Wild Earth Review

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            Wild Earth

Review by MrLipidJuly 2006

We Have a Winner!

I’m still smiling. Why? I’ve just been replaying some of the assignments in Wild Earth. What is Wild Earth? Gather round the virtual campfire on the plains of the simulated Serengeti and I’ll tell you.

Wild Earth is a photo-safari game. You play a photo journalist on assignment with a writer (Valerie Deveraux) and a professor (James Connors), who exist in the game as voiceovers only. The writer asks questions as the professor provides guidance, both in terms of what one is looking for and what one is looking at. And you’ll need guidance.  Wild Earth features a 3D engine proprietary to Super X Studios that allows players to wander about as if actually on location in Africa.

As you wander, a panel in the upper left corner informs you of what pictures need to be taken for the article Valerie is writing.  As each photo is successfully taken, the next required photo appears.  Professor Connors suggests what to look for next, and if you get completely lost, a direction finder appears in the lower right corner to offer a hint.

The direction finder is particularly useful when what you are looking for is hidden by the terrain. If not for its guidance, I’d never have found the pangolin tucked away behind a collection of massive boulders. Finding the subjects of required photographs gives Wild Earth an engaging Easter egg–hunt quality. And stalking subjects while waiting for specific actions to occur helps develop the patience that great photography requires. Wild Earth gently insists that players slow down and pay attention while remaining ready to get the shot the instant it appears. The process is both calming and exhilarating.

The engine does a superb job of conveying the impression of a living world. Scripted events, for example, can be viewed from any available vantage point. Happen upon a hyena eating crocodile eggs and you can walk to whichever position affords the best shot or take shots from a variety of positions. You can even crouch to capture the moment eye-to-eye. Super X Studios has worked wonders in rounding off the usual harsh edges found in computer-generated outdoor environments.  The meticulous sound design and drumming/chanting musical score also help deepen the immersion.

Don’t Annoy the Animals

There are specific photos that must be taken and some that are optional. While it might be tempting to get as close as possible to your wild subjects, you will lose points if you annoy them. A red indicator, shaped like a boomerang, appears when you are too close. Annoy them enough and you’ll have to restart the assignment.  In some cases, such as driving a jeep overland in the middle of a stampeding herd of wildebeests—before dawn, no less—avoiding contact becomes quite a challenge. (Tip: Let them all get past you before you begin pursuit. And be patient lest you sideswipe any stragglers.)

The Wild Earth manual, in addition to the usual epilepsy and motion sickness warnings, also has an Animal Warning: “Since Wild Earth is a game, the animals cannot hurt you. But in real life, wild animals can be very dangerous! Always use caution and have respect for wildlife. Remember, it’s their home, not yours!”

Once you have taken all of the required pictures, you can edit them for impact before seeing them published in Ms. Deveraux’s article.  The edited photos appear on a web page, which can be printed out.  You, as the photographer, get a credit alongside the writer. The article recaps much of the information that emerges from the conversations between Deveraux and Connors during the assignment. Did you know, for example, that adult elephants can eat up to 440 pounds of food a day, excreting 60 percent of it undigested? Neither did I. But I did get a picture of that 60 percent.

What Are We Doing Today, Zool?

The assignments include catching up with a herd of zebra and exploring their social order, taking a helicopter ride across the Ngorongoro crater, following vultures as they soar and scavenge around the Serengeti, driving a safari jeep and meeting up with a variety of animals, going on a nighttime hunt for a lion pride, investigating the sometimes craven, sometimes bold hyena during a midday thunderstorm, entering a hidden valley and observing gentle giraffes and black and white rhinos (did you know there were black and white rhinos?), meeting a family of elephants as they care for their young and each other, wading into a rushing river to get as close to Nile crocodiles and hippos as you dare, meeting the fastest land animals (cheetahs) and possibly the ugliest ones (warthogs), and taking the previously mentioned predawn drive with a massive wildebeest herd as it migrates across Africa.

The helicopter ride assignment is particularly challenging because it plays out like a rail shooter. The helicopter takes a specific path, and it is up to you to find the images that Connors and Deveraux are discussing. You don’t have a lot of time, and you don’t get a second chance. Sort of like what it’s really like to take pictures of wildlife.

An AAA Independent

Wild Earth picked up three prizes at the 2003 Independent Game Festival: Game of the Year, Innovation in Game Design, and Innovation in Visual Arts. All well-deserved. Even three years later, it remains a stunner. (It would have arrived sooner had not a publishing deal with Digital Jesters collapsed after burning up roughly half a year.) At the moment, Wild Earth is only available as a download. Soon, it should be showing up at a store near you. If Wild Earth sounds like something you’d enjoy, download the demo. If you do enjoy it, you can order the full game from within the demo for a mere $29.95.

Missions Accomplished: A Modest File Edit

If you want to unlock all eleven missions immediately, here’s what you need to do. Establish a player name within the game. Close the game and go to C:Documents and SettingsAll UsersApplication DataSuper X StudiosWild Earth.

Open the file “users” with NotePad. (Do not confuse the file “users” with the folder “Users.”)

Once the file “users” is open, you’ll find, under the heading [user0], the following:

MissionSuccess00=0 MissionSuccess01=0 MissionSuccess02=0 MissionSuccess03=0 MissionSuccess04=0 MissionSuccess05=0 MissionSuccess06=0 MissionSuccess07=0 MissionSuccess08=0 MissionSuccess09=0 MissionSuccess10=0

Change the final 0 to 1 so that you now have this:

MissionSuccess00=1 MissionSuccess01=1 MissionSuccess02=1 MissionSuccess03=1 MissionSuccess04=1 MissionSuccess05=1 MissionSuccess06=1 MissionSuccess07=1 MissionSuccess08=1 MissionSuccess09=1 MissionSuccess10=1

Save and close the file “users.” You have just convinced the game you have successfully completed all of the missions.

This means when you go to select an assignment, you can choose from among all of the assignments the game offers. The End

The Verdict

The Lowdown

Developer: Super X Studios Publisher: Super X Studios Release Date: April 18, 2006

Available for: Windows

Four Fat Chicks Links

Player Feedback

Screenshots

Click to enlarge Click to enlargeClick to enlarge Click to enlargeClick to enlarge Click to enlargeClick to enlarge Click to enlargeClick to enlarge Click to enlargeClick to enlarge Click to enlarge

System Requirements

Windows 98SE, ME, 2000 Pro, XP Home, or XP Pro 1 GHz CPU 1 GB free hard drive space 256 MB RAM 32 MB DirectX 9.0-compatible video card (NVidia Geforce, ATI Radeon, or better) DirectX 9.0-compatible audio card

Where to Find It

Wild Earth website

Links provided for informational purposes only. FFC makes no warranty with regard to any transaction entered into by any party(ies). 

      Copyright © Electric Eye Productions.  All rights reserved.  No reproduction in whole or in part without express written permission.

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14 Responses to Fear Factor

  • Fear Factor | Tap-Repeatedly.com | Reality Topics Blog

    […] nobody@flickr.com (graftedno1) wrote a very interesting post today.   Here’s a quick excerpt:My greatest fear is to be trapped alone in a confined space with a blind human, in total darkness. They have a heightened sense of smell and hearing, and. […]

  • Matt "Steerpike" Sakey

    Lewis, you made me think of the scariest moments I’ve experienced in gaming, and we’re very similar people.

    Bioshock had two moments – the dentist and the flooded room filled with mannequins.

    Thief had Return to the Cathedral, which was terrifying to me. Thief 3 had Shalebridge Cradle, which is so scary it ought to be fined.

    System Shock 2 kept me on the edge of my seat, but it was more lonely panic than true fear.

    Korsakovia was so scary that I uninstalled it.

    And STALKER. Oh, god, the haunted labs in STALKER. The latter two games don’t have scares like that. Few games do.

    It’s especially rare for a game to have more than mere “moments” – for a game to be scary from beginning to end, that’s a triumph.

    Wonderful article. As if Gregg’s review wasn’t enough to convince me that Penumbra is not something I have the courage to play!

  • DPenn

    I’m with you Lewis … I’m a bit of a puss. I just have a hard time wrapping my head around the idea of dread as entertainment.

    Still, I’m drawn to dark stories when they have something interesting to say, whether it’s a game like Thief or a film like, say, Gaspar Noe’s Irreversible. So I’ll push through, sometimes peering through my fingers.

    The trouble with games, though, is that if you look through your fingers, you’re probably just going to have to play through the scenario again. :~)

  • Mike "Scout" Gust

    I wanted to play this game. I downloaded the demo but the controls were just too wonky for me to get my head around. I liked the atmospheric vibe a lot. I think I’m a bit desensitized from an overdose of horror movies in my youth so I don’t so much get the dread thing from these games as a nice creepy vibration. If only the controls were better…

  • Lewis B

    @ Mike, what’s wrong with the controls bud? As someone who despises poor control schemes, Penumbra’s is just like any other FPS, except to examine things you right click on them.  To use things you left click.  I’m not sure that can be considered difficult 🙂

  • Gregg B

    @Steerpike: Yeah my greatest shit-scared moments were with those games too. A few spoilers below people, so beware.

    Bioshock – Haha, I remember the dentist. I didn’t really find the game that scary overall but the bit where you go into the wine cellar and notice a mannequin facing the wall and after upgrading your weapon it’s stood directly behind you motionless and quiet just for a moment before attacking you. I shat a brick. I also missed that bit originally until Lew told me about it.

    System Shock 2 – same as you really, more unremitting tension all the way through rather than specific terrifying moments. Oh actually, theres a bit where you call a lift and it breaks then you realise a service droid is coming to fix it… I do remember having sleep issues after my first encounter with the cyborg ninjas though.

    Thief: The Dark Project – The Sword and Return to the Cathedral and Down in the Bonehoard and well, loads of them. The Sword made me break out into goosebumps though because there was a bit where you could hear this creepy giggling which seemed like it was following me about then it suddenly changed to this horrible throaty noise. What made matters worse was that the EAX (bless you Creative) made my foot steps sound like somebody else was there with me. That level was incredible, a bit too incredible as it seems I missed great chunks of it because I was so eager to leave.

    Thief II: The Metal Age – Trail of Blood where you end up in that opening with those damn tree beasts. God the first time I saw one of those hurtling towards me I actually died shortly afterward. Do you remember that Mechanist child walking around on one of the levels? That was a little creepy.

    Then there’s Penumbra: Overture – quite a few bits but I’m not mentioning them here.

    Oh and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. – The brain scorcher lab just because it was so damn quiet. My imagination seriously got the better of me there. Those stuffed animals and heads I’d seen in various buildings led me to believe that those creatures were lurking somewhere in the Zone, specifically that lab.

    @Mike: My control setup was perfect after some tweaking (as well as the simple weapon swing fix). If you ever fancy giving it another go, give me a shout and I’ll let you know my setup.

  • Lewis B

    I’m not sure why guys, but one of my starting paragraphs had gone missing, even though I copied it straight from the original source, and It was fine earlier. 

    Incase you missed it due to some technical issue you might want to re-read just after “Well no she wouldn’t in truth, but in Penumbra: Overture you don’t want to move anyway.” at the very start for those who’ve already read the article. Apologies 🙂

  • Mike "Scout" Gust

    Lewis, it was the weapon swing. It had this terrible, unresponsive feel to it, like trying to hit through molasses. I couldn’t stand using it. I tried the .ini fix as mentioned in the review but it didn’t seem to help. Of course this was the demo…but that shouldn’t have made any difference. I might try the second game instead as I guess they did away with the weapons thing.

    I’m see your first paragraph just fine. It’s the dialogue, right?

  • jdeuel

    I like the argument that weapons can remove fear, but even loaded to the teeth with ammo in AVP’99 the Marine missions were frightful because the enemy was anywhere at any time.

    As for Penumbra Overture, if the controls are anything like the original Penumbra they need to hack in some Wii-Remote 3d controls. I did not like using my mouse for 3d movements.

  • Gregg B

    @Mike: I’ve read that many people avoided conflict altogether in Overture which incidentally is something forced upon you in Black Plague. As somebody who has been renovating a house over the last 6 months with no DIY experience I can safely say that swinging a hammer is significantly easier in real life than it is in Overture without the fix. The fix balanced that for me.

    I’d highly recommend completing the first Penumbra because it’s one big build up to Black Plague which spoils the ending to Overture in the intro. And it’s a great ending too. Just so you know!

  • Lewis B

    @ Steerpike, those moments you mention are all my worst too!!  Do you remember the Robot labs in SS2? Absolutely terrifying, waiting for robots to burst out on you! 🙁 oh and have you ever player Condemned?

    @ Mike, The use of weapons in Penumbra is different to say HL2, where the player is physically holding the weapon, as in Penumbra it floats slightly infront of you.  However, if you change the control method to normal weapon swing, it’s no different!  Speak to Greggi and he’ll tell you what to do 🙂

    @ jdeuel, AVP the original and its sequal were scary however what type of fear do you think it is? I don’t think it’s anything more than sheer tension.  Having a Smart Gun makes you feel incredibly powerful.  I can honestly say in Penumbra the fear is sheer unrivalled terror, where you actually have to force yourself to play on.  It genuinly is that scary! 🙂

  • Jason Dobry

    It’s so true, an arsenal of weapons and ammo rapidly deflates any sense of horror or uneasiness in any game for reasons you already mentioned. Sakey, I thought Bioshock was more “lonely panic,” while I was pretty much always terrified in System Shock 2. I really, really, REALLY did not want to enter The Many’s nursery, and my weapons were so unreliable and ammo so scarce that I never felt safe.

    Silent Hill was terrifying for the same reasons. Ammo was rare and I frequently had to rely on my pipe for self-defense.  Even when I had ammo, the game mechanics prevented my character from being anything other than marginal with any firearm.

    Fear had one moment for me: I was climbing up a ladder, and as I reached the upper platform, my guy briefly looked down as he climbed off. As my perspective looked up again, that Ring-esque little girl was RIGHT THERE, reaching for me. I screamed and she was gone.

    What else…the original Aliens vs. Predator sent me into a locker room and I could only hear the facehuggers scurrying about somewhere within. I had to go in there. I advanced about three steps before the damn thing screamed and filled up my screen with its repulsive underside as it implanted me with its spawn. My roommate made fun of me for weeks for screaming like a girl child.

    Korsakovia–meh.  I was too annoyed and frustrated by the box rearrangement/jumping puzzles to be scared. I uninstalled it after an hour of play, I think. Maybe the scary parts were later, but I doubt it.

    As for Penumbra, I did play through about half of it before other games distracted me. I remember unease and creepiness, but no sweaty fear. I think I’m to blame here, or, more precisely, my daughter, who was still an infant at the time and generally allowed me only to play during the day for 45 minutes at a time. I was denied total immersion and the fear effect suffered. Maybe I should give it another go after I finish Call of Pripyat since she sleeps through the night now. With any luck, Penumbra will keep me from doing the same.

  • Gregg B

    I played the demo of F.E.A.R. but that ladder scare is the only bit I remember. Christ, that made me jump. I’m not too good with cat scares.

    Also I felt exactly the same about Korsakovia. It was creepy at first but then it began to irritate me far too much and it just soured the experience. I stopped playing as a result. Not to mention, when I realised I could bash those smoke-things with my crowbar they didn’t bother me nearly as much.

  • Online Up

    Great article. I look forward to reading more in the future.

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