A breath of fresh air in a world dominated by shooters.
Alice: Madness Returns is the sequel to 2000's American McGee's Alice.
I understand that Madness Returns takes place some years after the original, which you can play for yourself as you get a code for it with this game which is a nice touch.
I only tried the original briefly and while I could still somewhat appreciate it's style despite it's dated visuals, the gameplay was kind of shitty.
Fortunately Madness Returns manages to be fun, as well as great to look at.
Madness Returns is primarily a platformer.
You'll be doing a lot of jumping and puzzle solving and this is where the game shines in my book.
The combat initially is a bit of a drag, but becomes bearable as you purchase upgrades for your weapons by collecting teeth throughout the environment or from fallen enemies.
There's only four weapons, but it's a decent variety and they all have their uses whether in battle or for puzzle solving.
There's a pretty good variety of bad guys to put down who will do a good job of forcing you to utilize different tactics and all of the tools at your disposal to get the job done.
Combat is Zelda- esque, which is to say that it has a lock on system.
Sadly the camera doesn't always agree with the lock on system and you'll often find yourself not quite sure what you're shooting at regardless of being locked on to whatever.
The game tells a decent enough tale, as dark as it's surrealistic visuals which are no doubt the highlight of the game. Whether in whimsical Wonderland or drab and dreary London, the game is just a pleasure for your eyeballs.
I wouldn't blame you if you find the whole "dark" take on Alice in Wonderland a bit played out at this point, but if you can get past or aren't bothered by that there's a pretty good game to be played here.
