E3 2001 Hands-on: Tribes 2 PS2

Released only a few weeks ago for the PC, Tribes 2 is also being shown starting today at E3 for the PlayStation 2. Tribes 2's strong multiplayer gameplay will help Sony solidify the online strategy it announced yesterday with its combination modem/broadband adapter for the PS2.

The PlayStation 2 version of Tribes 2 is several months away from release, but it's already looking as good as its PC counterpart. The game runs at a smooth, solid frame rate and features a few graphical niceties not found in the PC version. Some of the more notable additions include improved weapon textures and some attractive reflection effects. The version shown at Sony's booth is running on a network of PS2s using USB-to-Ethernet adapters, but the game will also support online play. Players will even be able to run their own Tribes 2 servers if their bandwidth is sufficient.

Currently, only a few of the standard Tribes weapons, such as the plasma gun, grenade launcher, and spinfusor have been implemented, but the development team hopes to add most, if not all, of the original game's weapons before the game ships. Bot support is also being planned, as are 19 full single-player missions that will feature a variety of objectives, such as escorting and search and destroy. Full inventory and vehicle options will also be added soon, bringing the gameplay in line with that of the PC original. The PC and PS2 versions of Tribes 2 won't be network-compatible, but the console version will have the same community features found on the PC. These include a full server browser, warrior search, and buddy list. Finally, the game plays using the standard PS2 controller, albeit a bit awkwardly. However, PC purists will be happy to hear that full mouse and keyboard support is already working using any USB keyboard and mouse.

Tribes 2 is expected to see release sometime during the Christmas season.