MusicManiac Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 In Still Life, you're on the hunt for a serial killer. Face five dead bodies, a mountain of circumstantial evidence and an angry boss breathing down your neck. This killer has a strange link to your character's past, and you'll have to dig deep and unravel the truth before the murderer strikes again. The adventure genre is a type of game that has been taking a backseat to the mass of brainless shooters and other titles that are being produced at a dime per dozen lately. Thankfully, every now and then comes a few talented people who still care and remember the adventure fans out there, The Adventure Company is one of the latter and with the cooperation of developer Microïds comes one of the most involving, disturbing and gripping title in recent memory. Still Life parallels between the events of Post Mortem, which was more or less of a success, while introducing a new heroine into the mix, the granddaughter of Gus McPherson from Post Mortem, Victoria McPherson. Still Life begins with a stunning yet shocking cutscene as we are briefly shown the main characters of the game, along with a strangely clad man sporting a mask and dragging the lifeless body of a young woman. Players will immediately know they are going to be in for quite a treat as the game progresses. Following the initial cutscene, players are introduced to the game’s protagonist, an FBI agent by the name of Victoria McPherson and daughter to Chicago’s District Attorney. With her desk residing in Chicago as well, she is working late one snowy, Christmas evening, profiling a serial killer who preys on innocent women in an extremely brutal fashion. The phone rings, a fifth body has been discovered and Victoria’s aid is required. An old, decrepit building towers high into the night as Victoria enters and discovers the crime scene, which is spread out across the entire apartment. Players will be able to get a feel of what Still Life is all about: dark, gritty and gruesome crime scenes blended into an awesome story line. A long night of evidence collecting and examination of a mutilated corpse eventually take their toll upon Victoria, as she retires to her father’s household for a small, late night Christmas celebration. A small conversation and exchange of presents ensues and players are presented with the opportunity to explore the humble abode, but the attic is where Victoria will eventually wind up. Her grandfather’s chest is discovered in a dark corner and is locked for safe measure. Once opened, players will get a chance to sift through the age-old files present at their disposition. As it turns out, Gus McPherson was a self-proclaimed private eye who was mixed up in a case eerily resembling that of which his granddaughter is currently investigating… Following the discovery of the case files, Victoria will have random flashbacks to the case Gus was investigating, and this is where players will be given the chance to control the second character of the game. The game fluctuates between a gloomy, modern day Chicago and a beautiful 1930s era Prague, where both characters attempt to resolve their gruesome cases. Both contain the same suspiciously similar types of circumstances and victims: women who degrade themselves to survive and who society would not miss or remember any time soon. From this point on, Still Life becomes extremely addictive and intriguing, I will not say anymore as I wouldn’t want to give any details and wish keep the entire experience as unspoiled as possible. This leads me to my next point, which I will try to keep brief, the characters in the game, Victoria and Gus, will interact with an extensive amount of them. Each one feels different and unique due to the great characterization and effort placed into creating each person. Seeing as how Still Life is an adventure title, the point-and-click method of navigation is present, but with a twist, the camera follows Victoria from a third-person perspective, allowing for a much more fluent control of the character. Moving around is as simple as pointing and clicking, which is true to its genre and thanks in part to the intuitive mouse cursor, which changes form and lets players know if there is something worth examining into closer detail. Using the left mouse button will allow players to move around, while using the right button will open up the game’s inventory. Here is where the items that have been collected during the course of the game wind up. The use of these objects is extremely limited and can only be employed at specific areas during the game, but they get the job done! The inventory screen also links to more useful features, such as a save/load system, a log of all the dialog exchanged during the course of the game and many other features. When engaging in conversations with other characters, players are given the choice to use both sides of the mouse. Using the left mouse button will resort in Victoria or Gus asking much more profession and mission oriented questions, as opposed to using the right mouse button, which takes a much more personal approach to questioning. The latter allow players to get a deeper and involved look into the back-story and feelings of the characters. The conversation system permits a much more refreshing approach to the old and stale dialog trees that plague so many of the other adventure titles out there. An adventure game wouldn’t be worthy of such a title without a bunch of intricate puzzles, but fear not, Still Life has more than its fair share of them. Although some are quite complex and might require the help of a walkthrough for inexperienced players, all of them feel fresh, original and blend into the story perfectly, never feeling out of place like certain other games. Graphically speaking, Still Life is a powerhouse. Employing the same engine as Syberia 2, the 2D pre-rendered environments are breathtaking, yet dark and gloomy all at once. The modern day recreation of Chicago feels like a dank and dismal city and helps convey the atmosphere in which Still Life tries to achieve. The early century Prague looks amazing as well. The models appear very life-like and smooth, although Victoria does have a strange taste in clothing for someone on the job and some of the characters seem very stiff, almost as if they were constipated, but this is just a personal matter of opinion. Still Life also sports some of the best cutscenes in memory. These videos help capture the more action oriented sequences of the game and accomplishes this task masterfully. The use of dynamic lighting and many more top quality effects are visible and make Still Life a graphical tour-de-force. In the audio department, things hold up equally well for the most part. The voice acting in Still Life is rather excellent, even though some of the dialog does seem extremely cheesy and forced, as if it couldn’t come naturally. The language in this title is completely uncensored as well, which adds a realistic and gritty touch to the game. The music is top-notch and fits perfectly into place with the environments. Dark and haunting ambient tracks will play while you walk the streets of Prague as Gus and a higher tempo, techno-inspired set of tunes make Chicago feel more like its real life counter-part. Overall, Still Life may be one of the better games of this year. This title will have you hooked from the beginning until the end, and the open-ended conclusion will leave things up to your imagination to figure out. Although it does feel very short, and some of the dialog seems quite tacky, these minor flaws are nothing that should deter fans of the genre from trying it out. Even for newcomers to the adventure platform, Still Life manages to keep things interesting from start to finish with just the right mix of action, puzzle solving and dialog. It’s a definite recommendation, the saddest part is that I know with the few point-and-click titles that will be released this coming year, none will be able to compare. 5/5 Pimps :pimp: :pimp: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 The adventure genre is a type of game that has been taking a backseat to the mass of brainless shooters and other titles that are being produced at a dime per dozen lately. Thankfully, every now and then comes a few talented people who still care and remember the adventure fans out there i completely agree, and woudl more if i played PC games, cause these are the ones i enjoy. Thanks for this MM, ill wait & see if there's gonna be a port, cause Bishop raved about Indigo Prophecy in a somewhat similar vein, still wanted to play that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicManiac Posted April 4, 2006 Author Share Posted April 4, 2006 i completely agree, and woudl more if i played PC games, cause these are the ones i enjoy. Thanks for this MM, ill wait & see if there's gonna be a port, cause Bishop raved about Indigo Prophecy in a somewhat similar vein, still wanted to play that one. Your wish has been granted. Click Here - Gamestop Link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lycaon Posted April 4, 2006 Share Posted April 4, 2006 Dammit, no love for the PS2... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicManiac Posted April 11, 2006 Author Share Posted April 11, 2006 Nope. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jables Posted April 11, 2006 Share Posted April 11, 2006 Haha!! Bill Gates drops great scats on you all!! WOOO! I'ma check this bad boy out. Nice pimping M. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicManiac Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 bump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the division of joy Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 ahh a thread exists.... i havent seen this game over here, but i will keep my eyes peeled and get back to you about it... it has the dark murky feeling to it that i loved about max payne.... is it any way similar, just kinda mood wise? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 man, this game needs to get 'ported. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the division of joy Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 quit being lazy and upgrade your stinkin pc man Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 Mmm, this game looks on par with Silent Hill in terms of horror. I think I'll give this one a pirate buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MusicManiac Posted June 5, 2006 Author Share Posted June 5, 2006 man, this game needs to get 'ported. It is on XBOX. better on PC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 quit being lazy and upgrade your stinkin pc man no way, i can get a whole other console for a fraction of what itd cost to upgrade my shit...PC only needs to run mp3s, scanned comics, porn & hondo's. Nothing against PC gamers, i just dont have their wallet. Xbox got a lotta good ports...shame PS2 didnt get this one tho, looks freaky. Speakin of, Echo Night (that one FDB recommended in your other thread?) should be on its way to my house, hope its cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the division of joy Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 thats the thing, most pc only games dont port that well for ps2 what with the expansive control networking and everything.... its a shame but then again the ps2 has some games that put the pc to shame so it evens itself out.... the xbox has an easy life, it gets all the pc ports and then some (halo....) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted June 5, 2006 Share Posted June 5, 2006 Well IC, the number one aspect of PC is the easy online gaming. Online gaming is a rush and a fucking half. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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