Tribes was big. I'm not talking in terms of sales, but in terms of scale – it was one of the first games to employ a terrain engine and as a result it not only looked quite unique but played in quite a unique manner too. Co-operation between team members was essential and the solid mix of team-based strategy and action meant it drew a dedicated fan base amongst online gamers. Now Tribes 2 is nearing completion, and like any good sequel it retains what made the original great, fixes what was wrong with it and adds more stuff besides.

The story in Tribes 2 centers around the BioDerm Hordes who have recently started an all-out assault on the wilderzone of space. The titular Tribes are too busy squabbling amongst themselves to effectively combat this new enemy before the BioDerms have got a solid foothold in the area and now pose a serious threat to the survival of the Tribes warriors.

The core gameplay of Tribes 2 is of course similar to the original with combatants fighting in one of many different game types to either annihilate each other, capture the flag or destroy an objective, all against the background of vast, outdoor terrain. As before, you pick a weight class (heavy, medium or light) and equip your character with three guns and a special item of equipment. However, as I said Dynamix have also added a lot to this sequel to distinguish it from its predecessor. Community building tools are an important new feature of the game. Newly formed Tribes get their own automatically generated web page and players will also receive access to instant messaging, forums and even email. There is also new equipment such as the close combat Shock Lance that can kill an opponent instantly if aimed at the head and a cloaking pack that renders the user almost invisible while draining your power reserves. For players that found the original a little confusing and inaccessible there are now single player training missions, and the favourite Tribes 1 tactic of “skiing” down hills has now been made easier as you only have to hold the space bar down to start gliding down a slope at speed. Unlike in the original though, heavier classes will now ski down slopes slower than their lighter counterparts and have difficulty on steeper inclines. The sequel will also offer new game modes such as a version of the classic schoolground game “it” (or "tip" or "tag" depending on where you went to school) called Rabbit and a game type called Siege where players must achieve a number of mission objectives, switching between defence and offence after each round.

Tribes 2 should appeal to fans of the original while also drawing in more players through its single player training missions. The game recently hit beta which, fingers crossed, means it will hopefully go gold and get released sometime in the next few months.

See Sharky's First Glimpse here.