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Developer: Outrage Games
Publisher: THQ
Genre: Action
Region: NTSC
Format:
Release Date: 19 Aug 03
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- THQ takes a gamble with this 'unique' game, and almost pays off if not for its frustrating shortcomings.
Overview
It's very rare that you will find companies take a shot at a "different" type of game that may or may not appeal to the general public. Alter Echo is one of those games, that was either going to make some noise or go out on the market with little to no one noticing it. Alter Echo does some interesting ideas that really seem to look pretty good on paper, but when it made its way on the Xbox it didn't seem to work out very well.
Gameplay
When I first started the game I will be dead honest in the fact that I didn't understand the storyline behind the game one bit. I just figured it was set in the future and that I was there to kill things because I am sure they were bad. Once I watched the first few initial cut scenes over again I finally realized what the whole premises behind the game was. Basically the whole story behind Alter Echo is your suit which is made out of this special material called echoplast which allows you to change your character's suit to accomplish your objectives.
We have seen this before, when a company tries to make a game a lot more complex then it should be, by combining several gameplay elements together to try to get the best of all the worlds. Unfortunately this usually ends up being a bad decision, because instead of having a solid game in one category, you usually end up getting an average game experience in all the different areas of the game.
So far you're probably getting the feeling that I am just going to bash the rest of the game, but surprisingly there is a lot of good to be found in the game that I will get into in just a bit.
There isn't a whole lot of strategy involved in Alter Echo, there will be a few puzzles along the way, but for the most part the game is all about fighting and mainly doing some insane combos. Throughout the game you will be fighting your way through levels by just doing some really cool combos. Throughout the game you will also have the ability to upgrade your suit by going to the upgrade stations located throughout the game. These upgrades will become vital for success as you get farther in the game. This really is a nice positive for Alter Echo, without these upgrades the game would become very repetitious.
The level design of Alter Echo is where you start to see some of the downsides to the game. The levels in the game stay consistent and they all start to feel the same after a while. The levels are also pretty linear, in the fact that you don't really have much space to roam and your path has mostly been decided for you. The level design can be pretty frustrating, as save points which are few and far between. Alter Echo is not a game you can sit down and play for just ten minutes, you have to play for quite a while in order to reach the next save point. This is a pretty big annoyance, and I only wish that there would have been more places to save your game.
The controls of Alter Echo are pretty straightforward, and you get the first few levels to get used to them. The controls are easily mapped on the Xbox controller and this is a game that you would be able to jump right into and play. The one complaint I have is the camera which you do have control over but it can get stuck and hung up at times.
Besides the camera and the save points, Alter Echo is a pretty smooth-playing title. The combo system is solid, and will stay interesting for quite sometime. The level design although linear does get the job done in a nice fashion.
Graphics
This is a truly interesting looking game, and it is really hard to judge whether it's a totally bad looking game, or pure genius. The one thing for sure is that there are not many games like it. This is one of those games that will appeal to some, and not to others, and personally I just find it satisfactory.
The environments are one of the more impressive portions of Alter Echo's graphics. They are colorful and full of detail, and overall are just impressive. They get the job done and although they start to get repetitive after bit, they do a nice job of accomplishing what they needed to. The character models on the other hand look pretty weird. I am not exactly sure why the characters look skinny and awkward. I am not sure why they look like they do, but they just aren't overly impressive.
Overall the graphics are about average, with some good and some bad and some interesting there is a lot of variety when it comes to Alter Echo's graphics.
Fun Factor
The combo system in Alter Echo is really saving the game from failing completely. It's this that keeps this game interesting for more then fifteen minutes, and that will keep you playing it for a while after that. Besides the fighting in the game there isn't much more fun to be had, because the puzzles seem uninspired, and the gameplay seems to lack anything truly new or interesting. Alter Echo can be fun for a while, but unfortunately there is just not enough new and interesting things going on to keep it fun.
Overall
Alter Echo has some interesting ideas but like I mentioned at the beginning it fails to take advantage of these ideas, and instead makes a pretty average title. Overall Alter Echo will appeal to some and not to others, therefore I would just recommend renting this one and see if this one is up your alley.
- Gameplay
7.0 - Graphics
7.0 - Fun Factor
7.0 - Overall
7.0
