http://computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=224354
By the year 2051 the world's population will have hit a staggering total of 9.8 billion. Mankind's resources will be unable to cope with the demands. Clean water will be hard to source. Food supplies are projected to be even tougher to maintain. Space shortages will give rise to housing problems. For many the world will not end in a bang - rather it will wither away slowly as its inhabitants are starved and left without the basics needed for life.
In Hydrophobia's grim future - which, it should be noted, is frighteningly close to select scientific projections - five self-proclaimed founding fathers think they've got the answer. The heads of the world's biggest companies decide to pool resources to create a floating paradise called the Queen of the World, where their research into the enhancement of supplies isn't impeded by stringent government regulations. Their ideas eerily echo those of Andrew Ryan. Their world may be on the surface rather than the sea bed, but the free-from-state principles remain intact. And, rather unsurprisingly, not everybody agrees with the idea.
 |
Hydrophobia begins just before the tenth anniversary of the Queen of the World's launch. On the eve of the anniversary celebrations NanoCell's playboy head John Dolton breaks company silence and throws a giant party for the world's leaders to unveil his plans to enhance human life. But before NanoCell saves the world the terrorists strike, and one of their bombs sends an elevator - with engineer and Hydrophobia protagonist Kate Wilson - careering down to the ship's lowest decks. Ker-ash.
With no security clearance (you can thank a system-wiping computer virus for that) her goal to reach the Queen's top levels and escape the flooding vessel isn't going to be easy. To make things worse a traumatic childhood experience during which Kate lost her sister has left her with a fear of water, and the ship's hull is failing fast.
It's been more than two years since we first got our eyes all over Hydrophobia. Back then it was little more than a swanky wetness engine; now it's almost complete. In its 24 months underground (or should that be underwater?) the biggest change has unquestionably been its shift from full retail release to Live Arcade title. Hydrophobia's story has been split into three episodes of around five hours each to be released within a twelve month window. If it proves to be successful there's potential for more episodes beyond the original three.
 |
The creaking, groaning hull of the Queen of the World hides levels which take their cues from Dead Space. Lights flicker on and off as water drip-drips down into cable gullies and bloodied bodies litter the gantries to signify nearby terrorists. The world possesses the same fidelity as EA's sci-fi shooter, only it's obviously not as far-flung into the future. Dead Space deals in holograms, Hydrophobia in flexi-screens - real technology being developed today. Flexible, extendable screens with light-blue writing doubles for signage all over the ship, immediately invoking echoes of Dead Space's artistry.
Even Isaac's inventory system is duplicated in some form. Kate owns a roll of film called a Mobile Automated Visual Interface (MAVI for short) which has multiple real-time uses, two of which include a Detective Vision mode a la Batman: Arkham Asylum and the ability to hack into camera systems and then remotely open doors with mighty walls of water behind them to flood enemy-entrenched hallways.
In the atmospheric stakes the levels are also Dead Space through and through, but to navigate them Kate will need to leap, roll and grab like a chimpanzee pumped full of Lucozade. Luckily she's put the time in at the gym and is as nimble an explorer as a certain Lady Croft. She jumps on pipes, shimmies along ledges and scales shafts with barely a hand-hold to help her along, dodging steam blasts and falling debris along the way. The environment is every bit as deadly as the terrorists are, but with just a little foresight it's possible to turn Kate's surroundings against her foes.
 |
Collectibles also factor in the score. In one early room Kate needs to dive underwater to progress, but if she instead leaps over the water pool and then climbs up a blazing lift shaft she'll encounter the body of Malthusian Marcus. By his hand is a suicide note referencing ship worker Aaron. The pick-up is added to the final Act score but, more than that, it underlines an early subplot. Emails between Aaron and Marcus are among the first snippets of correspondence you'll discover (later you can even reply to other characters after locating messages to influence their behaviour), but if you fail to locate this secret room from the onset their storyline will never be complete.
Of all the meta-challenges that Dark Energy Digital has written into the story the most interesting are the wildcard events. Awarded for expert play, they involve locating shortcuts throughout the game. Find yourself in a flooding corridor and you might need to turn valves and open escape hatches to continue. However, astute gamers needn't find themselves in that situation. Stroll into a corridor with alarms blazing and hatches bursting and there's a second option: sprint towards the closing floor door, dodge the water jets and roll under the shutters before they close. The move shaves valuable time off your journey and earns you a wad of wildcard points.
 |
Recently Spotted:
*crickets*
Interesting.
Is it also coming on the PC or is it a XBLA exclusive?
Hmm well I'll definitely at least try out the trial version of the game when it hits XBLA.
Looks like something I'd like to play.
All they need to do is actually sue the toilet rather than just releaving themselves asthey go along (just because you can do it without anyone knowing doesn't mean you should) and with a little filteration it should be fit for consumption.
http://computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=225177
Part 2 impressions:
"To label Hydrophobia one of the most exciting projects headed to XBLA would be jumping the gun slightly. The technology and the ideas are there, but a game is only ever great when these factors are pulled together in the final months of programming, and this test has yet to be undertaken. For now it's simply one to watch very closely: the incomplete areas we played were exciting tasters of what's to come provided the odd issues - AI and combat being two work-in-progress elements - are resolved before launch. We've seen glimpses of a game that could blow its XBLA competition out of the water - all that's needed now is one final pre-launch push to carry it over the wave and into calmer waters"