There are times when affection can turn to boredom and frustration. There are some seriously impressive games engines around which are used by talented people to create new worlds for us to explore and then there's Excalibur, who seem intent on simulating every vehicle in the world with the same game engine.

The initial slew of games had something going for them, if nothing else, they played on lost dreams of driving a bus, police car or ambulance, all laudable ambitions of young children. With their latest releases they have started to stretch the credulity of their games model, especially with the release of Stone Quarry Simulator.

Now, anyone who has read my previous reviews of these games, will not be surprised to discover that this offering places you in the role of a quarry operator, needing to dig out stone to make a profit, which, in turn, is ploughed back into the business to buy better machinery. The interface, look and feel and object of the game hasn't changed at all when compared to previous iterations.

You can’t be too harsh with these games, for a start, someone is supposedly buying them in large enough numbers to tweak the look, change the vehicles and present the package as a new game. Secondly they are pretty much pocket money games, so the less than impressive graphics and repetitive game play come with the territory. However, I can’t help but feel that the market for those who harbour a secret desire to run a quarry is likely to be small.

5

Charles Packer