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| | Title:
Condemned Criminal Origins
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System:
Xbox 360
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Genre:
Adventure
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Publisher:
Sega Corporation
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Developer:
Monolith Productions
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Release:
11/22/2005
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Online:
Yes
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ESRB:
Mature
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It’s rare to find a game that truly messes with your head. One that makes the gamer question what is going on, or whether taking a certain action is going to put them in danger. In short the gamer feels like they are immersed, and that their own personal safety is on the line. It’s also unusual to find a game that has done the detective approach well. An experience where the player must actively search for clues in order to solve a mystery. Now imagine a game that takes both of these ideas and melds them into one beautiful package. This is what Condemned: Criminal Origins plans to do. Being produced by Sega and developed by Monolith the title is taking a whole new approach to the horror survival.
At the heart of this game is a serial killer. You are an FBI agent, part of a special task force whose sole purpose is to hunt out and arrest serial killers. At the beginning of the game the clear lines between what is good and evil are very prominent. As the plot progresses those lines slowly blur within the story to the point where the player may in fact be a serial killer. How this transformation takes place and why is not being revealed by Monolith at this time. The journey to catch the serial killer is not an easy one (are they ever). Players will have to transverse a number of different settings all of which are prime locations for serial killers to perform their horrible deeds. Dark alleys, abandoned buildings, homeless communities; the list goes on and on. It’s evident that Monolith has been doing their homework when it comes to harnessing the power of the Xbox 360. Each of the before mentioned locations have a horrific style to their design, to put the player on edge from the moment they begin their exploration. Thanks to the Xbox 360’s power the environments are not only frightening but also incredibly detailed. Surfaces are bump mapped correctly, lighting (or lack of it) illuminates the settings perfectly, and the locations are littered with objects that serve more of a purpose than just eye candy (more on this later).
These locations though aren’t abandoned. In fact they are very much inhabited by the homeless, beggars, and about every other psychotic cliché in existence. And they are all coming after you. This is where Monolith is adding in a great sense of horror into the title. In almost a nod to Doom 3, Monolith is going to scare the player with the environment and the fear of an encounter within it. Meaning there will be noises when there is nothing there, and shadows that make the hairs on the back of a player’s neck stand up. It’s a constant reminder that nowhere is safe in this game. Even when searching for clues with their black light or sending photo evidence with their PDA players will always have to stay alert. Solving puzzles (this is the detective portion) does not mean the area is safe. Combat though is unavoidable and is probably the most unique design aspect of this title. Monolith wants the combat to be gritty and realistic. What this means is that even though the player has a firearm or two in his assortment of weapons it will not always be the best choice (especially if the player is conserving ammo for a much more dangerous enemy). So what does a player use as a psychotic homeless man is charging him holding a metal pipe in his hands? Why rip their own metal pipe right out of the wall and swing back. Remember the objects littering the environment? They can be used as weapons. If it isn’t nailed down (and sometimes even if it is) it can be used as an effective melee weapon to bat away the enemies. This includes but is not limited to, locker doors, wooden boards with nail still attached, pipes, clubs; the list goes on and on. The variety of attacks is not so much in how you swing the weapon (there is only an attack and block) but in what weapon you use. Different melee weapons will yield different results. What is even cooler is how the enemies react when they are struck with such a weapon. When a homeless psycho is hit he’ll stagger backwards just as he should, shake it off and come at the player again. The damage will be evident not only in his camera model but how he reacts. Condemned is using some of the most up-to-date physics software, and it shows during gameplay. But don’t think that this is a one sided battle. Much like the Chronicles of Riddick the melee combat is not only in your face it’s also very strategic. The enemy A.I. is anything but stupid and will have available to them the same melee weapons the player does. Enemies will also be encountered in different numbers, and screenshots have shown a max two or three at a time.
Monolith is setting out to scare gamers. Thanks to the eerie settings, crazy enemies, and the promise of losing your own sanity they look like they are on that track. Probably one of the biggest pluses to note is that the pacing of this game is much slower than a typical first person adventure. Only when enemies are encountered does the action pick up. Also thanks to the Xbox 360’s power and Sega’s commitment to quality the game looks and sounds amazing. Look for Condemned Criminal Origins to be released sometime this fall.
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L3e
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