Alien: Isolation (PS4 Review)

Risks are hard to come by when it comes to AAA titles. When they come they aren't always greeted with the most receptive audience; but sometimes a AAA title needs to take those risks in order to right its wrongs. The Alien video games are a great example of a dire need to take risk in order to rise out of a dark and unpromising past. While it may not be the game everyone is looking for and still waiting for, Alien: Isolation proved to be the game I wanted, and perhaps even my most meaningful experience with a video game in 2014.

Alien: Isolation is an emotionally exhausting game of cat and mouse that's immersive, heart-pounding, terrifying, and memorable. Not only did the experience manage to remain fresh for over 20 hours, it also managed to constantly surprise me with its attention to detail. Outside of the stone-faced character animations, the Sevastopol Station is a forlorn labyrinth of steam, darkness, and fluorescence. By the time you arrive, the station is in shambles, reminding me of a dystopian Rapture. Dark figures skitter in the debris, metal clanks in the walls, and for the first few hours the game draws you deep into its world of survivalism.

Just to touch a moment on that "metal clanking in the walls" bit, the sound design is some of the best I've heard in a game in a very long time. It creates a constant sense of depth. Managing to listen to what is both distant and near is practically necessary. The game is very fair when it comes to audial cues. In fact they're an integral part of the game. They let you know when to be both wary and opportunistic. Of course, that's not the only advantage you have while exploring the derelict Seegson station. The iconic motion tracker from the films can be used to roughly pinpoint threats, whether they're organic or bionic in nature. I found using the motion tracker to be almost like clenching a crucifix, a mild comfort in the unfamiliar corridors of Sevastopol. The motion tracker is not without its faults, however, and relying on it too much can lead to destructive hesitation. Using a combination of technology, careful listening, and line of sight will result in greater success.

The collection of things that will pose a threat to you in Alien: Isolation is a short list. What makes the experience unique in a AAA title is the prevailing helplessness that you possess and the overall humiliation that the gameplay requires. While your pistol may save you once or twice, the majority of the situations you'll face prove that it's a downright awful idea to fight. Your supplies are limited and many of them are best left unused or to serve the greater purpose of deception. Opening fire could result in the unwanted attention of something far worse; but fashioning and deploying a noisemaker can result in that greater threat becoming a fleeting boon. In almost all cases the avoidance of conflict is better than rushing to meet it. That's exactly what makes Alien: Isolation such a rare gem considering its level of production. The game is both a survival horror title and a game that throws action blockbuster empowerment out the window and makes you just another soul clinging on for dear life against all odds. There's nothing conventional about it and it makes the game's mere existence such a commendable and surprising endeavor.

Let's talk about the main attraction: the alien itself, a singular enemy that hunts you for a majority of the game relentlessly and unsympathetically. It cannot be killed and it cannot be stopped. Once you encounter it for the first time you are bound to this ever-looming threat for the next several grueling hours. I'm reminded of a mission that takes place in the first quarter of the game where the creature really begins to hunt you and I remember instinctively recoiling back to a previously visited location simply because of how perfectly executed the introduction was. That feeling persisted for the next several hours. Even though I eventually became more confident and had better tools for the job, the game continuously finds ways to manifest a cautious impression. The alien remains a worthwhile attraction that offers worthwhile moments with its presence. While it's one thing to discuss the inherent risk of such a title in the AAA space, the design of the game is based entirely around risk. Advancing felt like a constant thrill, punctuated by moments where the game forces you to complete tasks for a considerable length of time where you feel most vulnerable. You may need to decrypt a computer or cut through steel, all the while the alien (or anything else that wants to kill you) could walk up behind you before you complete the task. Even saving the game, which requires you to keep a punch card inserted in a machine for a few seconds, leaves you susceptible if you aren't careful. All of it feels genuinely nerve wracking and it culminates into an experience that lingers with you long after. Overall I can't sing Alien: Isolation's praises enough. It's not a game that will satisfy everyone, but I found it to be a game that offered immense reward where I originally anticipated little to none. If you're looking for something outside of your comfort zone but still maintaining that high level of production value, I don't think anything else compares. If you let Alien: Isolation sink its hooks in, be prepared for a long and wild ride.

Grade: A

The Evil Within (PS4 Review)

(All screenshots in this review have been captured from the PS4)

A glance at The Evil Within is not enough to really understand what it's all about. Even after playing it I can't necessarily be certain of that. I've gone back and forth with a couple of ideas. Perhaps it's a tribute to horror or maybe it's just Shinji Mikami letting loose. Whatever the case, The Evil Within manages to dance above disaster gracefully despite its identity crisis and bewildering distance.

The Evil Within certainly has a distinct look compared to a lot of games coming out as of late. I had heard many complaints about its use of widescreen and I honestly can't say that I found the letterboxing to ever be a problem, but I can surmise that the issue becomes more of a concern as display size gets smaller. There's nothing particularly "pretty" about The Evil Within, but to deny its appearance seems shameful. It's got a little bit of everything happening, whether it's by filters or scenery or design, and that's what really surprised and impressed me most. It manages to weave so many different things together at once and never feel ham-fisted. At first it comes as jarring but eventually it just feels like another turn down a maze where you've completely forgotten the turn the came before. You begin to submit to the plunge, delving deeper and deeper into a subconscious state of existence. It's a psychological struggle, true to form and executed rather well. It's an eerie spectacle with plenty of moments throughout that keep you playing.

The Evil Within plays much like Resident Evil 4. That comes as no real surprise and it isn't unwelcome either; but Sebastian Castellanos, our leading man, is no Leon Kennedy. As you explore you'll come across jars of green ooze that allow upgrades to various things including accuracy, ammo stock, run duration, and the effectiveness of weapons. The game makes a point of showing you how helpful these upgrades will become. In the beginning you'll find that Sebastian's weapon sway is drastic and his ammo reserves are severely limited, so playing stealthily is wise in early chapters. Keeping out of sight and throwing bottles and stabbing enemies in the back of the head is key. A plentiful amount of traps can be used to your advantage in the environment when things get out of hand but they can also work to ruin you if you're reckless. Calm and collected crowd control seems to be the initiative in The Evil Within. The game offers you a plethora of options in disposing of enemies and choosing the right tool can make a world of difference. If you end up picking the wrong tool you may burn ammunition that could've been used in a later fight. There's nothing quite as satisfying as knocking down a group of zombies with a shotgun and torching the pile of corpses with a lit match before they rise again. Both subtlety and gunplay are enjoyable and utilizing both lead to greater success - at least that's the experience I had playing on survival. Boss fights are also memorable but some do eventually become recycled in the latter part of the game, losing significance and never quite living up to their original tension.

"Tense" is definitely the best word to describe the overall mood of The Evil Within. There weren't many times that the game outright terrified me...and admittedly that adrenaline rush from fear is part of the reason I was looking to play it. It suffers gravely in that department, and maybe it's because the game feels so detached. The voice acting is empty and none of the characters are memorable or approachable. They all feel like shades. Whether that's by design to suit the story or not is beyond me, but it doesn't ever feel personal or real. The most we ever get to learn from Sebastian is through scattered journal entries but they're really not that effective despite their heavy context. Sebastian is just a cold person...all of it is, really. Maybe that's just the price that has to be paid when the psychology is so deeply rooted in the story. The abrupt changes in scenery cause the game to suffer from the consequence of never really feeling fully immersed. Horror benefits from time, so incessantly shaking up the atmosphere agitates the player rather than letting an unsettled feeling arise naturally. It's not without a few jump scares, but as far as that nagging dread for what's to come, The Evil Within simply cannot sustain that sensation enough to make a lasting impression.

There's something about The Evil Within that I wasn't expecting that stayed with me even when I wasn't playing it. I think that giving it a fair shake is appropriate. It gave me a solid 13 or so hours of gameplay and has a high replay value due to weapon unlocks and multiple ways to approach situations. It also gave me a deep desire to sit down and play Resident Evil 4 again for the tenth time. Take that however you want, but for anyone that's craved something like Resident Evil 4 but doesn't want to play Resident Evil 4 again, The Evil Within is a firmly grounded spiritual successor that proves itself worthy despite its shortcomings.

Grade: B

Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition (PS4 Review)

(All screenshots in this review have been captured from the PS4)

Having never played a Tomb Raider game before gives me a perspective that may differ from others when addressing the reboot. The only thing I can draw comparison to is Uncharted. I'm quite a fan of Uncharted, actually. I love the massive set pieces and explosions, I love cover system shooters, and I'm a sucker for treasure hunting stories. Many friends made it clear to me that if I enjoyed Uncharted I would enjoy Tomb Raider. For the most part, they're right. In other cases, Tomb Raider looks to be a game trying to stand out from its newfound competition; but it hasn't found its footing just yet.

Gameplay wise Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition has seen a nice facelift from its PS3 days, running at a mostly consistent 60FPS and bolstering some character remodels and new lighting effects. I've played both versions of the game and can say with certainty that this upgrade definitely affected my enjoyment of the gameplay for the better, making the action more fluid and the environments engaging. The cover system is a mixed bag; unlike the usual snap cover style of gunplay common with this style of shooter, Tomb Raider incorporates the cover system mechanics automatically. If enemies are nearby and there's something to hide behind, you'll duck behind it without the need to input a command. It's looser and allows for more freedom. For the most part the system works fine, mostly because enemies will seldom come at you in any other direction than in front of you. Flanking is rarely an option, so instead they'll use a barrage of molotov cocktails and grenades to force you out in the open scrambling for safety. The real problem is that this is about as far as the gunplay goes. Apart from a brief final chapter that explores a mildly different enemy variant, the game follows this formula the entire way through. It's this lack of variety and lazy AI that really make Tomb Raider suffer. By the end of its fairly short campaign the action will simply not make a lasting impression.

By far the best aspect that Tomb Raider has going for it are the larger, more open-ended areas. There are plenty of items to collect in the environment and optional tombs you'll be entitled to solve on your adventure. It's such a shame because you only wish there were more...a lot more. Figuring out the 7 tombs, each with its own distinct look and mechanic, feels like a step that the series should look to greatly elaborate on in later installments. It's not really that the tombs are challenging, they're just fun to venture through. In fact traversing the environment is definitely one of the more distinct qualities that Tomb Raider has over Uncharted. Things are less scripted and therefore allow for a greater sense of overall freedom. Here's hoping that Rise of the Tomb Raider will build a richer and denser world with more nooks and crannies to explore.

In the end the weakest part of Tomb Raider falls on the conceptualization of a reboot and how it goes about redefining the series. We begin with a scholarly and young Lara Croft venturing by sea to discover a mythical Japanese city known as "Yamatai". As you can probably imagine, all hell breaks loose as the crew is left shipwrecked on an island cursed by violent storms that obliterate anything that comes near. Lara is snatched away by ghoulish inhabitants of the island and she awakes in a crimson cave reminiscent of the horror film The Descent. In fact, there are quite a few comparisons to this film that become exceedingly more difficult to take as coincidence. Maybe that's part of the problem and where this reboot begins to appear inconsistent. It tries to do so many different things with Lara to transform her, whether by horror cliches or mythical forces or survivalism or sacrifice, that by the time our heroine comes into her own it feels unnatural and forced. Roth, Lara's mentor, is constantly there to remind us that "you're a Croft." As if you always had a tendency for violence and you only needed to be on one really bad vacation to conjure up within you a legendary gunslinger. It just all comes together like handwaving, administering an intense gauntlet of trial by fire that leaves Lara like two sides of a coin changing face effortlessly rather than truthfully. Sometimes the story takes itself far too seriously for its own good, and yet at other times it goes completely bonkers, existing only as if to stand distanced from Uncharted's more grounded rationalization of myths. It's definite by the end of Lara's journey that she has changed...you jut don't buy any of it. I wish there was some ability to suspend disbelief and perhaps this would have been possible had not they chosen to explain the origins of such an iconic character. It simply bears the question as to why they chose to explore something so personal so personally while also trying to squeeze in a sizable body count.

Overall Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition is not a game I can recommend to anyone at full retail price. The length would never warrant the cost and neither would the quality. But for $20 I think there's enough for both new players and those that have played the original version to hop in and get something of value out of it. It's just a shame that the most enjoyable features of the reboot are also the most short in supply.

Grade: C

Far Cry 4 (PS4 review)

I remember a particular moment in Far Cry 3 where I was driving to some outpost that had yet to be liberated and I had come across a couple that were walking down the road. I slowed down and made sure to get into the middle of the road so that I could drive past safely and not suck one of them under my front tire and send their mangled body cartwheeling into the local flora. As I got a bit closer, a tiger lunged onto one of them and the other screamed in terror. I remember the immense sense of responsibility that surged through me in that moment as I bare witness to the grisly sight. A voice called out to me saying, "This is your time to shine, man. This is your time to shine." Within a split-second I kicked my car into full speed and charged toward the beast which I wager was just as stupid as my tribal tattoo sleeve decision. Not only did I manage to dispatch of the tiger, I also managed to run over the civilian, lose control of the vehicle, and fly into another set of locals who were hit so hard by the impact that they propelled off of a nearby cliff. Hey, the island life ain't easy. Far Cry 4 is not a game that is deprived of these random happenings, but there is a certain magic in Far Cry 3 that feels diminished in its successor. Far Cry 4's story takes place in the mythical land of Kyrat, a fictitious region of the Himalayas, where Ajay Ghale travels in order to fulfill his mother's dying wish. When he arrives he's confronted by Kyrat's leader Pagan Min, an eccentric and deceptively likable antagonist. Within the first 30 minutes you've gathered that Min isn't such a great guy and that some of the locals have formed a militia to overthrow his reign called the Golden Path. From that point on the game opens half of the world to you and the rest is up to you. Do you choose to tackle the missions and assist the Golden Path or would you rather gun down honey badgers with heavy artillery to make, you know, Gucci coach bags...whatever you decide, Kyrat is your playground.

While most of the core mechanics of the Far Cry franchise remain intact, the terrain changes the impression of these mechanics, albeit minor, to less enjoyable and more functional. Take for example the driving: while Far Cry 3's expansive tropical island was a joy to tear through, Far Cry 4's Kyrat feels at times claustrophobic and repetitious. If you want to venture offroad in Kyrat, be prepared to feel like a silver ball in a pachinko machine. The bountiful trees deter you from too much of that. I had to assess my map several times in order to get my bearings on where I was. Fortunately the developers appear to have anticipated this and have added a very helpful auto-drive mode for land vehicles, but even with this inclusion, the game appears to be taking away part of the open world design and admitting a silent defeat. Ajay also comes equipped with a grappling hook that's used to traverse the mountainside. I found this feature to be serviceable but overall ponderous, leading from one landscape full of trees to another landscape full of goddamn trees. The best way to get around appears to be the mini helicopter that you'll sparingly come across on your journey, but this form of transportation isn't readily available at your every beck and call. Plainly put, the map and world begin to feel like a chore once you've spent a few hours exploring. Outposts remain pleasantly untouched, bringing with them a new stealth enemy variety that can charm animals and remain unmarked. The outposts continue to be the main attraction of the franchise that kept me trekking along and they serve as the best bits of variety in the game outside of the four enemy strongholds, which are larger and more challenging versions of outposts. The gunplay also remains intact, offering a variety of armaments that are sure to please. One of the things that bothered me most in Far Cry 3 were the characters. Almost all of the characters outside of Vas felt moronic and grating. I regret to inform you that several of those bad spirits live on. Many characters feel vapid or otherwise vexing. It's not to the same frequency as 3 but it's still pretty darn bad. I am happy to say, however, that both the protagonist and antagonist as well as key supporting roles perform at a satisfactory level. Pagan Min (played by Troy Baker) consistently offers the best parts that the main story has to offer, but both sides of the Golden Path feel realistic and sympathetic. It's hard not to care for what's going on when it's going on...but there's enough outside of these performances that will leave you pressing every button on the controller for a "skip scene" prompt.

While I do anticipate great things from what people will come up with in the map editor, the core online offerings are mediocre at best. There are three game modes that each place a defender and attacker at odds for a timed objective and then swap those teams once time is up. The problem is that one side appears to have a clear, dare I say broken, advantage over the opposition if even an ounce of teamwork is mustered. After playing three rounds of each mode I was completely fine with never touching the online again. There's also an ability to play co-op with another friend and assist them with objectives in the main world but the game is so set on making you feel like a badass killing machine that co-op is rather pointless. Overall Far Cry 4 doesn't do enough new stuff to distinguish itself from its last outing and what it does differently is either superfluous or unenjoyable. Fortunately it's not overbearing and there's enough of Far Cry 3's gameplay that survives to allow anyone that was fond of it to have a grand ol' time in Kyrat. There's certainly plenty to do and none of it is going to ruin the overall experience, but none of it is going to shatter your expectations either. Even if the magic seems to be fizzling out, Far Cry is still a spectacle worth seeing.

GRADE: B