Hey all, I've been extremely bored at one job (not GameStop, good Lord that place is busy) so I penned a quick couple of 'First Impressions' today. They are posted to my blog, but I wanted to put them on here as well... but didn't want to take two spots so I figured I'd just combine them. They are Singularity and Crysis 2.

The first is Singularity. Our hero and overlord here on GIO, Andy McNamara, has called this a hidden gem (or called it underrated or something... sorry, I'm exhausted, drinking, and trying to watch the NCAA final, but I'm pretty sure it was one of his favorite titles from last year... if I'm wrong about that I apologize) and it truly is... you can follow the above link to read it on Game Over... continue? or read below.

Singularity is one of those titles that sort of slipped under everyone’s radar. It got a decent amount of press (being featured in Game Informer) but then we didn’t hear much more about it and it was released with very little fanfare. But after people (mostly critics) had the chance to review it, Singularity was regarded as one of the more underrated titles of 2010. I finally had the chance to start the game, and I have to say, it’s great. It reminds me a lot of the gaming classic BioShock, something that was espoused by a great number of said critics for better or worse (some gave the game harsher scores because of the unmistakable similarities). But considering BioShock is one of my favorite games anything that follows along similar lines, even if is an unabashed rip-off, is okay with me…

During the worst years of the Cold War, Russian scientists have discovered a new element called E-99 on the hidden island of Katorga-12. This astonishing substance has some interesting properties, but there is an accident that virtually destroys the island. Flash forward 50 years, and a team of American special forces is sent in to see about a disturbance that was picked up via satellite. Naturally, your chopper crashes and you, playing as one Captain Renko, search the island alone. As you explore the ruins you learn more about the horrors that happened there (via audio diaries and movies which are hilariously anti-American, again very reminiscent of BioShock)… and soon discover that they never left; Renko isn’t alone on the island after all...

There is a clever, yet familiar, sense of creepiness and suspense that pervades the island. Mutated monsters (which are more than a little freaky) are constantly knocking things over in the background or wailing piteously. When you shoot these poor creatures they have some interestingly realistic, and very gory, damage. Shoot em' in the gut and their intestines come wiggling out sort of thing... I was surprised the first time it happened.

The singularity at the heart of Singularity (sorry, couldn’t resist ;^) allows events from the past to permeate the present, and even allows time travel by passing through rents in the space-time continuum. As Renko flits around the island and through time, you gradually uncover the truth about what happened there, but by doing so you might irrevocably change the present… er, future. I don’t know, I’m not that far into it yet and it’s pretty confusing, but that’s standard fare with most time traveling tales so I'm not surprised.

The biggest draw of Singularity is one that you don’t receive initially… the TMD or Time Manipulation Device, which is powered by E-99. The TMD allows you to manipulate specific objects in time. For example, say your way is blocked by a rusty, broken staircase. By using the TMD you can revert the staircase backward through time till it’s virtually brand new. As you can imagine, this creates the opportunity for all sorts of ‘time’ related puzzles, not to mention interesting ways of dealing with enemies. Blasting a soldier with the TMD forward in time will age them rapidly to dust, while reversing the field, well… leaves a bit of a mess to clean up.

The gameplay is standard FPS, although the variety added by the TMD (again, much like the plasmids in BioShock) gives you more options. The guns themselves pack a satisfying wallop even if they are a bit twitchy. I’m particularly fond of the sniper rifle. Because of your ability to manipulate time, you can actually steer the sniper bullet in slow motion into your target… never ceased to leave a smile on my face. You can even upgrade your weapons and the TMD by finding hidden caches of E-99 scattered about the wreckage.

As for the graphics they are decent, but by no means great. Functional would be the term I’d use… much like BioShock, although there are some texture loading issues. The sound work though, is excellent… much like Bioshock… I’m getting sick of saying/typing that. It’s also scary in parts, startling in others, just like Bioshock. In fact, while I haven’t the foggiest idea what’s really going on, if there is a clever twist like BioShock, that would pretty much round it out…

But you know what? I’m okay with that… using such a great game as inspiration, even in such an obvious, shameless way, is fine as long as it is a good game! So far I’m enjoying Singularity, and I’ll reserve final judgment (and the inevitable comparisons) till I finish it. But I'm intrigued, I will say that...

Cheers,

Si

The second game I wanted to talk about is Crysis 2 (again, here's the link). I've tried really hard not to read too many other reviews (especially our friendly neighborhood bloggers here on wonderful GIO) because I wanted to check it out for myself...

Having never owned a PC capable of aiding space shuttles in returning to Earth, I was naturally not able to play the original Crysis. I had heard a lot about its amazing graphics, and was wowed by the clips I saw, but I never actually played the game. When Crysis 2 was announced for consoles I was interested, but not stoked like a great many people… one of whom is a good friend of mine.

This friend, who I’ll allow to remain anonymous, actually had a computer built solely for this game… now that’s commitment people! I went over to his place and played the PS3 version on his ginormous TV and was pretty impressed. "Wow!" thought I, "This looks amazing… maybe God of War 3 or Uncharted 2 can compare, but it’s close!" But then he fired up his new baby, complete with liquid cooling system (that’s right, his comp has a radiator!), and started playing…

Now, admittedly, I was fairly inebriated by this point in the proceedings, but "Holy crap!" was my slack-jawed response. As good as the console version looks, the PC version is like night and frickin’ day. He may have spent a fair amount on his new tower, but being able to run Crysis 2 on max settings (with ease, I might add) is beyond impressive… in fact, it may be the most impressive graphics I’ve ever seen to date, and that’s saying something!

While I’ve got other things to spend my tax return on than super computers (or even semi-super computers), I dashed out and bought the PS3 version of Crysis 2 and played it for several hours. So far I’m not just impressed with its graphical prowess, but some pretty intense semi open-world FPS action makes it a fun game to play as well, and at the end of the day isn't that what's really important?

As awestruck as I am by the action and graphics, I’m less than overwhelmed by the plot. So far the weakest link to the Crysis 2 experience is the story… I still have no idea what’s going on. As the game begins, New York City has been quarantined due to a viral outbreak, martial law envoked. You play as a marine with the codename (at least I assume it’s a codename) of Alcatraz tasked with extracting someone important from within the cordoned off city. The proverbial sh*t hits the fan early on and you are pulled from a watery death by a person wearing some sort of hyper-cool body armor. Given this ‘Nanosuit’ by the doomed man, you’re pretty much tossed into the meat-grinder from the get go. Your contact, the person you were there to rescue in the first place, thinks you are the poor bugger that saved you, and frantically orders you about. Oh, and there are aliens (I think) that somehow figure into the mix as well, although I haven't figured that bit out yet. I’m sure they’ll get to the point eventually, but at the moment I’m just confused and slightly annoyed by this guy shouting in my ear… I’m trying to enjoy the amazing scenery you ass, leave me alone! Half the time I’ve simply been looking around staring agog at buildings falling around me, kicking up huge plumes of dust with the sunlight sparkling through… soooo pretty…

While I’m not exactly sure what the ‘Nanosuit’ is exactly yet, it seems like a sort of bio-mechanical armor that can augment the wearer. Not only giving you virtually super-human strength and speed, the suit also allows you to temporarily become invisible (as long as it's power gauge lasts; same with sprinting, jumping, or increasing it’s damage resistance… but don’t worry, it recharges quickly). Stealth plays in heavily as you’ll quickly learn, the enemy soldiers are amongst the smartest I’ve ever faced.

The enemy AI is fiendishly clever, employing flanking tactics and effective retreats. You really need to pay attention to your surroundings, make good use of cover and your invisibility function to get the drop on them. Avoiding all-out firefights seems like the smarter strategy. If you can sneak up behind someone you can perform a stealth kill but be wary, they can hear you coming. So far my tactics revolve around using my invisibility to get into position, quickly sniping an enemy (which completely depletes the suit’s gauge if you fire while invisible), then taking cover as it recharges, turning the invisibility back on, and moving to another position. There is even a well conceived 'lean' system where you can peak around cover to take your shot then duck back.

But what I find interesting is rather than becoming boring, this repeated use of similar strategy is thrilling because the levels are massive. There are multiple ways to approach, flank, or outright avoid enemy patrols. There is even a clever ‘Visor’ function that allows you to ‘tag’ certain foes (so you can track them) and helpfully shows where weapon caches can be found. It's almost like the levels themselves are puzzles, but without the puzzles if you see what I mean. It's left to you to find your way through the labyrinth and find the best way to deal with the threats you face. There is a certain satisfaction that comes from planning your route and then executing it perfectly, just as there is an almost manic frustration and consequent cluster&%$@! when everything goes wrong!

So far I’m loving Crysis 2, although I’m really hoping some of my questions about the plot will be answered soon. I can’t say enough about the graphics, they’re beyond impressive and hold a tantalizing glimpse of what the future holds for games in general. The ‘Nanosuit’ is cool, I’ve only just gotten to the point where I can begin to upgrade it, and can’t wait to see how that develops. The gunplay is fast and frantic when you get caught in the open and the enemies are clever bastards who’ll make you pay for exposing yourself. But I will say if you have the means, as good as the console version is, playing it on a capable PC is definitely the way to go!

Cheers,

Si

All righty then people, thanks for reading. Hope all it well with all of you... until later then:^)

P.S. I also posted a review of Prototype in case you're interested:^)