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| Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull |
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| Anticipation Level: |
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| How excited (or not) I am to see this movie... |
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I wanted to let you guys know about the new Indiana Jones game that got released for the PC and Xbox, so I jotted down my review and also sent it over to aicg.com.
The Indiana Jones games have come a long way, and the latest installment, Indiana Jones and the Emporer's Tomb is the best by far.
This game is designed to be a multi-platform experience (right now only available for PC and Xbox).
I don't see the benefit of owning a console, so I can't back up anything for the Xbox version of the game, but I can whole heartedly endorse the PC version.
Before even getting to the game, you'll notice the manual, which is actually an interesting read. It's designed to look and read like Henry Jones' journal from 1935.
Gregory Harsh designed the manual and did a superb job. Not only does it go into depth about the controls and functions you will encounter while playing the game, it gives you backstory on the past adventures that some of you may recollect from the Dark Horse comic series, and some foreshadowing on the movies, which this story was placed before in Indy's timeline. You'll actually read it and not get bored. Novel concept for a game manual.
The actual game is actually quite a surprise. I fully expected this to be a carbon copy of Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine, but after playing for a mere five minutes I knew this would be a whole new and unique adventure. The 3rd person camera placement in essentially the same as the previous LucasArts game, but the graphics are a serious bump up and the controls are easy to learn. Within no time you'll be sending Indy into perilous situations without a second thought. This was most likely a conscious decision by the developers, so people of ALL ages (not just snotty nosed reviewers) could enjoy the game without giving their hands arthritis while playing.
The voice acting is almost dead on for Harrison Ford, David Esch provided Indy's voice and makes every effort to sound like our beloved hero. He gasps, groans, and heaves just like in the trilogy, and at one point I had Indy heaving so much I felt a little tired as well, the sound effects are excellent.
The cut scenes between each level are fun to watch but they provide little to the story line. Most of the objectives are explained during the pause screen, and as each is conquered, it disappears, letting you know you've actually accomplished something.
Hand to hand combat is very fun. Depending on the size of you opponent, you can pull out some unique moves. Hate those nasty Germans? If you're next to a cliff, why don't you just grab him and toss him over. I did. What about those Arab looking thugs in Istanbul? They're using swords. Yeah right, not when I've got a machine gun. You're able to pull the same move Indy did in the market sequence in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Shoot 'em.
A reviewer that goes by the name of Zelig at Aint it Cool Games wrote in his review; I ran it on my 1.4Ghz Pentium 4 computer with the GeForce 4 MX 440 card with the 640x480 resolution and 32-bit color (no mention of memory). There was only a slight bit of slowdown with the max number of enemies in play. Now, if youre a serious gamer, you know the 64MB GeForce 4 MX 440 is your typical entry level graphics card. Its the meat and potatoes of the bunch, if you will. If you play games on a nearly daily level, you probably have enough sense to step up into the next plateau of graphics cards, Nvidias Ti series. The benefits are second to none when comparing to the MX series of cards. I ran the game on my Ti 4400 128MB DDR graphic card and it ran like a dream, not one single bit of lag or fps jump. Zelig may also want to check his system resources over there, sounds like its not optimized to utilize the memory it already has in the system. It just bothers me; people who review games on mediocre systems then give it a thumb down in the wrong areas because their machine cant handle it. Alas, I digress.
Being able to pick up blunt objects such as chairs, bottle, pipes, and table legs adds a unique perspective to the fight, but you'll soon find it may be quicker to just shove your fist in their face. Not a bad way to take care of the enemy, considering all the combo moves you have at your disposal. And then you can always slap their ass with your whip, if all else fails.
The music obviously is great. The Indy theme shows up throughout, and always at the right moments. Busting some Nazi's ass with John William's score behind you can easily send a chill down your spine.
It's not all guns and fists though. There are quite a few challenging puzzles on just about every level, and they are very reminiscent of the legendary LucasArts game Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis's puzzles. Solving them gives you a very satisfactory feeling.
Skill is required in the game, but they fix what was broke about; "Infernal Machine." They give you enough hints and make it JUST easy enough to keep it enjoyable, whereas the "Infernal Machine's" puzzles made you want to beat you computer's case in at times.
The con of this game is, there is quite a lot of clipping that occurs throughout every level. I found it easy to dismiss with all the eye candy that is provided, so I'll give them a pass, but I believe it could have been fixed before shipping.
I recommend this game on every level. Whether you're an Indy fan or not, you'll ignore the element of time passing by and enjoy yourself immersed in the world of 1935.
If you're still weary to buy the game, take a hint from Jock the Biplane pilot; "C'mon, show a little backbone, will ya?"
-MrSnuggles.
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