My Debut into the Cosy World of Opinions

For someone who fancies himself a dumb brute - writing a blog is a rather foreign concept. Though alas I was persuaded by my good friend and fellow Greek god, Quin (or Capt Quiggles for the well acquainted). But behind this sexy exterior lies a man of deep thought - dwelling on the important matters of the universe, like mini-golf. So this will be my space to rant not only on the trivial things of life but also the more complex. To kick off my shenanigans, lets explore something that will challenge and help us all better understand the human condition - so here's a game review about space marines.

(I'll assume you've watched the trailer)

Getting right to the point, Binary Domain doesn't look like anything special. Its practically ripped straight from Blade Runner, its a generic third-person shooter and the main characters are built like fridges. Spend a few hours with it however and you'll find something intriguing - you're actually having fun! Why? Well let me tell you.

My first epiphany happened when I noticed the dialogue was quite...alright. The constant banter between characters was genuinely funny sometimes - enough that I anticipated what they had to say next. And then there were the times you could tell the writer just wanted to go home, "anyone still alive? Holler if you're dead." So the writing fluctuates a bit, but heck at least the voice-acting's okay.

There's even a cute little feature where you can turn on your headset and talk to your squad. The game recognises something around 50 phrases, some of which are hilarious. I looked down the list and much to my surprise found the words 'fuck' and 'shit', and like any good christian I decided to indulge in a giggle. The first time I tried the game heard me and the characters promptly told me to calm down, the second time the game seemed to confuse the f-bomb with 'I love you' in the middle of battle and my teammate accused me of being weird. So obviously I gave up on that endeavor pretty quickly.

Speaking of weird, the game implements a trust system. If you make good decisions, speak nicely to your team and perform well in combat then your squad's trust increases (or the other way around). I did my best to keep everyone happy, but the AI does does its best to make the job hard for you. Lay down a base of hot steamy lead and your AI teammates will magnetise towards it - walking right into your bullets, and they have the audacity to complain about it.

I should probably talk about the story (which I really should have done at the beginning). The trailer says most of it - the line between robots and humans is becoming blurred - so shoot robots. The story had a lot of potential to explore issues of prejudice and what defines 'living'. What happens when the robots we live with are so similar to humans we don't know the difference - when they too deal with emotions and experience suffering? Does that mean its okay to mistreat them just because they're nuts 'nd bolts? The game manages to just scratch the surface of such issues, and only at the end!

There's a lot I didn't mention. I could have gone through all the boring stuff, but the major publications have done that for me. I only talked about what interested me, and I needed an excuse for a blog.

I was probably a bit mean to Binary Domain, its really quite competent and the story always takes you through interesting locales - much better than some I've seen. Plus the game has rest points - times when you don't shoot - actual juxtaposition! Take a lesson Call of Duty!