This is kind of a weird game.
And not weird, like, it’s doing something different and is therefore kind of weird.
It’s not doing anything different, so that’s not what I mean.
No, what I mean is, this is kind of a weird game.
I mean, one minute, you come across this picturesque view and it’s like, “Holy crap, this is
a really pretty game.”
And a minute later, something glitches out and an ancient stone column just starts hovering
in midair.
I don’t care who you are.
That’s weird.
That’s Deadfall Adventures for the Xbox 360.
So here’s the thing.
You take equal parts Uncharted, Indiana Jones, uh…The Mummy.
These are all good things.
Rachel Weisz makes up for Brendan Fraser.
That’s how the math works on that one.
So if you take things that are good and combine them, it doesn’t matter.
You’re gonna get something good.
And there are moments in Deadfall Adventures when you get something good.
The environments.
Once in a while, they’re just stunning, artistically.
The gameplay.
Fighting mummies and Nazis at the same time?
Ridiculous.
The accents.
I, too, pine for the love of a British woman.
All good moments.
And yet…they’re never anything more than moments.
You play as this pistol-toting American who’s obsessed with explosions and, by his own admission,
doesn’t read.
God bless America.
Look, don’t be offended.
The British lady’s the intelligent one, obviously because of her accent.
And the Germans are the mean ones.
Also because of their accents.
You can say anything with a German accent and sound mean.
Very intimidating language.
So, if you’re looking for an interesting story with interesting characters…might
want to read a book.
‘Cause this game doesn’t have ‘em.
The characters are just shallow cliches, and the only thing worse than the dialogue is
the freaking voice acting.
But what this game does have…is a solid foundation of gameplay.
Nothing exciting, nothing great…but nothing terrible.
And again, with the occasional moments of genuine fun.
I mean, I think it was fun.
At the very least, the music was rousing.
Deadfall is basically Uncharted meets Call of Duty.
You’re exploring ancient temples, going for treasure, solving puzzles…and along
with that exploration, you have FPS combat.
So it’s a nice mixture of established styles, and Deadfall executes them well, in terms
of design.
You go from shootout to puzzle to exploration to another shootout…it’s a nice pace,
and because of the different gameplay varieties, the action at least stays fresh.
The problem is…that action is surrounded by a pretty underwhelming game.
There’s cheap instant deaths around every corner, which is really annoying from a game
that’s telling you to explore.
There’s lots of bugs and technical issues, too…and the enemies can be repetitive.
Feels like you’re killing the same three enemies over and over again.
Which is a shame, because the environments are the opposite.
They’re actually really diverse.
And really pretty sometimes.
Look at that Sphinx.
If you’re expecting something with the scale and polish of Uncharted, this is obviously
a disappointment.
It’s not that kind of mega-budget release.
No, what this is…is an okay little shooter with awful characters in awesome places.
Decent mechanics in derivative design.
Obviously, Deadfall Adventures has issues, and lots of them.
But if you’ve ever imagined yourself as some badass American hero who lights mummies
on fire and blows up mountains with a rocket launcher…there’s some redeeming stuff
here.
And like I said, you get to pal around with a British chick.
Nothing not to like about that, guv’nor.
It’s Deadfall Adventures for the Xbox 360.
It’s tea time, is what it is.