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c1 *** I-SURF REVIEW ***
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c3BY DREYER/SPOON
as
c6Year: c41999
c6Event: c4The Party 9
c6Placing: c44 of 7

c6Size: c47.18 MB
c6Requirements: c4?
c6Recommended: c4'060


c6Code: c4TrickTrax, Hastur
c6Graphics: c4Unreal, Bandy, Thrym, Ransom, .Judas, Matarazzo
c6Music: c4Nutman
c6Objects: c4Ransom
c6Something: c4Darkhawk


c2Comment:   It's  a  positive  surprise to see that c5IRIS c2enter year 2000 with a
quality demo in their hands.  Not that their previous demos were bad, but they
didn't  nearly  have  the  same  amount  of  good code and graphics.  This one
contains  a bunch of innovative routines, some nice design ideas, but also low
resolution now and then, and many of the effects are quite CPU-hungry.  A '060
is  a  good  thing  (TM) to have when watching the demo for the most demanding
routines,  but  an  '040/40 MHz can cope with most of the code in quite a good
speed.  The show takes of with a domino effect in the upper half of the screen
and  credits  in  the  bottom.   In  a 3D-scene you see a lot of domino pieces
falling  over in a chain reaction.  The camera movement is very good, and it's
all  in all a nice effect.  However, it's (in the end) so very CPU-hungry that
not even an '060/50 MHz is fast enough to run it smoothly.  This fine intro is
followed  by  a  very beautiful picture by Unreal, who demonstrates his unique
style  also later in the demo.  The following couple of routines are presented
in  a  &quot;browser  invironment&quot;.   That  is  that you see the standard
browser navigation buttons and a line with the URL (which surprisingly happens
to  give  you  the  names of the presented routines).  How nice this is can be
disgusted.   First  effect  is  2D-twirl where you see the letters IRIS in the
front and an undefined mass of movement in the background.  Looks pretty good,
even  though  the resolution could be better - a problem that also some of the
following routines suffer from.  Next up is a rotating &quot;disco-ball&quot;,
a sphere with build-in colored spotlights that almost blinds you when pointing
in  your  direction.  This effect has been seen many times before, but this is
one  of  the  better  ones.   Next  up  is  a  party-twister  with  two moving
lightsources  (looks  like a bar being twisted).  Seen better, but also worse.
A    picture    is   presented   afterwards,   followed   by   a   so   called
&quot;volumelight&quot;  effect.  It's big random placed dots that sends out a
bunch  of colors when passing each other (or something like that), interesting
to watch!  The next two routines are as strange as they are nice.  I won't try
to explain them here, you should have a look at them yourself, 'cause they are
cool!   Another  picture  follows.   Now  a star-shaped 3D-object with smoking
spikes  appears,  in  other  words a particle routine - a pretty nice one too,
even  though  the  object  isn't  very  original  and as always (?) with these
particle  routines  it's  CPU-hungry.   The  next  routine  is really nice:  A
tunnel.   But  not  just an ordinary smooth one (only the movement is smooth).
No,  it's  covered  with  bumps and small hills.  You might think it's a voxel
tunnel  then,  but  it's  not  either.  A really good routine!  Next up is the
greetings-part  that  is  presented in a rather low resolution.  The different
names  are  transparent and zoomed away and towards you, while a wireframe are
shown  in  the background.  If you are about to quit smoking you don't want to
watch  the next effect, a 3D-scene presenting a pack of cigarets and a smoking
cigaret  in an ashtray - another particle effect.  The last routine is another
spotlight routine.  The light appears from the center of a box, but due to the
low  resolution  this  one  isn't particularly nice, just okay.  The show ends
with a scrolltext with a wireframe box in the background that is split up into
several  pieces,  then  assembled  again.   The  music  is  a  synth tune, not
technically good, but I suppose it fits the demo quite well.  The design might
not  be  the best ever, the resolution neither, but the originality in many of
the  routines  is something that raises this demo above many others.  A higher
placing at The Party 9 wouldn't have been undeserved.

c4Conclusion: c6Sure worth a look or two!


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