Japanese video games have had a lot of trouble in reaching a broad international audience in recent times. While titles such as Yakuza, Vanquish and Bayonetta have received glowing reviews from the press, they have only managed to carve out a niche market for themselves. There appears to be something about the Japanese creative vision that is proving to be a hard sell to western audiences. Binary Domain is SEGA’s attempt to rectify this problem by making a Japanese game with the western market firmly in mind. So it was with both apprehension and anticipation that I took a drive to Sydney to see if they had put together a game that may just excite the local gaming populous.
I was ushered into the preview room by my lovely host, seated on a couch in front of an enormous television, handed a 360 controller and told to go for it. So that was exactly what I did. I was told that this was a preview code so there were obviously some bugs and niggles still needing to be worked out. With this in mind I set off on my journey through a futuristic Japanese underworld. The game is set after global warming had caused the oceans to flood most major cities. In response to this, the cities were built up, high rises were constructed on the ruins of the flooded zones and it was in these flooded zones that my journey began.
The game started me out slowly, guiding me through the control scheme. Being a third person shooter, the controls were what you would expect. A nice cover system was included which, along with having the reload button set as RB, immediately reminded me of Gears of War. In fact the influence of Epic’s bloodthirsty shooter could be seen throughout Binary Domain. From the ‘duck walk’ to the weapon system, it was clear that more than a few cues had been taken from Marcus Fenix and co. As I ‘roadie ran’ my way through the tutorial I encountered my first enemy, robots. My host then informed me that mass production of robots began when labour was needed to build the new cities above. These robots had become a police force in Japan. Sadly, they didn’t follow Asimov’s three rules.
I found the shooting tight and the ability to blast off parts of the robots’ anatomy, even as they continued to hunt me down, a great addition to the gameplay. There was something quite cool in the way these machines continued to drag themselves after me even after I had severed their legs. It all screamed Terminator and I was more than okay with that. Another interesting feature was the consequence system. It basically meant that all of my actions triggered a reaction from my squad mates. If I agreed with something they said, made a good tactical choice or saved them with a health pack, then their trust in me increased. If I accidently shot them, called them names or ignored their cries for help, their faith in me decreased. While I didn’t get far enough into the game for this system to have a massive effect, I was assured that my squad mates’ performance would increase or decrease depending on their level of confidence in me.
The tactical command system is worth mentioning as well. Using the LB, I could give four basic commands to my team. I was able to use this system to draw out snipers while my team covered me, flank a group of robots, and send a teammate on a decoy run while I took out a machine gun pit. While it wasn’t in the build I played, the game will apparently support voice commands using standard microphones. I was also told that using voice commands will allow for many more options in directing the squad.
I did encounter some problems. Moving and finding cover was difficult on occasion. As a result, I was forced to call on my teammate for an assist or health pack, when it really shouldn’t have been necessary. Alloying a player to become stuck while trying to get into cover is something a game of this nature cannot afford to do. Hopefully it is ironed out. Both the voices and the graphics could do with a spit and shine before release day as well. I found the acting over-the-top and the graphics, on occasion, bland and uninspiring, not to mention jaggy.
Before I knew it, my session with the game was over. I had lost track of time and an hour had quickly disappeared. I took this to be a good sign of what is to come. The story seemed to be a cross between Robocop and I, Robot with morality and ethics being called into question. The deeper than expected narrative really hooked me and I was disappointed that I couldn’t find out what happened next.
As I walked out of SEGA HQ I found myself contemplating my time with Binary Domain. I loved the story, shooting and Consequence System and while there were a few things I found grating, the graphics and voice acting in particular, I came to the conclusion that the game has a lot of potential. If SEGA has applied the final touches since putting together this preview build, it may well have that elusive western hit on its hands.
