Jumping the realm of fantasy...
Condemned 2: Bloodshot
Xbox 360
It takes a messed up mind to compare a game such as Condemned 2 to the classic feel good TV show Happy Days, but I think we'll get there. Happy Days was famous for being great, but infamous for an utterly ridiculous scene towards the end of it's run in which the figure of awesomeness personified as The Fonz jumped over a shark whilst water ski-ing. Not that I mean to demean a power as great as The Fonz, but not even I can overlook such blatant silliness. Ever since, when a franchise has run it's course and begun resorting to absurd ideas, it has been known as Jumping the Shark, and remains one of the most feared criticisms that can be lashed against a television show or film. It kind of pains me to admit that now it's a term that game developers should fear...
Condemned 2 is for the most part a superb game. It recognises it's own brutality and doesn't attempt to make any excuses about it's content. It's cold, stark murder you'll be comitting whilst you traverse the world as Ethan Thomas and you'll be unleashing the Angel of Death upon a whole plethora of foes in the most agonisingly gritty fashion that you could imagine. Whilst games such as GTA cower behind their low brow sarcastic humour, Condemned fully recognises that it can be deeply darkly funny without uttering one stupid sentence, more often than not letting the action itself do the talking. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's recoup.
In Condemned 2, you play as Ethan Thomas, Ex-Serial Crimes Unit officer who after being accused of murder (and eventually aquitted) left the force and become an alcoholic homeless person suffering from horrible visions. Someone you know dies and just like that, you're back in the action and this is where the bliss lies. One of the key points of Condemned 2 is that it makes no bones about the action; guns have sparse ammo, you'll be relying on your fists frequently in a style reminiscent of a no-holds barred non licensed boxing match and of course, when it's you or them, anything is an asset, which is where the aforementioned humour comes in. Theoretically, you could go through the game with your wooden planks and your electric conduits, but when toilet seats and baby dolls are an option how can someone vicious enough to play this game deny themselves the delicious irony? It's an asset that only seems to work due to the nature of it all being so fiendishly underplayed and the fact that it doesn't contrast with the horrific setting of the game, oddly enough appearing to conform to it even, just makes it even more sweet.
The tone of the game is dark, as are the sets about 90% of the time. For the majority of the game, it feels like a realists version of Bioshock, with the crazed inhabitants of a worn down city replacing the Splicers of Rapture and the plasmids swapped in for whatever you can lay your hands on. Despite the plot being noticably weaker, the game feels very similar to Bioshock in that respect, especially during the quieter sections where you can hear muttering and the water splashing beneath you as you wander through the odd puddle. It really doesn't have any issues with being a horror game, spreading its hand through each sub-genre, be it shock tactics or psychological horror (though I would have liked to have seen more of the latter).
In terms of the technical specs of the game, everything seems to be up to date. The graphics look lush (in that horrible grimy sort of way), the sound effects feel as dank as one would anticipate, and the acting from the cast is about as good as you would expect from the script they were provided with.
But that's the killer right there: The script.
For the most part, it's hack'n'slash, which is fair enough. It's a horror game, and although a decent plot would be nice, it's not necessary. In a horror game, you want to be scared, not witnessing a game that you wish was a film. The idea is to play and be frightened, not spectate and observe, but there eventually comes a point where you have to open your eyes and realise that what you're playing is descending into absurdity. Getting ridiculous. Jumping the shark.
Forunately, this is saved mostly for the final third or quarter of the game but that really doesn't excuse such bad storytelling. I'm not going to lie and say that I was particularly engaged in the characters, I saw the entire story as a means to an end. However, as a writer, you can't assume that if nobody cares then it's acceptable to throw in stupid plot devices. Especially when those plot devices have a severe impact that influence the game play.
Quite frankly, it's tempting to drop this game down another star but fortunately, the only level that left me soured was the last one, and I suppose the story line made some level of sense for at least the first half of the game.
It's due to Condemned 2 that my heart feels heavy informing that games have started to make these mistakes. I guess they were inevitable in the end, but I was holding out hope it was something I wouldn't be put in a position to experience for quite some time yet...
Xbox 360
It takes a messed up mind to compare a game such as Condemned 2 to the classic feel good TV show Happy Days, but I think we'll get there. Happy Days was famous for being great, but infamous for an utterly ridiculous scene towards the end of it's run in which the figure of awesomeness personified as The Fonz jumped over a shark whilst water ski-ing. Not that I mean to demean a power as great as The Fonz, but not even I can overlook such blatant silliness. Ever since, when a franchise has run it's course and begun resorting to absurd ideas, it has been known as Jumping the Shark, and remains one of the most feared criticisms that can be lashed against a television show or film. It kind of pains me to admit that now it's a term that game developers should fear...
Condemned 2 is for the most part a superb game. It recognises it's own brutality and doesn't attempt to make any excuses about it's content. It's cold, stark murder you'll be comitting whilst you traverse the world as Ethan Thomas and you'll be unleashing the Angel of Death upon a whole plethora of foes in the most agonisingly gritty fashion that you could imagine. Whilst games such as GTA cower behind their low brow sarcastic humour, Condemned fully recognises that it can be deeply darkly funny without uttering one stupid sentence, more often than not letting the action itself do the talking. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's recoup.
In Condemned 2, you play as Ethan Thomas, Ex-Serial Crimes Unit officer who after being accused of murder (and eventually aquitted) left the force and become an alcoholic homeless person suffering from horrible visions. Someone you know dies and just like that, you're back in the action and this is where the bliss lies. One of the key points of Condemned 2 is that it makes no bones about the action; guns have sparse ammo, you'll be relying on your fists frequently in a style reminiscent of a no-holds barred non licensed boxing match and of course, when it's you or them, anything is an asset, which is where the aforementioned humour comes in. Theoretically, you could go through the game with your wooden planks and your electric conduits, but when toilet seats and baby dolls are an option how can someone vicious enough to play this game deny themselves the delicious irony? It's an asset that only seems to work due to the nature of it all being so fiendishly underplayed and the fact that it doesn't contrast with the horrific setting of the game, oddly enough appearing to conform to it even, just makes it even more sweet.
The tone of the game is dark, as are the sets about 90% of the time. For the majority of the game, it feels like a realists version of Bioshock, with the crazed inhabitants of a worn down city replacing the Splicers of Rapture and the plasmids swapped in for whatever you can lay your hands on. Despite the plot being noticably weaker, the game feels very similar to Bioshock in that respect, especially during the quieter sections where you can hear muttering and the water splashing beneath you as you wander through the odd puddle. It really doesn't have any issues with being a horror game, spreading its hand through each sub-genre, be it shock tactics or psychological horror (though I would have liked to have seen more of the latter).
In terms of the technical specs of the game, everything seems to be up to date. The graphics look lush (in that horrible grimy sort of way), the sound effects feel as dank as one would anticipate, and the acting from the cast is about as good as you would expect from the script they were provided with.
But that's the killer right there: The script.
For the most part, it's hack'n'slash, which is fair enough. It's a horror game, and although a decent plot would be nice, it's not necessary. In a horror game, you want to be scared, not witnessing a game that you wish was a film. The idea is to play and be frightened, not spectate and observe, but there eventually comes a point where you have to open your eyes and realise that what you're playing is descending into absurdity. Getting ridiculous. Jumping the shark.
Forunately, this is saved mostly for the final third or quarter of the game but that really doesn't excuse such bad storytelling. I'm not going to lie and say that I was particularly engaged in the characters, I saw the entire story as a means to an end. However, as a writer, you can't assume that if nobody cares then it's acceptable to throw in stupid plot devices. Especially when those plot devices have a severe impact that influence the game play.
Quite frankly, it's tempting to drop this game down another star but fortunately, the only level that left me soured was the last one, and I suppose the story line made some level of sense for at least the first half of the game.
It's due to Condemned 2 that my heart feels heavy informing that games have started to make these mistakes. I guess they were inevitable in the end, but I was holding out hope it was something I wouldn't be put in a position to experience for quite some time yet...
