I'm on the fence for this one. I dig the style and kinda like what I saw in the quicklook. I've read a few reviews, but I'm looking for some extra input. Is this game worth it? It's only $15, right?

I guess what attracts me to this game is the look of it, and the feeling of tension and some heavy emotion. I know the gameplay isn't stellar, but is it worth it for the other stuff?

Yeah, you know, i bought it kinda like as a gamble, they're trying some pretty innovative stuff with this game, and even if they fall short, i want to support them in continuing in this path, supporting this type of game can only bring us gamers good things in the future.

But, on the game itself, i think i played it for more than 3 hours now, and, i'm enjoying it, at first it was kinda hard, and it almost made me feel like i was going to have a hard time finishing this game.

Cos in the beggining, it feels like you're always one step way from dying so, you kinda have to aproach this game differently, you have to plan and think ahead before you act, or you'll probably fall to your death, or get shot or stabed and die.

I also really like the mood and the atmosphere in this game, reminds me of the feeling you would get when playing old Silent Hill, because you feel so vulnerable, with only 1 or 2 bullets, and a machete, it's really survival horror without the horror, but you still feel unconfortable in some parts in the game, and i've seen some fucked up stuff in there too.

Ultimately, this is a 15$ XBLA game, it's a steal at that price, because it looks better, and plays better than a lot of games, that get released at full price at retail.

Just buy it.

@BPRJCTX: Thanks for that well-written input, will probably check it out.

I think Greg Miller is an idiot. This game is not worth a 4.5.

@Cincaid: For a second there i tought that was sarcasm , but that's just my trauma with bad gaming forums, i'm so glad i found Giant Bomb!

Btw, there's one thing i have to say about it, this game is good so far, but man, i wish it had some basic stealth mechanics, cos there are times in that game that it just makes so much sense, and it lends itself so well to it, that you just feel like, why haven't they done it?!

My opinion is, they probably had it in the game at some point but had to cut it out because it wasn't ready in time for release.

Actually, my opinion on this wholle thing with this game, from the initial anouncement, to what happened with them releasing on XBL is, they (Ubisoft) didn't think this game would sell well, with all the new stuff they are trying to do, they probably didn't feel confortable putting any more money into a game that would probably just bomb in sales.

So they just released what they had, to test the waters, and see if a full retail game is a viable thing.

So i'd say, if you want that intial "I Am Alive" to be released one day, support it now, and that just might happen'.

We gamers need to understand that we vote with our wallets, and the developers and publishers will do everything our money desires.

Tried the demo, not sure how I feel about the watered out, heavily saturated look. I wish they had made they killing more brutal, after all, it seems as if they want you to think about your actions and what you are doing to survive. I saw the IGN review and I was dismayed, but Metacritic says overall it has around a 72. I am not one to let others dictate my choices, though, I am on the fence.

I'm a few hours in and for me the game has already paid for itself. I just have a soft spot in my heart for this game though in all honesty. I think it's the awesome atmosphere and great VO.

I was positively surprised by I am Alive. Not that I thought it was going to suck, but when I saw Greg MIller's 4.5 review on IGN, I gasped. Troll reviews aren't common in IGN, since, you know, they usually give way higher scores than most sites. It was with relief that I noticed 30 other reviews giving it an overall of 7.5, which means that it's a totally playable game.

Because, you know, a 4.5 on a game means that it's an unplayable piece of shit like Big Rigs.

Anyways, I Am Alive is a difficult platformer with an certain degree of psychological combat. I think it's one of those really unique experiences that not everybody will be able to enjoy. It's akin to Demon Souls in terms of difficulty. If you're taking your time and plan ahead, it'll work out. If you don't, the game will bitch slap you for it.

To this point, I Am Alive is an excellent downloadable title. Sure, it doesn't sport the same content nor graphical prowesses of a 60$ game, but for a game that had to be compressed under 2 gigs of memory, it's incredible.

I'm in a weird juxtaposition with I Am Alive.

On one hand I would have really loved to see what more they could have done with the setting since it's actually one of my favourite renditions of a post-apocolyptic world. On the other, I think it finished at exactly the right time. I had started to get a little bored of some aspects of the game.

the climbing remained relatively fun throughout, the stamina mechanic, similar to SoC, was really well done and it added urgency to the whole thing. The only issue I has was that it found it quite easy to get lost in some sections, particularly the heavy dust places. The Heavy Dust areas were another section I had a love/hate relationship with. I enjoyed the novelty and thought they were pretty interesting but eventually I got sick of not being able to find a pole or anything due to an inability to actually see anything. Whilst this may have been the intended effect, I too often found myself having to jet back from my objective simply to get to a pole I knew was there. Overall though, exploration was good and the map whilst looking slightly useless at first was actually really helpful.

The main thing that I become bored of was the combat. I was pretty surprised at myself about this due to the fact that it was one of the main things I was looking forward to the most. Initially it was awesome, a great idea that i'd never really encountered. Eventually however it just became stale. It never really evolved from making guys put their arms up. It also increases in frequency which I think is a bad move. It was in short bursts dramatic and fascinating but soon after facing 6 guys then 3 guys then 2 guys, it just felt so mechanical. It didn't feel particularly innovative it just became "the way we do combat".

Overall though, I enjoyed it for the most part and I feel it's well worth a play.

one things about the climbing i dont know how i feel about, is there are paths that lead to nowhere! we saw this in the quick look when Brad got lost. so many times in video games if we see a path we assume the devs want us to go that way, and most of the time we're right. but in the instance of I Am Alive. there are paths in the climbing that may seem like a viable way to get to where your going, only to find out you have just hit a dead  
 end and have to back track. it doesn't feel like the game is conveying its information poorly to the player, it comes off as deliberate. a way to add yet another layer of tension to the climbing. Their is a lot of things in this game that feel deliberately done. like in the case of the combat feeling a bit clunky in spots. it comes off as the devs trying to handicap you, so can't completely exploit the A.I. you kind then become just as fragile as the enemies you face. point is im liking the game so far, and  some of its game play concepts are interesting. 

I think the combat is interesting and very puzzle like, especially as you go deeper. You have encounters where you might have to deal with 4 or 5 guys and you have to decide if you have time to use an arrow, how many bullets you can spend on that encounter if you even have any, making sure you don't get cornered but at the same time keeping anyone from getting ehind you, what you're likely to get from the enemies, etc. Resource management is also pretty strategic. There's a finite amount of stuff out there and I've already failed to save several people because I didn't have the right item to help them, usually because I needed it for myself. They really did the survival stuff well, at least from what I've seen 3-4 hours in.

I also think that it's impossible to listen to Henry without picturing Adam Jensen. That voice is too distinct.

Great input, everybody. Thanks. I got the demo, and I'll give it a shot this weekend. Right now I've got a ton of games to play, but I've definitely got my eye on this one if I get bored with what I have.

So far, I'm really liking the desperation that the games atmosphere throws at you and the stamina system when climbing buildings and objects of debris. The combat is a little hit-and-miss, but once you realize that you have to strategize before you act, it'll start clicking together. Also, the lack resources and limited retries makes it that much more intense. Could be good or bad, take your pick.

Good or bad, I think the most disappointing part is how good it could have been. I remember that first trailer, especially that part where he kills some hobos by tossing a water bottle on a glass floor. From all reviews, it's clear that it didn't live up to both expectations and its potential. The second it became a downloadable title I knew it was done for. Hell, I'm surprised Alan Wake's American Nightmare turned out as well as it did - I guess I'm not accepting of "real" games masquerading as downloadable titles. In I Am Alive's case, that fear was founded.

I'm maybe a little shy of half way through at this point and so far I've really enjoyed it actually. The tone and atmosphere are excellent and the gameplay is fine on all accounts as far as I'm concerned. I've had a few moments that were actually more tense than a lot of games that sell themselves as being horror games. Definitely worth checking out if you think it sounds interesting.

For everyone who is into this type of game check out what undead labs is working on. Code named 'Class 3' it will also be an XBLA game and it's an open world zombie survival game with co-op. It will be the base of their much more ambitious 'Class 4' which will be the first ever MMO for xbox. There's some brief behind the scenes footage on youtube if your interested.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-W5ZqDzZIQ4

Real exited for that game....

I only played the demo, but I found myself kind of disappointed overall. I really wanted to like this game, it sounded great conceptually and looked pretty fun in the quick look. But I found myself pretty bored while I was playing and the controls weren't as fluid as I would have hoped. I was definitely planning on purchasing this game until I played the demo and figured $15 is probably better spent on something else.

I really liked it! Infact i just finished my 3rd playthrough(1st just focusing on the main story, 2nd rescuing all the survivors and again on Survivor difficulty), I kinda wish it was a little longer and the ending had more closure but it was well worth $15. I never got into the Silent Hill games so i don't have that frame of reference but to me it kinda reminds me of an Adventure game with death scenarios(something i really miss in modern Adventure games). I love scavenging for supplies and finding ways to kill thugs without waisting bullets.

One thing that really bums me out about is:

I give it a 3/5.

I really hope somebody at Ubisoft decides to pick up this franchise so they can make the game THEY wanted to make.

@CH3BURASHKA: Every time i picked up a water bottle in the game i thought of that original trailer and how awsome that would've been using that method to get away from large groups of thugs! :)

@Lind_L_Taylor: It seems Survivor mode just limits the number of bullets/supplies that drop from thugs. If you know where everything is then it's really not that hard. I think the thugs maybe a little more aggressive but i'm not sure.

@BPRJCTX said:

We gamers need to understand that we vote with our wallets, and the developers and publishers will do everything our money desires.

yeah so you guys should probably STOP BUYING CRAP FROM UBISOFT

Sorely tempted to pick this up on PSN, played through the demo and liked it a lot, the look and feel of the game is great.

With my luck, I'll buy it and come May it'll be a PSN Plus free game.

It is broken as fuck.

I love it anyways.

I think this game is excellent. Sure it's a bit janky, but it has has some great ideas and a powerful atmosphere. Well worth the money imo