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Homepage | Reviews | Competitions | Guest Rooms | Miscellaneous | Editor |
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Anachronox |
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Needing around 1-gigabyte for a full
installation ANACHRONOX is undoubtedly a massive game and it’s hardly
surprising that the action spans galaxies – it’s just a shame that they decided
to call the hero ‘Sly Boots’. It’s actually Sylvester Boots, and
that’s just as bad, but I suppose it’s a name that matches his profession as a
down-on-his-luck detective. (Detective – Gumshoe – Boots… Get it?) Anyway, with work scarce and debts high Sly accepts a
body-guarding assignment for a strange employer called Grumpos and this leads him to the
start of the adventure. They are off to locate a mysterious artefact from a long-dead
alien race whose relics and strange contraptions have been located all over the galaxy.
This unknown technology, nicknamed MysTech, is highly prized and has been linked to
strange planet-sized spheres scattered throughout space, which form the hub of
interstellar travel. Simply fly towards a spike on one of these ‘senders’ and
you’ll be transported to another similar one light-years away. Unfortunately their
first planet-fall is cut abruptly short when the world they are visiting is destroyed and
Sly finds himself at the hub of a deadly mystery to discover who is trying to wreck the
universe. In this 3D-RPG adventure Sly is soon joined by a few old friends
that form the basis of his team. Firstly there’s Fatima, Sly’s recently deceased
secretary turned holographic flying digital assistant (don’t ask) and she’s
joined by PAL-18, Sly’s personal android lackey. Then there’s Stiletto (an old
flame turned mercenary) plus a scientist and a superhero and players can control up to 3
characters at a time, using their particular skills to interact with the many creatures
and to solve crucial puzzles. Most of the gameplay appears to involve scavenger hunts on a
massive scale and this, by necessity, means questioning many of the interactive characters
throughout. The clues can prove useful or otherwise and there will be a lot of trudging
around huge cities and underground tunnels. Obviously, to gain entrance into certain
sections your playable character’s ‘world-skills’ will be brought into
play. These are a vital part of the game and can be enhanced by locating
‘Mentors’ for each skill. Sly, for example, is pretty good with locks while
PAL-18 is hot on computers but they can soon become expert by meeting the right people. Then, of course, there are the wrong people that always crop up
in these RPG’s and they will have to be fought off and defeated in real-time
turn-based combat. Once again your playable characters have their preferred method of
fighting, whether it be with guns, knives or hand-to-hand and again it’s crucial to
select the right one for the task. During combat intuitive camera positioning circles and
swoops to give you the best view and graphically the game is well presented. Strewn throughout are a series of mini games and quests that have
to be completed, some timed to make them even more difficult. Picking locks, cracking
codes and navigating explosive obstacles are just some you’ll come across and these
break up the normal RPG gameplay very well. An engrossing storyline is guaranteed to
immerse you in the plot but some perseverance is needed in the early stages while you
master the play and learn the rules.
Price: £29.99 on PC CD ROM. |
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