Did you know that Queen - rock band extrordinaire - made a video game?
Well, obviously (or perhaps not so obviously?) Freddie Mercury, Brian
May and the rest themselves didn't actually /develop/ the game. That
duty fell upon Electronic Arts and developer "Design Destination".
After all, Freddie Mercury was long dead by that point, and necromantic-programming wasn't a thing back then. But, still, Queen
did provide the music, it was remixed at Roger Taylor's studio, and
apparently they had some input into the story and art. That's good
enough for me to want it.

But not for most people, because the game - titled "Queen: The eYe"
and released back in '97 - flopped hard, and most people didn't even
know it was ever made. Truth be told, even /I/ missed it when it was
first released. I only discovered it much later, when I started
amassing my collection of DOS-era video-games. But it's limited
release meant that it's been something of a white whale for me,
especially at a price I'm willing to pay. But a while ago a colleague
found a copy (in a thrift store, natch!), purchased for me, and popped
it in the mail. And now, finally, it's arrived!

The first impressions weren't too good; the box was torn to shreds,
and contained naught but the five CD-ROMs. But I don't really consider
myself a collector, so that really wasn't too much of an issue
(honestly, the box probably would have been flattened and shoved in
the closet anyway). It was the GAME itself that I wanted.

Which, sadly, wasn't any more impressive. Well, that's not really true
either. From a technical front, I gotta say there's something to it.
The levels (what I've seen of them) look large and well detailed,
especially for a game from '97, and running on unaccelerated hardware
under DOS. And the music is pure Queen (plus, it is accessible as
CD-Audio tracks for listening to at my leisure).

It uses pre-rendered maps with 3D models (think the old "Resident
Evil" games). Thematically, it reminds me a lot of "The Nomad Soul",
which also featured a futuristic dystopia and an aging British
rockstar. The game-play seems to be a punch-n-kick brawler, but
between the lack of documentation and the constantly changing camera
angles, I haven't gotten very far. And to be quite honest, I don't
expect I will. As a brawler, it is just not a very good game.

Still, I'm thrilled to have this game added to my library. It's a rare
and unique thing, and its merest existence seems so unlikely that I'd
want it for that reason alone. Adding in that it's a DOS game with
impressive visuals, and it has a Queen soundtrack? How could I not
fall in love? That fact that its gameplay is awful seems almost
inconsequential in comparison.

Still, the hunt isn't over. I still need the documentation (if any),
and apparently there's an Art Book and a novel based on the game.
Normally these wouldn't be anything I'd chase after, but for such a
unique oddity as "Queen: The eYe"? I think it's worth the effort.

Still, it's not a game I think anyone else should seek out to own or
even play. Origins and music aside, it's really not that special; I
only wanted it because I've got a thing for DOS games. Still, maybe
take a look at some video and marvel at the whacked-out era that
allowed the creation of such an oddity. Its weird enough that it
doesn't deserve to be forgotten.

--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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