A scenario pack/mission editor upgrade to the great (but underappreciated) turn-based strategy game Jagged Alliance 2 by Sir-Tech Canada. Like its parent game, JA2:UB had been finished by Sir-Tech Canada for months, but no software publisher could be found to actually sell the product (apparently, Talonsoft, JA2's publisher, was too disappointed with the game's sales to consider picking up the add-on).

Like JA2, which sold in Russia months before Talonsoft finally started shipping in the US, JA2:UB hit the market first in Germany, carried by Innonics GmbH, in September 2000. In October, Sir-Tech signed a publishing agreement with Interplay, and the add-on finally hit US store shelves in December, 2001.

Unfinished Business offered 10 new characters, 10 new weapons (ranging from various 9mm Calico firearms to the Barrett M82A1 sniper rifle), new features including LOS indicators on the tactical map, a new world map (the country of Tracona, neighbor to JA2's Arulco) but only 20 new sectors (as compared to the hundred-odd sectors in JA2). The gameplay is also in the form of a linear, one-off mission; unlike in JA2, where you have to train militia and bide your time until you are strong enough to assault the enemy stronghold, here, you take one sector after another until you reach the enemy missile site.

The most anticipated feature was the bundled mission editor, which the package claimed was the same as the in-house tools Sir-Tech used for JA2 and JA2:UB. While capable, the editor is missing some features, including the ability to add NPCs, vehicles or quest scripts to the map. Unofficial third-party editors are appearing, however, which may in time manage to make up for the official editor's shortcomings.

The add-on has met with mixed reactions from the fans, with some finding the 20 sectors too few (although the mission editor does allow you to fill in the rest of Tracona with your own sector maps) while others find the difficulty level set too high (the enemy AI has been improved since JA2, and playing on the highest difficulty level, most sectors are chock-full of enemies).

JA2:UB looks like Sir-Tech Canada's last gasp, with the demise of its parent company, Sir-Tech, in 1998 leaving both the Jagged Alliance and Wizardry series without support. Wizardry 8 may be delayed indefinitely, and there seems to be no hope left of JA3 or Wizardry 9 ever seeing the light of day.

Most details from Jagged Alliance Galaxy (http://strategyplanet.com/jaggedalliance/).