Second Sight PC Hands-On

This ain't no palm reading simulator.

Looking back on it, it's interesting that psi-power action games haven't been more popular. I mean, who doesn't have a moment where they wish they could pick up someone from across the room and fling them out a window? Guns are neat, and throwing fireballs at people has its place, but the niche of parapsychology doesn't get its due. Well, now we have two games to choose from, with Psi-Ops and Second Sight, the latter of which is set to come out in less than two weeks after a successful run on the consoles.

It would be impossible to ignore Psi-Ops when comparing Second Sight to other games, as they both involve guys with amnesia who gradually uncover their powers over the course of the game and have us wandering through flashback sequences. Unlike Psi-Ops, however, these flashbacks cover the plot instead of being mostly psi power tutorials, and I think SS has a better story line, dialogue, and general voice acting. Since the action genre in particular usually gets the short shrift in these areas, it's great to see someone actually trying to tell a story, instead of attempting to outdo with flashy eye candy and a bludgeoning soundtrack. When it comes down to it, actually, I think SS has more in common with The Suffering than Psi-Ops. The visuals might not be the best in the business, but the story and the mood draw you in.

As SS is a console port, it's not without some sharp edges. The graphics haven't gotten much of an overall, from what I can tell. There's blurry textures, blocky objects, and relatively simplified character models. The animation is pretty good, though, and there's ragdoll physics, some environmental destructibility, and varied locales to prop up the slightly low number of polygons and other bells and whistles the PC gamer has been spoiled with. There's also a pleasing amount of interactivity, although I wouldn't recommend playing this on the heels of Half-Life 2. You can access computer terminals, examine video screens, check security cameras, and read notes scribbled on pieces of paper. I like poking around the game world, and SS has all kinds of details that are neat to explore.

The sound effects won't blow you away, but the music is pretty well done. I would like more than one type of track to start playing when the guards are alerted to your location, but it's nice that each area has a different and appropriate theme song. The weapons sound a little underpowered, but you can tell by ear which one is which.

Speaking of weapons, here's where the interface comes into play. It's actually pretty intuitive--a fairly rare feat for a console port--and almost entirely mouse-driven. There's a lot of stealth in SS, but it isn't the type where you fail if you're caught. You can lean against walls, crouch, peek around corners and through doors, crawl around corners, slide down ladders, hang from and shimmy along ledges--it's the standard set of moves for this type of game. I would like to see the ability to sprint and jump, but that's only because I can never have too many options. The game doesn't really call for jumping, and you'll uncover certain abilities that alleviate the inability to make a dash from cover to cover.

To target someone, you just right-click, then left click to fire. The targeting is mostly auto-lock, but you'll need to nudge it a little if you want a quick headshot. When that enemy goes down, the lock will immediately switch to the next guy. The dot in the middle of the locked reticule will determine where the round actually lands, but since it's the same color as the rest of the reticule, and can sometimes be difficult to make out precisely where that dot is. Still, having auto-lock makes things fairly smooth when you're already equipped with a mouse and keyboard. In fact, it may make things a little too easy. We'll have to play the game some more before it becomes clear. The game also pauses while you scroll through weapons and psi powers--another holdover from console design--but I happen to like this because it approximates how long it would take to select that weapon in a real life situation.

Unfortunately, I can't say many good things about the camera system, a problem that most 3rd-person action-adventure games seem to be plagued with. There's a few different modes to choose from--fixed, over the shoulder, and first-person, and you'll likely be using all of them because just one isn't quite good enough. The over-the-shoulder cam is a bit too far away from the character most of the time, particularly in tight indoor environments. I would love the ability to tweak it on the fly like in, say, World of Warcraft, because SS does seem to call for dynamic adjustment. This camera also sometimes focuses on the character, rather than where I want to look. First person doesn't allow you to move, but it's great for precision shots or for hitting objects that aren't quite exposed enough for the auto-lock to engage. You can lean around a little bit too, which is always handy. The fixed camera mode moves the perspective around the room depending on where you are, and doesn't track you, so it's typically only good for spotting and tracking guard movement.

Despite a few flies in the ointment, I had to force myself to stop playing so I could write this hands-on. I think the game is looking pleasingly good, mostly for what it isn't: The story isn't window dressing for the explosions and gunfire, the voice acting and dialogue don't make me roll my eyes, the main character isn't a generic, gun-toting avatar, and the action isn't a matter of smacking toy ducks with an air rifle at the carnival. There's an increasing number of action games out there that feel like insultingly bad movies you find yourself flipping through at 1:00 in the morning, and I'm glad that Second Sight appears to buck this trend.

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