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Extermination
Score: 75%
ESRB: Mature
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment America
Developer: Deep Space
Media: DVD/1
Players: 1
Genre: Action/ Miscellaneous

Graphics & Sound:
The graphics in Extermination range from the impressive to the downright drab. It's really unfortunate that the game takes place in the environment that it does--a military base of some sort in Antarctica--because I have a feeling that if the environment were a little more beautiful the game would feel 'better'. As it is, the world exists in a sort of drab mix of grey and white. Yes, it's realistic, but that doesn't mean you don't get tired of it after a few hours. I did like the 'fuzzing out' effect that the game used on anything that wasn't in focus; this sort of stuff makes me realize that we're definitely playing with more power than we used to. The character models are passable, but they're definitely stiffer than they should be, and most of the enemies aren't particularly spooky.

Fortunately, Extermination fares better in the sound department. While the voice acting is pretty weak, it's not Resident Evil-bad, so you won't find yourself snickering (too much) at the various characters. Sure, some of the lines are dinky, but we all loved Castlevania: Symphony of the Night despite Richter's 'Die, monster!', right? The music, when it plays, fits the atmosphere of the game quite well; when it's not playing, the ambient noises of the setting more than make up for it. While the game never gets scary like, say, Silent Hill did, it definitely knows how to keep you tense.


Gameplay:
It's unfortunate, then, that the game itself plays way too much like what's come before it. Yes, Extermination has its innovations, but for the most part the game is strictly standard survival horror fare. Which is a shame, because under the bad camera angles and the weak storyline you can feel a vibrant soul that tried to push its way out. It's a shame that we only get a glimpse of that soul.

You play the part of Dennis Riley, a member of a special group of the Marines called 'Team Red Light'. The game starts and you find yourself in a plane to Antarctica, where something Obviously Bad happened. Of course, Even Worse Things Occur, and the next thing you know your plane goes down and everyone has to parachute out.

Yes, the start of the storyline is pretty weak, and to be honest it never gets much better. You'll find out soon enough in the game--the first time you look at the status screen, for example--that there's an infection going around. This, of course, is central to the plot of the game, and as you explore the Antarctic base you'll be trying to figure out just what went wrong here and why everyone seems to be dying.

The game plays like a more action-oriented survival horror title. There are the obligatory creepy-crawlies that jump out at you, but for the most part the character has much more free reign than games of that genre. For one, the world itself is fully 3D, letting you run around and move the camera as you manuever through the environments. Of course, the camera causes its own share of consternation, but I prefer that to the static screens of Resident Evil.

More action-like is the ability to aim your gun both in first-person and in third-person mode. Since the gun is your basic weapon throughout the game, use of this ability is necessary if you want to succeed. Picking off enemies is actually quite a bit of fun, since your starting sight is nice and the later scope is nicer. Unfortunately you can't move while you have your weapon aimed, which strikes me as amazingly stupid.

And so the game goes. You'll be running around, picking up health items and keycards and whatnot, reading journal entries and examining your maps. You'll be opening doors, solving simple puzzles, and blowing the hell out of a number of infected beasties. And chances are good that you're going to get infected yourself.

Here is where the game departs a bit from the standard. Infection is bad. It will kill you if you let it sit too long; as time passes, the infection becomes more severe, you lose more health, until eventually you're completely taken over by the infection and will die very soon. You can stave off simple infection with booster shots, but the only way to get rid of a serious case is with beds scattered around the game that you have to use vaccine in. Of course, said vaccine is rare, so you want to be careful when you use it.

The game's still pretty standard otherwise, and the ability to replenish your ammo and battery packs (used for both puzzles and saving the game) at particular locations will keep you from having to be overly miserly with your ammo. The game's pretty short, to be honest, and a hard day's play will have you getting through it. The question is if you'll want to play through it again.


Difficulty:
To be honest, I suck at most survival horror games. I found myself doing quite well in Extermination, however; the difficulty was definitely offset by the ability to run back and get more ammo when necessary. You also get a ton of health kits and whatnot from the get-go, and while you won't use them much when the game starts going, by the end you'll need every one you have. If you have to pick between firing and getting hit, use the ammo--it's much easier to replenish.

Game Mechanics:
Thank the gods, this game doesn't use the standard Resident Evil control scheme. Movement is screen-relative instead of character-relative, which suits the action-oriented flavour of the game quite well. Switching to aim mode is as simple as hitting one of the right shoulder buttons; (attempting to) centre the camera is as easy as hitting L1. You can fire your gun or swing your knife with the O button, and do an alternate knife-swing or use the 'expansion' on the gun with the square button.

The core mechanics are actually very solid. I liked the fact that although you basically used one gun throughout the game, you gained a number of attachments for it that improve its operation. Of course, you have to choose which attachments you'll use at any given time, which gives a strategic flair. The menus are also a neat idea, and although I wish they were a bit faster to navigate, I definitely like their style. The load times aren't overly frequent and they're short when they do occur. If it weren't for that damned camera, which tends to get hung up and get you infected because it won't track with you . . .

Extermination is by no means a bad game, but it's not all that impressive either. While you can tell that there's a gem of a concept here, the execution definitely leaves something to be desired. With a story that's hard to get into, an annoying camera, and drab looks, chances are good that most people are going to pass by Extermination. That's something of a shame, though; fans of the survival horror genre should definitely give it a shot, even if it's not particularly horrific, and people who like action games would do well to give it a whirl too. It's definitely a rent-before-you-buy title, however, as its short length and numerous little niggling flaws will probably leave you wanting more than you can get from it.


-Sunfall to-Ennien, GameVortex Communications
AKA Phil Bordelon

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