AIMEE HATFIELD / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Thursday, July 21, 2005 7:00 pm
If I had to describe Capcom's long-awaited "Killer 7" in one word, it would be: very, very strange.
OK, so that's three words, but who's counting? That "very, very" is definitely accurate in this case.
"Killer 7" has to be the best example I've ever seen of a you-either-love-it-or-hate-it game. As for myself, I definitely didn't love it. But that doesn't necessarily mean it's bad.
Let me try to explain the basics of the somewhat surreal plot.
It's a time of world peace. Nuclear weapons are gone, and bridges span the oceans. Everybody's happy until an attack by a shady group of invisible, zombielike terrorists called Heaven Smile because they laugh before they blow themselves up.
The assassination organization Killer 7 is sent to obliterate the Heaven Smile. Killer 7 is run by Harman Smith, an old man in a wheelchair. The seven killers are the best in the world, but here's the catch they're all Smith. The seven basically are personalities of Harman, and he can swap them in and out at will.
Confused yet? I am, and I wrote it.
The game has a definite style I'll give it that. It's cel-shaded, with sharp contrasts and bright colors, and the music is catchy and fits well. And nobody will ever accuse it of being unoriginal.
However, Capcom focused so much on the style and storyline that gameplay came out substandard. The controls, while I got used to them, felt clunky. In order to shoot, I first had to hold in one button, scan the room to reveal the invisible Heaven Smiles with a second button, use a third button to target and finally hit a fourth button to shoot. My fingers cramp just thinking about it.
There's also no free-roaming levels. The characters run along a set path. When there's an intersection, a menu pops up asking which way you want to go. Although the choices are colored, depending on whether you've gone that way before, I still had trouble keeping track.
Especially annoying was coming out of a room, automatically being turned one direction, and then hearing the laugh signaling an enemy. More often than not, the enemy spawned behind me, and given that they're invisible, well let's just say I had some close calls.
If you can get past the difficult controls and strange storyline, the game really isn't that bad. It isn't just running around and shooting things; there's also quite a bit of puzzle to it. Each of the seven Smiths has his (or her; there's one female Smith) own talents, and often only one of them can defeat a certain boss or solve a specific puzzle.
And once you get deeper into the game to see the cutscenes, even the story begins to come into a kind of weird focus.
I didn't particularly enjoy it; it's not the type of story I would like, but I can see how others might like it. However, I would strongly suggest a rental first if you're considering buying this one.
And I can't stress too much this game is not for kids (look at the title; it's obvious). In addition to the bloody violence, there are lots of adult themes throughout the dialogue and the visuals. No matter how much your kids plead, this one should be hands off.
Experts have been arguing that consoles may soon take over PCs for gaming. I've become more convinced of that with the release of "Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack."
This package of new multiplayer levels for the popular first-person shooter is as close to a PC expansion pack as it gets. Not only is it an add-on to "Halo 2" instead of a standalone game, it installs directly to the Xbox hard drive. That Xbox is acting more like a PC every day.
As for the release itself, it's a mixed bag. On the one hand, the nine new levels are well thought out and full of details. The different kinds of multiplayer modes "Halo 2" has to offer such as Slayer (kill everyone), Capture the Flag, etc. definitely were taken into consideration in planning levels.
I say mixed bag because, while the disc also includes some behind-the-scenes footage and trailers, the new levels are available for free on Xbox Live. If you have Xbox Live, there's no point in buying the map pack, unless you really, really want to see the extra videos.
However, if you just want the levels to play with friends offline, it would be a good investment. And the map pack also includes all the Xbox Live game patches offline players haven't been able to access.
Either way, it's nice to see this kind of post-release support. There's a reason the "Halo" series is the king of multiplayer gaming.
Coming soon: "The Matrix Online," summer movie games, "Pirates," "NCAA Football 2006" and "Madden NFL '06."
Reach Aimee Hatfield at 473-7326 or Aimee.Hatfield@lee.net.
Killer 7
Capcom, for Game Cube, Playstation 2
Rated: Mature
Cost: $49.99
Grade: B
Halo 2 Multiplayer Map Pack
Microsoft, for Xbox
Rated: Mature
Cost: $19.99; requires Halo 2
Grade: B+