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Fahrenheit Review
Chris Leyton
19/09/2005
Quantic Dreams' latest title provides hope for anybody loosing interest in videogames...
Amidst franchises, sequels and brands the videogame industry is going through something of a crisis when it comes to creativity and originality; very few publishers seem to have the balls to commission anything thatās a little different, so weāve got utmost respect for Atariās decision to pick up Quantic Dreams Fahrenheit after Vivendi-Universal grew tired of waiting.
Itās not often that TVG has to pick up a copy for itself usually relying on all the lovely publishers out there to send us copies; in fact actually going out and buying a copy on a journalistās wage is something Iāve become completely unaccustomed to, but Fahrenheit is actually worth it, itās the first time Iāve spent money on a videogame in years and felt it deserved every penny.
To understand Fahrenheit itās perhaps wise to step back in time to when development first commenced. TVG first caught sight of Fahrenheit back in 2002, a time when the game was without a publisher and when talk of āepisodic contentā surrounded the title. Although episodic-content within the videogames industry is similar to the search for the Holy Grail, very little changed in the subsequent three years that Fahrenheit was in development; the game retains the style, look and feel of a high-budget TV series and the highly charged story remains the same.
Set in New York, Fahrenheit focuses on a character known as Lucas Kane and depicts the start of his story through an unnervingly brutal introduction sequence, in which he stabs to death a victim in the restroom of a diner. Things arenāt so simple however, this isnāt your typical case of a homicidal maniac set loose on the streets of New York; perhaps to get a better understanding itās a good idea to take a look at the various influences, which Quantic Dreams cite as the films of David Lynch and David Fincher ā“ think Se7en crossed with a smattering of Fight Club, chuck in Lost Highway and a pinch of Patrick McGoohanās The Prisoner and youāll know what to expect (or probably not given the nature of these references).
Right from the start you know Fahrenheit is going to offer something different. In the middle of a crime scene and with blood on his hands, the screen quickly splits highlighting to the player that an off-duty NYPD cop is sipping on a cup of coffee when duty calls and he heads to the rest-room. Quickly youāve got to take control of Kane, hide the body, cover up the evidence and make a get away without being noticed.
OK so beyond the hugely stylish presentation this may not sound radically different; however Fahrenheit provides one of the rare experiences when a team actually embraces the videogame medium as a new means to telling a story. This isnāt your typical watch a cut-scene, play a level, repeat until end; this is the player feeling as though theyāre actually in charge of the central characters destiny in a narrative that hooks you right from the start.
The player is constantly provided with a number of options that ensures Fahrenheit feels very different to anything else; take for example the opening murder scene, the calculating player could hide the body, wash the floor, walk out (remembering to pay his bill) and leave the diner without making too much of a scene. On the other hand, a slightly more manic confrontation could find the player rushing out the rest-room door just as the cop is about to walk in and have to dive out of the rear exit in an attempt to get away.
Despite the level of choice and freedom presented to the player Fahrenheit isnāt afraid to present the Game Over screen to players; mistakes and ill-timed decisions will often trigger the end of the āepisodeā complete with a concluding narrative from Kane before forcing players to restart from the previous scene. Bizarrely this never frustrates and never deviates from the wonderfully flowing sense of progress that governs the structure of the game.
The multitude of smart touches continues throughout Fahrenheit; most notably in the form that players not only take control of Lucas but also the investigating detectives Carla Valenti and Tyler Miles. This creates an intriguing dynamic within the game as you play from the āmurdererāsā point of perspective and that of those chasing after him. Naturally nothing is black-and-white and as the storyline develops you find yourself becoming attached to each characterās objectives; akin to playing a game of chess against yourself, itās hard to find an opening as youāre effectively playing against yourself each time.
This dynamic also ensures the gameās longevity is truly extended with multiple branches. The vast majority of āscenesā present the choice of which character to assume at the beginning, meaning that youāll miss out on certain events until you play the game through again from a different perspective. Many games promise branching plotlines and never playing the game through the same way twice, very few manage to achieve this to the same extent as Quanitc Dreamsā Fahrenheit!
Sadly the actual core gameplay is likely to put some people off. Itās very much an adventure title in that the gameplay largely revolves around walking around, picking up objects to solve certain puzzles, and conversing with different characters. Fahrenheit again dares to be different however when it comes to controls, utilising the second analogue stick to perform subtle context sensitive actions; we donāt want to spoil any surprises, but taking for example the opening rest-room sequence, a quick flick of the stick picks up the broom and then requires delicate motions to sweep the floor.
A large quota of the game also relies on Dragonās Lair/Shenmue quicktime actions, hitting the two analogue sticks in the directions designated onscreen. Traditionally this system is criticised for its lack of interaction, however Fahrenheit goes against the grain ensuring that such scenes are highly intense affairs, more so it ensures a strong cinematic feel is prevalent throughout the entire game ā“ the moment Kaneās apartment literally tears apart from the foundations is one that youāll remember for a very, very long time!
The quicktime commands however serve more then just a means to taking control during the high-action scenes; since things started getting a little weird in Kaneās life heās picked up an ability to visualise future events. Throughout the game players are presented with a series of quicktime actions to perform, doing so successfully will present the future vision possibly highlighting the solution to a problem; one particular example early in the game sees the diner cop visiting Kane at his apartment complete with bloodied clothes, bed sheets and other incriminating evidence, performing the quicktime actions will highlight these to the player ensuring that you can cover them up before the cop arrives. Itās quite honestly a brilliant technique designed to eradicate the ātrial-and-errorā frustrations associated with the adventure genre; more so Intuition ties in with the nature of the game and has been implemented with startling aplomb.
Further examples of Fahrenheitās ingenuity carry on throughout the game; one particular example features Carla catching Lucas at work, once again a quicktime event will provide you the clue to hiding any incriminating evidence. Having done this youāll have to answer a few of Carlaās questions, with the choice of answering truthfully, lying or trying to dodge the question; quicktime events between the questions provide access to Carlaās inner thoughts outlining for example the things that she knows and is trying to get Lucas to slip up on. Ever since the murder Lucas is suffering from strange visions, these pop up during the conversation in the form of more quicktime commands; successfully completing these however results in Lucas jumping around like a loon much to Carlaās suspicions, we wonāt spoil the solution suffice to say itās one of those rare moments when the answer suddenly dawns upon you in a flash of ingenuity.
As previously said there are criticisms; the somewhat wallow control over a characterās movements combined with the fixed placed cameras will frustrate those used to fluid and responsive systems. Equally the adventure based gameplay and quicktime action scenes will invoke fury amongst those who criticise them for a general lack of interaction, regardless of the sophistication demonstrated by every facet of Fahrenheit.
If youāre the type of person that likeās the sound of Fahrenheit then youāll play through the game hoping that the end credits will never roll. The twisting storyline actually lasts longer then we thought it would, but regrettably the end will come. So itās surprising to find the game still appealing beyond this; anybody who enjoyed every minute the first time through will likely play through a second time, whilst the inclusion of unlockable goodies accessed by collecting hidden bonus cards is a nice touch ā“ letās just hope itās not another five-year wait before we hear from Quantic Dreams again, Omnikron 2 has show way up in our anticipationsā¦
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