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| Hollow Ground |
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Quick and dirty: very fun, sometimes addictively so, multiple players on one computer, decent graphics, compelling ambience, randomized gameplay elements, top-down perspective works surprisingly well. Cons: very bloody and dark, some counter-intuitive levels, character control is somewhat lacking.
Download the demo here.
The actual review:
This is a game that can be incredibly fun, yet isn't for everyone. Made by Aescapia, Hollow Ground is a top down arcade-style shooter, in which the point is to proceed through levels of a zombie infested bunker and save humanity. Not exactly a stellar plot, per se, but that's how gaming goes.
What this game does have is ambience. The graphics are very impressive compared to many shareware games, and although they certainly aren't as professional as they could be if this were a commercial game, they satisfied my appetite for pixel goodness. The top down perspective works surprisingly well, and is implemented quite nicely. If someone had just told me about the perspective and such, I would have been doubtful about it's effectiveness, but playing the game shows that it works rather nicely. Admittedly, the relatively small number of unique monsters attacking you can sometimes get a little old, but since the monsters get increasingly difficult and have several incarnations each it remains fun.
An interesting aspect of this game is the team play. There are four characters available for you to use, with their respective strengths and weaknesses, and you are allowed to switch characters between levels. As you progress your health is consistently drained by the environment (although you can get more health through health packs), so sometimes switching to another character is the only way to go. Overall, the characters are well balanced, although there are some aspects in which they could be more evenly matched.
Just having four characters isn't enough, however. The greatest bit about this game, in my opinion, is that you can play it solo or with a teammate on the same computer. I love online gaming as much as the next person, but sometimes I just want to sit down at my computer with a friend and destroy some enemies. This game lets you do just that, and playing with a friend is definitely more fun that going it solo. The dynamics of having two characters with their different strengths and weaknesses makes for interesting gameplay, as does the sharing of the credits that allow you to buy powerups.
There's a certain random element to the game, in that as you proceed down through the bunker that serves as the game's setting, the game chooses randomly from a pool of levels based on how deep you have gone. Additionally, after defeating a level you have a chance to buy powerups and goodies with the "credits" that you gathered going through the level. This adds a somewhat strategic element to the game that is very welcome, and the powerups can help no end, particularly in the more difficult levels.
This game does have its weaknesses, however. The most obvious is that it is very dark, very bloody, and even with the ability to turn off the blood and bodies not particularly suited for everyone. This is definitely a game to try before you buy (and they fortunately have a demo which gives a good sense of what the game is like). Some of the levels are not quite as easy to figure out, as well. In particular I remember one level full of transporters that randomly sent you places, and trying to find the exit was horrible. I finally stumbled across it, but it was sheer luck, since both the exit's location and where the transporters dropped you was random. Despite some of these lemon levels, most were designed very well. To make it even better, you can design your own levels with their free level editor (as long as you own a registered copy of the game), or download levels designed by others on Aescapia's website.
I love the two player aspect of the game, but my one peeve with it was that both characters are confined to the same screen. This means that at times you might have monsters coming from two directions, but each character can only go so far away from the other one to fight them. Also, some characters are slower than others, and if a fast and a slow character are traveling an empty hall with each other, the faster often has to wait at the edge of the screen for the slower to catch up. This is largely annoying. A split screen might compromise some of the better aspects of the game, but it would be nice to have it as an option at least, since being stuck at the edge of the screen trying to save your partner's life is no fun.
The only other issue I had was the aiming. For some reason you can move in virtually any direction, but can only aim in eight (left, right, up down, and 45 degree diagonals). The inability to sweep your fire across an area is sometimes incredibly annoying (or, even worse, deadly). I imagine that it was too difficult to program, but I regret that this is so. Its inclusion would make the game even better.
Why the rating: Overall, this is a very worthwhile game. I only rate it a five because of its violence and the small annoyances that can build up, but I highly advise downloading the demo and buying it if you like it. Hollow Ground looks to be Aescapia's first game, and if they make games as good or better than this then they are a company well worth supporting. And as an additional plus, the game only costs $19, which is a great price for this type and quality of game, most of which usually run $25 or so.
Edit: It is worth noting that this game deserves a score of 7, but has received a 5 because of it's excessive violence (and other not-appealing-to-everyone things), and because in some ways it still does need polish. On the other hand, it's worth noting that there is now a level editor out (greatly expanding the replayability), and the developer is consistently working on making this game more polished. If you don't mind violence, and enjoy action games, you should give Hollow Ground a look-see.
Posted on May 18, 2004 at 2:54 pm
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| Games Playing: |
Star Chamber
Kill Monty
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| Reviews: |
• Blades of Avernum: The Game
5/24/2004
• Hollow Ground
5/18/2004
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Tuncer Deniz
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CPU Speed: 2.0 - 2.9 GHz
Memory: 2 GB
HD Space: 81 - 120 GB
CD: SuperDrive
Details: MacBook Pro, baby. Oh yeah. |
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