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There you were, walking down the hot, dusty street, musing about the sad state of the world. Disasters, natural and manmade, are happening all over the globe. It seems as if the world has gone mad. Coming upon one of your favorite haunts, a computer software store, you decide to slip in and enjoy the air conditioning and the store's many promises of alternate virtual lands and times. The manager, heard but not seen, is in the background. You overhear powerful voices coming from giant speakers flanking a large tower case computer. They seem to be talking in language with Grecian overtones, an argument of sorts. Suddenly, the room spins, you seem to fly into the air and the world falls away beneath you. New smells overwhelm you: an orange grove, dewy grass, fruit trees. One thing doesn't change as you land softly in an unfamiliar land amid unfamiliar surroundings -- the sun is still hot. You wander around your new environment until you come upon two powerful voices, engaged in the argument you previously overheard in the store. It suddenly dawns on you that you're eavesdropping on a conversation between two mythical beings: Athena and Poseidon. And the discussion seems to be centered on mere mortals! Athena is singing the praises of mortals and their abilities to overcome undreamed of obstacles while Poseidon is arguing that the likelihood of a mortal becoming a "hero" is preposterous. In the quickening of a heartbeat, they agree to a wager. Athena will choose a champion to prove her case -- a mortal being who is a complete stranger to their land, not of their world. A pact is made. This mortal will be allowed to enlist the aid of up to ten great heroes from time immemorial -- heroes such as Hercules, Achilles, Icarus, Orion, and more -- starting with just two. In the blink of an eye, Athena turns toward you -- time stops as she states "I choose this one!" Startled and overwhelmed to be the subject of this raging debate and wager, you're struck dumb. Laughter fills the air as the audience surrounding the two mythological powers grows. Once again, the world begins to spin, only this time to deposit you in the fantastic realm of the Gods of Olympus. You've got your work cut out for you. Such is the backstory to the real-time strategy game Invictus, by 14O Degree East, a subsidiary of Interplay. The strategy is infused with elements of role-playing as you direct the actions of the main character Invictus from an adjustable perspective that can be tilted, rotated and spun. The game world is filled with legends of Greek and Roman mythology. You select heroes as the game progresses, each with specific attributes and skills (attack, evade, damage, armor, health, command points, and attack speed) who can rise in experience from level 1 to level 20. You'll encounter more than 20 unique units throughout the quests, ranging from amazons and archers to minotaurs and skeletons, some with special powers and movement abilities. In single-player campaign mode, the objective is to save humanity by successfully completing a series of missions by commanding a war party, led by your chosen heroes. Objects of Power, when discovered, aid you in completion of the tasks confronting you. Failure to meet the objectives dooms the human race. The multiplayer aspect of Invictus revolves around head-to-head competition (up to four players via LAN or Internet) over 16 different battlefields. Action takes place in nine major regions of the mythological world including locations, such as The Seacliffe Plains, The Gorgon's Isle, and The Underworld. More than a dozen Objects of Power, many imbued with divine powers, dot the landscape and offer the benefit of special abilities. The manual includes a tutorial, based in The Raiders' Woods, that takes you part way through a sample adventure. Can you defeat Poseidon's mighty forces, to prevent him from winning the bet with Athena and destroyin