![[Roadwar 2000 screenshot]](http://www.lauppert.ws/screen1/roadwar2000.png "click for more CGA screenshots")
I got interested in Roadwar 2000 as a comparison to
Wasteland. A comparison of graphics, to be
exact. I always thought that the Wasteland graphics are rather good,
but it is not easy to find a game with which to compare it. Map-based
games were not common in the 80s. There is, of course,
Final Fantasy, but at the time, the conventions
of consoles and computers were quite different. There are the early
Ultimas, but they represent an earlier
stage than Wasteland.
Then I came across Roadwar 2000. Roadwar 2000 was created by Westwood Studios, who would later become famous for more or less having invented real-time strategies with Dune II. Like Wasteland, Roadwar 2000 was developed for the Apple ][ in 1986, but it was ported one year earlier to the PC (in 1987) and used CGA instead of EGA graphics. This is a bit astonishing because in 1987 EGA graphics were already quite common, besides, there were 16-color graphics for the Atari and Amiga versions anyway. These look very much like Final Fantasy by the way.
Like Wasteland, Roadwar 2000 is situated in a post-apocalyptic world inspired strongly by the Mad Max movies. But here, it is not a nuclear war that has caused the end of civilisation, but a virus unleashed by terrorists. And Roadwar 2000 is not an RPG, but a strategy game most closely matched by Burntime in gameplay. The interface with its character menus on the other hand resembles Wasteland again. In short: If you liked Wasteland, give this one a try.
The plot is that in the year 1999 (which, I know, has already passed :) ) a terrorist group unleases a deadly virus on the United States and the country collapses. You control a road gang that is trying to take over cities and survive the harsh world. Do well enough and you'll be contacted by the government and sent on a quest to find eight missing scientists and bring them back to a secret base. You move the gang around on a map of North America and have to loot cities for needed supplies, engage in gun battles with other gangs, and fight detailed tactical road battles to capture vehicles.
For me, Roadwar 2000 is a strategy game I never will forget. Unlike other typical strategy games, you don't have to read a big manual to be capable of playing this game. The game has great depth, and I liked the atmosphere: If you know and like theMad Maxmovies, then Roadwar 2000 is definitely something for you.
