Game Time,
their own ends. The premise, while interesting, works mainly because of how good the title looks. During its launch, its graphics were already quite good; on the PC, they’re absolutely stellar. It’s hard to imagine that the game is half a decade old when it renders characters and scenes so vividly.
As real as the visuals may seem, however, the story is anything but. While the premise is great, Beyond: Two Souls’ overall narrative tone proves wanting at best, lacking any subtlety in its message. Jodie’s predicament could have been explored any which way, but is instead presented sans any restraint; gamers are slammed over the head with theme after theme, allowing for little time to let any stew. Now and then, its story shows promise. After it lures you in with tales of intrigue and deception, however, its momentum falters, and its key moments tend to fall flat. Even during its most entertaining set pieces, its flaws tend to stick out.
Action-filled segments try their hardest to get the blood pumping, but the payoffs don’t come close to rewarding the build-ups.
At the same time, Beyond: Two Souls relies on gameplay that is best described as the opposite of fun. Gamers get to do some QTEs, explore surrounding areas, watch a few cutscenes — and then rinse and repeat. The process isn’t flawed in and of itself. Unfortunately, the controls — whether via the controller or via a keyboard-and-mouse combination — feel floaty and unresponsive. Which is just too bad given its potential, and which makes it hard to recommend to any but the most diehard of Cage fans. It set out to be a compelling tale of a woman struggling with her marvelous, dangerous powers. It wound up becoming a reminder that implementation, of relative lack thereof, can stunt even the best of intentions. (6/10)
THE LAST WORD
Developer Obsidian last year surprised the gaming community by announcing work on Grounded. While otherwise known for its roleplaying games, it indicated its intent to spread its wings by dipping its toes in the survival genre. Gamers are slated to control shrunken children aiming to overcome a backyard environment. Progress appears to be moving quickly, as its latest title now has a Steam page. Early Access release, which will feature around a fifth of the complete storyline via single and online play, is forthcoming.