| Cold Fear review |
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Sea sickness - that awful feeling caused when the fluid in your ears tells the brain you're moving, but your eyes tell it you’re standing still. It’s been the ruin of many a scurvy-riddled sailor and anyone who’s suffered with it will know there’s nothing worse than that inescapable green feeling; though for US Coastguard Tom Hansen, the star of Ubisoft’s foray into the Survival Horror genre, there are far more worrying things than a severe case of mal de mer causing him to lose his lunch overboard.
Obeying a mysterious order to rescue the crew of a Russian Whaling ship caught in a fierce storm, Hanson soon finds himself separated from the rest of his team and it becomes apparent that something is very wrong aboard the drifting vessel. A breed of Xenomorphic, body-invading organisms known as Exocells have been unleashed by the unwitting Russians. These creatures are able to reanimate dead bodies with murderous intent, as well as disfiguring and mutating other hosts. Caught between desperate Russian mercenaries and murderous, flesh-hungry creatures, Hanson must find a way to stay alive and get off the ship before either its inhabitants or the storm get him first.
Ubisoft’s Gunther Galipot and his Darkworks team have been placed in an uncomfortable position with Cold Fear's release, with the title being the next Survival Horror game to follow behind Capcom's benchmark hit, Resident Evil 4. While comparisons between the two titles are more than a little unfair (what with Shinji Mikami and Co. having numerous similar titles under their belts), they are inevitable due to both games making a feature of the over-the-shoulder viewpoint and the similar humanoid enemies which require decapitation and then destruction of the manipulative parasites within.
Putting such comparisons aside as far as possible, does Cold Fear have what it takes to carve its own clawmark into the soft flesh of the Survival Horror annals?
From the moment the player joins Hanson aboard the ill-fated craft, Cold Fear is an impressive and engaging sight to behold. The game’s engine does a wonderful job of recreating a ship being tossed about like a limp rag doll at the mercy of the elements, with the ship rolling and tilting with each visible wave that batters against it. Rain and wind lash against both Hanson and his surroundings, even trickling down the screen in rivulets, all of these combining to result in a very real sense of sea sickness.
Cold Fear is packed with nice little touches that add that extra element of immersion and atmosphere. These include pure eye candy such as Hanson dipping his head and raising an arm to shield his eyes from the driving rain, or the way bodies and objects sway in tandem with the motion of the sea, through to necessary elements such as his ability to grab onto hand rails and steady himself (and his aim) if things become too rough, or even his need to adjust his speed and motion to literally prevent himself being washed overboard.
Players are offered the choice between the traditional fixed Survival Horror camera viewpoint (of which Cold Fear does a good job of giving the player the best view of proceedings, unlike earlier genre titles) or the over-the-shoulder view which can be activated by holding down the appropriate button. As expected, the over-the-shoulder view allows for greater flexibility and precise targeting, however after being spoiled by the freedom presented by Resident Evil 4's locked viewpoint, the predefined camera vistas feel constrictive and clumsy. Those who have experienced Capcom's latest title will invariably find themselves permanently pressing the button to see over Hanson's shoulder, and this will cause some serious finger cramp. No matter how hard the player tries it would seem that the shadow cast by Resident Evil 4 is simply too huge to avoid for long.
Players are given access to a number of weapons all of which are the staple armaments for a Survival Horror title, including (amongst others) a pistol (with mounted light), a shotgun (for easy decapitations) and a flamethrower. In fact the flamethrower is another example of the thought that has gone into the little things in the game; attempting to use it outdoors with the wind blowing in the wrong direction will result in Hanson losing a lot more than just his eyebrows.
By and large the most interesting addition to the weapons however, is the Spear Gun. Coated with pheromones that attract the Exocells, this can be used to draw their attention, or even lure them into traps. Gas valves, explosive barrels and even watery pools housing electric cables, can all be used to frazzle enemies and conserve ammunition. Unfortunately this interactive element is extremely limited and feels a bit flat after a while. More often than not it's easier to just shoot the Exocells (since ammo is far from limited) than to try and lure them into a trap.
Sonically, the game is a treat for the ears with wind and thunder claps howling through the speakers hard enough to cause a shiver down the spine. The pinging, clanging and groaning of metal of both the ship and the oil rig that makes up the second half of the game give a real sense of man-made structures being battered by the full weight of nature. It also does a decent job of providing some appropriately composed and heavily menacing musical pieces for whenever the action kicks in. However cut scenes are strangely muffled, so dramatic and atmospheric moments often suffer when the music cuts dead as the player exits an area.
It is clear that Cold Fear is based firmly in the style of Western horror flicks, with noticeable influences from Alien and John Carpenter's The Thing amongst others. The theme du jour is skewed towards excessive gore and cheap shocks rather than any cerebral horror to keep players on their toes - so expect decapitations, exposed brains, uncovered intestines, all of which are accompanied by lashings of blood. In closer confines the walls and floors can quickly become splattered with red stuff, and while gratuitous, it certainly adds to the horror element.
There's no denying that Cold Fear is atmospheric, so it’s a shame that much of this gets washed overboard and into the briny depths. The shocks and scares feel forced, and usually amount to little more than an Exocell mutant bursting from a container, or a reanimated corpse suddenly rising to its feet to attack you. In fact, by the time the player has trudged halfway through the game they can virtually predict, with alarming accuracy, when these moments will occur.
Which leads to another problem - the game is criminally short. Even with limited play it has a maximum playtime of around 10 hours, so all but the most novice of gamers will find the credits rolling up the screen before they know it. It is this feeling of brevity that permeates throughout the game, with no real build-up in tension past the initial ten-to-fifteen minute opening sequence - a real shame considering how much of a wonderful job it does in that initial short space of time.
There are a number of reasons for this easy experience, such as the aforementioned plentiful ammo, but this is in no way helped by the basic A.I. The Exocells' attacks usually consist of nothing more than them shuffling towards you (although some find their sea legs enough to build up into a run) and while mercenaries are a little more competent, they usually do no more than hide behind objects and shoot at you from cover. While not a unique problem, here the issue is more that the odds are often far from stacked against you, with never more than two larger enemies assaulting you in confined spaces, and the slightly larger numbers in the more expansive areas posing no greater challenge due to the extra manoeuverability offered to the player. Aside from one or two sections, the enemies never really feel like a challenge, and again this lowers the immersion factor due to you not actually being afraid of them.
It’s clear from the unlockable extras (which include unused concepts and designs) that Darkworks were brimming to the Crow’s Nest with ideas for Cold Fear. In its current form the game is an enjoyable and visually accomplished, but ultimately forgettable experience which plays like little more than a prequel to the next in the series. |
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System: Microsoft Xbox
Genre: Survival Horror
Developer: Darkwords
Publisher: Ubisoft
Players: 1
Version: European
Reviewed: Apr 2005
Writer: Jamie Davies
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Pros:
- Atmospheric enough to make you feel the wind and rain
- Lots of neat touches that add to the overall experience
- More blood than a Slaughterman’s convention
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Cons:
- Very short and with little replay value
- Atmosphere runs out of steam once off the ship
- Might cause physical sea sickness in some
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