<\/p>\n

A new brand of survival horror has arrived with Dark Energy\u2019s episodic Xbox Live Arcade title, Hydrophobia<\/em>. Gone are the zombies and other undead creatures. Gone are the psychological tricks, pop-up scares and buckets of gore. Hydrophobia<\/em> is a third-person action-horror game that plays on real-life fears of water, darkness and claustrophobia rather than paranormal oddities and unbelievable monsters. And for the most part it succeeds at generating this unique sense of fear and tension, thanks to a groundbreaking water simulation engine and a game world rich in graphical detail and atmospheric audio.<\/p>\n

Hydrophobia<\/em> takes place on a massive \u201ccity-at-sea\u201d known as the Queen of the World and stars one of the ship\u2019s engineers, Kate Wilson, who is forced to face her fears of water after a terrorist group attacks the ship and sends it sinking to an explosive, watery death. <\/p>\n

There is a deeper story somewhere in here, but sadly it\u2019s buried underneath such lousy writing and voice acting that I just couldn\u2019t get myself to care as much as I desperately wanted to. The less-than-satisfying way the game comes to a close doesn\u2019t help matters either. This is the first part in what\u2019s planned to be an episodic series spanning three parts, so I was fully expecting a cliffhanger after my five to six hours with the game before I even started. However, what I got was a Kane & Lynch 2<\/em> style ending<\/a>, where the episode abruptly cuts off without getting you jazzed to see what happens when Kate\u2019s underwater dilemma continues.<\/p>\n

The game itself has issues of its own, but definitely fares much, much better than the plot setup suggests. Hydrophobia<\/em> is a third-person shooter based around a standard issue cover system and the typical survival-horror mechanic of skulking down dark corridors lit only by the cone of a flashlight. Basic platforming and exploration play large roles as well, as navigating the sinking ship requires Kate to climb up and shimmy across pipes, tight-rope narrow beams, swim through flooded hallways, and leap between ledges. The game also throws the occasional hacking mini-game at you, and from time to time you have to hunt for ciphers to unlock doors using a hand-held augmented reality device to scan walls for the invisible codes.<\/p>\n

What sets Hydrophobia<\/em> apart from other third-person action\/horror games is the HydroEngine, a proprietary physics engine created over three years by Dark Energy specifically to simulate dynamic water flow in video games. I\u2019d say they succeeded, because this game\u2019s water effects are by far the most realistic I\u2019ve ever seen. But the water is more than just the pretty special effect it\u2019s used for in other games. In Hydrophobia<\/em>, the water is an interactive character that you are constantly at odds with \u2013 in addition to being a pretty special effect. Sure, you do fight against actual bad dudes with guns, but water is this game\u2019s real antagonist. Yet in certain situations it can also be a trusty sidekick. It\u2019s an intriguing dichotomy.<\/p>\n

With the game so obviously built to highlight the HydroEngine, it\u2019s no surprise that every aspect of the gameplay is impacted by water. Puzzles are diverse and interesting, regularly requiring you to think of ways to use the surrounding water to your advantage. Say, opening a nearby door to allow water to drain into the next room, shooting out glass barriers to unleash the water waiting to bust loose behind it, or using water to put out fires. Water can also be used as a weapon to kill terrorists in dynamically sadistic ways, whether you want to drown them, float an exploding barrel their way and blow it up as it flows by, or shoot exposed wires or circuit breakers and have the electrical charge fry them up real nice. Once you\u2019ve complete the game, you also unlock a survival arena mode called the Challenge Room, and in it Kate actually has the ability to kinetically command water to suit her every whim. Needless to say, this is very cool to play around with \u2013 but it\u2019s a shame it wasn\u2019t incorporated into the core game.<\/p>\n

As a direct enemy, water presents many challenges. The water realistically flows back and forth in waves based on the state of the environment and your actions within it, so as you are moving along you have to be prepared for the current to shift and potentially knock you around or suddenly fill the area. You can be walking along fine, and then “wham,” in the blink of an eye you\u2019ll be fully submerged in the wet stuff. Oil fires spread across the surface of the water too, so you better be sure you\u2019re in a safe place before you blow up any barrels.<\/p>\n

This simulated flow of water, unfortunately, can be as much of a nuisance as it is a dynamic gamplay enhancer and impressive graphical flourish. Since you are constantly being knocked around by the shifting H20, the camera tends to jostle around too much with it and the constant rattling and shaking of the perspective can become disorienting enough to almost make you seasick, which in turn can cause you to lose track within the cramped, labyrinthine network of corridors you are so regularly swimming through. I\u2019m sure part of this is by design, and in small doses it\u2019s great for building immersion. But it does become overkill at certain points. <\/p>\n

The weakest part of the game, though, is the combat. The developers tried to spice it up with optional ammo types (the main attack is like a taser gun, but you can get ammo like automatic rounds and explosive gels) and a scoring system which rewards you for creative environmental kills and combo chains. But these accouterments aren\u2019t enough to mask the unnecessarily complex control scheme, awkward cover system and dirt-dumb enemy AI. The gunplay isn\u2019t terrible mind you; it just lacks the polish of a true AAA title and mostly feels like an afterthought.<\/p>\n

Taking these errors into account, Hydrophobia<\/em>\u2019s chief problem quickly became clear to me as I played: it is trying too hard to be both a game and a tech demo for the water physics engine, and this split focus takes away from some of the game\u2019s \u201cgamey\u201d aspects. I\u2019m sure that wasn\u2019t the intent; that\u2019s just how it comes across. <\/p>\n

But the good news is that the gameplay, although flawed, is plenty playable, and the HydroEngine is impressive enough to carry the game home. If you can put up with the control and camera quirks, Hydrophobia<\/em> is a game I highly recommend checking out and hope gets the chance to sustain itself into future episodes as planned. Just play the trial version first to be safe.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Pros:<\/strong>
\n+ The most amazing water physics ever; the water is a character rather than a special effect
\n+ Using water as a weapon and puzzle solver is dynamic and exciting
\n+ Tense, claustrophobic atmosphere scares you in a new way
\n+ Impressive all-around audiovisual production<\/p>\n

Cons:<\/strong>
\n– Weak acting, writing and ending kill what could have been a compelling storyline
\n– Stiff, overly complex controls
\n– Disorienting camera shakes and turns<\/p>\n

Game Info:<\/strong>
\nPlatform: Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade
\nPublisher: Microsoft
\nDeveloper: Dark Energy
\nRelease Date: 9\/29\/2010
\nGenre: Survival Horror
\nESRB Rating: Mature
\nPlayers: 1
\nSource: Review code provided by publisher<\/p>\n

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