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Obscure: The Aftermath
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Graphics & Sound:
When Obscure: The Aftermath came in, it took me a few minutes to remember its predecessor, so I guess it was aptly named. But when I did, I pulled up the review and was surprised at the score, I remembered liking it a bit less than the score would imply, but how did this sequel pan out?
Visually, the game isn't bad at all, especially seeing as it is on the only previous-gen system that is still going strong. Both character models (human and mutant) and the locations around the University look good and fairly smooth. The only real problem I had with the game's look is the excessive darkness. Since the game is based off of stereotypical horror movies, I can see how they were trying really hard to go for the cheesy jump scares, and you need darkness to pull that off, but there were too many times when I found the game really hard to see. So if you're going to play Obscure: The Aftermath, you will have to either turn up the brightness of your TV, or turn down the ambient lights. Of course, turning off the lights might be just what the developers want in order to help set the mood.
Now for the dialogue - I really can't believe how cheesy it is in parts. There were several occasions where I just didn't like how the characters interacted with each other. I'm going to give the writers the benefit of the doubt though and say that the excessive and obviously bad dialogue is because the game is trying to be reminiscent of the equally bad horror films it is inspired by. |
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Gameplay:
When we last left the world of Obscure, only three of our six characters survived the horror that is high school. Well, now those kids are a little older and in college. They think they've seen the last bit of weirdness all those years ago, but when students discover a strange flower on campus, and do what all college students do with strange new plants (snort, eat and smoke it), strange happenings once again crop up.
These black-pollen flowers will eventually cause people who have come in direct contact with them to mutate, but not just users of the flowers, but also anyone who has been in contact with (sexually) someone who is infected. So now, our survivors, and three new friends, must get to the bottom of this strange new source of creatures and try to survive the night.
Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, Obscure: The Aftermath takes more than one page from teen horror movies, complete with the requisite love plot and obligatory sexual references. While the story is okay, it doesn't really do a lot to hold the overall game together. For the most part, you can ignore the story and just tackle each monster and puzzle as it presents itself.
There is one thing that really irked me, though, and just doesn't make any sense. In order to save, you approach one of the black flowers (you know, the ones causing the monsters), and have it expel its pollen in your face. Once it does that, you get the save menu, and after that the flower blooms making it unable to be reused as a save point again. That's right, each save point is good for one use only. I mean, who could possibly think that was a good idea? I know the staples of survival horror are to limit your resources (ammo mainly), but one-use save points?!? Give me a limited supply of typewriter ribbon any day over that option. |
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Difficulty:
Obscure: The Aftermath's biggest difficulty problem tends to be A.I. - not enemy A.I., but your co-op character's. Since you will almost always have a second character on hand, you would think that character always has your back. Unfortunately, I found myself saving that character more times than I'd like, and rarely would they help me when I got cornered. At least when playing with another individual, you can talk to them and give them directions that mean something. If you are going to give me a character that can't think very well on its own, then please give me the ability to give it commands, even basic ones like attack, stop and follow. Instead, I felt like I was walking around with dead weight more times than not.
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Game Mechanics:
Like the first game, Obscure: The Aftermath 's most dominant, and at times annoying, mechanic is the two-player co-op aspect. Because each character has very specific skill sets, it is fairly easy to know who you need when you encounter a particular obstacle. Unfortunately, most of the time, I found that I didn't have that person in my party, so I would have to go to the area where I left him/her and take over them and go all the way back in order to make progress. I seem to remember having the same issue in the first Obscure game as well. Unfortunately, it wasn't really resolved here.
While the idea of having several playable characters, each with different skill sets, makes the Obscure line fairly unique in the Survival Horror genre, there are times when it feels like they took a whole character that can do many things, and broke him up. If you need to unlock a door, get the character that can pick locks. Once you're through that door, you better hope you have the one that can inhale the toxic fumes of the pollen. After that, it's a third challenge, so even if you lucked up and had those two in your party, you almost certainly have to go back and get the one you need for the next puzzle. It wouldn't have been so bad if the characters were a little less archetypal, and a little more rounded. Maybe if each of the six characters had two skill sets, so you would always have a few possibilities.
If you liked Obscure and you want to see what happens to that game's survivors, then The Aftermath should be rented at best (don't worry, you should be able to get through its storyline before the rental period is up). If you were on the fence about the last one, then you still might want to check this game out because it does solve a few of the issues. Besides that, only die-hard survival horror fans need apply. |
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-J.R. Nip, GameVortex Communications AKA Chris Meyer |
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