I should be so lucky.....

'They go..."Isn't she lovely, this Hollywood girl?" And they say... She's so lucky, she's a star But she cry, cry, cries in her lonely heart, thinking If there's nothing missing in my life Then why do these tears come at night.' So sang Britney Spears in her new song, the imaginatively titled 'Lucky', about a girl who 'thought she had been given everything she wanted but was still unhappy'. However, when Miss Spears was asked if this song was at all autobiographical, she said 'No way. I am kind of a reverse lucky, I guess. I worked hard to get where I am now and I love it. Thank you everyone for giving this to me. I have no complaints'. The point is this; when people are given everything they dream of, they react in different ways. I think there are three basic patterns of behaviour: you either get on with what you want to do with professionalism matching what you have been given. Secondly, there are those who feel they must live up to the superstar status bestowed on them. Thus, their behaviour tends to get more outlandish and their need for attention greater. They are the ones who find it hard to cope when the golden age ends. Lastly, we have those who maintain a presentable and happy front, while secretly being miserable as sin (a la Miss Lucky). They are often the ones with the most serious problems.

Freshman psych out the way, let's bring this back to gaming. A couple of years ago, some of the biggest figures in gaming were given the chance to become part of a huge experiment. This was called Ion Storm. The theory went like this: we take the biggest names in the industry. We trust them. We give them everything they need in order to be able to produce a classic game. Then we leave them. In a world were everyone fitted into psych model one, this approach would have lead to the creation of three instant classics. They have frequently called for extra time to allow for 'perfection' to be achieved. Now it is time for them to be judged. Ion Storm, you day of reckoning is here.

PROJECT ONE. Game: Deus Ex. Team Leader: Warren Spector.

This is the game everyone from the start expected to fail. Hugely ambitious in scope (described as 'a cross between System Shock 2, Thief, GoldenEye (classic N64 shoot 'em up based on the Bond movie of the same name - Ed), Half-Life, Soldier Of Fortune, Kingpin and SiN. And, Unreal Tournament') with the team leader a man viewed as being a great visionary but maybe not the organisational and people skills to pull the project through. Viewed as being a type three really. However, the game has been nothing but a joy to cover as a journalist and finally to play. The team has proved clever (selecting the tried and tested but hugely impressive Unreal Tournament game engine rather than trying to develop one themselves), witty (putting a notice on the game website claiming that it had been shut down by the Government due to revelations in the game about a conspiracy), broad-minded (in that they have tried to create a game which pushes every traditional boundary rather than being content to work in one area) and, above all, driven (to produce a classic game on time, on budget and without making too much fuss about it). Superb product. This team deserves all the fame they want, but most of all they deserve a holiday. This game has seen a lot of late nights. A 95% game from a team who have given 100%.