Published by:
Ignition Entertainment / Playlogic
Developed by: Developed by: Hydravision Entertainment
Available only on:
PC, Wii, Playstation 2
INTRO: Obscure: The Aftermath picks
up where the last one left off, and revolves around the survivors of the
outbreak that killed several people in the first game. There are 8 students,
each with their own skills who attend Leafdale high, and must battle against
a flower which causes serious psychedelic nightmares. Once again you should
grab a friend and dive into co-op mode, where you can take on the various
monsters that await you.
GAMEPLAY: I've played the first Obscure, and I thought it was a mediocre game made
playable by the co-op mode that allowed you to bring a buddy into the fray. I'm
glad that they kept this mode in the second outing, because it is the game's
strongest selling point. Who wouldn't want to get some survival horror going
with a buddy? Anyway, let's get into the meat of things. The characters here are
still annoying stereotypes, something that I always question- is it a purposeful
choice that is made? Anyway, this is neither here nor there.
Play this game with a friend. If you don't, you will likely be yelling at
the computer controlled character, as they almost never do what you want them to
do. They get in your way a lot and don't add much to the proceedings. The other
major issue here is the camera, which is frustrating and flawed, especially
during co-op when you feel as though you have to fight over it. This may seem
like a minor gripe, but believe me- this stuff gets old fast.
Anyway as I mentioned before, the game is about taking each teen's skill
and seeing how you can solve the puzzles. This is simple stuff too, some
characters are strong, and others can 'hack', and so on. When you get stuck, if
you think for only a few moments, you'll solve the puzzle quickly. There's also
the fighting part of the game, as you'll be facing many beasties, and like in
the first game, the combat is awkward and slow. It doesn't feel really fluid,
although things are a bit more fleshed out and it is always fun to kill
monsters. You can pick up weapons, which is nice, but the guns are terrible
mostly due to the bad camera angles.
GRAPHICS: The graphics here are actually really great for a PS2 game. The system is
on its last legs, and the developers have put forward a real effort and
attention to detail. Nice lighting effects, well modeled monsters, and a
cast of rejects that look like characters from your favorite teen drama.
AUDIO: Sound is great too really, surprisingly well done. Good quality sound
effects and a fantastic score to boot. Really strong orchestral stuff mixed with
some creepy choir moments. The voice acting is just brutal, not quite HOTD
brutal, but still quite bad. The characters are not well thought through and
grate on the player.
FINAL VERDICT: So after having sat through this game, I'm left with some mixed emotions.
Obscure's second outing does improve on the first, but not substantially. The
plot is ho-hum, the characters are lame, and everything lacks a bit of oomph,
story wise. The game isn't scary, but it does have atmospheric moments. As I
mentioned before, the only way to really enjoy this is to play it with a buddy.
Consider this game like a survival horror-lite. If you're around the age of 14,
you'll probably really dig this. It's clear that some work was put in to improve
on the first game, but when the first game isn't that good, unfortunately the
end result isn't so hot either.
Obscure: The Aftermath PC system requirementsOS: Windows XP/Vista
Processor: Pentium 3 @ 700 MHz
Memory: 256 MB (512 MB for Vista)
Video Memory: nVidia GeForce 3 or later
Sound Card: DirectX Compatible
DirectX: 9.0c
Keyboard & Mouse
DVD Rom Drive
