Twitch: Randy said that all console reviews of action/adventures
and RPG/adventures must foremost concentrate on the story and puzzle aspects of
the game and since Randy is the Big Kahuna, the Big Cheese, the Old Fart …

Spaz:
Hey, knock that off. We just started this gig with JA and you’re going to
get us fired already.

Twitch: Dude, I was just joking. Hey, if the
Ancient Mariner of gaming can’t take a joke …

Spaz: That’s
it, let me take over. Hey, everyone, I’m Spaz, and unfortunately, you’ve already
met Twitch. We’re going to take you where many an adventure gamer has never dared
to venture before: the world of console gaming. Our first review for JA is an
RPG/adventure called Silver. Originally released for the PC, Silver
has been ported to the Dreamcast by Infogrames.

Now we understand that
with the recent glut of RPGs on both the console and PC, it is difficult to conjure
an original plot, but if you were to look in the dictionary under cliché,
you would find a description of Silver.

Twitch: Yeah, and
if you were to look under the word jackass you would find a picture of …

Spaz:
Don’t you dare! Jeez, has it ever occurred to you to show some respect for
your employer?

Twitch: Dude, its not like we get paid or anything.
We get some free games and Randy keeps promising to send us those nude Lara codes
for Tomb Raider.

Spaz: Hey, if we ever get those codes, they’ll
be worth their weight in silicon! Anyhow, it seems there is an evil sorcerer by
the name of Silver ravaging the island world of Jarrah, killing all of the men
and taking all of the righteous babes as prisoners. When your character David’s
wife is abducted, it comes time to travel with your wizened, wise grandfather
and learn the way of the grasshopper as you collect the eight magical orbs needed
to defeat Silver. Along the way you’ll meet and hopefully defeat legions of baddies
and convince characters from the Rebel Camp to join your crusade. You’ll learn
of Silver’s plans to rule the world and eventually of your own secret fate. If
this all sounds bland and clichéd, it is. Character development is nonexistent
and personalities are uninspired.

The same can be said of puzzles that are
freely borrowed from other games without even an attempt at originality. The puzzles
are never so difficult so as to bring the game to a standstill, but there are
numerous instances of hard-to-find hot spots against prerendered backgrounds.
It is understandable that a hybrid product like Silver that attempts to
appeal to adventure, RPG, and arcade gamers would not want to make any one of
these areas too difficult for fear of scaring away a newbie, but anyone who is
proficient in any of the three genres will find his specialty sorely lacking in
challenge.

Twitch: Combat, my personal forté, consists of
real-time fighting against the prerendered backgrounds. You can be joined by two
companions and use a variety of special weapons and magical items. The problem
is that the AI is dumber than Spaz, and almost any enemy can be defeated by simply
engaging in some old-fashioned button mashing. This might have been fine five
years ago, but it is inexcusable in a Dreamcast game.

Probably the worst
aspect of the entire game, though, is that all of the characters always appear
to be tiny, almost as if you are watching someone else play the game from afar.
Even during cut scenes and battles, the characters remain small and faceless,
and any potential drama is rendered ineffective by the inability to inject any
personality unto these characters. Compounding the tedium is a forced linearity
that leads you through the game by your nose and an unmemorable musical score.
Not having played Silver on the PC, I am dumfounded by the excellent reviews
I had read about this RPG/adventure. Needless to say, not all games survive the
transition to another platform.

Spaz: I don’t know about you, Twitch,
but my trigger finger is itchy after crawling through this RPG/adventure wannabe.
How about we go blow something up?

Twitch: I’m with you all the way,
dude. ‘Til next time, I’m Twitch, my buddy over there is Spaz, and we’ll see you
soon as we explore the exciting world of console gaming.

Final Grade:
D