| Jericho |
| Posted on 30th November 2007 by Rob McGregor |
Certain texts speak of a being, first created by God in His own image that was later abandoned. Before the creation of Adam and Eve there were the Firstborn. Described as a singular being “neither male nor female, dark nor light, both beautiful and terrible to behold”. So disturbed was God by what he had created that he banished it into the Abyss to be forever forgotten. However, The Firstborn, were too powerful for even God to keep from breaking into the mortal world. They would make seven attempts to escape this dark prison. Six attempts have already been made, now the seventh and final attempt beckons...
And so, Clive Barker’s Jericho throws you in to the city of Al Khalid as the eponymous Jericho squad to prevent The Firstborn from escaping. However, your squad is not just equipped with bullets and blades, as each member posses their own ‘abilities’ – to heal, to control the path of a bullet so as to hit multiple targets, or the ability to bend and control aspects of time and space. Each ‘power’ provides a different advantage to aid you in the task ahead.
Jericho promises much. A good storyline (with decent characters) is arguable the most important ingredient for any decent FPS these days, and Jericho doesn’t let you down in that respect. The story line is quite fresh and the characters reasonable well rounded – no goody two shoes heroes here. They are all scarred and grizzled in their own way. Jericho also delivers high on guts, very high on gore and has a fair few grim moments, but then, would we expect anything less from a story dreamt up by Clive Barker? – the man behind 'Candyman' and 'Hellraiser'. At times it can feel a little OTT however. It doesn’t deliver the same gruesome punch or ‘woah!’ effect as using the chainsaw did in Gears of War, and it can occasionally subtract from the horror element of the game, straying dangerously close to the line of the over the top gore of some horror parodies.
Aside from the more gruesome scenery, as you work your way through The Firstborn hordes you’ll find yourself skipping through various time periods in Al Khalid’s checkered history. From the Nazi occupation during World War 2, to the Sumerian Empire, as well as several other time periods – each ‘décor’ trapped within the city after an attempt by The Firstborn to escape. This is a nice idea, and at times presents some impressive little arenas in which to explore. Sadly on occasions it can also feel like ‘same place, different colour scheme’. The lack of anything to really explore for also feels a little shallow. Ammo can be replenished through the magic of bending time, and the weapons are pretty linear really, nothing we haven’t seen before. While the ability to switch between squad members allows for different ways of tackling various onslaughts or challenges, extends the playability a little, some of the challenge is removed by being able to heal downed squad members almost instantly. However, on occasions, it has to be said there is a little bit of relief in not having to spend time hunting for health packs, allowing you to press on, rather than retrace steps in the hope of finding a plaster and some Alka-Seltzer.
Graphically it is ok. At times it feels a little washed out or a little too grey but overall it’s of a reasonable standard. It won’t push any boundaries but runs pretty smoothly and looks tidy. As I said above,there are some nice little arenas along the way but nothing that really makes you want to stop and look or take a break and simple behold the beauty of what is in front of you.
The lack of multiplayer of any form is maybe the most baffling aspect of Jericho. While it is understandable that Codemaster may have wanted to protect the core story line, it does feel like an opportunity missed. Multiplayer is a ‘big deal’ these days after all. The story line doesn’t always lend itself to big online battles in the way Halo or Gears of War have but it does feel like there could have been a decent multi player in there if they had wanted to find it! The lack of co-op play also disappoints. With several squad members available it you do feel that some kind of co-op play would have been viable if Codemaster had wanted to explore it. Again, their reasoning was to protect one of the core stories main aspects.
Overall, Jericho feels like it has something missing. Games such as Gears of War have pushed graphical boundaries; both GoW and Halo 3 have boosted the popularity of co-op play and there are numerous FPS games on the 360 with good story-lines. And while Jericho has some neat ideas, they are ideas which have been explored before – healing team mates, psychic powers, none are new, just done a little differently or tweaked based on older games follies. Personally, I was left with the feeling Jericho had ‘missed the boat’ – The core storyline is good, and there are some nice ideas brought together, but it doesn’t draw you back, doesn’t make you want to play just one more level before bed. It’s release came after Halo 3 but before the Christmas games onslaught and it very much feels like a tidy but somehow forgettable filler. Once you’ve played it through, you might go back one day and tackle it on Hard while you await the next big game to hit the shelves.
Overall it is a tidy but too easily forgettable affair – it could, and maybe should, have been so much more. |
Single Player Score: 6/10
Multiplayer Score: 0/10
Overall Score: 6/10 |
|
|
