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Almost Adventure
and
Matthew Desmond
We occasionally like to recommend games to our readers that are not adventure but feature some related element that would interest the adventure gamer. An eclectic mix of strategy, RPG, simulations--one never knows what we might be hooked on at the moment, but rest assured that even though we neither grade these games nor review them in-depth, their inclusion in Almost Adventure is our highest recommendation to the adventure community.
The
Sting
Genre: Adventure/Strategy
Developer: Neo
Distributor: Jo Wood Productions
Platform: 
By
Randy Sluganski
If you have, like me, shied away from strategy games in the past because, for the most part, they always seem to be too damned serious, then be prepared to have your staid perceptions shattered. Just as many gamers mistakenly believe adventure games to be boring point-and-click affairs, so do most adventure gamers probably believe most strategy games to be dry recreations of the Civil War (or any major war for that matter) or Japanese feudal history. While this may have at one time been true, the times they are a'changing.
The Sting could have been a rote, by-the-numbers recreation of a bank heist, but instead the developers wisely decided to follow in the footsteps of Woody Allen's Take the Money and Run and Small Time Crooks and bumble along the comedic heist route. The game has a cartoony feel that is amplified by comic-strip cinematics and wacky, lovable bad guys. The constantly changing cast of characters keeps the goings-on fresh.
You play as Matt Tucker, an apprentice burglar who aspires to rise from a legend in his own mind to a legend in crime. Petty crime is replaced by more and more convoluted operations as Matt works to increase his notoriety on way to the most spectacular and stylish robbery ever--The Sting. While the micromanagement involved in pulling off a burglary was sometimes too much for my taste, as an adventure gamer I enjoyed the large cast of characters and the immense background information provided.
The "living city," with its constantly moving cast of people and automobiles, provide a vibrant atmosphere that is often lacking in adventure games. (Neo, the developer, claims it is the largest city ever animated for a computer game.) If you find the dishonest subject matter offensive, rest assured that there is no violence--these are "honest" thieves who follow a strict code of conduct. In fact the only hostility they can really be accused of is tickling your funny bone with their ineptitude.
Download a demo of The Sting here.
Desperados
Genre: Adventure/Strategy
Developer: Spellbound
Software
Distributor: Infogrames
Platform:
By
Randy Sluganski
Imagine famed western director John Ford (Stagecoach, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance) developing a computer game. Just as his movies were known for developing a strong microcosm of characters inside the maelstrom of the wild, wild west, so too does Desperados. Desperados is, along with Max Payne, the most fun I have had playing any game this year. I am not in particular a huge fan of Western movies or even strategy games for that matter, but that is quickly changing as many genres incorporate the better elements of adventure gaming.
Infogrames has been advertising Desperados as a real-time, team-based adventure strategy, and those are certainly some tall boots to fill. Just as The Sting succeeds based on the strength of its characters, so too does Desperados. Simply put, there are 25 missions that you must shoot, ride, fight, sneak, and cheat your way through. Six bounty hunters are gathered to stop a gang of banditos from raiding and robbing any more trains. For those who need more than action and strategy, though, there is also a wonderful cast of characters replete with their own quirky personalities and specific modes of attack. Cooper is the master of the blade, Kate's a wily female not above using her good looks to get what she wants, and Mia Yung has a trained pet monkey that you don't want to spank.
The bounty hunters can be controlled either singularly or simultaneously, and while this can become complicated, the learning curve--each character's tutorial is incorporated into one of the game scenarios--never detracts from the pure rush of this game. Each character has been molded in the time-honored tradition of any "team" movie you have ever seen. Two of them are ex-lovers, two distrust each other, and so on. But these cliches actually work in the game's favor--you feel as though you are personally involved in an interactive remake of The Magnificent Seven (in fact, one mission is named "The Magnificent Six").
Each character also has an array of special moves or tricks that can be used to progress through a level. For those who think I am committing blasphemy by gushing so over an adventure/strategy game, there are literally dozens of situations you will encounter that are the equivalent of any puzzle in an adventure game. For example, pyromaniac Samuel Williams carries a rattlesnake around in a sack. The sack can be placed on the ground in a troublesome area, and when an opponent attempts to pass, the snake will attack and kill him. This nifty trick was working great for the most part, but occasionally a bad guy would notice the movement in the bag, shoot the reptile, and then overtake my gang. What happened was I was a victim of my own success! A group of dead bodies would accumulate that was obviously noticeable by those stumbling upon the scene. To overcome this hitch, I then had to have one of my men carry some of the bodies away from the trap and, voila, my snake was back in business.
Desperados plays like a movie and adventure game in other ways. The missions are not helter-skelter but actually build upon each other to advance the storyline. There is ongoing chatter between the characters and enough twists and turns to fill the pages of a cheap paperback novel. Lengthy cutscenes between the missions are not just eye candy filler and always add another layer to the plot. Even the music, while not on a par with High Noon, had me humming along and is suggestive of the old matinee Westerns. The developers have done a great job of recreating a time when Westerns were the undisputed king of Hollywood.
Download a demo, screensavers, and trailers for Desperados here.
Dark
Angel: Vampire Apocalypse
Genre: Adventure/RPG
Developer: Metro
3D
Platform: PS2
By Randy Sluganski
Consider Dark Angel as Diablo Lite, and you won't be disappointed. In many ways, Dark Angel is a throwback to the more simplistic days of Rogue when a RPG could be enjoyed without all of the complications of learning fighting skills and acquiring advanced magic spells. The ease of combat may not appeal to the more advanced dungeon-crawler, but for someone like me who just wants to enjoy a game for brief periods, the low-end learning curve is appreciated.
What seems at first glance to be just another hack-and-slash, Dark Angel is quest-based and provides much more depth and storyline than most games of this ilk. Anna, your female avatar, must travel from region to region defending her native land of Gothos from the Shadow Lord and his minions. Most weapons and armor can be easily found in your dungeon romps, but the better stuff can be bought from shopkeepers, who also will offer side quests that, once completed, will increase your attributes. One innovation in Dark Angel is that you can sell magical items you have found to a village, and in turn the villagers can then use the item to improve their economy, military, or research against the foe. Lest you think this is a never-ending epic, Anna has but one year (game time) to gain the attributes and weapons necessary to confront the Shadow Lord.
Easy to master, but still involving enough to attract the casual gamer, Dark Angel is recommended for the adventurer who wants to hack his way to the top.
Download a demo of Dark Angel here.
Max
Payne
Genre: Adventure/Action
Developer: Remedy
Distributor: Gathering of
Developers
Platform:
By
Matthew Desmond
When most people think of a game that raises the bar to the next level of game play, they look to the past. Wolfenstein 3D and Doom set the stage for Quake, and Quake set the stage for Half Life and the clones that followed. Which brings us to this question: What set the stage for Max Payne? The answer: Nothing. Max Payne creates that next level, or bar if you will, and completely obliterates all expectations.
The game's premise is a basic film noir thriller storyline. A cop goes undercover for the Drug Enforcement Agency after his family's cold-blooded murder, infiltrates the Mafia, and after his partner is killed, gets framed for the crime. Your goal is to clear Max's name and flush out your partner's real killer. Max Payne is set in the mean streets of New York City where everything is dirty and gritty, and things get done not through talking, but with a gun.
And there is plenty of shooting in this game. Thankfully, the kind folks at Remedy Entertainment have added a twist to the shooting segment of this game. Anyone a fan of John Woo or those sweet slow-motion gun battles in The Matrix? I am. If you also are a fan of slow-motion action scenes, you are going to love Bullet Time and Shoot Dodge. What are Bullet Time and Shoot Dodge? It's a little hard to explain, but imagine that you stumble into a room where five gangsters have their weapons drawn. In a normal gun battle, you are bound to lose, but Bullet Time and Shoot Dodge allow you to slow down time. In Bullet Time, for example, you actually get enough time to take several well-aimed shots at the bad guys and even the odds. You can actually take down the entire group in Bullet Time. Shoot Dodge is activated long enough for you to dive into a room in slow motion and fire either one shotgun blast or several bullets from your pistol. Bullet Time lasts about ten seconds.
Remedy Entertainment has created an unforgettable atmosphere that expertly evokes the player's emotions. Max Payne draws you into this world and leaves you hanging at the end of each level. There are memorable moments from the first part of the game that leave you sitting back in your chair, slack-jawed, eyes glazed over and thinking, "Wow ..."
For example, the first level places you in the Payne household the day that Max's wife and daughter are slaughtered in cold blood. You arrive just moments after their slaughter and confront the killers. The cut scenes and graphic novel interludes make you feel as though you've been hit with a baseball bat. You can actually feel Max's anguish because you are completely helpless to stop what is happening.
In another scene, Max is having a flashback to the day that his family was killed. You can hear the baby crying and Max's wife screaming, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" over and over and over. You run down the hallways, but the hallways become infinite corridors. It is a frustrating scene as you share Max's pain and suffering.
In yet another scene, as Max takes a brutal beating from Frankie "The Bat" Niagra, we can only watch helplessly as the brute brings a Louisville Slugger down onto Max's skull. It's a very memorable scene.
The MaxFX engine is brilliant. Everything has been accurately modeled, and for the first time in a game, we can actually see individual bullets streaking across the screen, heading toward their targets. Damage effects have been accurately modeled for each weapon. Instead of seeing a similar effect for every gun (like in many games), each weapon has an accurate damage model for things hit; for example, hit a wooden table with a shotgun blast and there is a big, ragged hole in it. Hit the same table with your Beretta, and there is a small hole in the table--just what you'd expect. And there are plenty of pyrotechnics. Shoot the screw off the top of a propane gas tank and you better run before that sucker explodes in a nice big ball of fire. It's all rather fascinating to just sit back and watch the incredible display of explosions on the screen. The graphics are completely incredible. The first time you actually play the game, you will be amazed.
Most adventure gamers will not try a game if the story is mindless (Doom and Quake come to mind). Everyone wants a good story, but they don't want it to be already told to them by reading the blurb on the back of the box. Thankfully, Max Payne pulls through with an excellent story idea. Each time Max sees something he wants to look at, a little ! appears on the screen. You must then press your "Use" key to either activate that object or to reveal another page of your graphic novel.
The graphic novel is a comic book detailing everything that happens in the game. There is nothing worse than leaving a game for several days and then forgetting what has happened. In Max Payne, all you need do is check the graphic novel for a refresher. I hope that we see a lot more games of this style in the future.