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Perfect Dark Zero Review
Written: 05/08/06
Because of the several years of development that included rumors of problems which were basically confirmed by delays, it would be an almost odd and questionable decision to release Perfect Dark Zero as an Xbox 360 launch title. I'd love to say that the time taken to develop the game had a beautiful effect on the final piece, that the budget that Microsoft likely threw at the developers gave them a much broader and less limited approach to work their brilliance and that the very same magic and overall charm that was so apparent in the company's previous first-person titles like Goldeneye and the original Perfect Dark had returned for an awesome ride, but it just unfortunately isn't the case by any means. The game shows that too much time was put into it for its own good through inconsistencies in game play and graphical structure. It's what could be called over done and in the wrong areas. Beauty in the wrong areas leads to confusion for your average game player and, although it is a common problem with FPS games, it's made too easy to get lost. Most games have a better system to get you by it whether it's through real time saving points, properly placed and an abundance of check points or even directions. You could maybe argue that it makes for a more appealing game since there apparently sounds like they provided plenty of areas to explore. But that's up until you realize that those corners that look like they lead off into an appealing area give you a badly textured wall or an empty dull room. It's simply disappointing and it goes for most (though, not necessarily) all, levels.
The original Perfect Dark had a brilliant arsenal of weaponry and every one of them were polished to perfection in functionality, looks and feel. Right down to the legendary Laptop gun from the almost down right cheap Farsight. Again, this newer gamer falls miles short with attempts to clone several of the weapons and mix a few other less interesting ones. In some cases, secondary functions were switched to other weapons for no apparent reason and some basic functions were toned down. But in addition to weapons there are useable items in your inventory. These are typically found littered through choice levels for some additional flare that is interesting but hardly necessary, thus rendering them as gimmicks more than anything else. Also, I have yet to mention vehicles, but it's probably due to the fact that they are barely worth mentioning. In the campaign mode, coming up to a vehicle means you're about to hit a poorly constructed and boring stretch of the level that involves using a vehicle to get somewhere that just wasn't worth the time spent driving/flying to. The few vehicles available are in fact sluggish and have no real value in the general structure of the game.
The multiplayer aspect of the game is a little too ahead of itself for it to be fun. Levels are too large and the weapons are too imbalanced to support them properly. It almost goes against the nature of how the game plays and makes it more of a task with a strong pinch of luck to kill someone than a competitive rush of skill. The levels weren't necessarily designed poorly or without inspiration, but they simply don't work for this style of game. There are a few other modes of play besides your usual free for all death match which include a run of the mill capture the flag and territories/king of the hill sort of game that can make the levels a tad more fun to play but those can get old too quickly. Games are ranked with the XBox 360's new Xbox Live system that logs all of your statistics on and offline and you will be pitted up against players that are a little closer to your level. You're given the ability to compare your stats to other players if you feel like it doing so in addition to your more common chat and game invitation options. I'd definitely prefer the online multiplayer part of the game over the campaign due to the more competitive environment, but it really all depends on what kind of video gamer you are or what you enjoy more. It's also difficult to compare the game to seemingly superior online multiplayer games like Halo 2 because of how the game works in the first place since in a sense there's more luck involved in getting better weapons than skill in team work or individual skill.
The sound and graphics are absolutely superb and do deserve whatever glory it generated probably before the time it was released. Every detail is properly and smoothly laid out just about everywhere in the levels. Even dirt looks pretty. There's a sound for every movement that's simply spot on and gives the game a little boost where it so dearly needed one. But after all, this is the next generation of video gaming so it'd better be at least better looking than titles on the previous system. It's also typical of developers to cut down and retract this kind of beauty from the multiplayer, but it's hardly noticeable at all and looks almost as good as the campaign. Explosions are some of the best and most realistic I've seen in a video game yet. Controls for the game is fairly intuitive if you've ever played a first person shooter. The actual feel of the game is about as sluggish and sickly as a dog in need of an emergency bloat surgery, but it can be overcome after a day of gameplay. If you want it enough, which you probably wouldn't anyway.
As for the campaign in general, storylines are hardly big issues these days but goodness gracious this one is something for the books. It's certainly easy to overlook a storyline and skip the cinematics that try to tell a story but it's just too difficult to pass up and get a good laugh in. It's mind boggling that some developers can pull these cinematics off and call it a day without slitting their wrists later that night. The story begins with your character Joanna's father seeking help from you and then later revolving around an evil plot by a major corporation bent on taking of the world or some such thing like that. Somehow a Chinese dude gets involved and, well, I'll have to stop there before I spoil the incredible outcome.
On that disappointing and depressing note, the game is still loaded with features and options up the wazoo, beautiful graphics, wonderful sound and a younger, perhaps hotter Joanna Dark. But whatever fun you get out of it may not last for more than a couple weeks due to its shortcomings and well, pitfalls.
Christopher Tucker, Staff Writer
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