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Syphon Filter 2 Review
Noel Brady
00/12/0000
It may not be groundbreaking but it sure is fun, and well worth a look.
Stealth. It's the latest buzz word as far as PlayStation 3D shooters and action adventure games are concerned and you have the success of one Metal Gear Solid to thank for it. The appeal of wading through entire armies relying only on increasingly-large weaponry and a total lack of common sense can be fun for a while, but the introduction of stealth has made shoot-'em-ups infinitely more playable.
Why waste 30 machine gun rounds taking out an enemy when you can creep up behind him, slit his throat, steal his still pristine body armour and be on your way without a sound? Surgical violence trumps indiscriminate brutality because it gives you a geuine sense of having outsmarted someone, rather than coincidentally winging them into a blizzard of bullets that leave a Clint Eastwood western looking like Mary Poppins.
Although influenced by the likes of Metal Gear Solid and Tenchu: Stealth Assassions, Syphon Filter 3 retains the instant playability and intense action sequences that characterised its predecessor. You play Gabriel Logan, the hero of the first game and his occasional sidekick, Lian Xing. Initially they begin the game in completely different locations, but as the plot unfolds you realise they're on the same mission. The deadly Syphon Filter virus has fallen into the wrong hands and you have to prevent it being sold to terrorists.
The game is mission-based-- there are 20 in all-- and your tasks can include anything from escaping a heavily guarded base (without any weaponry) to preventing the destruction of a bridge. Excitingly your objectives may suddenly change mid-mission, as the situation gets out of hand and you find yourself switching to Plan B. The only thing all the levels have in common is an element of stealth, but even this is variable, ensuring that no two missions feel quite the same.
Evasive manoeuvres are made easier by a great control system which enables you to perform all your ordinary moves in a stealth mode. You'll move a little slower than normal, but you're a lot less likely to attract unwanted attention. The only problem with trhe control system is that you've got to reign in your enthusiasm or you'll attempt too many moves at once-- stealthily leaning around a corner while readying a sniper rifle for example. The auto-targeting feature inherited from the first game can be used to compensate, but for those instantly gratifying, and occasionally necessary, head shots you need to aim manually.
Justr like the original game, some parts are incredibly tricky. After messing around on a bridge or creeping past soldiers for ages the relief of finally moving onto another objective is often immense. Part of the satisfaction of progressing through the game is to finally get past the bits that you never have to do again. But once you manage to overcome those grisly bits of gameplay, the game is far easier to digest. It's the combination of quick-quick-slow stealth followed by action, platform, followed by puzzle, that gives this title it's special appeal.
The game is not the most amazing to look at. The graphics are quite ordinary, there's scruffy presentation and glitches. Gabe still looks like he's been kicked in the nuts when doing the stealth bit, makes out he's wading through mud when running and goes down in installments when rolling, but you get over it. It's easy to forgive because the action is so relentless and varied. It's a big laugh. There's never a dull moment.
Because of the flexibility of the gameplay there's no action cliche they can't have a stab at so it will have you swinging across bridges and running head first, guns blaming into a small army of East European rebels. While it's supposed to have a plot structuring the game, it never lets that interfere with its momentum. It still retains that B-Movie dumbness and tongue-in-cheek espionage. It tarts itself up with classy FMV and a story that believes plot depth is including characters with weird surnames, but it knows it isn't kidding anyone.
Also new to the fold is the Deathmatch mode. This is a one-on-one with limited suspense, but is still a welcome addition. Much like the rest of the game it's less about being sophisticated and clever and more about rushing around and shooting people in the head. Many may have issues about sequels being lazy copies but I think we can forgive Syphon Filter 2. It may not be groundbreaking but it sure is fun, and well worth a look.
