Spontaneous Sunday: Gone Home

That's right, Spontaneous Sunday is back! Though I submitted my final MA work last week, I've decided to keep on doing Spontaneous Sunday posts every so often. I've found them to be really beneficial to my knowledge of game design and they encourage me to play games that I might not otherwise play (also its pretty fun!).

This week I have played Gone Home: Console Edition (2016, Midnight City, Xbox One. Original version released 2013, The Fullbright Company, PC). Gone Home is a game that has intrigued me for a while because of its focus on environmental storytelling and atmosphere. Earlier this year I had a short email conversation with one of the game's environment artists (Kate Craig) for one of my MA research modules which piqued my interest further. When I found that the game is free on Xbox Live this month, I just had to play it!

"Gone Home is a first-person adventure exploration video game developed and published by The Fullbright Company. Set in the year 1995, the plot focuses on exploration of a house in Portland, Oregon, and examining common household objects within the home to unlock journal entries and discover the recent events that took place there."

- Wikipedia on Gone Home

What do I expect from the game?

As I have looked into the game quite a bit before playing it, I think I have a pretty good idea of what to expect. I expect Gone Home to a be a minimalistic, slow-paced exploration game set in a single house environment, with the emphasis of the gameplay being on interacting with things in the environment in order to slowly uncover a story. I expect that the game will lack a linear story or any interaction with other characters, instead allowing the player to discover things in their own order and at their own pace.

I expect that the game's strengths will include its environments, immersion, atmosphere, storytelling, attention-to-detail and the unique nature of its concept. The idea of a story-driven exploration game set in a single house strikes me as creative and intriguing but risky - it will be interesting to see how the game functions without many game-like elements or a direct goal or challenge. I've heard good things about the game so I'm pretty excited to get into it. I expect that my enjoyment of the game will rely on the quality of the storytelling and how immersive the environments are, so I plan to play it in the dark with headphones on to get the full atmospheric effect!

First Impressions - What do I think of the game in its first few minutes?

The game begins in a rather reserved way, with the developer idents silently fading in and out. The title screen and music slowly then slowly fade in. The front-end music is similarly reserved, with multiple layers of soft string chords creating a soundtrack that is an interesting mix of solemn and contemplative but warm and homely - I expect that the mood conveyed by the opening music will be present throughout the game itself aswell. The front-end is pretty minimalistic, with the static background image of a large wooden house at night, with a single light on upstairs and trees in the foreground. Its an interesting visual style, somewhat reminiscent of old cartoons and graphic novels. I  briefly considered the symbolism of certain elements of the artwork - I get the impression that this game was a very personal project for the 4-person development team and as a result, deep meaning is likely to be present in most elements including the main menu artwork.

The main menu UI is simple, with just two options on its main screen: "new game" and "options". I think that the fact that the environment seen on the main menu is simply a static image and not a real-time environment was something of a missed opportunity. It could have had clouds moving in the night sky above the house, the light flickering, trees swaying in the wind and so on. There is also a noticeable lack of any ambient SFX on the title screen, which is a shame because the sound of wind blowing and crickets chirping could have elevated the atmosphere more. With all that said, its possible that this stripped-back effect was intentional and the developers didn't want the main menu to distract the player by having too much visuals and audio to take in.

I began a new game and was greeted by a controls screen that showed how to move around (left stick) and how to look around (right stick) and that was it! I also checked out a page of "modifiers" which apparently result in a "non-standard experience". These included things such as turning on developer commentary and having all the doors in the house unlocked from the start. The player is able to activate any of these modifiers on their very first playthrough, which struck me as odd: I am given to understand that the game can be completed in quite a short amount of time, so I would have expected these options to become available after the game is completed in order to both reward the player and encourage repeat playthroughs thus lengthening the game's lifespan.

The modifiers page.

The player's first view of the game world.

The game begins with the player-character, Katie, arriving home after a year in Europe. Her family have moved into a big old house since she left, and she arrives to find it unfamiliar and empty. Starting in the house's porch, the player first has to find the hidden key to unlock the front door and access the house proper. On the front door is a note to Katie from her younger sister Sam, saying that she is not there but they will "see each other again some day" - note sets the scene of mystery early on and prompts the player to immediately begin questioning what is happening or has happened in the house. Thereafter, the game's story steadily begins to add up. There is a large amount of objects to interact with and inspect and notes to read, which each either shed some light or add some mystery to the main story, tell the player something about one of the family members, or simply add to the game's backstory. The player is therefore able to glean small bits of information regularly that allows them to slowly build an understanding of such things as the family member's history, current struggles and events from the past.

Sam's note to Katie.

I set about exploring the house, examining objects and turning up notes that offered information of varied usefulness. It didn't take me long at all to become immersed in the game and begin to care about the character's and figuring out the story behind the mysterious absence of any family members from the house. I was instantly impressed by the game's ambient audio, and the graphics are also decent - though they would be even better if the game used PBR textures. The effect of rain running down the house's windows was a particularly nice visual effect.

I think that the game starts out pretty strongly. The simplicity of the main menu and the music sets the player up for the slow-paced, reserved experience of the game itself, and the opening gameplay of arriving at the house feels well-executed and appropriate. Sam's note on the door is the first sign that something may be amiss in the house, and it gives just the right amount of mystery to the opening section that will spur the player on through the game to figure out what the story is.

What do I like about the game?

I played Gone Home for about 3 hours, and in that time I explored much of the house and gathered a decent amount of information - enough to have a pretty good understanding of each of the family members. Though I hadn't really gleaned anything that could hint at the whereabouts of the family, I had discovered a lot of other information that I could tell would prove important later on. The game's main stand-out features are its concept, its story, its atmosphere and the quality and detail of the environments.

Gone Home is definitely an interesting concept for a game and it was very enjoyable despite (or perhaps thanks to) its lack of classic game-like elements. It's an interesting experience quite unlike any other game that I can remember playing. Most of its features are distinctly un-gamelike, from the slow movement speed of the character, to the lack of urgency or failure. In terms of how the player moves and interacts with their surroundings, the game seems to be intended to mimic real life more than other games. This means that the game provides an immersive experience that puts the story in the spotlight and makes it the main feature. The player is mostly free to approach the game however they want, which gives a sense of control over the proceedings and a sense of accomplishment when your exploration yields meaningful results such as uncovering important information or something hidden away.

Another interesting point about the game's concept is that it could only ever have worked as an indie game. Gone Home seems to be infused with personality and nostalgia from the small development team's own experiences memories. The developers presumably grew up in the 90's (the game is set in 1995), which would make this a personal project for them and allow them to add to the richness of the story and setting. I also think that indie games are allowed more creative freedom by both publishers and players. If this game was made by a major high-profile studio, it wouldn't have had the personality that it does and would probably have been watered down and edited by a publisher so it could have mass appeal. It is a risky concept, and this makes Gone Home stand out to me as a good example of the value of the creative freedom of independent game development.

Gone Home's story is another very strong feature, and it is what the whole game balances on. The game's whole focus is on navigating a space and interacting with your surroundings in order to gather information. I went into the game without any significant knowledge of the story, and its been an interesting and rather unique experience.

The story is unlocked linearly and actually focuses more on Sam than on Katie (who is the playable character but is relatively rarely mentioned, and usually its something mundane like homework notes) with a couple of subplots that focus on the parents. I won't go into too much detail for risk of dropping spoilers, but the story is very interesting and often relatable, and it also happens to be expertly delivered. Most information is found by examining notes, documents and important items, some of which will play a voiceover from Sam herself, who steadily reveals her story. The voiceovers are stored in a journal menu and can be played back. All the while, other items around the house offer lesser details that add greater depth and context to the stories and characters. I didn't finish the game, but I think I made a lot of progress and it has definitely gripped me.

Sam's bedroom.

Voiceovers in the journal.

The game's atmosphere is another prominent feature. The house feels at the same time homely yet unfamiliar, calming yet tense. The atmosphere is brilliant established through the use of lighting, ambient audio and environmental storytelling. The house is naturally very dark, but the player can turn lights on throughout the house. This means that new areas are shrouded in darkness which adds a level of realism to the exploration. The lights themselves contribute to the atmosphere by subtly illuminating certain areas, and casting long shadows in others. I think the environments could benefit from more contrast, with shadows being darker and illuminated areas lighter (perhaps I'll tweak the video settings in the options menu). Ambient audio is another huge factor in the game's atmosphere. The events of the game take place on a stormy night, so the constant sound of rain outside makes up much of the ambience, but there are also sounds of thunder, subtle distant banging and very occasionally, a very quiet and fleeting sound of whispering - which I suspect is meant to unnerve the player and make them question whether they imagined it. When I first heard it, it was pretty effective!

The house's master bedroom.

The environmental storytelling also helps to create a strong atmosphere. The environments are all very detailed and each room feels unique and has something to offer. The notes and documents are the most obvious example of environmental storytelling, but the house also contains lots of objects that can be examined such as regular household items, personal effects, newspapers, books and posters. Everything has a distinctly familiar 90's theme, including labelled VHS tapes and cassette tapes, game cartridges and 90's products and decor. Many of the notes and objects are related somehow which means small story arcs often crop up. It all adds to the detail and believability of the setting, which is a vital part in the creation of atmosphere.

The player also gets a map to help them navigate.

Finally, there is the quality of the environment art and 3D assets. The whole house environment is very well crafted and detailed with high quality 3D models and textures throughout. The art is actually lower-poly than I had expected but the overall graphics don't really suffer a result. The environment is believable which also helps the game's atmosphere. Because the playable area is relatively small, the artists will have been able to spend a lot of time and effort on making each room  as good as possible, and this shows through the quality of the environments. Each room looks lived in and has its own clear aesthetic, purpose and identity, just as a real house would. Its easy to buy into the games story when exploring such well-crafted and atmospheric environments.

The house's main hall.

What do I not like?

Gone Home is another one of those games that I just find it really difficult to find any criticism for. Aside from the few minor points that I made earlier (the menu screen being too static and the lack of PBR textures), I've drawn a blank for negative points. As the story is so crucial to the game, the only thing I can see tainting my opinion is if the ending of the story is a disappointment - I guess time will tell on that front!

Final Thoughts

Gone Home is probably one of the most outstanding games I have played for Spontaneous Sunday. It offers a really unique gaming experience that is atmospheric, engaging and thought-provoking. The story, which is compelling and well-delivered, combines with the game's strong atmosphere and art to make for an enjoyable and enthralling game. The ambient SFX and the 1995 setting are also good features. Gone Home has gripped me (as I had expected it to), and I will be playing it again very soon!

Spontaneous Sunday: Hydro Thunder Hurricane

Welcome to another Spontaneous Sunday! This week I have played Hydro Thunder Hurricane (2010, Vector Unit, Xbox 360). This is one of the free games available through Xbox Live this month. Just a quick disclaimer about Spontaneous Sunday: as I'm now approaching the end of my final MA module, I'm going to be doing Spontaneous Sundays less frequently so I can focus on other work. I'll basically be doing one as and when I have time to rather than trying to do one each week. With that said, lets begin!

"Hydro Thunder Hurricane is a boat racing video game developed by Vector Unit and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade. The game was released on July 28, 2010 as part of Microsoft's Xbox Live Summer of Arcade promotion. It is the sequel to Hydro Thunder, originally an arcade game and part of the Thunder series. Gameplay in Hurricane involves players selecting one of nine boats to race through over-the-top scenarios."

- Wikipedia on Hydro Thunder Hurricane

What do I expect from the game?

I had not heard of Hydro Thunder Hurricane until just a few hours before I played it, so I am a complete newcomer to the game, but it didn't take long for my expectations to begin to form. The game's description and screenshots on its Xbox store page suggest a fast-paced arcade racing game that offers a variety of futuristic super-boats and themed levels.

I expect that the core gameplay will be fairly simple, and will consist of navigating tracks in a range of different boats, probably with different stats and strengths. I expect that the core mechanics and systems will be fairly typical of the arcade racing genre, such as speed boosts, hidden shortcuts and a handful of different game modes that generally center on going as fast as possible! I expect the gameplay to be very high-energy, and I think that this will also carry through into the UI, visuals, music and sound effects.

As an Xbox Live Arcade game that comes in at less than 500MB, I expect that the amount of content on offer will be limited, and the game will re-use the track environments with different game modes or rule sets to add variety. I expect that it will be a high-energy and entertaining casual racing game. I expect the game's strengths to be its fast-paced gameplay, its high level of energy and the design of the boats and environments.

First Impressions - What do I think of the game in its first few minutes?

Just as I expected, the game begins with immediate energy. The start screen appears with a robotic-sounding voice loudly proclaiming the game's title, followed by an up-tempo electronic soundtrack with synths and heavy drums. The start screen displays the game's logo over a backdrop of a tropical 3D environment with boats racing past.

The main menu is simple but visually appealing and has a good layout and flow. It features options for Single Player and Multiplayer, aswell as Leaderboards, Achievements, DLC and a very informative Help menu. Selecting each option sees the camera pan to a different area of the 3D environment. I appreciate main menus that incorporate 3D environments in this way as it allows the player to feel immersed in the game world moreso than if it was just options on a 2D background. It also allows the game to show off its environments and graphics - which, from the looks of the main menu, are pretty decent! The main menu environment is nice and bright and the fact that there are boats racing around is a nice touch. The water physics look very promising, however the environment could have benefited from having a bit more life breathed into through more animated/moving elements, such as the leaves on the palm trees swaying in the breeze, clouds in the sky moving and so on.

I selected Single Player, which displays 4 game modes: Race, Ring Master, Gauntlet and Championship. Race was only the option that was unlocked so I chose that and began my first race on the track called "Lake Powell" in a boat called "Vector" (presumably after the game's developers, Vector Unit), as these are the only options available from the start. The race is preceded by a quick run-down of how the Boost system works: the player must collect Boost pickups which allow them to use a speed boost or jump over obstacles or other boats. The first race is a sprints from a set start and end point rather than multiple laps around the same circuit (though lap-based races do appear later on). The first race took me through a pretty action-packed and varied course of valleys, tunnels and industrial waterways in a desert setting. It's a pretty lively environment with moving elements such as wind turbines and falling rocks, aswell as jumps and destructible obstacles that can be smashed through. The race had 16 competitors, which made for a really frantic and busy free-for-all competition. I came in first at 2 minutes 23 seconds, followed 4 seconds later by the AI in 2nd.

The game's first track - Lake Powell.

This level is a pretty strong start for the game. The environment is exciting and varied enough to grab the attention, but is a fairly familiar setting that is not overly complicated so as a beginner the player doesn't feel overwhelmed, and can learn the ropes easily. Seeing as I quite easily came first in my first attempt, I am hoping that this is just a case of the game "going easy" on me, and not that its this easy throughout. After finishing, I was awared a lot of stuff including 500 Credits, a new game mode for the track, a new track and a new boat. This is a decent reward for a little two minute race! This suggests to me that the game's input-and-reward cycle will be fast, with rewards coming often. This is in-keeping with the casual arcade nature of the game.

After two races, I had unlocked at least one track on each of the four game modes, which I thought was pretty decent because it allows the player to quickly experience a bit of all that the game has to offer from an early stage, while still withholding enough to encourage extended play. While having only one track and one game mode available from the start may seem too limiting, it is actually a smart move because it forces the player to play that track first, allowing the developers to herd the player through their first experience of the game on the developer's terms, making for a more effective introduction. However, there was also only one colour scheme available for the starting boat, which is limiting in a bad way. Boat colour is purely cosmetic and doesn't affect gameplay, so there would have been no harm in offering more colours and allowing players more choice and ownership of their first experience in the game.

The game offers an informative "How To Play" menu.

What do I like about the game?

I played Hydro Thunder for about 3 hours and in that time I played quite a lot of races across many tracks, game modes and boats. The game definitely has a lot going for it, and my time playing it was enjoyable. The game's main positive points are its enjoyable gameplay, its varied game modes, boats and levels, and the way in which it perfectly suits the XBLA platform on which it was released.

Ring Master on Lake Powell.

The action really does come thick and fast in Hydro Thunder. One of the game's strongest elements is simply its core gameplay. Theres rarely a dull moment as theres always powerups to be collecting, jumps to be made or environmental elements to be smashed. The game offers frantic races and a variety of game modes that are diverse enough to allow extended play without becoming bored. The Boost mechanic is definitely the game's core mechanic (besides the basic driving mechanic) and it is pivotal to success in the game. The player has to manage their Boost levels by collecting Boost on the track and using it tactically. The game's level of challenge is also pretty well-balanced. The first few available levels are Novice difficulty, but the player soon unlocks Pro level races and eventually Expert level. The more difficult levels are unlocked at just the right time for the challenge to be consistent and remain engaging. A lot of thought and iteration must have gone into perfecting the pace of the game's difficulty curve, and Hydro Thunder is a better game for it.

Gauntlet on Monster Island.

The game is also pretty rewarding. The player frequently unlock more tracks, boats, game modes and difficulty levels, so there is never a discouraging lull between rewards and it doesn't feel like a grind. This also means that there is almost always something new to do. Though the rewards come quickly, the game cannot be said to be over-generous because there are also special skins for the boats that are unlocked for completing specific challenges. This means that, while rewards are frequent, the game still holds some of its cards to its chest. The reward system incentivises extended play, while the special challenges (such as collecting all 10 hidden collectables in a certain track) call for the player to alter their play style and approach levels in a different way than the game modes themselves demand.

Ring Master on Tsunami Bowl.

The game modes are sufficiently varied. The Races are either sprints from a start point to a finish point, or 3 lap circuits depending on which track you are playing. The Ring Master game mode requires the player to go through a series of rings on the track as quickly as possible and calls for some really skillful driving. The chaotic Gauntlet game mode adds lots of explosive barrels to the water which have to be avoided. Finally, the Championship game mode combines the other 3 game modes in a series of challenges. Each game mode requires both speed and careful driving in varied measures. The designers have made very good use of the 8 tracks on offer. By offering several different game modes and difficulty levels on each track, the designers did a good job of adding diversity and longevity to the game without overstretching the level design resources or inflating the game's file size with too many levels. There's even support for up to 4-player local multiplayer, aswell as online multiplayer. This obviously adds a whole new level of content and possibilities to the game. I am a big supporter of local multiplayer so this was a winner in my opinion.

The variety of boats on offer is also a positive point. There are 9 boats available which are gradually unlocked as the player advances through the game, all of which have vastly different and unique designs. They also have different stats which give them strenghts and weaknesses and mean that they suit different game modes and play styles. The differences in the way that each boat operates brings some really meaningful variety between each boat, and the player will likely find a favourite that is most suited to their play style or the needs of each particular game mode.

Each boat has different stats that affect their strengths and weaknesses.

The game boasts good art and design throughout. There's some really memorable and characterful levels on offer. To name just a few, there is "Monster Island" which features sea monsters and pre-historic creatures in an ancient ruined island setting, "Storming Asgard" which is a sprint through arctic waters filled with set pieces and figures from Nordic mythology, and "Tsunami Bowl" which is influenced by real-world motorsport tracks in Japan. Every map features interactible elements, destructible environments and impressive set pieces, such as the sea monster and giant rock man seen in the images below.

Another one of Hydro Thunder's strengths is the fact that it has really pinpointed its niche and audience perfectly.  The game is pretty much perfect for the XBLA platform on which it was released; it's all-action and casual gameplay, well-balanced amount of content and small file size make it a great game for those who seek an arcade-like experience in their games. Hydro Thunder Hurricane basically embodies the spirit of the XBLA platform. It also appeals to its target audience very well. The game's main target audience is presumably fans of the original game and fans of arcade-like games in general, and its Xbox store page suits this audience well. As a knock-on effect, the game's simple premise, over-the-top action and lack of offensive content also makes it accessible to casual gamers and young gamers. Additionally, the high-energy nature and simple enjoyability of the game, aswell as the memorable tracks, should allow the game to command a decent amount of word-of-mouth exposure.

What do I not like?

Hydro Thunder is undoubtedly a very well-rounded game, and only has a handful of minor downsides, specifically the repetitive music, the re-use of levels and the haphazard order of the unlocks.

The music is good and it definitely suits the game's aesthetic and high-energy vibe, but it becomes repetitive after a while and it is constantly playing. There are no times when it ceases - not even on the pause menu or the main menu. The energy that the music brings to the game is good, but having the occasional break from it would be welcome. For example, if the high-energy music was only used in the levels, it would make the use of music more tactical and the action more impactful, while the menu's lack of music would allow the player to take a break.

Hydro Thunder re-uses 8 tracks in a number of game modes. This yields both good and bad results. The good results are that the re-use of tracks challenges the designers to create tracks that are multi-faceted and give way to varied goals and mechanics, which likely makes for a better game with more replayability. It also ensures the environment artists workload and the game's file size are kept under control. The downside, however, is that the tracks will eventually become a little bit repetitive. During the late-game, the player might find themselves becoming bored of the core 8 tracks. Luckily, there is a DLC that adds some more tracks, so late-game players who are invested in the game can get more content.

The final negative point is that the new tracks, game modes and boats are unlocked in quite a sporadic order. Each track and boat is unlocked after a certain amount of overall score is reached, and the order of the scores isn't in any clear pattern. This means that the sequence of unlocks feels pretty random, and its not very clear to the player exactly how far into the game they are. The order of unlocking should have been a bit more methodical so as to not become confusing, such as unlocking tracks and game modes sequentially. A more methodical approach would also make the player's long-term goals more clear.

Final Thoughts

Hydro Thunder Hurricane is a very enjoyable arcade racer with a unique concept, entertaining and high-energy gameplay, varied vehicles and game modes, and some very nicely designed tracks and environments. On top of this, the game seats itself very nicely in its niche as an XBLA title and tailors well to its audience. The game's small number of minor issues such as repetitive music and sporadic order of unlocks are easily forgiven as the positives vastly outweigh the negatives.

Arcade racers are a genre of game that I don't claim to have a huge amount of experience with, but I think I'd be hard-pressed to find another thats as enjoyable, well-rounded and nicely designed as Hydro Thunder Hurricane. I'll definitely be playing it again soon!

Spontaneous Sunday: Perfect Dark

Welcome to another (slightly belated) Spontaneous Sunday! This week I have played the 2010 remastered edition of Perfect Dark (originally released 2000, Rare, Nintendo 64. This version released 2010, 4J Studios, Xbox 360). The 2010 remaster was included in the Rare Replay compilation, released in 2015 as an Xbox One launch title.

"Perfect Dark is a first-person shooter video game developed and published by Rare for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It is considered the spiritual successor to Rare's earlier first-person shooter GoldenEye 007. Perfect Dark was first released in North America on 22 May 2000; PAL and NTSC-J releases followed soon afterwards.The game features a single-player mode consisting of 17 main missions in which the player assumes the role of Carrington Institute agent Joanna Dark. A remaster, with enhanced graphics and online multiplayer, was exclusively released as an Xbox Live Arcade game for the Xbox 360 in 2010."

- Wikipedia on Perfect Dark

 

  

What do I expect from the game?

 

I must admit that I do not know a lot about Perfect Dark, aside from the fact that I am aware of its existence and I have a vague idea that its an old-school FPS with sci-fi and espionage themes. Though my gaming experience began in the late 90's shortly before Perfect Dark came out, I didn't own an N64 so never played it in its original incarnation.

From the little that I have seen about the game thus far, I expect that it will be a high quality FPS game with combat and/or stealth it its core, sci-fi setting and spy themes, possibly taking influence from spy and sci-fi movies. I understand that it is considered something of a classic, and it went on to spawn a prequel in 2005 and a franchise including other merchandise such as novels and comics.

I expect that its strengths will include its story and sci-fi/spy aesthetic and themes. I think that the gameplay and action might be fairly simple by the standards of modern games, but still enjoyable. The remastered version has updated graphics, so sadly I won't get to see them for how they looked upon release in 2000, but I'll try to remain objective about them anyway. I expect that the game may also offer good audio and a strong atmosphere in its environments.#

First Impressions - What do I think of the game in its first few minutes?

The game's start screen shows a cinematic in which the game's eponymous protagonist, Joanna Dark, navigates through a futuristic metropolis at night in a Jumpship (which is somewhere between a helicopter and a hover car) while being briefed by an unseen male character about an upcoming mission. Futuristic hover cars, tall city buildings and holographic billboards and lights can be seen in throughout the low-poly environment. Dark then abseils onto a roof and the cinematic repeats until the player presses start. This short cinematic introduces the game's futuristic and spy themes pretty effectively, while also showing revealing the player-character and the game world without giving too much away.

The game's main menu is simple but quite interesting, It begins with showing the character stood at a computer in a fairly non-descript room, the camera then comes into line with the character's field of view, suggesting that the player is looking at the menu through the eyes of the character. The main menu displays options on a blue box, with the room appearing out-of-focus in the background. The music is electronic and somewhat suspenseful. It has a strong sci-fi "hack"-y vibe and it distinctly reminds me of some of my earlier gaming experiences on PS1-era FPS games. The "Play Game" sub-menu offers such options as "Carrington Institute" and "Combat Simulator" - while I appreciate that this is the game remaining "in character" which helps to sell the illusion of the game's content and story, these options do seem a little unclear in regards to what they represent. I selected "Carrington Institute" which is the headquarters of the game's "good" faction to which the player-character belongs. This area acted as a hub, with computers that could be used to activate cheats and read about characters and the game's story.

 

On selecting to start a new game, the main menu disappears and the player finds themselves in control of the character in the room. This is an interesting concept - I've seen very few main menu's that are diegetic in this way, with the suggestion that the in-game character can see it too. This will help to make the player feel like they are stepping into the role of the character from the very start. I explored the Carrington Institute hub area for a while and got to grips with the basic controls before beginning the first mission.

The first mission begins with the introduction cinematic that played during the Start menu. The player takes control of Joanna Dark on a roof top and must work downwards through the building via stairwells and elevators, completing objectives on the way such as deactivating security systems. Enemies are numerous but generally quite none-threatening - there wasn't really any point where I was close to being killed, even when fighting several enemies at once. My first attempt at the level was ill-fated: I approached it at a slow pace, trying to defeat enemies stealthily where possible and explore every room in the building. I eventually failed the mission because I accidentally destroyed a vital objective! It was then that I noticed that the post-mission screen scores you on how quickly you completed the mission. So I then restarted the mission and tried to complete it as quickly as possible.

This is the view at the moment that the player takes control of the character.

The first mission was pretty fun and impressive. The city skyline seen from the rooftop is an impressive first view of the game world, and the vertical nature of the level's layout made for some interesting gameplay. The objectives were not exactly challenging as much as they were awkward - accidentally destroying a computer caused me to fail an objective which was a little deflating. Also, it was not stated that speed was the aim of the game, so I did not approach the level with this in mind. Therefore, my first attempt at the level was a bit of a false start. Nevertheless, it was fun in the end and I completed it successfully and quickly.

What do I like about the game?

I played Perfect Dark for a total of about 3 hours and completed 4 missions. The missions are fairly short, normally taking about 15-20 minutes, though some required multiple attempts due to my dying or failing objectives. The game has a number of positive features, predominantly: the overall gameplay, the unique setting and the environments and game world.

Perfect Dark's overall gameplay - such as the combat, mechanics, objectives and the actions and interactions that the player must complete to progress - are pretty strong and solid and this means that the immediate action of the game is enjoyable. The combat mechanics such as shooting, melee attacking and taking cover from enemy attacks are a big part of the action, mostly due to the high amount of enemies in the levels. The shooting feels fluid and there is a number of different weapons that act in meaningfully varied ways, such as pistols, submachine guns, shotguns, assault rifles and a rocket launcher. The game features quite a strong auto-aim and accurate response to movement of the sticks, which means that it is not plagued with the clunky and awkward aiming that is present in many old FPS games - though as this is the 2010 remaster, I cannot say whether this was the case in the 2000 original release. The player can also use melee attacks which, when used on an unsuspecting enemy, yields an instant kill - though the opportunity or need to do this rarely presents itself, as enemies are often quicker and easier to kill with guns, and there is little to no clear incentive to use stealth.

The combat is fluid and enjoyable.

The game's unique setting is also quite an interesting feature. It is set in the year 2023 - 23 years in the future from the game's original release date - in a sci-fi world of guns, metropolises and flying cars that are not all that far removed from what exists today. The ability to examine or revisit a piece of futuristic fiction years after its release, and in the time period that the piece portrays, is a phenomenon that usually occurs with films rather than games. It was interesting to see how a game from 2000 envisioned the year 2023, which is near-enough the modern day. This somehow made the setting more interesting to me. Only a little information was revealed about the setting and world of the game in the time that I spent playing it, but I was certainly hooked by the world none-the-less thanks to the environments. The futuristic city's are very nicely designed and the game makes sure to show them off well with sweeping panoramic views.

The game's story and lore are also quite interesting, though they were not very well-delivered - I will discuss this more later on. The game follows the private espionage faction the Carrington Institute, which secretly allies itself with an alien race and combats a defence contractor called dataDyne, which is allied to an opposing alien race. None of this was directly revealed through the gameplay itself during the missions that I played, but this information was accessible through a computer in the Carrington Institute hub area and is presumably revealed later on in the game. The player character is an inexperienced but highly trained female spy who presents an interesting and mysterious character. The game does a good job of placing you in the role of this character often having the camera fly directly into the characters viewpoint before handing over control to the player. The player character also makes comments on things during gameplay, such as when a new objective becomes active. This gives the character a strong sense of identity and the player a sense of ownership over the character.

The level's objectives are sufficiently varied.

The game's art style was also of particular interest to me as a 3D artist. Everything was nice and low-poly, which is something that I often aim for in my own models. The environments and assets were still effective and attractive though, despite their low poly count and texture resolution, probably due in part to the game's ramstering in 2010. Though the graphics were not terribly advanced, they are still pretty good given the game's age and I could appreciate the art style, even if it was largely for nostalgia reasons. The game also features some surprisingly high-quality cutscenes.

The Chicago street level is particularly attractive.

Another positive feature of the game is its level of replayability that is due to the inclusion of end-of-level statistics and global online leaderboards that track your score and time taken to complete each level. This will encourage more dedicated players to replay levels to try and best their score. I can imagine that the game lends itself well to speed-running. Finally, the audio is another good feature. The music is mostly electronic and has a style that is distinct for the late late-90's/early-00's console generation. Though I had never played the game before, it still made me feel nostalgic for this era because its style is so familiar. The voice acting, SFX and audio effects such as reverb and echo are also decent.

The game features leaderboards that encourage replayability.

What do I not like about the game?

Perfect Dark certainly had its share of positive points, but there are a few negatives aswell. Firstly, the game's level design and objectives are often unclear, which often resulted in frustrating backtracking and aimless wandering. More recent games are very effective at clearly communicating to the player where they need to go and what they need to do once they get there, through the use of things like maps, flashing arrows and highlighted level elements. While this could be said to be too much like "hand-holding", the alternative is often a lack of direction, and this was unfortunately the case in Perfect Dark. The objectives themselves are sufficiently clearly stated, but how they are achieved is another matter. Objectives sometimes involve interacting with one specific computer that looks exactly like all the others and is hidden somewhere within the level. This can make it very hard to tell what the game expects from the player which can lead to lengthy stalls in the flow of the level while the player figures out what to do. Now it may be possible that this lack of direction was intentional and the idea was to add a puzzle-like challenge to the objectives. If this is the case, however, then I think it was quite lazily implimented. If its was not intentional, then it is poor design - and I am not sure which option is worse.

Another issue with the game is that it seems to contain a small number of bugs that are quite serious. Examples include an instance where a hidden door failed to open and stopped me from progressing through the level. Another example involved an instance where I could backtrack to an earlier part of the skyscraper level and access a door that shouldn't have been able to be opened - behind the door was a room containing some bugged-out, invincible NPC models that simply stood there doing nothing. In the same area, I was able to open a door that allowed me to exit the playable area and fall underneath the game world. I found these bugs by accident in my first attempt at the level - as an ex-QA tester, I can safely say that these would be pretty high priority bugs that should really have been caught.

Glitched NPCs!

The final downside of the game is that it doesn't deliver its story or instructions very well at all. The game does not really do much to introduce the main factions or characters or explanation of what the player is doing in an easily-accessible way. The Carrington Institute hub area contains a computer with some long-winded text entries about the game's back story, but this would be easy for the player to miss and besides, this vital information should really be delivered through more elegent and exciting means such as cutscenes, dialogue or a voice-over. Likewise, mission and objective information is also often delivered through lengthy text screens. The problem is not that the information that the player needs is not there, its that it is not well-delivered, and the game suffers because of this. Finally, there is also no real tutorial mission and the controls are never explicitly explained.

An example of a mission explanation.

Final Thoughts

I would say that Perfect Dark is a decent game overall. It is enjoyable on the whole thanks to the rather interesting objectives and environments, charming retro graphics and the fluid combat mechanics. Sadly there's a few issues such as the unclear objectives and messy, ineffective delivery of the story - but I will cut the game some slack because of its age and the fact that I have been spoiled by how far game's have come since the year 2000 and the N64-era. It is still doubtlessly a big part of FPS history, and I think its fairly simple gameplay and the replay value that the leaderboards adds to the levels means that it holds up quite well as a casual, retro shooter today - and I will probably play it again in the future when I'm looking for a quick retro FPS fix!