Code-Name: Iceman

aka: Code Name: Iceman, Code-Name: Iceman - a 3-D Animated Adventure Game, Codename: Iceman
Moby ID: 436
DOS Specs
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Description official description

In the beginning of the 21st century, Earth is experiencing a global oil shortage. Surprisingly, Tunisia remains one of the few countries still in possession of large quantities of high-quality oil. USA and Soviet governments race each other in their attempts to purchase as much oil as possible. Finally, the Soviets take a step further and kidnap the US ambassador, hoping to provoke an international incident. Naval Officer Johnny Westland is sent to Tunisia with the order of rescuing the ambassador and preventing further escalation of the conflict.

Code-Name: Iceman is primarily an adventure game similar to Sierra's other works in that genre. The player navigates the protagonist in eight different directions from third-person view, and types text commands to interact with the environment. The command "Look" may be typed separately and lead to different text descriptions depending on where on screen the protagonist is positioned. The game is similar to Police Quest series in that it relies on realistic procedures, in this case military instructions, first aid, etc. The player may reach dead ends and resort to restoring an earlier save if some of these procedures are not followed properly. In addition, a considerable portion of the game consists of submarine simulation, requiring the player to navigate a submarine and fight enemy craft.

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Credits (DOS version)

25 People (24 developers, 1 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 66% (based on 20 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.3 out of 5 (based on 61 ratings with 9 reviews)

Interesting, varied, but also terribly hard

The Good
The idea of mixing a basically pure adventure game with arcade sequences is nothing new. The addition of a simulator is already something novel and interesting. I have to admit it, while I also state that I always disliked simulator games and that steering the submarine in "Codename: Iceman" did nothing to change my mind - I didn't like these sequences, but I appreciate the idea. As for the types of puzzles, there is also lots of variety - everything from flirting with a girl (who soon turns out to be an agent too), through repairing machines, decoding messages (it's hard to figure out exactly how it works and the system involves copy protection, but after some time it actually got quite fun) to finding and freeing the hostage.
I liked the graphics, but I generally like good-quality EGA graphics, sometimes even better than duller VGA graphics and definitely much more than 95% of 3D graphics. A modest palette of juicy colors with clever use of shading works fine in different settings from a tropical island to sub machinery.

The Bad
However, despite these advantages the game also has two big flaws: a very high difficulty level and crazily excessive use of copy protection measures. In "The Colonel's Bequest" it was enough to find the correct fingerprint in the manual and while this wasn't integrated into gameplay at all, at least you didn't have to worry about copy protection afterwards. In "Codename: Iceman" copy protection is employed several times: first you have to check out the first aid procedure and basically retype it in the game (luckily it's a SCI game which pauses when you type), then use the manual to look up passwords for decoding messages (three times!) and check out how to turn on some devices such as the sonar. Plus, it's better to familiarize oneself with the rules of the "Boss Dice" game in order to make sense of it.
After about 1/3 of the game has passed, terribly hard sequences pretty much bang you on the head one after another. Boss Dice is a game of luck and you can only restore it twice (at least there is another, albeit more complicated, solution to the puzzles which involve the objects won: a bottle of rum and a magnetic device). The two battles are also very hard and luck-based. Later you have to follow another ship to get into the Mediterranean safely - getting and staying under her is hard, but first signalling her correctly is enough of a pain. In the coded message you are told to signal the ship with a single "ping", but when using the sonar you get two kinds of little sounds: a "click" when turning the sonar on and off and a small "beep" later. How am I supposed to know beforehand that yes, I have to turn the sonar on and immediately off, without waiting for the "beep"? It's easy to think it's the "ping" you have to signal... At the end there is another action sequence that you luckily can bypass: escape from the terrorists. What I found really annoying is that the game reacted very slowly to everything I pressed - timing it right is next to impossible. You have to speed up to be able to escape, but the van actually reacts only when you already ahould be slowing down before another curve...
The simulator sequences may actually be harder for modern players than they were when the game was made - at least on laptops, which don't have a separate numeric keypad. It involved constantly turning Num Lock on and off - "on" to speed up (numeric "+"), "off" to be able to type things like "close hatch" or "depth attained", "on" again to adjust speed...
At the end yet another detail - saying "I didn't like it" would be nitpicking, I'd rather describe it as a funny lack of realism. Some cabins on the sub look like hotel rooms. Well, I've never been aboard a submarine, but from what I've read it seems pretty clear submarines don't look like this. The pressure they have to withstand is so immense they must have as little surface as possible. Often they don't even have beds for all the crew - one shift is sleeping while the other works. Again - I wouldn't say it's really a disadvantage - the rooms look nice enough (even though the "hotel"-like cabins are actually rather boring, some other screens like the machine room or weapon room are much better), but it's a bit curious in a game so much acclaimed for its realism.

The Bottom Line
Anyway, I would say the game is worth trying out. Despite its flaws it remains interesting. But be prepared for a hard and frustrating game. Myself - I'm happy to keep a screenshot collection in my emulator, but I doubt if I'll ever play the whole game again.

DOS · by Nowhere Girl (8680) · 2012

A ridiculous failiure? Not even.

The Good
Firstly, I'm in doubt that any gamer could finish Codename: ICEMAN in only a couple short hours without a hint book. While the game may be overly short, simple is one thing it's not. What's good about it? Enough to warrant a look, if little more. To my knowledge, an adventure game based on this kind of modern political intrigue hadn't been attempted before. That alone gives it some sort of value. The "mysterious girl" subplot was also interesting, and could have been developed further.

The Bad
It ends up feeling like a skeleton of an adventure game. Political intrigue, unrest in the middle east, a mysterious female spy, a silent running submarine, a secret mission... these are all things that ought to add up to a classic game, but none of these elements are as fully developed as they could have been. There are also too "few" adventure portions - too much of the game is played in the submarine simulator. And while the underdeveloped plot is still interesting, the game doesn't explain enough to you. Sometimes you find yourself wondering either what you need to do, or what you need to do to accomplish it. There's no sense of urgency in your mission.

The Bottom Line
It's not so much that I disagree with Mr. Gabel's review, but I think that to dismiss Codename: ICEMAN as a "ridiculous failiure" is to overlook its good elements. In playing the game, you can see what Jim Walls and Sierra were attempting. Unfortunately, the game never quite lives up to expectations.

DOS · by Eurythmic (2663) · 1999

A ridiculous Sierra failure.

The Good
The music is OK, but nothing more.

The Bad
Gawwk! This is one of the worst Sierra games I've ever played. It's horribly underdeveloped, way too easy (finished it in about two hours with a friend... when I was 10!) and the ending is as stupid as they get. The graphics aren't very good and the storyline is really pointless.

The Bottom Line
A stupid Sierra game you should never play.

DOS · by Tomer Gabel (4539) · 1999

[ View all 9 player reviews ]

Trivia

Cancelled sequel

A sequel was mentioned as forthcoming in Sierra's news magazine, but it was never released.

Comic

There was a comic based on the game published in Sierra's magazine. A page of it can be seen at SierraPlanet.

Information also contributed by Giygas 8

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Eurythmic.

Amiga added by POMAH. Windows added by Cavalary. Atari ST added by tbuteler.

Additional contributors: MAT, Jeanne, jean-louis, Martin Smith, formercontrib, Patrick Bregger.

Game added November 15, 1999. Last modified August 21, 2023.