For gamers looking for a reasonably logical play, L.A. Law may be an excellent choice. L.A. Law is a DOS game that was created in emulation of the very popular primetime courtroom drama that ran through two decades: the middle eighties and nineties. It featured many characters that viewers either loved or hated, similar to a soap opera, and here in the video game, the user can play as three of these characters: attorneys Jonathan Rollins, Abbey Perkins, or Victor Sifuentes.
The play of the game involves a series of cases that will be assigned to the user, who is a junior partner in a very large law firm. The ultimate goal of the game is to become a full partner in the firm. To do this, the user will have to fight his way, successfully, through case after case, receiving promotions and advancing in the firm. Each successful case will bring the user a new one. The player will begin by defending an individual who possibly caused a bad automobile accident.
To put a case together, the user will have to gather information in a variety of ways. He has the library available to him as a resource, which will give him previous case results, as well
as some proven techniques for questioning and so forth. The user will be able to collect evidence by interviewing people, and also by requesting things from the opposing counsel. Of course, his bosses in the firm are always available to give advice, with them serving much like a hint feature.
The crucial problem of the game is that the cases are all timed, and every time the user makes a decision to talk to someone or attend the library, it takes time. There is a limited amount of that, and the user must be as prepared as possible when starting a trial. If he is unprepared, he will likely lose the case. Therefore, it is important for the user to make the right choices when preparing a case.
The game is entirely mouse driven, and all preparations and decisions, both inside and out of the courtroom, are made by clicking on one of a series of choices presented on the screen. This will dictate how the case continues.
Overall, this is not a bad courtroom game. It requires the user to think and manage a clock in order to be successful. It has obvious goals and is a simple game to learn. It is similar in nature to an adventure game, and fans of the genre should enjoy it.
