The designers of The Koshan Conspiracy, also known affectionately as BAT II (Bureau of Astral Troubleshooters) by those who played the original BAT, improved the original product immensely by giving it more substance, an enhanced look and definitely larger size. Unfortunately, the finished result still has some serious holes in an otherwise entertaining title. For starters, even though there are four unique flight simulators, all of them are simplistic in nature and just don't have the feel of more accomplished flight sims. Perhaps it's an error of trying to do too much rather than one of poor design. In many instances in the game, it appears as if the game is either right on the money or else it misses the mark by a mile. There's very little middle ground here -- either you like a particular feature of the game or you don't. But on the positive side, there are plenty of features to look at and that gives The Koshan Conspiracy a thumbs up on the bang-for-your-buck scale.
The Koshan Conspiracy is definitely a game that should be viewed in an overall perspective as a sum of it's parts. Taken individually, the parts can be flawed in some minor way but overall the presentation is one of depth and substance. You have the option to control the amount of arcade-type action you desire or can approach it with a quest/adventure mindset instead. The structure of the visual component is unique in that at times, you're presented with split screen action, where you can see where you've just been in conjunction with where you are currently thus creating times when you feel you're in the middle of a comic book with the various panels on screen. The graphics are simply drawn and oftentimes very "busy" which can make clicking on the right place, person or thing difficult. The point and click interface is useable but the hotspots are not always easily discernible which can result in minor irritation as you click on one thing and get shunted off into a conversation you didn't want. Speaking of conversation, there is a lot of it in The Koshan Conspiracy and your character builds up a rather large vocabulary/dictionary as the game progresses. While nice in theory, in practice this becomes annoying because the topics cannot be alphabetized and you spend time trying to locate the right one to click on. All your character's movement and action in the game is from a first-person perspective.
One feature in the game that could have been a source of pride turns out to be a frustrating problem. The Biodirectional Organic Bioputer, (an implanted personal computer in your character's wrist) serves as a mini-control center for various aspects of your character but in reality seems bulky and decidedly non-user friendly when programming is required. The more complicated the program you try to write, the more confusing the process becomes. Unfortunately, all these minor gripes override the potential of this title to be really topnotch. In some cases, less is better.
Graphics: Released in 1993, graphics are typical of the genre during that era and while not spectacular, are certainly adequate. Flight and driving simulations are definitely subpar and the overall look is average at best.
Sound: Sound effects are a high point and mesh well with the on screen action most of the time.
Enjoyment: Lots to do, plenty of functions to keep you involved. Unfortunately, not all of the components work up to the level expected and too many minor frustrations keep the pot from boiling at full steam.
Replay Value: The game is long and once completed, doesn't leave too many options for varied replays.
This second part of the BAT series takes place in ROMA 2, the most important city of the planet Shedishan. The United Galaxies Organization has contacted the "Bureau of Astral Troubleshooters (BAT) in order to investigate the murder of a BAT agent named Sylvia Hatford who tried to uncover the businesses of a mysterious dealer of important raw materials. You are playing the second agent, Jehan Menais, now involved in the dangerous investigations.
The game itself is a mixture between graphics adventure, space combat simulator and strategy game. The adventure part is realized in a classic 2D point-and-click environment, the space combat can be best described as a small version of Firebird's Elite and the various small arcade games included can either be played in a strategic mode or an arcade mode where your reaction skills are required.
This second part of the BAT series takes place in ROMA 2, the most important city of the planet Shedishan. The United Galaxies Organization has contacted the "Bureau of Astral Troubleshooters (BAT) in order to investigate the murder of a BAT agent named Sylvia Hatford who tried to uncover the businesses of a mysterious dealer of important raw materials. You are playing the second agent, Jehan Menais, now involved in the dangerous investigations.
The game itself is a mixture between graphics adventure, space combat simulator and strategy game. The adventure part is realized in a classic 2D point-and-click environment, the space combat can be best described as a small version of Firebird's Elite and the various small arcade games included can either be played in a strategic mode or an arcade mode where your reaction skills are required.
How to run this game on modern Windows PC?
People who downloaded B.A.T. 2: Koshan Conspiracy have also downloaded:
B.A.T. 1, Azrael's Tear, Apprentice, Apprentice II: The Knight's Move, Bargon Attack, Backpacker: The Lost Florence Gold Mine, Beavis and Butthead in Virtual Stupidity, Ark of Time
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