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    Second Sight

    I got the PAL gamecube version last yesterday, so far it seems quite good, the way you lock on and fine tune your aim works well. Also sticking to walls and using L to jump out time crisis style works really well too. So far my only real critisicm is that the gamecube version seems to have a few notable drops in framerate, not what you expect nowadays

    #2
    Got mine today too.
    First off ive not played Psi-Ops so cant compare. I was close to importing it earlier on in the summer but didnt have the cash when it came out.
    Anyhoo back to second sight.
    The game starts you off in some sort of high security prison hospital. as you wonder about here you gain a few psi powers and experience flashbacks. Your John Vattic , imprisoned in a high tec hospital for crimes youve no clue if youve commited. As you progess further on in this level certain things trigger flashbacks. These flashbacks are playable (the first is a weapons and movement tutorial) and its revealed that your a doctor and tagging along with a millitary group to siberia. Its also revealed that your slightly sceptical to the whole psi thing yet one of the women in the group actually beleives she has these powers. So far these flash backs are purely weapons based. Thats not to say they are not good, theyre excellent in fact. The second sees you shooting along with a team of soldiers across an icey wasteland. The weapon system is very, very good and so far doesnt play second fiddle to the psi powers. lock on with R and then refine your aim with the C stick within the lock on area. Its very good and enables some tasty headshots. The sniper rifle is worth a mention since when you aim with it the scope appears on the bottom right of the screen. enabling you to gauge where your moving but also get some nice shots in. Its a nice touch.
    When you return from your flashbacks your tasks revert back to finding out what the hell to do. Theres a very good map system so you rarely get lost. so far the Psi powers are very impressive, ive unlocked several so far and theyve all been pretty useful early and and graphically theyre very very nice. The effect when you completely drain your psi gauge is also quite impressive.
    In fact the graphics on the whole bar a few things are extremely good in the GC version with good textures and lighting and is a noticeable step up from what was seen in TS2. Theres also lots of nice litlle touches, for example
    I arrived on the bottom floor of the hospital only to kill the bloke on the door with one of mi psi powers. I go on his PC to get some info and notice a chat client. I click on it and see the chat log of him talking to his missus only seconds before i entered the room. He even mentions that someones coming down in the lift. The chat log shows he left the chat room, then i re-entered and his missus starts chatting to me . Alas im unable to type back so i watch for a few minutes as she types more. I log out then log back in and whilst id gone shed typed somethign along the lines of 'fine go without talking' i return and she starts typing again. I leave, return pnce more but shes gone, Very nice i thought.
    so far there are a few minus points.
    As mentioned above the framerate goes a bit wonky in firefights. Not a huge dip but noticeable all the same. Im on the GC version btw (thought id do my bit for GC pal land since i nearly always buy multi format games for the brick anyway .
    The level where you start and return to after flashbacks is primarily stealth based leading to lots of trial and error to begin with. Its hard to judge how the ai will react to you using one of your psi powers so you may scare someone off when alls you wanted to do is distract them.
    Theres a plethora of locker/cupboard hybrids that youl need to hide in both to recharge your health and to gauge what to do next. Youl be recharging in them quite a bit too.
    The physics on the whole are quite good but somewhat glitchy at times. I had a bin decide to stick to me for example. Though for 99% of the time ive found them to be very good.
    So far id probably agree with edges 7 .
    Definately worth a look
    Last edited by revisedgenocide; 03-09-2004, 18:46.

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      #3
      ^ that pretty much sums up my thoughts too. Though i have to ask - is there any way to make the look inverted? There doesn't seem to be an option too which is making getting headshots a frustrating affair as instinctly press the stick down and i end up shooting people's feet

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        #4
        I'm about 2/3s the way through the game. It might not be an incredible game but it makes for a nice diversion whilst we wait for some of the big guns to arrive. I'm enjoying the way the story is unravelling, the flashbacks work really well and give you a nice change of environment. The whole computer OS thing works really well too, there's a great bit later on that involves transfering files. My only complaint is that the camera has a mind of it's own sometimes. Overall, not too shabby.

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          #5
          It's nice, but it's very much Just A Game. Terrible, terrible camera - I rarely bother locking to walls, because a) you don't need to up to where I've got to, and b) the camera means you can't see anywhere around you anyway, other than when you peek around corners. It gets stuck all the time and proves difficult to maneuvre - not exactly Ninja Gaiden bad, but fairly shoddy.

          Crap AI (on the guards, at least) - same old, same old run away past a certain point and they won't chase you and/or will have disappeared entirely when you get back; they stand there for ages waiting to hit you or shoot at you on occasion, and their stupid "kill him! kill him! kill him! oh, wait - I haven't seen him for more than thirty seconds, he must be dead. oh, well. stand down, then" mentality gets extremely annoying at times.

          The physics aren't as good as the Psi-Ops demo (I haven't played the full PO; weird how SS has come out first over here). Telekinesis doesn't feel right - far too stilted and jerky, and difficult to control when you're throwing guards around - PO was a joy to mess around with. SS is still fun, but quite tricky. The ragdoll effects are worse than Riddick; bodies end up in all kinds of stupid postures.

          And it's way, WAY too easy so far. Any difficult confrontation can be escaped from, gunfire does far too little damage to you, healing is far too readily available, the guards are pathetically weak... I've barely died at all. The only difficult stage I've found so far is the escort mission, and I only died and/or had to restart on that because of glitchy controls.

          On the other hand! It is fun, nonetheless. Very, very atmospheric; though I greatly dislike the voice-acting for the most part, it made the escort mission really quite something to play through... not exactly ICO, but shades of that kind of feeling. The gunplay, whilst too easy, is still fast, furious and satisfyingly meaty. Even though the psi-powers don't seem as intuitive and fluid as PO's, they're still fun, of course! TK and the radial psi-blast are a great laugh, problems aside. And even though the graphics aren't especially hi-tech they're really well designed. I love the TimeSplitters style; this is TS without the stupid, unfunny comedy, and that's a big, big bonus for me.

          I'm not sure I ought to have paid full price for it and I don't know if I'll keep it - I might trade it for Psi-Ops, say... but I'm having fun so far, faults aside, and I want to keep going as long as I can. A cautious thumbs up.

          Comment


            #6
            Got quite far now and what really threatens to ruin the game is the respawning enemies. For example in the one level where you have to guide that woman you place her in what you think is a safe place only for enemies to respawn right next to her. Its a huge shame and detracts from the enjoyment.

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              #7
              Originally posted by revisedgenocide
              Got quite far now and what really threatens to ruin the game is the respawning enemies. For example in the one level where you have to guide that woman you place her in what you think is a safe place only for enemies to respawn right next to her. Its a huge shame and detracts from the enjoyment.
              Dunno about "ruin", but I agree it gets to ridiculous levels... in terms of immersion, it's a real killer. If you go Rambo in the lab - and the stealth is so frustrating at times (certainly before you get charm) it's hard to resist the temptation - it's so easy it's farcical, with this endless stream of guards pouring in only to get gunned down by you or smashed against the walls until they go splat. It's fun, to a degree, but it just feels so bloody silly - just jump into a security locker out of sight, and suddenly all the guards lose their memory of a firefight that cost them fifty men or more. Jump out and you can do it all over again.

              And yes, it's annoying in the sewers, too... although to the game's credit Wilde's buddy AI isn't too bad. Goes when you say go, stays when you say stay, manages to find decent cover most of the time when the bullets start flying... I find it amusing that although you can't TK her, you can possess her.

              Also, although I think the woman who does her voice is oh so annoying ordinarily, when she does Wilde-out-of-her-tree in the asylum level, she does it very well IMO. Odd, that. I was really quite unnerved, and felt very protective of her. /shrugs

              Comment


                #8
                I've stuck the camera in behind mode the whole time as I don't like the action cam. I really like the way the sniper rifle works, with the zoomed in bit showing in the corner.
                I've got a bit further and am a bit worried by the fact that I can 1 either blast everyone to bits or turn invisible and walk past them. it seems quite unbalanced at the moment, hopefully this will change later on.

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                  #9
                  The respawning can get farcical at times. The garage level later on in the game is an example. I shoot the one fella and before i can move im surrounded by 3 more black suited bad guys. Shoot them and then theres more until im swamped in the same area. Its then a case of running away until you pass the invisible line that stops the respawning then killing whose left. It just hinders any real sense of immersion for me.
                  The escape from the asylum level was very good though. Apart from the very last bit. I havent found wilde to be much good in finding cover so far, she just ducks and gets shot. Mind you now shes out of her straight jacket i doubt thats a concern now.
                  Ive been thinking about it for a bit now but is it me or is the level structure of the sewer level a near carbon copy of the one in Enter the matrix Hardly a source of inspiration so it must be the mental scars of playing ETM resurfacing, weird.
                  Anyway overall i do like the game but some really silly things let it down .
                  I notice theres disks about the place alot like the cartridges in TS2. Only found 1 so far space balster 92 or something like that.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Yeah I've seen enemies appear right in front of me a couple of times. Bad game design.

                    Try using the sniper rifle in first person view, you actually look down the scope rather than the whole screen zooming in as per every FPS. Nice touch.

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                      #11
                      Just clocked it. Nice ending - kudos to them for doing the Prince of Persia thing, it would have been way too predictable otherwise.

                      An interesting game. So disappointing in many respects, but engrossing nonetheless... it really makes me want Psi-Ops, to compare the two... if only they'd had the extra time to polish some of the design issues up, throw in some unlockables (the opportunity to admire some of the art would have been great here!) and even multiplayer... oh, well. I may keep it; it's a lot more solid and polished than a good few other games I've tried recently... but the numerous little faults and shoddy parts to it suggest it might not stay in my collection forever. Nice to have played it, though. A solid 7, maybe a 6 if I'm being really strict.

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                        #12
                        I'm enjoying this a lot; it's not perfect, with glitches and a certain lack of gravity (though that does contribute to the comic-book feel), but it's very consistent and engrossing. The lock-on from behind obstacles is particularly well implemented.

                        Anyhow, I'm stuck (already): third checkpoint of Madness, the first floor where you need to find Jayne. I can't open the gateway to the other side, and the place is crawling with guards. Plus, every padded cell seems to have a psychotic inmate in. And I keep running out of Psi, so my Charm wears off and then I'm stuck again. Bloody bloody. Any suggestions?

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                          #13
                          Try letting the crazy guys out and see if they distract the guards. Me, I just killed everyone leaving me a clear route to the gate (can't remember what I did to open it).

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                            #14
                            RE: Paleface

                            [spoilers]Not quite sure which gate you want to open.

                            Gate 1:
                            Just a matter of using telekinesis to open the switch which is very near the other side of the gate.

                            Gate 2:
                            Place yourself at the second gate.
                            Use Projection.
                            Go back into the guard room and use the computer to unlock the timed door.
                            cancel projection and go through the gate entrance.[/spoilers]

                            (Sorry, i have no idea how to do spoilers. I used to be able to do it on the old board, that's because it gave you an option to click and away you go. Unless i'm being thick ;p)

                            Comment


                              #15
                              I'm stuck on the madness level, can someone point me in the right direction. I have seemingly been every, I even unlocked the shed and got the shotgun, but I'm just stuck! its probably some corridor or something that I've missed like 6 times

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