Just a little quick review.

[Hawkerace]

Hey there, in case anyone was on the fence for a inexpensive video game, I wrote a review.

Please note, its just my opinion, if you don't like it, well thats cute. I've played the game for about 3 hours straight on this rainy night, and have made my conclusion.

I give it 6/10.

+cheap game, a good weekend killer if you're lonely and have finished all of you bigger blockbuster games, or you've begged for a break from multiplayer frustrations. I mean you can buy a Quizno's meal that costs more then this game, and you shall have this forever. (not that I'd probably play another run through in a long long time)

+Amazing water physics and environment.
I love the whole futuristic environment, and the water animations look splendid, really good job in that department.

+Interesting concept, that tool Mavi? I like it, and the hidden messages were an interesting addition.

- clunky controls, augh I'm not asking much, and I understand the difficulties of designing and making a game, (although I do not have the patience nor talent to enter the field) but it felt like this was the main thing that slowed down the experience

- terrible combat, now I've read that this has been some main focus point in big timer's reviews, but I kinda agree, it felt like it was just downhill once I picked up that pistol. The gun sounds are cheesey, the enemy shoots like cyborgs with perfect accuracy and after a zillion shots of 'sonic' ammunition to the face the man whom I pointed to grins happily to remove me from the picture.


Now, I could go on and on about the pros and the cons, but thats all I could think of from the top of my head without rebooting the game and fulling analyzing it and really looking at all the bruises and jewels of the game.

I just felt that the 'combat' wasn't necessary, at least the role it had within the game. I enjoyed it more before the firefights, it should of been designed to be like Mirror's Edge or whatnot, more like have the presence of the enemy but resort to more 'interesting' ways to deal with the enemy. That being said, there was that presence in the game, I do not wanna take away from that, I just wish it was more guided to that, not PICK UP THIS PISTOL, YOU'RE NOW A COMBAT ENGINEER.

Oh well, its just an opinion, and I thought it deserved its own thread due to the 'trolling' (even though its not guys, they are just opinions, crafted poorly or foolishly_

Good price, decent game, has its own goodies and boo boos, if you've got nothing else to do, and 12 bucks isn't a sacrifice, why not?

Personally wanna see if Dark Energy can focus a 'what went wrong?' talk and then learn from their mistakes to produce a more satisfying sequel. You've already got the graphics and story that don't need much changing.

(Why not develop into a space story, along with a giant space elevator to the moon, a cybernetic utopian moon metropolis we're dealing with water, as well with vacuums! haha its just a suggestion)

Take care, and no I am not trolling,

Hawkerace.

[Kleetus]

fter a zillion shots of 'sonic' ammunition to the face the man whom I pointed to grins happily

That's because you're not using it properly.

If you just press the trigger like "normal" ammunition, it won't do anything.

You have to hold the fire button for a couple of seconds to charge it up.

Then it will put them down in one shot, and one further shot to completely finish them off on the ground.

Anyway, my main criticism with the game is that I feel you get the water powers too late.

I would have preferred to get them very early in the game, especially considering how short it is.

[sirkiko]

The combat is not the best, but there are good options to kill the terrorists using the environment. I always look for those. Depending on how you do it you even get more points.

And the combat engineer is not exactly new. Remember Isaac Clarke :p

[netnerd85]

The combat is not the best, but there are good options to kill the terrorists using the environment. I always look for those. Depending on how you do it you even get more points.

For some reason in the latter bits of the game I could not get guards to die from exploding barrels, no matter how close they were to them. They were totally unaffected, it was frustrating to say the least. See if it happens again in the second run through later today.

[Daemeous]

How about the Hydrokinetic Powers I keep hearing about? It's damn near impossible to find any information about them at all.

I'm very much on the fence about this kind of game and the powers could be a deal breaker/maker.

[flava_clown]

Take care, and no I am not trolling,

sad that this have to be said nowadays...

though i disagree about the combat, it was quite ok for me.
also there was no real problem with the controls, only during the end fight, was it a pain to take cover, aim/shot while in cover and then step out of the cover... but that's the only problem i had with the controls.

what you do NOT mentioned as a cons is the gamelenght, i mean seriously, steam shows i have 5 hours in it, which means i finished the story in 3,5 ... too short, way too short!

about mirror's edge... again i have to disagree, i wanted more fights, in fact i had the hope that mirror's edge is a bit like oni... to run away is not really my thing, but i like mirror's edge alot... were you also thinking on mirror's edge when you saw all the red pipes showing you the way?

@Daemeous: the water power comes really, really late in the game, when you get them then you know that you are almost through.

you can use these powers to lift objects and then throw them at enemies.
this is btw the only way to kill the end boss

a screenshot of the water powers: http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/863/2011051500007.jpg/

[Grumbel]

How about the Hydrokinetic Powers I keep hearing about? It's damn near impossible to find any information about them at all.
The powers come only into play very late in the game, in the original Xbox360 version they weren't even part of the game at all aside from the unlockable challenge room. You essentially only use them for the final boss fight and a few very basic tutorial-like puzzles before that.

Also it aren't really powers(plural), but just one ability, the power to create a huge "water tower" with which you can move around heavy objects. Not sure if it is also useful for knocking down enemies or as cover, as the game doesn't really give you enough time to experiment with it before its over.

Powers might play a bigger part in the sequel/next-episode, in this one you really don't get to play with them much.

[Torgo125]

I agree with the score from the OP and most of what they said. The one difference is with combat; I didn't find it clunky so much as bland. I never used any weapon other than the sonic blaster for the entire game so the four extra options were kind of useless and really just a means of doing the same thing in a different way (i.e. exploding a barrel). Sneaking around was pointless to me because the game was easy enough that I just had to hide, charge a shot, and hit lethal environments.

It was a (mostly) fun three hours and I feel I got my money's worth and I'm interested to see where the story goes. My biggest gripe are the issues I had with the camera. For the most part they were okay, but when the water was rushing around the camera didn't seem to know what it was supposed to be doing and would clip and get stuck in walls or twirl around the character. Perhaps that was on purpose, but it seemed more like a glitch than anything.

[Metal85]

I agree with the score from the OP and most of what they said. The one difference is with combat; I didn't find it clunky so much as bland. I never used any weapon other than the sonic blaster for the entire game so the four extra options were kind of useless and really just a means of doing the same thing in a different way (i.e. exploding a barrel). Sneaking around was pointless to me because the game was easy enough that I just had to hide, charge a shot, and hit lethal environments.

It was a (mostly) fun three hours and I feel I got my money's worth and I'm interested to see where the story goes. My biggest gripe are the issues I had with the camera. For the most part they were okay, but when the water was rushing around the camera didn't seem to know what it was supposed to be doing and would clip and get stuck in walls or twirl around the character. Perhaps that was on purpose, but it seemed more like a glitch than anything.

i strongly agree with you there. i also had no use of the other types of weapons. i dint even bother to charge the gun either i just shot a bunch of shots and they died. just the aiming is still a little issue that she never really aims there where i want her to aim.
also sneaking around was pretty pointless in this game.
the camera is still a little problem with me so i hope this will get fixed soon.
for 10$, you cant really complain. but still weird that 4 patches were needed to fix the problems. you actually expect to have a bug and issue free game when it comes out.
but at least DE is doing something about the problems so thats good again.

[flava_clown]

just the aiming is still a little issue that she never really aims there where i want her to aim.
also sneaking around was pretty pointless in this game.


maybe a stupid question, but did you hold the right-mouse button to aim?


for 10$, you cant really complain. but still weird that 4 patches were needed to fix the problems. you actually expect to have a bug and issue free game when it comes out.
but at least DE is doing something about the problems so thats good again.

ever heard of Magicka? they did patch the game daily during 2 weeks and there are still issues.
nowadays it is quite normal to have a quite buggy release. for several games it seems there wasn't QA at all.
sad but truth. happens even with $60 games. and some of them get never fixed/patched.

[freespace]

maybe a stupid question, but did you hold the right-mouse button to aim?



ever heard of Magicka? they did patch the game daily during 2 weeks and there are still issues.
nowadays it is quite normal to have a quite buggy release. for several games it seems there wasn't QA at all.
sad but truth. happens even with $60 games. and some of them get never fixed/patched.

Too true. Splinter Cell: Conviction comes to mind for being expensive and buggy and never fixed.

[meimeiriver]

That's because you're not using it properly.

If you just press the trigger like "normal" ammunition, it won't do anything.

You have to hold the fire button for a couple of seconds to charge it up.

Then it will put them down in one shot, and one further shot to completely finish them off on the ground.

You can pretty much do both: use it as a rapid fire weapon, or have it charge first. It very much functions like the Plasma Pistol in the HALO series.

[Kleetus]

You can pretty much do both: use it as a rapid fire weapon, or have it charge first.

The context is that the OP is complaining that it's not killing enemies.

Not all the functions of the gun.

[JudgeUK]

Well, with 2-3 short charges it does kill em. Also, if they go down from a shot, but the cross-hair still goes red when over them, THEY'RE NOT DEAD. Easy way to check. ;)

[Metal85]

maybe a stupid question, but did you hold the right-mouse button to aim?



ever heard of Magicka? they did patch the game daily during 2 weeks and there are still issues.
nowadays it is quite normal to have a quite buggy release. for several games it seems there wasn't QA at all.
sad but truth. happens even with $60 games. and some of them get never fixed/patched.

havent heard of the game. its just like this today, that many companies try to push their games out asap. and then they still have to bring out patches, which could have bin avoided by simply taking more time to work on the game before release. but at least DE is doing something about the problems and the game is running better then when it came out.

[flava_clown]

havent heard of the game. its just like this today, that many companies try to push their games out asap. and then they still have to bring out patches, which could have bin avoided by simply taking more time to work on the game before release. but at least DE is doing something about the problems and the game is running better then when it came out.

well, i guess some release in an early state for money reasons. the income will give them the "power" to keep working on the game.
also some issues are hard to spot, esp. if you lack the money/men power for a proper QA.

btw... the game run fine for me, even unpatched! though, there are some features missing which a game released in 2011 should have, like an option to use the additional buttons from a gaming mouse, more graphic options like adjustable FOV, framerate limiter (both could be done in games from 1998 or even earlier), etc...

[saxybeast]

That's because you're not using it properly.

If you just press the trigger like "normal" ammunition, it won't do anything.

You have to hold the fire button for a couple of seconds to charge it up.

Then it will put them down in one shot, and one further shot to completely finish them off on the ground.

Anyway, my main criticism with the game is that I feel you get the water powers too late.

I would have preferred to get them very early in the game, especially considering how short it is.

Your argument is invalid. When someone "doesn't use something properly," that's not the player being bad at the game.

That's bad game design.

Should the developer hold the player's hand and spell everything out to them? Should they not allow the player to experiment and figure out effective strategies? No, of course not. But we're talking about a core element of combat here.

It's not the player's responsibility to anticipate the thinking of the developers; it's the developers' responsibility to teach the player how to play their game.

[netnerd85]

Your argument is invalid. When someone "doesn't use something properly," that's not the player being bad at the game.

That's bad game design.

Should the developer hold the player's hand and spell everything out to them? Should they not allow the player to experiment and figure out effective strategies? No, of course not. But we're talking about a core element of combat here.

It's not the player's responsibility to anticipate the thinking of the developers; it's the developers' responsibility to teach the player how to play their game.

It was clearly explained how to use the weapon in the game though.

[Bear Cat]

It was clearly explained how to use the weapon in the game though.

There's even a pop up that, should you push it, decribes exactly how it works. ie, RTFM. You know, I actually like how they handled that. It punishes people for being careless and not reviewing what their gear actually does.

During the cut scene, Kate clearly states the gun is equiped with Sonic Rounds. What does that mean to you and I? Not much, but then the pop up comes up, offering to explain it to you. If a player failed to check that, that's their own damn fault.

[Kleetus]

Your argument is invalid. When someone "doesn't use something properly," that's not the player being bad at the game.

In this case, it is the player's fault.

The game explains it all.

What else would you like, a private session with the developers?:rolleyes:

[Metal85]

well, i guess some release in an early state for money reasons. the income will give them the "power" to keep working on the game.
also some issues are hard to spot, esp. if you lack the money/men power for a proper QA.

btw... the game run fine for me, even unpatched! though, there are some features missing which a game released in 2011 should have, like an option to use the additional buttons from a gaming mouse, more graphic options like adjustable FOV, framerate limiter (both could be done in games from 1998 or even earlier), etc...

true. since its a indie company. but i am sure oyu also understand my point of view.
i agree. i wish i could use the buttons on the side of my mouse to use them for some other actions like controlling the water. but well, who knows, maybe the next patch will allow us to use these buttons :)

@other topic
you still can use short burst from the plasma gun. since you are anyway to 98% in water, the enemies drown. so i dont have a problem with that. as long they go down and stay down until im far away or did my things, i dont care. shooting rapidly at them then charging up is for me affective enough. really does take few shots only.

[meimeiriver]

Your argument is invalid. When someone "doesn't use something properly," that's not the player being bad at the game.

That's bad game design.

Should the developer hold the player's hand and spell everything out to them? Should they not allow the player to experiment and figure out effective strategies? No, of course not. But we're talking about a core element of combat here.

It's not the player's responsibility to anticipate the thinking of the developers; it's the developers' responsibility to teach the player how to play their game.

Use of the gun was extremely intuitive. I can't recall actually reading a popup of some sort, though. I simply picked up the gun, fired a few rounds, held down my fire-key to examine whether it would do some sort repetitive fire, and presto, I saw it charging itself! Whereupon I immediately realized it works almost exactly like the Plasma Pistol in the HALO series (although it doesn't shoot plasma, of course).

It's not higher math. Complaining about it only makes you look like a fool.

[meimeiriver]

@other topic
you still can use short burst from the plasma gun. since you are anyway to 98% in water, the enemies drown. so i dont have a problem with that. as long they go down and stay down until im far away or did my things, i dont care. shooting rapidly at them then charging up is for me affective enough. really does take few shots only.

Yeah; except it isn't a plasma gun. :P I can see where you got that idea from, though (see my above post).

But yeah, it's how I often use it: in quick 'pew pew' mode. Actually, in most shooters I prefer rapid-fire guns, as they tend to immobilize your foes for the duration. Only time I really used charged-mode, is when I want barrels and side-panels and such to explode instantly. Or when I had time to aim from a distance, and insta-pop the enemy.