Tryzon?s Nonsensical Gaming Trips #34
James Cameron?s Avatar: The Game (PS3, 2009) (Also on 360, PC)
I have an inkling that this might be one of my more hotly-debated reviews. That?s ?cause I?ve been meaning to talk about this since deciding that 7th generation games were worthy of my attention after all, but not for the reasons you?re probably thinking of. See, unlike most folk on the Web, I don?t hate The Avatar Game. In fact, I like it quite a bit. Doubtless somebody?ll be raising an eyebrow at this, but I had a perfectly fun time playing from beginning to end. Just to waft the flames some more, I had a more consistently enjoyable time playing Avatar than the much more popular Ubisoft game, Assassin?s Creed. Not that the two are anything alike, but whereas the latter is frequent monotony and occasional brilliance, Avatar is endless contentment but nothing of blinding quality.
The fact that the film of the same name is also a cause of much fanboy rage and civil war just complicates the matter further. I review The Avatar Game today in an attempt to clear some of the muck from its face; to shout from the mountaintops that there are countless far inferior ways to spend a dedicated weekend, though there are certainly just as many better ones. Oh, you might try to fight back and stop me somehow, but nothin?s over while I?m breathin?.
Before sitting down to replay The Avatar Game for the sake of this review, I watched my Avatar DVD once again. Not that I needed an excuse, you realise. I was awed by the prettiness, amused by Colonel Quaritch?s outrageous evilness and made to be happy by the upbeat ending. It may be derivative, pretentious and predictable, but damn is it good popcorn cinema. So I hoped for something comparable from the game. Was I disappointed?
You?re the suspiciously-titled Able Ryder (porn star name if I?ve ever heard one), an androgynous Signal Specialist for the naughty RDA corporation who?s sent down to Pandora as part of the Avatar programme. A recon gyrene in an avatar body?that?s a potent mix! A rather underwhelming introductory message from Sigourney Weaver tells you that Pandora is really a lovely place and she hopes you don?t end up razing it, though that?s tempting. Anyway, you?re taught how to fend for yourself and drive vehicles before finally getting to try out your brand new avatar, which is basically a bigger, bluer, and generally better version of you that can?t drive vehicles or go on the boat ride at Legoland. You could try to end the situation peacefully, in theory, but should diplomacy fail, there?s always the option to nuke the site from orbit. It?s the only way to be sure.
I think every man has a part of him that can't get enough robots.
A number of games boast multiple campaigns, but many of them offer little real variety behind the veneer. The Avatar Game starts normally but quickly presents you with the option to either help the indigenous race of humanoids (the Na?vi) or eradicate them, and whichever option you choose will change the gameplay considerably. One life ends, another begins. Either way, though, one thing is crystal-clear: you are not in Kansas anymore. You are on Pandora, ladies and gentlemen. Respect that fact.
The plot isn?t spectacular but does, at least, do its own thing: it compliments the film instead of trying to copy it outright. The human campaign makes no real attempt at being dramatically compelling, but the Na?vi one is above-average for a movie-licensed game, though that?s not saying much. Your journey of discovery is an interesting one, and it?s hard not to feel a twig of remorse whenever you see a bunch of natives get massacred by machinegun fire. Okay, it?s funny too, but that?s missing the point.
The human half is the more traditional one, made up of simply shooting anything with a ponytail and trying to collect the various magical MacGuffins before the blue monkeys do. It?s undeniably enjoyable to stomp about in an AMP suit and lay waste to the lovely jungle landscape (even if they don?t come with child-sized commando knives), and I particularly like how killing random plants actually earns you points. Is the RDA so desperate that it?s paying its soldiers to waste ammunition on flora? Apparently so. These are the same people who brought nail guns and flamethrowers to use against the stone-age locals, I suppose. Some of the flowers do try to kill you, though, so at least it?s not entirely one-sided. Why always the fighting? Because out there, beyond that fence, every living thing that crawls, flies or squats in the mud wants to kill you and eat your eyes for jujubes.
However, the Na?vi half of the game is definitely my favourite, mainly because the gameplay is slightly irregular. There?s a greater emphasis (particularly in the beginning) on running about and picking targets wisely, since you can get taken out rather abruptly. Unsurprisingly, playing as a Na?vi is the harder option, though that?s speaking relatively. Wading in with your twin blades is terrifically amusing, particularly when people start flying all over. It feels a bit like the Pepsi to Dynasty Warriors? Coke, in a way. That is unless you?re one of those weird types who prefer Pepsi, which is still a better thing to be than a freak who can?t tell the difference. It?s clear as day, I tell ya! Anyway, hitting things in succession builds up a combo meter that eventually allows you to unleash a special attack, which is best applied directly to the forehead of whichever foe most deserves a grisly demise.
You get a bow to play with, too, and it?s the closest thing available to a sniper rifle. You hold the button down to charge it up and then release to skewer some poor git in the twig and berries. The arrows you use are dipped in a deadly neurotoxin, though death is immediate here and not slow, like in the film. The satisfaction of peppering fools with pointy things gets my approval, and reminds me of the good times I had in Oblivion with my lightning-enabled Daedric Bow.
The only gun the Na?vi you gets is powerful, but has precious little ammo. It?s best used in emergencies or when the screen is crawling with damn dirty apes.
There's a lot of collecting. Not tons, but quite a bit.
Whatever species you pick, you have numerous special abilities that can be used once they?re charged up. The basic ones (invisibility, health gain, speed, damage reduction) work for both the human and Na?vi modes, but others are unique to each. I generally found that the standard ones were more than enough, however, and they also get better with upgrades.
Speaking of which, smiting baddies and doing missions nets you XP, which automatically adds up to unlock new equipment. The system itself is fine, but its shoddy implementation means that you get tougher faster than the enemies do, so the earlier sections are harder than the later ones. Daft, innit? The way that you gain points by doing pretty much anything is a lot like Infamous, only not done nearly as well. Both campaigns are short, but add up to a decent length. My replaying it is evidence of some longevity, too.
Both of your bodies can also do a ridiculous-looking dodge move, which you need to avoid having Pandora shit you out dead with zero warning. There?s no real cover system like the sort you get in Kill.Switch or Gears of War, but I?m more familiar with not having one, so it doesn?t bother me. It wouldn?t suit the mad and panicky brawling, anyway. However, I don?t care for the way that the camera is zoomed in too much, though this is getting to be a trend nowadays, so blaming this particular game would be unfair.
Most objectives consist of killing something, collecting something or talking to somebody, but a couple of surprises are lurking within, too. Firing rockets at sturmbeests from a jeep is a one-off dose of exhilaration, for instance.
I found through some snooping that a number of lesser reviewers didn?t like the controls. I don?t understand why, given that they?re perfectly standard fare, if a bit floaty. These madmen also berated the ?linearity?, which makes no real sense, given that most games are just as linear. And what?s wrong with that, anyway? I?d rather have an experience tailor-made to be engaging than be left wandering aimlessly, personally. Talking about controls again, there?s just a little bit of auto-aim, though not so much that you don?t have to line up a shot properly. Me likee.So here?s my response to those crazy critics: shut your pie hole!
There are multiple ?levels?, all of which can be roamed in-between missions, but they?re just enclosed spaces with little extra to do other than kill things and complete dull sector challenge. Some Gun-style side missions in which you have to hunt down rare beasties might have been nice, but oh well. Traversing the area either in a jeep or on horseback (better yet, a thanator!) is pretty sweet, though it can take a while. At least you can instantly zip between important spots, which saves oodles of time. The map is sometimes a tad confusing, too, since it doesn?t tell you which paths are above ground level, resulting in some bits where I got temporarily lost in the woods, to the point where I nearly forgot what team I was playing for.
Fall damage and I don?t have a peachy history, and The Avatar Game goes a bit nuts with it. Any kind of considerable drop can kill a human instantly, and even your Na?vi form doesn?t fare much better. It?s particularly bonkers when you consider not only Pandora?s lower gravity, but also the Na?vi?s bones, which are reinforced with a naturally-occurring carbon fibre. Low gravity?ll make ya soft. Nerdy, but true. One way to get around it is to grab a vehicle and drive into the abyss, which you?ll want to do at times, because shortcuts abound. If you?re unlucky, a stray arrow can ruin your whole day, so watch out.
Arrows can bring much joy when strategically inserted into people you don't like.
There?s a smattering of mediocre boss fights, none of which are any good and just involve blasting the villain with all your nastiest toys until they fall down. Worst of all, you don?t even get to duel with Quaritch! Officially the biggest missed opportunity of the decade.
The Avatar Game does something that many superior titles don?t. See, it has regenerating health, but also a life bar so you can easily tell how close to death you are. The Uncharted games, though excellent, make the screen go a deep blood red when you?re about to die, which just makes things harder to see, meaning you?re even more likely to kick the bucket! Loads of games do just that, but Avatar gets it right. There?s also that odd thing like in Terminator Salvation where your life only heals when you?re away from danger. Makes sense, though what qualifies as danger can fluctuate.
There are some highlights that are honestly great to experience: clambering up the physics-defying Hallelujah Mountains to complete the Iknimaya (getting your ikran licence, basically); killing rogue avatars is cool, even if I don?t understand why their drivers think they stand a chance in human form if you just pwned their far stronger self. They must haven been out of their goddamn minds, but regardless, they crossed the line; taking down a humungogantic Dragon Assault Ship by climbing trees and hurling yourself onto it is intense stuff. Hooah.
Very nearly all your favourite creatures return: viperwolves; banshees; Toruk; hexapedes; direhorses?every one is present and accounted for, not to mention 100% murderable, except for Toruk, who?s the baddest cat in the sky.
Now I?m not a graphics whore in the slightest; any bloke who spends more time on his PS2 than his PS3 presumably isn?t. Even so, I have no alternative but to call The Avatar Game extremely pretty. Pandora has been replicated to an almost flawless extent; everything looks and acts just like it should, with the handful of exceptions clearly being for the benefit of entertaining gameplay. It?s all so shiny and bright to the point of being genuinely beautiful.
Excellent though the presentation is, a keen-eyed Avatar fan like myself will spot a few erroneous bits: banshees shouldn?t have such pointy heads; Na?vi and avatars are supposed to have furry tufts on their tail tips, not smooth points; you never actually see your queue (tentacle-ponytail thing) connect with that of your mount, even though that?s how it should work; direhorses should have a kind of bony ridge on their back; finally, you can ride any number of different banshees, even though that goes against the rules of the universe. I don?t mind that one, though, since it makes more sense gameplay-wise, just like how I can understand why there?s a pointless little segment in which you get to ride Toruk for a very brief spell. The sadist in me hates that everything bleeds blue blood, though I grudgingly acknowledge that keeping the age rating down was probably a sensible idea. This isn?t Jaws Unleashed, after all.
The game seems to blatantly contradict the film?s timeline, since in that, nobody ever mentions anything about a previous chosen one-type character. I have no problem with a non-canonical game of a movie, particularly since most of the best game tie-ins (King Kong is a great example and another Ubisoft-made title) take big steps away from the source material for the sake of a satisfying play. I mean, being frozen in carbonite makes for a dramatic scene, but the mini-game for it probably wouldn?t have the same emotional impact. You certainly wouldn?t want to give anyone a big wet kiss.
There's certainly a joy to just holding down the button and liquifying EVERYTHING.
Blue adversaries speak what I can only assume is genuine Na?vi, though I can hardly claim to know the first thing about how that works. It?s a nice touch, and many games tend to not bother having foreigners talk like they should, so bravo to Avatar.
Worthy of its own little segment is the Pandorapedia, a scarily comprehensive guide to pretty much everything in the Avatar universe. This is where James Cameron?s involvement is most obvious, I say, and it?s a great tool for familiarising oneself with the setting, even if it has few practical applications. The bit on Na?vi mating practises (yes, really) might also be considered?er?excessive.
Finally, some nice music is always gently penetrating your cochlea. It?s mainly pounding tribal stuff in the same vein as the movie, but there?s also at least one piece that I think is actually from the film. Some sections of the game are made to feel almost over-the-top epic because of the soundtrack, but the simple beats during calmer moments can be just as moving. Mercifully, there?s no trace of I See You. The sound effects are authentic, but not as mind-blowing as those in Lucasarts? Star Wars games.
There are some freaky bits to be found: Beyda'amo is a Na?vi warrior who hates you unconditionally, no matter how much you help his tribe, to the point where he nearly just snaps and knocks your block off; the aboriginal horde can inexplicably teleport. Yes, they BAMF all round you; one Na?vi bloke has clearly skinned a viperwolf and turned it into a stylish coat. Not even Armageddon gets in the way of fashion on Pandora; there isn?t an abundance of bugs, but one instance of a Na?vi scout moonwalking made my day. I love random glitches like that; they just make games interesting.
Everyone?s favourite psychopath, Colonel Quaritch, makes a small appearance in the human campaign, voiced by an unenthusiastic-sounding Stephen Lang. He doesn?t do much, but his mere presence makes the game that much more awesome. He lends you his prize Dragon to fly, though he also threatens you with pain if you scratch it. Needless to say, I was extremely careful with his baby after that. Somebody in the game describes the Colonel as ?a real ass-kicker?, which is the truest statement ever spoken. Seriously, who doesn?t love Ranger Rick?
"Remember: I died for your sins."
If you?re part of the small minority of people in the world who own not only one of three applicable systems, an extremely expensive telly or screen and the silly glasses required to complete the look, then you get to play The Avatar Game in blurry 3D-o-vision! Niche market doesn?t even begin to describe it, but there you go. I have little faith in 3D film and none in 3D gaming; it?s distracting, makes things harder to see at times and gives a number of people serious migraines, so the long-term appeal is lost on me. Maybe a revolutionary use of 3D will change my mind, but I doubt it.
I must admit there?s plenty of room for improvement with The Avatar Game; it performs most tasks adequately and has a few glinting diamonds, but generally falls short of proper greatness. With more time and such, it might have been worthy of comparison to the greatest licensed games there are, but alas. Still, there?s always Avatar 2: The Quickening and Avatar 3: Smurfz n the Hood.
And what about a District 9 game, eh? Not that it?s an obvious choice of franchise to adapt, but that bit with the robot would be outstanding! Just base the whole game around that and I?ll be happy. I want to fling pigs at people, damn it!
Likely my biggest problem with The Avatar Game is that it?s just far too easy; you can have your health drained in an instant, but a plentiful supply of Phoenix Downs means that I rarely found myself legitimately in danger of dying. I don?t recall ever kicking the bucket for any reason other than falling over the many cliffs, for one thing, which backs up my argument. There are no difficulty settings whatsoever and the unbalanced levelling up means that you?re nearly unstoppable by the last few levels. It?s a clear issue that really should have been looked at, though it does mean that even toddlers could probably be distracted by the game. I make no claims at being a rock-hard gamer, but this is nowhere near tricky enough.
Less significant but still extremely notable is that one of the available endings is absolutely broken in terms of plot continuity, though the gameplay is unaffected. I won?t give away precisely how it?s messed up, but anybody who?s been paying attention will cry fowl at a certain point. I?ve never seen such an obvious fault in a game?s story prior to it, and how it went unnoticed is truly a mystery of Bermuda Triangle proportions.
There?s an online multiplayer option that I didn?t bother trying, not least because it was surely only added so they could put a bullet point on the box. I generally only go online with my mates from real life, none of whom like The Avatar Game, so that ain?t gonna happen, now is it?
The PS3, 360 and PC versions of the game are all identical in every way imaginable, so which you should get depends entirely on what your preferred system is. The PSP, Mobile, iPhone, DS and Wii games, however, seem to be completely different, though I couldn?t tell you what they?re like. From my experience, neither the Wii or PSP handle third-person adventures too well, though I?ve never actually held a DS in my life, so my knowledge of that is?limited. The grapevine tells me that there?s also a version for Java ME, which I have never heard of before and therefore must not exist. No Vectrex version, which is sad but non unforeseen.
As a person with deep emotional problems, not least of which being a huge superiority complex, I love nothing better than something which I can twist out of proportion so that it resembles something else that makes me look better than everyone else. The Avatar Game fits this category marvellously, since nobody else I?ve met who?s played it likes it much, which must surely mean that I?m just operating on a plane of existence above all you insects. Even so, I heartily recommend picking up The Avatar Game if you enjoy the film?s style or setting, and would still give a fair recommendation if you don?t. It?s jolly good fun and highly respectful of the source material, even if it could have been so much more. Still, why must every game be revolutionary? If you don?t enjoy having a laugh, this ain?t the game for you.
To sum up, you haven?t truly seen the Floating Mountains of Hallelujah until you?ve killed dozens of banshees there with rockets. And that's how you scatter the roaches.
Hey, it's like Predator...only bluer. And without the delicious violence. Ho-hum.
