FPS fever

[Warning: Long post ahead. Grab a drink.]

I am back from my amazingly long 4-day vacation. Swimming was nice, the sea was marvellous and the beach was, well, sandy. It all was very enjoyable.

As you might know, I got a new PC the day before I set off. And what’s the best way to test new hardware? You guessed it: FPS games. The only relatively new FPS game I had lying around was DOOM 3. So I installed that and spent a few good hours playing it. But innovative as it may have been at the time it was released, Doom 3 is not that great a game. It has one of the best graphics engines around, but lacks something in terms of level design and action. It is also a dark, dark, dark game (Duct tape mod, anyone?).

For these reasons, I decided to throw newer FPS games at my PC. Being a big fan of Quake III, I just couldn’t stay away from that Quake IV box with the “25% off” sticker on it. So I got it.

Quake IV probably has the best graphics the new Doom engine can produce at the moment. As far as the actual game is concerned, the focus is now back on the single-player part of the game. The story is interesting enough to keep you going, the action is thoroughly enjoyable. Think a healthy dose of squad and solo action, some good weapons (The BFG has unfortunately been puritanically named “Dark Matter gun / Railgun still rocks!), tons of Strogg and a bit of repetitiveness and you have Quake IV. What I think could be improved upon is the actual things you have to do in the levels. Your objectives are mostly easy tasks, the action is maybe too linear and there is nothing my 5-year-old cousin would have to think twice before doing. But then again, this is an FPS game and the good shooting almost makes up for the lack of complexity. Almost.

Overall, consider grabbing (or renting) a copy of this game just to marvel at the graphics. A final note: the game is a bit short (I finished it in two or three afternoons and I’m notoriously slow at going through games), so to prolong the QIV experience a bit, set the difficulty at least to “normal”.

The game that really surprised me, though, was the second FPS I got. I read a “world exclusive” review of Prey in PC Zone UK, August issue. The reviewer called this game an almost classic and even went so far as to write these happy little words towards the end of the article: “[Prey] is so pregnant with ideas and beautiful moments that you’d be a sad fool to depreive yourself of the experience”. The review confirmed what I had guessed a few minutes earlier, while playing through the demo: Prey is an awesome game.

Prey is one of those games you can’t help but enjoy. The game had apparently been in development since 1995 and its latest incarnation – and the one to hit the market – utilises a modified version of the Doom 3 engine [notice how all 3 FPS games mentioned in this post use that engine]. I can only imagine how revolutionary this game would’ve been if it had been released in the late 90s. But perhaps the technology needed to pull it through wasn’t available until recently.

This game has the Doom 3-like graphics, without being too dark. Prey looks pretty, especially in higher resolutions and with most settings turned on, but it’s playable in older PCs, too. There’s also an Xbox 360 version. That said, the game might not look as good as Quake IV, but the graphics certainly serve the atmosphere and game mechanics well.

The main appeal of this game isn’t how pretty it is, though. As Tommy – the main character, a Cherokee abducted by aliens in a quest to rescue his girfriend, Jen – dives deeper and deeper into the story, you’ll realise how many innovative things you’ll find here. Mentioned in a review such as this these things may not strike as revolutionary or all that new, but when you play the actual game, you’ll realise that the way they’ve been put together is nothing short of stunning.

Walking on the walls, reversing gravity or messing around with gravity fields, finding portals inside boxes, using alien weapons that wriggle to your touch, etc, etc, etc make Prey one of the most fun FPS games I’ve ever played. The artists have clearly made a top-notch job, too. The alien spaceship has a distinct feel of its own. Slimy surfaces mixed with computer screens with alien gibberish on them, guards patrolling the different areas, hideous monsters as enemies create the sort feel that you really are alone against a spaceship full of aliens.

Also of note is the smartly-used throughout the adventure game mechanic that allows Tommy to call upon the his ancestors’ powers and leave his body. When “spiring walking”, Tommy can walk around as a soul, killing enemies, pushing switches and solving (easy) puzzles that allow his material self to progress further. All that is nicely executed and doesn’t get in the way of shooting, which is why you play this game in the first place. Do not, however, that Tommy just can’t die. When his health is out, he is transfered to a weird corner of the spiritual realm (presumably), where he hunts for health power-ups. After a short period of time, he is spat out and back into the world as we know it.

The amazing bits and pieces that make Prey are masterfully sewn together and the sounds of Jeremy Soule as well as the occasional rock song (from a jukebox!) accompanying you in your adventure should prove to be an unforgettable experience. The only downside to this is that Prey is even shorter than Quake IV. It shouldn’t take a casual gamer more than 8-10 hours to finish (probably less for the hardcore games out there). Cherokee mode, aka “hard mode” is available as soon as you finish the game. All in all, a must-see title.

This is the end of my long-ish post. I’m tired of typing, so I’ll go do some fragging in Cherokee mode. Catch you later!

PS: With all these FPS games, I decided I wanted to change my trusty – but heavy and not very quick – Microsoft wireless mouse with something more related to gaming. I checked Logitech’s offerings, but I went for the Razer Copperhead gaming mouse instead. This thing is insanely fast and smooth. It also feels good and is pretty and ergonomic. I can’t recommend it enough. Unfortunately, it’s not a wireless mouse, so G7, by Logitech, is your only alternative in case you don’t want any wires around.

PS2: I really hope you read through all this. It took me about 2 hours to put together and type. :)