A new high watermark for a Hollywood video game

Author's Rating:

Pros: Innovative gameplay, great graphics and audio, well-written, better tech than Doom 3

Cons: Not many to mention - short game with a few graphical glitches

The Bottom Line: 
A new high watermark for Hollywood gaming

Author's Review
I think I'm like a lot of gamers; when a game based on a Hollywood movie or movie license comes out, it's an automatic mark against it. Most movie-based games are rushed, uninspired and joyless, and come off as a cheap attempt to capitalize rather than expand the movie's scope and the viewer's experience. "The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay" breaks this stereotype in every way that it can.

In the far futuristic "Riddick" you play as the title character, a life-long criminal and major interstellar fugitive getting hauled back to The Big House yet again. As the title implies, your mission is to escape the prison, and the planet, by any means possible. I could describe "Riddick" as a first-person shooter, but that would be selling it short - way short. In reality, "Riddick" is a fully rounded first-person adventure game - there is shooting, but there is also stealth, hand-to-hand combat, character interaction and RPG-style side quests, and a few other gameplay surprises I'd rather not spoil.

Story:
The story of "Riddick" is pretty straightforward (with a few neat twists as it progresses) but very well told. The writing is top notch and very well integrated into the gameplay; other developers can really take a lesson for how seriously the quality of the writing was taken in this game. But the really ingenious twist of the whole thing is that this game is a prequel to the movie "Pitch Black," which launched Vin Diesel as the Riddick character. In that movie, Riddick mentioned his escape from Butcher Bay and how he got a special power from a prison doctor; this game actually tells that whole story.

Graphics:
"Riddick" is one of the best looking games released for Xbox to date. The characters are incredibly detailed, and the likeness of the Riddick character model to Vin Diesel is just about perfect. The environments are gritty and moody, and what's really wonderful is that the artists managed to capture the feel of prison in a far future science fiction setting. The lighting and shadows are what really brings it all together perfectly; lights and shadows interact with great accuracy, and characters cast multiple shadows - attenuated, no less (meaning they fade out as they stretch into areas lit by other light sources.) I saw Doom 3 on the XBox at E3, and Riddick honestly looks better; I have no idea how these guys pulled that one off. The cinematic cut scenes are well-directed, almost indistinguishable from a well-made action movie, and almost all of them are played back in real-time (as opposed to being pre-rendered, which never really matches the look of the game.) There are a few visible seams and flickering, which doesn't really detract, especially knowing how many next-generation features this engine is pushing.

Audio:
The sounds are well done, especially the dialogue, performed as it is by top Hollywood actors. Vin Diesel has a great voice for game, and his throaty growl really anchors everything perfectly. The music is explosive, orchestral, and epic.

Gameplay:
Bottom line is, this is a really, really fun game. Controls are spot-on: shooting is a blast, and hand-to-hand combat is just brutal (especially with the assortment of shivs you can find or trade for.) Stealth is well-done, too, with a nifty blue tint that comes over the screen when you're hidden in darkness, and while stealth sometimes helps, it's not usually necessary; still, it's pretty cool that it's there to accomodate different gamer's play styles.

The RPG elements were the big surprise for me, and give the game a surprising depth and immersiveness. Character interaction and requests for assistance or the offering of side quests adds a lot to the overall experience - in some ways, this part of the game reminds me of the excellent "Knights of the Old Republic," which is a very good thing.

This is a very short game (I beat it in about eight or nine hours), which I know will disappoint some gamers, but I actually prefer a shorter game; I can't always find time to devote twenty or more hours to a game. Not much by way of replayability, unless you just want to go back to see what side quests you missed or find all the hidden cigarette packs (which unlock the cool extra content like production art and trailers.)

Overall:
An advanced graphics engine, well-chosen Hollywood voice talent and likenesses, an engrossing story, and a good blend of innovative and tried-and-true gameplay make this one of the best XBox games of the year (for my part, I like it better than both Halo and Ninja Gaiden, which places "Riddick" in esteemed company.)