Date played: October 24th
Platform: PS4
I wanted to play something that doesn't require intense concentration and quick reflexes... Gran Turismo is awesome and all, but it's very demanding. The Fall is a game I got for free with PS+ a while back and had always wanted to play because of the cool premise. Basically, an armored combat suit falls from space to the surface of a planet. The suit is controlled by an advanced AI known as A.R.I.D. She notices that her human pilot is unconscious, so she begins her journey to fulfill her primary objective, protect her pilot.
This is basically a 2D puzzle adventure. I can run, jump, climb ledges and inspect objects. With the inspect mode, I can perform a variety of actions such as interact or interface. I can also use other objects I've picked up, similar to Lucas Arts adventure games. There are few items in play at once though, as the puzzles seem fairly self-contained so far.
In the hour I played, I learned a lot about the AI and it's protocols. There are a number of functions that are blocked off by programming protocols which have to be unlocked. Cleverly, these functions can only be activated when they will save the pilot's life. For example, I activated the camouflage ability by putting the pilot in deadly danger from a sentry turret. It's a cool system that creates some fun gameplay situations, I like it a lot.
The game has a very dark look, playing often with silhouetting, shadows and other lighting, a bit like Limbo. Along with the creepy music and mysterious movements in the shadows, this creates a powerful atmosphere. The story is just as fucking creepy too...
I interacted with different AI systems, but have only seen one organic creature so far, a sort of giant rat, or raccoon. I have a feeling I'll encounter real humans at one point, but I'm not really sure. I "networked" with another combat suit, whose pilot was dead. The suit had been put up on a cross like a crucifixion. Oddly, neither of the two combat AI mentioned this during their lengthy conversation.
The puzzles were varied and mostly pretty good, though some of it was a little too obscure for my tastes. For example, I got stuck a good while as I tried to lure out the raccoon rat thing. I had picked up a metal pan and had found a good spot to put some food to lure the beast, but I couldn't find any food! Hints told me I was looking for human blood, but everything I interacted with led to nothing.
I eventually solved it, but I feel like it was a little too difficult to find the small puddle of dripping blood. I knew it's what I needed, and I looked in the area multiple times, but the icon was just a little too small... Speaking of which, while The Fall has a great atmosphere and an intriguing story, it's clearly a low budget game. While the animation looks relatively nice when doing most actions, jumping is a horrible mess. The camera is slightly wonky too, and combat, well, combat is a shit show.
I appreciate what the game tries to do with combat, and at it's most basic level, it works well enough, but it's so fucking boring... When I managed to lure the animal out of it's hiding spot, I was able to grab the pistol it had stolen from the other combat suit. I then had to battle against some security droids.
The problem is that there's a cover system, but it just doesn't work well. It's clunky and it's easy to fuck it up. Half the time, I end up going out of cover when I expected to simply aim. Still, it's functional, so at least I can progress, even if those parts aren't very interesting. I hope the game stays focused on exploration and story...
There's a lot of stuff going on with the story, too much to write here, but I really love every twist and turn so far. My favorite is another AI character that has a VERY vivid personality, though he still has to follow his programming. In contrast to A.R.I.D's stone cold demeanor, the administrator is a breath of fresh air.
There's a lot of cool stuff going on in this game, let's just hope it holds up as it becomes harder...
Platform: PS4
I wanted to play something that doesn't require intense concentration and quick reflexes... Gran Turismo is awesome and all, but it's very demanding. The Fall is a game I got for free with PS+ a while back and had always wanted to play because of the cool premise. Basically, an armored combat suit falls from space to the surface of a planet. The suit is controlled by an advanced AI known as A.R.I.D. She notices that her human pilot is unconscious, so she begins her journey to fulfill her primary objective, protect her pilot.
This is basically a 2D puzzle adventure. I can run, jump, climb ledges and inspect objects. With the inspect mode, I can perform a variety of actions such as interact or interface. I can also use other objects I've picked up, similar to Lucas Arts adventure games. There are few items in play at once though, as the puzzles seem fairly self-contained so far.
In the hour I played, I learned a lot about the AI and it's protocols. There are a number of functions that are blocked off by programming protocols which have to be unlocked. Cleverly, these functions can only be activated when they will save the pilot's life. For example, I activated the camouflage ability by putting the pilot in deadly danger from a sentry turret. It's a cool system that creates some fun gameplay situations, I like it a lot.
The game has a very dark look, playing often with silhouetting, shadows and other lighting, a bit like Limbo. Along with the creepy music and mysterious movements in the shadows, this creates a powerful atmosphere. The story is just as fucking creepy too...
I interacted with different AI systems, but have only seen one organic creature so far, a sort of giant rat, or raccoon. I have a feeling I'll encounter real humans at one point, but I'm not really sure. I "networked" with another combat suit, whose pilot was dead. The suit had been put up on a cross like a crucifixion. Oddly, neither of the two combat AI mentioned this during their lengthy conversation.
 |
| I meet a mysterious droid |
The puzzles were varied and mostly pretty good, though some of it was a little too obscure for my tastes. For example, I got stuck a good while as I tried to lure out the raccoon rat thing. I had picked up a metal pan and had found a good spot to put some food to lure the beast, but I couldn't find any food! Hints told me I was looking for human blood, but everything I interacted with led to nothing.
I eventually solved it, but I feel like it was a little too difficult to find the small puddle of dripping blood. I knew it's what I needed, and I looked in the area multiple times, but the icon was just a little too small... Speaking of which, while The Fall has a great atmosphere and an intriguing story, it's clearly a low budget game. While the animation looks relatively nice when doing most actions, jumping is a horrible mess. The camera is slightly wonky too, and combat, well, combat is a shit show.
I appreciate what the game tries to do with combat, and at it's most basic level, it works well enough, but it's so fucking boring... When I managed to lure the animal out of it's hiding spot, I was able to grab the pistol it had stolen from the other combat suit. I then had to battle against some security droids.
The problem is that there's a cover system, but it just doesn't work well. It's clunky and it's easy to fuck it up. Half the time, I end up going out of cover when I expected to simply aim. Still, it's functional, so at least I can progress, even if those parts aren't very interesting. I hope the game stays focused on exploration and story...
There's a lot of stuff going on with the story, too much to write here, but I really love every twist and turn so far. My favorite is another AI character that has a VERY vivid personality, though he still has to follow his programming. In contrast to A.R.I.D's stone cold demeanor, the administrator is a breath of fresh air.
There's a lot of cool stuff going on in this game, let's just hope it holds up as it becomes harder...
