

Industry Giant II is a fun way to build a company from the ground up without actually having to get dirty. Learn how to be the “boss’s, boss’s boss” as the blurb on the box cover says. Becoming a captain of industry may not have been your goal before, but after playing Industry Giant II, it very well could be.

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