|
Velvet Assassin
Publisher: SouthPeak Games
Developer: Replay Studios
Genre: Action
Release Date: April 28, 2009
Platforms: Xbox 360, PC
ESRB: M - Mature
Reviewer: Eric
When Velvet Assassin was first shown it looked like a pretty decent game. As
time went by the game was forgotten. New and better games were released, most of
which are now going to see sequels. Instead of scrapping the game or starting
over Velvet Assassin is finally released, about five years too late.
When the modern stealth genre of games was born there were some problems. After
awhile the genre started to get better. If you want to go back in the time when
stealth games were broken and not fun then Velvet Assassin is the perfect way to
waste $60.
Velvet Assassin punishes you for even waiting for the game. Not only are you
punished for looking at the game you will soon find out why this game is so bad
after all the beginning cutscenes. This is the sort of game that should have
never been released or it should have seen a budget price tag on its launch
release.
The game does manage to take a good thing and run with it. The story is based in
World War II, a story that is always finding its way into the video game market.
You play as Violette Summer, a secret agent for the British. Summer goes behind
German lines to try and sabotage their war attempts.
What is so neat about the story is our main character is based around a real
life World War II operative. She looks just like the real female but you can
crush that aspect by her appearance in her underwear. Superpowers tend to make
women undress into their panties. I mean look at all the other superhero women
who have done this…wait it never happened before. Big points in the “buy me
because of my sex appeal” category.
Since this is a stealth game you are spending most of your time hiding, well at
least you are supposed to. Unlike modern stealth games this one is too picky. If
you are not in the programmed areas of hiding then you will be seen right away.
Half of the shadows in the game don’t help and hiding behind certain objects and
walls mean nothing. You will be detected 85% of the time playing this game and
this is a damn stealth game.
There are times in Velvet Assassin where nothing matters for the other 15% of
the game you can get away by hiding your dead prey while another soldier is
walking near you. You can take the gamble if you want but I found it better to
hide this game than actually playing it.
Escaping from your enemies is nearly impossible. Once you get caught the enemy
opens fire and takes half of your health in 2-3 seconds. Trying to hide from the
enemy after you are seen is not going to happen so you are better off standing
still and dying. Of course that is a problem since the games check points are
spread out way too far.
Trying to control the game is a real chore too. Walking feels sluggish and
hiding…I think it is safe to say that controlling your character to hide is just
as bad as the whole stealth aspect of the game. When you use your superpowers,
which will cause you to be seen, will only have you dying right away due to the
games unfair gaming mechanics.
Graphically this game looks like a Playstation 2 game. I am starting to get sick
of the next generation games that are being developed that look like games from
the past. Cutscenes really don’t help out the game too much and our heroine
isn’t going to win any sexy awards. There are way too many clipping issues, most
notably when you are hiding in the bushes and the bushes are going through your
body. I really thought that my copy of Velvet Assassin was damaged but when I
tried another one I was sad to see that the game still looked that bad.
The games music isn’t all that bad. The music real goes well with most of the
games action sequences and the spoken dialogue is done real well. My biggest
problem here has to be the actual words our enemies are saying. This really
can’t be the way the Germans talked; it sounds way too modern American.
Final Verdict
Velvet Assassin could have been so much better if the game had more
concentration on it. It does try something new with the stealth story aspect.
World War II is always seen in first person shooters so it was nice to see that
developers can do something new. Still even with that said I really found it
better when the game was not in my Xbox 360. Velvet Assassin looks much better
in my collection but even that looks bad too.
Rating Breakdown
Gameplay: 3 out of 10
+ Moving dead bodies around is always fun.
- Stealth gameplay from 1997 at $60. I think I’ll pass.
Graphics: 5 out of 10
+ Cutscenes are passable.
- Looks extremely outdated.
Audio: 7 out of 10
+ Decent music with good voice actors.
- The German dialogue is not really authentic.
Replay Value: 2 out of 10
+ If you own it make sure to point it on to show your friends
how bad it is.
- Almost everything.
Overall
4.25 out of 10
More reviews:
MetaCritic: 5.6/10
TestFreaks: 7.6/10
IGN:
5/10
Velvet Assassin Trailer
|
