Official Website

Platform: PlayStation 3,  Xbox 360

Genre: First Person Survival Horror

Number of Players: 1,  2 - 8 online

HD Support: 720p, 1080p

Peripherals: Ethernet Broadband

PS Network Compatible

The good news for me is that unlike quite a few other gamers and reviewers, I never had the chance to play Condemned: Criminal Origins mainly due to the fact that it was released on the Xbox 360 and that’s one system that is not present in my household. Not playing the game however isn’t a bad thing in my opinion as I’m not going in with preconceived ideas concerning how the game should be played. The only downside I suppose is that I don’t have the knowledge of the previous story, but with any survival horror title, just like with a horror movie, that’s not always essential.

Condemned 2: Bloodshot is set eleven months after the ending of the first game, and Ethan Thomas has fallen on some very hard times. It isn’t just that he sees things that others don’t believe are there, he’s also become an alcoholic, not to mention homeless, and his life has become quite miserable. He’s about to find himself working with the Serial Crime Unit once again however as his former mentor, Malcolm Van Horn, has been murdered. What Ethan soon discovers is that Serial Killer X seems to have survived and if having his nemesis back in action isn’t bad enough, a secret organization known as Oro Invictus is responsible for deploying sonic devises around the city causing those who are within range to engage in violent criminal activities. Ethan must now put the clues together and find the source of Metro City’s problems before the entire city is plunged into chaos.

There have been a few efforts at the survival horror genre of the PlayStation 3 already, but I found F.E.A.R, which ironically is from Condemned’s developer Monolith Productions, to be a game that was plagued with load time issues and almost unplayable unless you felt like wasting time waiting for the next stage, and then there was the case of Jericho, something that was a nightmare in all the wrong ways. Condemned 2 however might finally be the answer that survival horror fans have been looking for, though the world of survival horror itself, at least as far as developers in the United States are concerned, is a much different thing that has been seen out of Japan. The idea of ghosts and other supernatural phenomenon has been replaced by a more gritty and dark subject matter, though there are still elements that are otherworldly.

Condemned 2 has an interesting fighting system, and there are quite a few different aspects to it. Initially Ethan begins with only having his fists to fight with, though since he’s fallen on some very hard times, having other weapons would be a bit ridiculous. You’ll begin by getting a walkthrough on how to perform combos and blocks, two very essential methods to fighting. If you land a combo just right, you will be capable of more damage, but things go a step further. At times, you may have the option to use the environment to finish the dark forces that seek to send Ethan to an early grave. There are a number of quick time moments, but the game actually gives you time to react instead of just throwing them at you and expecting you to be on your toes every moment. This is where you will be given the option to drag your opponent over to some location that is marked with a skull, a television for example, and finish them by using the surroundings to kill them. These offer some very interesting, and entertaining, deaths throughout the game, and its something that shows that Condemned isn’t a game that is out to appease someone like Joe Lieberman.

Hand-to-Hand isn’t the only form of fighting, though it does tend to be the most commonly used and there are advantages in some cases. The combos do help to increase the damage, but they also will build allow you to perform more intricate attacks. In these instances, you will see the equivalent of more quick time evens which will have you hitting the corresponding punches, finishing with a crushing blow that usually will send most enemies to the ground. If that doesn’t work, you can get in a cheap shot when they are down by kicking them, something that will put them off balance and allow you to get in a few more blows while they recover.

Your bare fists aren’t your only form of weaponry and you’ll find that Condemned 2 has plenty of items just sitting out in the open, ready and waiting to be used as a means to delivering punishment. Things like wrenches, baseball bats, 2X4, some with nails and screws, others without, hammers, and just about anything else you could think of just “happen” to be out in the open for you to arm yourself with. Prior to picking these up, you’ll see what their status is so things like damage, speed and endurance are all seen so you don’t pick up something that might be slower or less powerful than what you’re currently carrying. Each of these however is susceptible to damage and will eventually break. Of course, another perfect way to dish out some pain is to simply throw them at enemies, and while a brick to the face might not kill someone, a well-placed wrench thrown at someone’s head has a good chance to killing them.

And of course, since Condemned is a first-person style game, you will have guns, and plenty of them. However, this isn’t a game that has the “wonder gun” with infinite ammo, and everything you pick up will need to be reloaded. You also won’t be packing rounds with you so you’ll need to look for ammunition in storage cupboards found within the game world, a nice place to grab some pills and improve your health as well. If you’re out of ammo, you can use the gun as a melee weapon, but just like everything else, it can and will break. You will also find that Ethan needs a way to calm his nerves, and luckily for him there are plenty of bottles of alcohol just lying around. One swig of this magical elixir and he’ll be a little steadier, at least for a few minutes, and if you don’t feel like a drink, just use the bottle as a weapon or projectile.

Most first-person titles work on one basic idea and that is kill first, get the story later, but Condemned works in some other magic. The story itself will be told through the cutscenes in the game, but there are also televisions and radio to interact with that will give you more details. You are also in communication with members of the SCU who will give you a heads up on events, and Ethan may have been out of the unit for a while now, but he’ll need to rely on some detective work as well to piece together what exactly is going on. At his disposal is a GPS, a digital camera, a UV light, and a spectrometer that will help him tune in to those annoying subsonic emitters that are pushing the citizens to commit heinous crimes. There are portions of the game where fighting takes a backseat to forensic science and you will need to examine clues and determine what occurred at crime scenes. You will then be judged based on your powers of deduction. This plays out as being one of the sub-objectives of the game as does locating emitters and accomplishing other tasks which in the end, will reward you with new weaponry or armor that, at least in theory, will help keep Ethan alive just a little longer.

The campaign mode of Condemned is just one aspect of the game however are there are a few more things for players to partake in. The game features a multiplayer mode which supports up to eight players online. You will find some familiar modes of play here, usch as the Deathmatch and a Team Deathmatch, something that will forever be a part of any first-person title that is released which supports multiplayer. Bum Rush is quite literally that as players take on wave after wave of bums without the ability to respawn, but access to guns. Crime Scenes is a more interesting multiplayer mode pitting the SCU agents against the Influenced who must hide evidence. It’s a bit like capture the flag to some extent, but still manages to retain the feeling to Condemned. There are only eight maps to choose from unfortunately, but I’m sure with time, and downloadable content, more will become available There is also the Bloodshot Fight Club, a single-player mode where you can select not only the types of opponents you will face but how many of them, the weapons that are allowed, and any extra things lying about to assist you . . . or them.

Condemned does have that familiar survival horror aspect to it, but it goes for more of a real world approach with a definite environment that screams thriller movie. In the past, there have been those who have compared the game to films like Se7en, and that’s not too far from the truth. The game does bring with it an edgy, uneasy feeling. Lights are placed in just the right places so that they will cast even your shadow, causing you to turn quickly and see who is behind you. You might catch movement out of the corner of your eye and find there is no one there . . . or is there? The buildings and locations that the game is set in all have a corroded, neglected, and run down look to them that adds to the atmosphere of the game, and the tension as well. I also love that during fights, you will notice your opponents become more and more bloodied as you beat them, but as you move further, you’ll begin encountering some things that aren’t quite human and look bizarre, once again something that gives Condemned a horrific feeling at times and the gore that is found in the game isn’t something that sensitive players are going to relish in. The only complaint I have with the game visually is that at times, the cutscenes feel a bit too quick and jerky with the movements, but that’s only a minor aspect of the game in my opinion. Outside of this one, small issue, Condemned does an amazing job with the environments and giving players a horror feeling that will have some flipping on the light while others will definitely feel more comfortable in the darkness with only the warm glow of the television set basking them.

Condemned 2 is what I will state is the first, true survival horror game to make its way onto the PlayStation 3. Even though we may not have the original game on the system, parts of the back story are given and you don’t need many details to enjoy the depth and feeling of paranoia and unease that the game brings with it. I’m sure come end of the year, Condemned will make its way onto that familiar list of games that aren’t sutible for children, but this isn’t a kids game. The true horror is that those who want to try and regulate the gaming industry haven’t yet realized that video games are no longer just for children. If you’re looking for an immersive horror experience, Condemned 2 will deliver that, and then some, and is an absolute must that takes the idea of first-person shooter and makes it something more unique, memorable, and frightening.

-mike-