Filly's Psycho Summer - Alice 2 Edition

While seemingly every other gamer this side of the internet is enjoying their L.A. Noire, inFamous 2, and Ocarina of Time 3D, I've been taking a walk on the wilder side of things when it comes to gaming.  This Summer is packed with quirky titles, from the creepy to the ethereal to the delightfully weird.  By my own measured diagnosis, they simply aren't getting the attention they deserve, so I've taken it upon myself to share my thoughts on each game as I play through it.

Up first, fittingly, is a game that fully embraces its twisted tendencies—Alice: Madness Returns.


It's the ten-years-in-the-making sequel to American McGee's Alice.  In this dark interpretation of Wonderland, Alice had lost her entire family in a mysterious house fire that understandably left her shaken, and was confined to Rutledge Asylum in London.  In the sequel, Alice has grown up and left the asylum, but remained under the close watch of a doctor who encourages her to let go of her "unproductive memories."  Resisting, she embarks on a new journey through Wonderland's crumbling realms in search of these memories, hoping to uncover the truth about her family's death.  You may recall this was one of my most anticipated games of the Summer (and in all honesty, of the entire year). Did it live up to my tremendous expectations?

 Warning:  Some bits of this review could be perceived as spoilers, but nothing major. 

 These are denoted by a gray bar that you must higlight to read. 

Madness Returns excels in every area I'd particularly expected it to.  The most immediately striking thing about the game is, naturally, its visuals.  The game takes you through one breathtaking realm after another, including a fluttering expanse of playing cards above the clouds and the darkest depths of the ocean.  It's certainly one of those games where you will want to stop and just take in your surroundings on more than one occasion.  The game is filled to the brim with gorgeous, blissfully imaginative backdrops.  Paired with a subtly melancholy soundtrack, this game succeeds in creating a dismal atmosphere for the player.  

The most amazing thing about Wonderland isn't just that it's beautifully creepy—it's the fact that each and everything in it is a manifestation of Alice's psyche.  Those steam vents you'll use to lift yourself high up in the air are tied to a childhood memory of your sister.  The springy mushrooms found throughout Wonderland relate to the time your father warned you about poisonous fungi.  These and many other tidbits are explained through collectible memories. Though entirely optional, these are brilliant tools of indirect storytelling, and add an important layer to the player's understanding of Alice.  The cutscenes are equally lovely and occasionally horrifying.  Minor spoiler: the scenes where demented likenesses of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum assist in covering her in leeches and drilling a hole in her head as "treatment" for her madness come to mind.  Even the little touches, like the fact that Alice's dress changes depending on what Wonderland realm she occupies, are greatly appreciated.

The attention to detail Spicy Horse devoted to their game world on the artistic front is astounding.  It's a shame, then, that I encountered so many technical problems.  There was nothing game-breaking, but it was enough to detract from the experience somewhat.  Some of the busier cutscenes experienced brief slowdown; invisible walls were jarring limits to my exploration; texture pop-in rendered some characters at first as nondescript blobs; when respawning in a 2D platforming section, my legs would be stuck in the ground at first (jumping once fixes it).  Individually, these problems are infrequent enough, but collectively, they reveal the game's Achilles' Heel:  a disheartening lack of polish.  On the bright side, it is an Unreal Engine game, ensuring that when the game isn't hiccuping, it is a technically beautiful sight to behold.

The writing is top-knotch.  From the cryptic, poetic ramblings of Wonderland's finest to Alice's harsh retorts ("In prison, some half-wit bruiser will make you his sweetheart!"), the game's dialogue oozes wit and charm.  In fact, it's Alice's commentary that helps to cement her as one of my favorite female video game characters.

But how does it handle?  The gameplay is a combination of 3D platforming, hack n' slash combat, and puzzle solving.  I was pleasantly surprised with how deep the combat is, for a platformer—it has a simple combo system, a variety of weapons to use, and the need to dodge, dodge, dodge.  Players will find that the dodge mechanic is a bit slow to respond, but personally, once I got used to the timing, I had no trouble at all dodging enemy attacks.  Certain tactics are required depending on the enemy type.  As a result, combat actually feels skillful and not like a button-mashing fest.  There's a nice lock-on system a la Ocarina of Time, and you have the ability to shrink, giving you access to tiny, hidden passageways and invisible platforms that take you to new areas.

Sadly, across the board, the gameplay can become repetitive.  You'll see many of the same puzzles (holding down switches, pulling levers, bombing weak walls) throughout your adventure, fight many of the same enemies, and will rarely feel stumped as to what to do next.  But don't turn up your nose just yet!  I found that the game improved significantly in the second half:  Chapter 4 and onward.  It's at this point that the gameplay becomes varied and challenging.  Not only that, but the already great story picks up even more.  This was the part of the game where I could not put down the controller—one night I was up until four in the morning playing because I had to know what happened next—but I couldn't help thinking that it was too bad the game took this long to be truly thrilling.

"A flawed masterpiece" is the best way to describe Alice: Madness Returns.  It's hard not to be enchanted by such an artistic, psychologically powerful, ambitious game.  Repetition and technical issues hold it back, but it's also provided me with some of the most memorable moments in my gaming career.  If you can look past these hitches, and especially if you can appreciate brilliant art direction and writing, I strongly recommend it.  For those that played American McGee's Alice, this is unquestionably a must-play, if only to experience the satisfying conclusion to the story.

7 Carrots

Stay tuned for the next installment of Filly's Psycho Summer!