Beach Head 2000 is a first-person shooter game developed by Digital Fusion. It was originally released by WizardWorks for Microsoft Windows and MacSoft for Mac OS as a "value-priced" release. A loose remake of the 1983 computer game Beach Head, it shared a similar premise, as players defend a beach against attack by utilizing a variety of weapons. A version of the game was also produced for video arcades by Tsunami Visual Technologies, available in various motion simulation cabinets and Digital Fusion continues to sell the Windows version as a download via its website.

Beach Head 2000
A helmeted soldier firing a large mounted gun from inside a fortification, in the background another helmeted soldier covers his ears, the title "Beach Head 2000" is above in large block letters.
Cover art
Developer(s)Digital Fusion, Inc.
Publisher(s)WizardWorks[a]
Platform(s)Windows, Mac OS, Arcade
ReleaseWindows
Mac OS
Arcade
  • NA: September 2001
Genre(s)First-person shooter, shooting gallery
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

edit
 
Players must defend the beach from a variety of threats both on the ground and in the air.

Players take the role of the sole gunner defending a beach against invading enemy soldiers, tanks, helicopters and other military attack vehicles. The player utilizes a variety of weapons, including a gun turret with a machine gun, howitzer cannon and guided surface-to-air missiles. A handgun is available as a final means of defense. The mouse is used to aim. Additional ammo and health are available by shooting packages dropped with parachutes.[3] Missions end when all enemies are defeated, each mission changes the spawn point of enemies on the beach. There are infinite missions and the game has no ending.[4]

Reception

edit

The PC version received "generally unfavorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[5] GameSpot said that the game becomes repetitive when taking out the stream of enemies in each level.[3] A review in AllGame said that "the initial appeal of Beach Head 2000's single view wears off very quickly" and compared it unfavorably to the original Beach Head.[4] Inside Mac Games commented that the game was not worth the relatively low price, even among a limited selection of Mac OS games.[15] However, IGN had a more positive reaction to the game, comparing it to Missile Command and calling it "strangely addicting".[11]

The PC version was nominated for the "Worst Game of the Year" award at GameSpot's Best and Worst of 2000 Awards, which went to Blaze and Blade: Eternal Quest.[16] It was also nominated for the "Best Sound in a PC Game" award at The Electric Playground's Blister Awards 2000, which went to Deus Ex.[17]

Sequels

edit

Digital Fusion produced several sequels, Beach Head 2002,[18] Beach Head Desert War, and Baghdad Central Desert Gunner.[citation needed] Global VR would take over the license from Tsunami and produce arcade versions of the first three games in the series.[19]

Notes

edit
  1. ^ Mac OS version published by MacSoft, arcade version published by Global VR.

References

edit
  1. ^ "The Games Of 2000". Gone Gold. Archived from the original on February 3, 2001. Retrieved March 31, 2024.
  2. ^ "MACSOFT SHIPS 'BEACH HEAD 2000' UNLEASHING A BARRAGE OF MILITARY FIREPOWER ONTO THE MACINTOSH". Infogrames. October 6, 2000. Archived from the original on December 17, 2000. Retrieved April 8, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c Soete, Tim (July 24, 2000). "BeachHead 2000 Review". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  4. ^ a b c Smith, Ted. "Beach Head 2000 (PC) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 15, 2014. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Beach Head 2000 (PC)". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on September 19, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  6. ^ Williamson, Colin (August 2, 2000). "Beach Head 2000". Gamecenter. CNET. Archived from the original on August 15, 2000. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  7. ^ Hiles, Bill (July 18, 2000). "Beach Head 2000". Computer Games Strategy Plus. Strategy Plus, Inc. Archived from the original on September 4, 2004. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  8. ^ Lombardi, Chris (October 2000). "Beachhead 2000 [sic]" (PDF). Computer Gaming World. No. 195. Ziff Davis. p. 136. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  9. ^ Steinberg, Scott (July 17, 2000). "BeachHead 2000 (PC)". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on August 17, 2002. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  10. ^ Lafferty, Michael (July 16, 2000). "Beach Head 2000 - PC - Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on September 30, 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  11. ^ a b Adams, Dan (June 21, 2000). "Beachhead 2000". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  12. ^ Orlando, Greg (February 2001). "Beachhead 2000 [sic]". MacADDICT. No. 54. Imagine Media. p. 53. Archived from the original on July 18, 2001. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  13. ^ "Beach Head 2000". PC Gamer. Vol. 7, no. 10. Imagine Media. October 2000.
  14. ^ Porter, Alex (December 2000). "Beach Head 2000". Maxim. MaximNet, Inc. Archived from the original on January 27, 2001. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  15. ^ Pierce, Kit (December 7, 2000). "Beach Head 2000". Inside Mac Games. Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  16. ^ GameSpot staff (2001). "Best and Worst of 2000 (Worst Game of the Year, Nominees)". GameSpot. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on January 24, 2001. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  17. ^ EP staff (2001). "Blister Awards 2000 (PC Games 1)". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on January 24, 2002. Retrieved December 1, 2023.
  18. ^ Walker, Trey (February 13, 2002). "BeachHead 2002 Review". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on March 1, 2021. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  19. ^ "Beach Head 2002". Killer List of Videogames. International Arcade Museum. Archived from the original on May 28, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
edit