Condemned 2: Bloodshot Review, Continued

One of the coolest aspects of Condemned 2 is the investigative feature, which returns from the original Condemned albeit in a more sophisticated and complex manner. Doing a simple analysis of a crime scene isn't enough; you have to search the area thoroughly and correctly answer multiple questions regarding the evidence. Let's use the incident at the Preston Hotel, for instance. Here's a guy who's had a bad day - he's nailed to the floor in a gory satanic crucifixion, his chest ripped open and the front part of the rib cage removed. Players have to (1) determine what room the victim is in by looking at the telephone and choosing the room number from a list (2) take a good picture of the body (3) take a good picture of the face. Doing everything correctly earns a Perfect Score and applies to the overall evaluation at the end of the chapter. The only problem with the investigation aspect is directly related to the graphics engine.

Now, for those of you still playing the PlayStation 3 on a standard TV, we feel for you. HDTV units are not cheap, and aren't necessarily required when playing on next-generation consoles. Many games offer great visuals running 480p and you might not even be aware that games can look any better on higher resolutions - unless you're playing a text-ridden game like Condemned 2. On a standard television, the multiple-choice text was just unreadable, and that was unacceptable. While we've seen this in a few other titles, Condemned 2's insistence on using microscopic text resulted in a thorough exploration of the game's options in search of some toggle to make the text larger. Nope. Nothing. The only option is hooking the PlayStation 3 up to an HDTV and restarting the scene, with the readable text fully intact.

In addition to hand-to-hand and melee combat, Condemned 2 also features more complex investigative gameplay that helps players collect clues at gruesome crime scenes.

Outside the text problems, the graphics look awesome in both SD and HD modes. Naturally, the latter looks better, sporting some highly detailed environments and body parts. A good chunk of the game relies on deep shadows and dim lights, while the environment feels believable and alive and sometimes downright frightening. The frame rate drops every now and then, but it's minute compared to the game's overall brooding atmosphere. The entire city indeed looks run down. It's in a constant state of anarchy, gritty and teeming with shadows with unseen eyes and ghostly illuminations. Lit televisions and radios stand out like specters of the dead, offering some hope of sentient life untouched by the sudden outbreak of delirium.

Enemy animation is superb, and it reacts to your presence and retaliation in such a believable manner that you'll swear they're truly alive. Monolith's Lithtech Jupiter EX engine does a stupendous job rendering everything, from the supporting characters' faces to the hairs on Ethan's arm. You know you're sucked into the game visually when you're screaming in surprise as a maniac rushes at you from out of nowhere, or you actually feel shocked by a gory scene constructed by a madman. It doesn't help matters that a good chunk of the area is covered in something that looks like black tar, which in turn only adds to the ridiculous disorientation caused by said walls, illuminated with nothing other than the dimmest of lights. Throw in tar creatures that attack like raptors from all sides and you might as well slap a neon "Twice the Meat for .99 More!" sign on your back.

The game offers some incredible moments that surely will be remembered for years to come. A good example is a scene with an abandoned building near commuter tracks involving mannequins - we won't spoil the rest for you. But suffice to say, little scenarios like that make this game really shine, and eventually the whole monster-in-the-closet gameplay tactic is certainly appreciated. The game relies heavily on its ability to scare the crap out of you, and it does so effectively.

The soundtrack and sound effects add to that eerie surrealism like any horror movie audio track. The pattering of feet in the darkness gives you a sense of panic, and when something actually lurches out of the shadows, it's accompanied by an appropriately-timed burst of sound. Screams in the background offer a sense of sheer terror while the mutterings and offensive ramblings of bums and thugs alike offer no comic relief whatsoever. Something horribly evil is in the air. The people are violent, mad; rabid in a sense. It seems as if the gates of hell have truly opened, and the only way to escape the madness is to turn off the PS3 and walk away.

Unfortunately, Condemned 2 isn't very long - 11 chapters total. However, what stretched this game out in hours was the consistent creepiness factor and the careful, methodical approach to investigating each scene that's required to survive. Even the multiplayer maps require an element of stealth and cautious venturing, as anyone can hide out in a dark corner or closet and wait to spring out at you when your back is turned. Sadly, the few boss battles in the game - with the exception of the last one, of course - are amazingly easy to defeat. One that comes to mind consists merely of throwing bottles of alcohol at the enemy.

Again, Condemned 2 focuses on hand-to-hand combat during the first half of the game; the second half consists of heavy guns and a special power: the Voice, which allows players to emit sonic shockwaves. The whole sonic ability aspect isn't too bad as the idea of blowing up someone's head effortlessly must be some sort of tribute to David Cronenberg's "Scanners." Using guns seems rather pointless for a while; Ethan can't aim worth spit until he "upgrades" his ability. Being an alcoholic, he gets the shakes and must get regular doses of booze to help his aim.

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