Janson's Infernal Review. Comments welcom.

[Guest Wes Janson]

I've played the game all the way though WITHOUT using ANY help what so ever. I noticed a poll for Indy here in the forum, and found myself writing way-too much stuff on it. So, I decided to make this a separate post and called it a review.

 

- GRAPHICS

 

Don't know about those reviewers, but I loved the graphics. Yes, they are a little dated, but you have to look at Infernal Machine for what it's built from. Can you believe that the game engine is revamped from the Jedi Knight engine?! Considering that, I gave that department some leway. But there were a couple of graphic glitches that DID become anoying. Namely, the constant clipping. I did grow used to it after the first couple of levels, though. Oh, yeah. Indy looks like Harrison! But he looks a little skinny in his jacket. Indy lost weight...so what?

 

- PUZZLES

 

I'm a puzzle guy, and I really apriciated a great deal of the puzzles in this game. I get really annoyed at other people who say that these puzzles aren't original (IE: Push the block, jump around, find the key, run the maze). I think Indy pulls it off quite nicely. And though many people believe that Indy's supposed to go stealthing around and engaging Commies by the plenty, an archiological twist was pretty refreshing. If I had a choice, I'd chose Infernal Machine's puzzles over Tomb Raider's. If you don't break down and look at a player's guide, solving many of these puzzles are personally rewarding. But, that's not to say that some puzzles were too obviously set.

 

- TRAPS

 

Traps....Well, I could elaborate about these. Basically, I would have liked an option to turn off Indy's "Trap Instinct" off. I relied upon it too much, and I found myself running about being careless. I only had to stop and becareful when Indy taps into the Force and mumbles, "I sense a trap..." Though it's a cool feeling to dodge a trap the first time, I think it would have added a little edge of caution and excitement for pro players to look for potential traps themselves. Also, many of those traps we're too easily rectified. I know they shouldn't be so tough as to fustrate the player, but they could have added some twists and/or multiple ways to traverse one. But on the other hand, there were thrilling surprises, too.

 

- EXAMPLE OF A COOL TRAP

 

I remember an area where I know there was a trap just waiting to happen. I looked around the room to plan my escape. I thought I found a way out, so I grabbed the Eyedol and went for it. Unfortunately, the exit got blocked. I alsmost paniced. I frantically looked about for another escape before that giant, slow-moving bolder turned me into a tasty Indy pancake. I looked up, and noticed a branch-like object. I just prayed it was "whipable" (I love that word!) I got Indy's trusty friend, and it latched onto the branch. I scrambled up, just before that bulder knicked my foot. That was one of the all-to-few dramatic moments that Infernal Machine should have been full of.

 

- SOUNDS

 

The sounds...Well, I thought they were just fine. Not the highest quality, but very good nonetheless. Voices were clear and cut. If you speek Russian, you should be able to hear everything your Comrads say. The guns and explosions seemed appropriate...exept for Indy's revolver. It sounds fine, but I was expecting something different. But, it grew on me.

 

- MUSIC

 

The music...ACK! I was expecting a full John Williams score, fixed in with LucasArt's newly favorite IMuse format. But, all I got was some shaggy quality tunes from the movies. Okay, so the score is not THAT bad, but it could have sounded better. I also noticed a lack of scores in the game. You get that repitition by the 6th level. And when you beat the game and watch the credits, you'll be treated with the full Indy enterage (being as low-quality as it was, it's actually cool to listen to).

 

- CONTROLS

 

Another ACK! These guys went out of their way to be like Tomb Raider, but be different at the same time. I have a hard time playing both games after each other. It's those miner differences that annoyed for the first level:

 

CLIMB UP A LEDGE

 

-Tomb Raider: Action Button

-Infernal Machine: Jump Button

 

CLIMB LADDER

 

-Tomb Raider: Action (Hold)

-Infernal Machine: Jump (Toggle)

 

COMBAT

 

-Tomb Raider: Spacebar Draws gun, able to meneuver and fire simultaniously

-Infernal Machine: Spacebar Draws gun, limited meneuverability

 

AUTO-AIM

 

-Tomb Raider: If you can see a guy, chances are Lara will point her gun at him

-Infernal Machine: Lock-on range depends on weapon, can't hit the guy if he's too close

 

I have to admit that the TombRaider control scheme was pretty good layout, but it seemed like LA took that same scheme and mixed it around so players might not notice the striking similarities.

 

And, yes...Jumping is an adventure in itself. Unlike Tomb Raider, Indy doesn't have a "kick-off point". When Lara does a running jump, she automatically kicks off and jumps at the edge. She'll usually land/grab with ease. Indy...you need to judge his jumps and running space manually with no default kick-off. This means a lot of rookies will meet the canyon floors too often to enjoy the puzzles. And if the game didn't take forever and a day to re-load, it would be so bad. You could spend a better part of 10 minutes trying to make only 4 passes at a jump.

 

Indy's body also sometimes gets in the way of his own grapples. You may find yourself jumping too late and Indy'll bounce away from the edge... Givin that, you'll need to look and plan your jumps before you go off and do it.

 

The evasion button is dificult to use in conjunction with shooting. There's a major glitch where if you fire your gun, then evade right after, you'll roll...but stay on the same spot. That gets really fustrating and gets you killed more times than you need to. But, you can learn to shoot, then evade effectively. It is a problem, but you can get around it.

 

You can't fire AND evade/jump at the same time. That would have been very useful in firefights. You also may have heard the whip is next to useless in fights...not true. You can lure Commies around a corner, ready your whip and knock that gun from their hands. If you get that timing right, you can end up shooting at a defensless man, or have an all out fist brawl. Or whip out that machete and slice 'em down.

 

But the whip itself is combersome to use. You have to stop, and wait for a lengthy (but cool-looking) ready animation before you can loop that whip-snapping. It would have been cool if you could ready the whip while running, then snap it on a branch just before a bulder squashes your butt... But hey, it's still fun to use on those wolves and tigers.

 

- ARTIFICIAL INTELEGENCE

 

Commies will run up to you gung ho! They'll usually then run away when they have one or two points of damage left. This is aparent with all enemies. Death animations aren't the worst, but each enemy only has one. But don't fret. Indy can die lots of gruesome ways. ;-)

 

- STORY

 

Now, this is where Infernal Machine makes up for all of its flaws. Very rarely does a game enthral you into a great story complete with plot twists and surprises. All I have to say is...wow! You can also LEARN stuff from this game. Not too many titles can claim that. The voice acting is also reasonably done. Unfortunately, Harrison Ford's not in the game (and I'm positive he won't be in any). But Indy voice actor Doug Lee does a decent job of portraying our beloved archioligist. Though he's a bit dry at first, you get used to him. Gotta love those sarcastic Indy remarks. I don't want to spoil anything, but most of you won't be disapointed in this department.

 

- BOTTOM LINE

 

Very nice graphics, decent sound, atrocious (put livable) play control, great story, and mind-bending puzzles. LA did a not-too-bad job here. The big plus here is that people with mid-class systems can enjoy the game too! Unlike some of these graphically intensive games that require a PIII 400, or what not. Be prepared to THINK in this one. And I strongly suggest you NOT look at a player's guide for this one. The hint system is more than enough if you're feeling stuck.

 

The game is also full of bugs and glitches. I actually started to laugh when I saw that long list of "Quality Assurance" teams in the credits. What the heck were they doing?! If they had like, one or two poeple, I'd understand. Ah, never mind. Maybe they'll get out some more patches to ease things up. Yeah, make sure you get the latest patch!

 

Good game, good price ($35). If you're an Indy fan, this is a definate BUY! If you're a pure adventure enthusiast, there's something here in the way of thinking, but don't expect much. That's the thing with this game. I think people expected too much. From it...kinda like Episode I. Hey, a little irony there for you.

 

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THE GOOD: Gripping story, not-too-bad puzzles, nice graphics, some good plot twists, just about all glitches and bugs can be lived with and worked around.

 

THE BAD: Play control, play control, play control!!! Bugs galore. Once you beat it, you probably will stop playing.

 

RATING: 8.5

 

- Janson

[Guest JR2000Z]

Its hard to copy the music from the movie to the game since the music symbolizes the seeting like Germany,Italy,etc.

 

The controls got easy on me if you played Jedi Knight.

 

The graphics are OK for the game.

 

It would have been nice to see if the Russiand themselves talk like the other characters.

 

 

 

 

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Hey,I'm always right!