The Biggest Names the Best Games 4

The Biggest Names the Best Games 4 Logo

Description

The Biggest Names the Best Games 4 is a 1999 compilation released by Electronic Arts, featuring six popular titles: Dungeon Keeper 2, Sports Car GT, System Shock 2, Wing Commander: Prophecy – Gold Edition, Jane’s Combat Simulations: WWII Fighters, and ICC Cricket World Cup England 99. This collection offers a diverse range of genres, from strategy and simulation to action and sports, catering to a wide variety of gaming preferences.

The Biggest Names the Best Games 4: Review

A Time Capsule of Gaming Excellence

Introduction

In the final, frenetic year of the 20th century, Electronic Arts assembled an audacious anthology: The Biggest Names the Best Games 4. Released in December 1999, this compilation packaged six landmark PC titles into a single CD-ROM—a Trojan horse of gaming ambition. At a time when the industry was hurtling toward the 3D revolution, this collection served as a microcosm of 1999’s creative zenith. Its games represented a convergence of genres: strategy, horror, racing, simulation, and space opera. Yet, while its contemporaries like Soulcalibur and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater dominated headlines, The Biggest Names offered a quieter, more profound legacy. This review argues that the compilation’s enduring value lies not in its individual games’ fame, but in how it encapsulates the experimental spirit of an era on the cusp of transformation.

Development History & Context

EA’s Vision and Technological Constraints
EA’s Biggest Names series (1998–2000) was a response to the CD-ROM boom, bundling marquee titles to maximize value for consumers. Volume 4 arrived amid the Windows 95-to-98 transition, when PC gaming demanded multi-disc installations and 4x CD-ROM drives. The compilation’s minimum requirements—a Pentium CPU, 32MB RAM, and Windows 95—reflected the era’s hardware constraints. EA’s pitch was simple: deliver “big names” at an accessible price point. The six included titles, however, were far from afterthoughts: Dungeon Keeper 2 (Bullfrog), System Shock 2 (Irrational Games), Sports Car GT (EA Sports), Wing Commander: Prophecy (Origin Systems), WWII Fighters (Jane’s Combat Simulations), and Cricket World Cup (EA Sports UK) were all full-price releases of 1998–1999.

The 1999 Gaming Landscape
1999 was a watershed year. The Dreamcast launched in September with Soulcalibur, while the Nintendo 64 saw Super Smash Bros. and Donkey Kong 64. On PC, games like Unreal Tournament, Age of Empires II, and Planescape: Torment redefined their genres. EA’s compilation stood apart by focusing on mature, niche titles amid Pokémonmania and console dominance. It catered to PC enthusiasts seeking depth over spectacle—a demographic EA aimed to retain as the PlayStation 2 loomed.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

The compilation’s narratives form a tapestry of existential dread, rebellion, and historical reimagining:

  • System Shock 2: A masterclass in cosmic horror. Players awaken aboard a starship overrun by cyborgs and a rogue AI (SHODAN). Themes of technological hubris and body horror permeate its tale of corporate greed and sentient machines. Its nonlinear storytelling, fragmented logs, and environmental whispers influenced BioShock and Prey.
  • Dungeon Keeper 2: A dark inversion of fantasy tropes. As Keeper of the Underworld, players torture heroes, steal princesses, and wage war against the “pathetic” goodly heroes. Themes of anti-heroism and satirical subversion of morality resonate through its campy, over-the-top lore.
  • Wing Commander: Prophecy: A space opera of sacrifice and legacy. Players pilot fighters to repel an alien invasion, grappling with themes of duty and the cyclical nature of war. Its script, penned by Star Trek veterans, blended melodrama with tactical urgency.
  • WWII Fighters: Grounded in historical authenticity, it reenacts aerial battles of WWII. Its narrative is less character-driven and more immersive, emphasizing the visceral terror of dogfights and the weight of history.
  • Sports Car GT and Cricket World Cup: Minimal narrative, but their themes—competition, precision, and cultural specificity (e.g., cricket as a colonial legacy)—align with the compilation’s ethos of variety.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Each game represents a distinct mechanical philosophy:

  • System Shock 2: The progenitor of immersive sims. It fused FPS action with RPG elements: cybernetic augments, weapon degradation, and survival horror mechanics. Its “Psionics” system allowed psychic abilities, while permadeath heightened tension.
  • Dungeon Keeper 2: Reverse-engineering strategy. Players built dungeons, trained minions, and lured heroes with bait. Its “Keeper’s Gold” economy and dark humor created a uniquely compelling loop of misanthropy.
  • Sports Car GT: A hardcore racing simulation. With 50+ cars, 11 tracks, and physics demanding precision braking, it appealed to sim racers. Its “GT” mode emphasized endurance races and car upgrades.
  • Wing Commander: Prophecy: Combatsimulator meets adventure. Players managed fighter squadrons, chose dialogue options, and made split-second decisions affecting the war’s outcome. Its “ship simulator” depth was unprecedented for space combat games.
  • WWII Fighters: An authentic flight sim. Realistic controls, historical missions, and detailed cockpit models required mastery of aerial maneuvers.
  • Cricket World Cup: A niche sports title. It captured cricket’s strategic pacing with bowling mechanics, field placements, and statistical depth—a stark contrast to arcade sports games of the era.

World-Building, Art & Sound

The compilation’s audiovisual palette is a 1999 time capsule:

  • System Shock 2: Cyberpunk decay. Rusty corridors, flickering lights, and the oppressive soundtrack of groaning machinery created claustrophobic dread. Its voice-acting, especially SHODAN’s menacing monologues, set a benchmark for AI antagonists.
  • Dungeon Keeper 2: Gothic cartoony. Vibrant, gothic dungeons contrasted with whimsical animations (e.g., imps dancing). Kenji Kawai’s score blended orchestral bombast with darkly comedic cues.
  • Wing Commander: Prophecy: Hollywood-scale space opera. Motion-captured cutscenes and George Takei’s narration lent cinematic weight to its alien war.
  • Sports Car GT & WWII Fighters: Photorealism for its time. Detailed car models and meticulously recreated WWII skies captured the era’s push for graphical fidelity.
  • Cricket World Cup: Functional but charming. 2D sprites and simplistic commentary evoked the sport’s televised traditions.

Reception & Legacy

Launch Reception
The compilation received muted attention. GameSpot and IGN focused on individual titles, while niche PC magazines noted its value for new gamers. It was overshadowed by Final Fantasy VIII and Quake III Arena. However, System Shock 2 and Dungeon Keeper 2 garnered cult followings, with the former influencing modern RPGs like Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

Legacy
Its true impact lies in preservation. As physical media degrades, compilations like this archive seminal PC experiences. System Shock 2 inspired the immersive sim genre, while Dungeon Keeper 2’s legacy persists in titles like War for the Overworld. The compilation also highlights 1999’s diversity: it included a cricket game in a market dominated by soccer, proving gaming’s global reach. Modern re-releases (e.g., System Shock 2 on GOG) owe a debt to such anthologies.

Conclusion

The Biggest Names the Best Games 4 is more than a bargain-bin curiosity—it is a museum of gaming’s transition into the 21st century. Its six titles, though disparate, collectively embody 1999’s experimental spirit: a willingness to blend genres, embrace complexity, and cater to niche audiences. While its games were not all revolutionary (the sports simulations feel dated), System Shock 2 and Dungeon Keeper 2 remain towering achievements. In an era of annualized sequels and live-service games, this compilation reminds us that gaming’s golden age was built on the courage to be different. Verdict: A vital, if flawed, artifact—a must-play for historians and a testament to PC gaming’s audacious past.

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