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The New Adventures of the Time Machine
by Jolex Del Pilar
Wednesday, July 26 2000
Get the full scope on Dreamcatcher's new 3D adventure game, based on the work of H.G Wells
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Title:
The New Adventures of the Time Machine
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Platform:
PC Windows
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Publisher:
Dreamcatcher Interactive Inc. |
Developer:
Cyro Interactive |
#
of Players: 1 |
Genre:
Adventure
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Origin:
France
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Expected
Release:
Q3 2000 |
Grapevine:
Yet gamers are growing weary of the genre and as mentioned before, sales are beginning to fall. |
Our friends from across the Atlantic at Cryo Interactive (by way of American publisher Dreamcatcher Interactive) have decided to toss their hat into the fray to revive an admittedly, dying genre. Adventure gaming may be going the way of the Dodo Bird with lackluster sales, even from fantastic Adventure games such as Lucas Arts release "Grim Fandango", but that won't stop Cryo Interactive from trying.
Perhaps what makes adventure gaming so unattractive these days is the image that they evoke in the minds of gamers. The majority of gamers today think of adventure games as redundant puzzles and storylines mixed together with some flat pre-rendered pictures and some voice talent. Think "Myst". Sure we've had classics such as Maniac Mansion, Day of the Tentacle, Sam and Max Hit the Road, King's Quest, and Full Throttle. Yet gamers are growing weary of the genre and as mentioned before, sales are beginning to fall.
What sets the aforementioned titles apart from the average adventure game was the attention spent on game design, smooth puzzle incorporation, humor, and plot development. Many adventure games today have become diluted in the rush to make everything 3D eye candy, neglecting design and puzzle incorporation. Cyro Interactive is looking to change all that with its upcoming "The New Adventures of the Time Machine".
Based on the works of H.G Wells (perhaps best known for his Stirring radio drama "War of the Worlds"), the plot revolves around, you guessed it, time travel.
The story is best summed up like this: Sometime during the early part of 1893, Herbert Wells completes work on a "time machine". Taking nearly a decade to build, Wells yearns to test this baby out. After starting the machine, Wells manages to induce a temporal flux which propels the machine into the future. After a bright flash, Wells is surprised to read that the chronometer has increased by 800,000 years on the dashboard. This is where the story begins.
Wells soon realizes the impact of what has happened when he is thrown from the machine, as it disappears before his eyes. He is trapped in a distant future, in a world far ahead of his time. Wells manages to find out that Temporal storms sweep through this world on a regular basis, robbing its inhabitants of their memories, forever altering their stage in life. You can be a teenager one instance, only to be middle-aged the next.
While playing through the press release demo, one thing became obvious rather quickly: The game has outstanding graphics. The level of detail poured into this title becomes rather apparent when you gaze upon the sharp polygon models and detailed textures. The pre-rendered background graphics in the game are simply breathtaking. Although the locations are just 2D backdrops, a 3D rotational system (first seen in Zelda 64's Market Square) is utilized to give the game a pseudo 3D feel. The 3D effect is quite convincing. The characters are 3D real time rendered, and blend in nicely with the pre-rendered backgrounds. Animation seems a bit stiff, Wells walks like he's on stilts sometimes, but overall, it doesn't detract from the game. The overall look and detailed models more than compensate for any small shortcomings. It all runs smoothly on a humble system too. We tested the demo out on a P3 500 using a Nvidia GeForce card with 32MBs of RAM at 1600x1200 (an average system by today's standards), and the frame rate was constant and true. Not a frame hitch to speak of.
The control scheme was less sterling. The lack of joystick support or any kind is saddening, especially in a game that involves real time combat. However, the keyboard configuration does its intended job. Saving and loading is seamless, with a maximum of twelve slots available. If you save through the menu, a picture pops up in the middle of the interface to show you the stage you were at the time of saving (there are also quick save keys). Very useful for those who don't spend enough time to "appropriately" name their save games.
The beginning of the demo has you taking control of Wells after feeling the effects of one of the infamous "temporal storms". As a result, Wells, a matured adult scientist, now has to contend in this world as a small adolescent child. However, Wells retains his memory, unlike the other inhabitants who felt the effects of the storm. Through dialogue and piecing together the story, it seems that in order for Wells to get back home to Earth and restore order to the world he has been stranded on, he must find a deity known as KHRONOS, The Master of the Hourglass. As you can tell from the grand title, this is probably one of the last characters you will meet in the game. To find your way there, you'll have to find help. The way to advance through this game is by learning as much as you can about the inhabitants. For example, I managed to find out that the "Shekandar monks" deal in "chronometric magic". Noticing that a lot in this game deals with "Chronometric anything", the previous fact might prove useful, maybe.
After spending a few hours in the game world, I became enamored by the attention to detail, not only graphically, but by the behavior of the NPC characters. It is as if they have their own lives. The characters will actually hold conversations with each other, devoid of your character's interaction, a nice detail indeed. A man will feed his animals, a soldier will clean his weapon, and a child will talk to a woman about the storms, these are but some of the random behaviors I witnessed while playing through the demo. I can only imagine how the full game will be.
The voice acting in "The Time Machine" was admittedly a step down from other adventure games released recently (namely "Grim Fandango"). Well's child voice (after the transformation) sounds like a British school boy who swallowed a bit too much helium. Not that the voice acting is all that bad, but I can't seem to shake the thought that it could have been more polished and charismatic. Also, being first released in French, some of the voice talent has a quasi-english sound to it. Let's hope the American port will fix these problems.
The folks at Cyro Interactive have already released the game in Europe to excellent reviews. Let's hope the American port, being released here by Dreamcatcher Interactive, is just as exceptional as its European cousin. The game has also experienced moderate popularity in units sold, in Europe as well. Will it succeed here ? Only time will tell. Expect this one in early August 2000. We're keeping our fingers crossed on this one.
--- Jolex Del Pilar
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