Evolve DNA in the blink of an eye

   Does anyone else remember the obscure Super Nintendo title "E.V.O.: The Search for Eden"? That quirky game let you take control of an organism from the earliest stages and "evolve" it through different classes and types. Eventually, your starting fish could evolve all the way to a mammal -- or beyond. This concept is taken to the next level in NEC's Seventh Cross.

   Gamers begin the game with a simple microbe organism. Eating different plants and animals affects your creature's status and its constantly evolving DNA. Over 810,000 DNA combinations are possible! A variety of land and sea organisms can be genetically tailored. DNA evolution is unique; instead of having full control over the organism's destiny, the player must draw the DNA according to the "rules" the computer has created. Discovering these rules is half the fun. Endless colors, DNA types, and combinations lead to nearly limitless types of creatures.

   An early Dreamcast title in Japan, it is unknown if Seventh Cross will reach U.S. shores. If its original gameplay suceeds, however, avid gamers should probably hit the neurobiology texts.