I’ve come to this review after finishing Schizm
2 about a week ago…
just to go back over my journey and think about things a little.
Like a good holiday, it pays to look back a little later after playing
an adventure title after the excitement has faded to be able to put
things in perspective. Give it a review that is honest and tries
to appreciate a game’s finer points – and it’s poison-tipped arrows.

Suffice to say, Schizm
2 has been quite a journey. If this game
was a holiday, it’d be rock-climbing in Macchu Picchu – stunning
scenery… but a difficult climb to the top!

Coming off the back of it’s well-received 2D forebear, Schizm
2 does a good job of providing the same, peculiar feeling of the original
title but transferring it to a wonderful, ethereal 3D world. Starting
off on a space-station, the game sees our hero, Sen, waking up to
find he’s responsible for a disaster which hs created a war on the
planet it’s orbiting.

The game’s use of the in-game engine for these cut-scenes is highly
commendable, with reasonable voiceovers and good acting on the virtual
actors. It’s evident that the game’s developers, Detalion, have put
a lot of thought into how best to work in the reasonably complex
script by Australian Sci-Fi writer Terry Dowling, even though on
occasion the dialogue can ramble. The characters themselves aren’t
perfectly modelled, although they’re more than good enough when set
against the gorgeously lush scenery that you find yourself in as
the game progresses.

Ah, what the scenery… The Jupiter engine, used to power such classy
FPS games like Tron 2.0 and No One Lives Forever 2, is put to excellent
use here on some great locales that showcase everything from organic
shapes to towering metallic structures. I was particularly impressed
by a Galleas showing up from Schizm, although a little dissapointed
that I couldn’t revisit its locations that I saw in the previous
title. If anything, sometimes the puzzles hinder your enjoyment of
the graphics and you find yourself wanting to explore more.

The only real negative thing about Schizm
2‘s graphical prowess,
however, is that sometimes the locations don’t completely gel and
the design on the characters’ costumes can be over-the-top. However,
the only real time I found it being a problem was on the station
which rather uncomfortably moved from hi-tech corridors to organic
shapes without much indication as to where the change happened. As
for the characters, they take some getting used to, but don’t impede
your immersion too much as the world itself is odd enough!

But lets stop talking graphics and get to the meat of the game.
It has a flowing control system based on FPS titles, which is easy
to use and should be lifted for other titles. Knowing the problems
people have had with Uru, I hope other developers look to Schizm
2 for inspiration in future first-person titles!

However, it does include a rather pathetic jump when pressing the
spacebar which appears to server no purpose other than to poke holes
in the games logic. An early bridge puzzle, which requires the bridge
sections to be completely aligned before you can cross can be confusing.
At their highest point the pieces are only a couple of inches off
the ground, as is the jump itself. It’s picky, but it does make for
a little frustration and the more easily exasperated players amongst
you may have cause for complaint.

The gameplay is pretty
much on-rails, with specific tasks to complete with sections opening
up on the completion of the myriad puzzles.
And oh, what puzzles they are. Save for a couple of easy ones (the
early mirror rotation puzzle in the station for example), these things
are rock. Maybe not Schizm-hard but pretty damn close, with at least
intermediate mathematics required to get through some of the tougher
alien-numbered puzzles. Lets just say an understanding of base numbers
other than “1” would help the player no end!

Other than the cutscenes, there is no interaction with people in
the same manner as a Broken Sword as it’s roots are firmly planeted
in the Myst camp. If anything, I’d even go so far to say that technically,
as the exploration is pretty much done for you, this is even more
a puzzle game than it’s first-person forbears. There is no doubt,
however, that this game represents a huge leap forward into the 21st
century for the style and I’d be very dissapointed if other first-person
developers didn’t follow suit. However, I’d have liked to have seen
more freedom of gameplay than what’s on offer here – it’s great for
puzzles, but I want to look around these environments more! Here’s
hoping for another sequel…

It certainly raises the bar for graphics – anyone with an older
computer is going to have to consider an upgrade to even consider
playing it. It may not touch Riven and Schizm in terms of stills,
but who said 3D is still? This games environments are full of movement.
Even my rig, which is fairly competent, had a little trouble here
and there with the framerate and at any resolution other than 800X600
it can be difficult getting clues in order to solve the puzzles.

However, even with the occasional chug if you can get the full water
and scenery effects it can be an awesome looking title – even getting
pretty close to the best recent FPS games have to offer. If you want
the best 3D graphics the Adventure genre can offer, then this is
your game. It’s definitely not for the casual gamer, but if you have
an appreciation of difficult puzzles and want some meat to their
bones in terms of story, then this is your game.

Just remember to retain a firm grip on the way up… by the time
you get to the top, it’s a view worth seeing.

Final Grade: B+

System Requirements:

• Windows(r) 98 / 98SE
  / ME / 2000 (with latest service pack)/ XP
• Pentium(r) III 1GHz
  or Equivalent (Pentium(r) III 1.6 GHZ Recommended)
• 128 MB RAM (256MB
  for Windows XP)
• 64MB Direct3D compatible
  video card with HARDWARE T&L, 32-bit color support, and DirectX
  8.1 compatible driver (128MB Recommended)
• DirectSound(r) compatible
  16-bit sound card with DirectX 8.1 compatible driver
• Windows(r) compatible
  keyboard and Mouse
• DirectX(r) 8.1 or
  higher