Software Review: BattleVision – Battle of Shiloh – Book Review
Graphics
The graphics in the program are clean and professional looking. They fit the interface well and don’t leave room for doubt as to what they are representing. The presentations are easy to follow because of this. In addition to the graphics used for presenting the animation, they used period pictures for leaders and also include 25 original pieces of artwork depicting various portions of the battle, from the wounding of Gen. Johnston, to some Union troops removing a gun from Sarah Bell’s field. I found them to be well done, and not as “romantic†in nature as many of the drawings from the time period.
Audio
The audio segment of the program performed well. It was smooth and fit the events taking place on the screen. A good portion of the background was small arms and artillery fire during the various engagements being represented. The voice overs were professionally done, and had period accents and tones.
{default}Interface
The interface is simple with a Play/Pause button, forward and reverse skip buttons, and the ability to return to the main menu at any given time. All content selections from the main menu are handled by clearly labeled buttons to easily navigate to the desired content. For the style of product the interface is sufficient and intuitive.
Installation / Technical
Installation was very smooth. The install program started up fine and ran through process without issue. I began the review with a demo version of the game, but unfortunately I experienced a variety of technical issues with it, ranging from minor Acrobat errors that once acknowledged allowed you to progress as desired, skipping sounds, to a hard program crash with a Macromedia error. However, after placing a call to their Customer Service line I quickly found solutions. They began by ‘overnighting’ me a full version of the product to review, then we discussed a couple of the other problems I had experienced. It seems running the program from your first CD drive is essential to eliminate the Acrobat errors. Once the new disk was received I loaded it up without issue and proceeded to check things out. This time around it ran flawlessly without any issues whatsoever. Accordingly, I’ve based the entire review process on the full product I received from them.
Minimum System Requirements:
– Windows 98/2000/ME/XP
– Pentium II processor
– 128 MB of RAM
– 100 MB of free disk space
– Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.01
– 800 x 600 Resolution + 16-bit color
– 20x CD-ROM
– Acrobat Reader 5.0
Reviewers System
– Windows XP Pro SP1
– Pentium IV 2.8 GHz
– 2 GB RAM
– IE 6, SP1
– Dual screen, 1280 x 1024, 32-bit
Conclusions
My impression after spending a few hours with the product was that it was very well-put-together and accomplished it’s goals. A couple of things that might add to it’s value, or for future titles, would be to include some letters from participants of the battle that have written home or in diaries. Also some photographs of the battlefield, both from the time period and then today – maybe even including information on the historical park and things available for tourist to see when they visit. Overall, The Battle of Shiloh is a quality product, and for those seriously interested in the battle, well worth adding to their collection.
Armchair General Score – 89%
26/30 — Content
18/20 — Graphics
09/10 — Sound
13/15 — Interface
10/10 — Installation/Technical (full product)
05/05 — Documentation
08/10 — Reviewer’s Tilt
Battlevision Home Page.
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