Beyond Atlantis Review

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Beyond Atlantis

Review by Orb

Beyond Atlantis is based on a successful adventure game formula. Give the player a tidbit of a story, airlift him into breathtaking locales he’d never see hanging around his local mini-market, and give him some devious puzzles to solve. It’s a first-person game, with beautifully animated cutscenes and very stylishly rendered locales to wander around in.

The story is that in a long-ago past in Atlantis, good and evil existed together as two halves of a larger whole. The people at this time divided this into two parts, the Power of Light and the Power of Darkness. You play as a young man named Ten, the descendant of Seth, who has taken on the task of traveling to assorted countries in varying times to solve this ages-old dilemma and reunite the two halves. Most of this is just backstory, however, as you travel to Tibet, Yucatan, China, Ireland, Shambala, and finally briefly to Atlantis, interacting with the locals and, of course, solving puzzles.

The game itself is very beautifully drawn, with some really creative work put into the intricately executed cutscenes. The graphics are beautiful imagery, the kind that always bring adventure game players back for more. Do I care if some of the leaves and rocks are day-glo colors? Of course not! This is a feverish, surreal interpretation of environments that would be otherwise dreary or dark in real life, and the design gives them a fairy tale enchantment that draws the player in and keeps her coming back for more. Beyond Atlantis features Cryo’s Omni 3D engine, which allows the player a 360-degree examination of all environments, so movement is fluid, and the player is allowed the luxury of being able to explore environments freely and poke into the corners of places to her heart’s content. There are several spots in the game where the graphics are blocky and not well-defined, and it seems there was some shortcutting going on during the rendering process.

The music in the game is melodic and soothing. It has an ethereal temperature to it that fits the nature of the dreamlike environments that you are exploring. I suspect the soundtrack attempts to mimic a bit of the style of music of the different countries the player is exploring; however, this does not quite get pulled off, and the themes are pretty interchangeable but nevertheless solidly done. The only drawback I found to the music is that it was a bit too simplistic, playing a safe sort of Yanni style to accompany the graphics, and it did not really grab my attention on its own creative merits. Rather, it had the feeling of adventure game Muzak, urging me solemnly ever on.

Voice acting in Beyond Atlantis is well-done, and the characters are all very different and adroitly drawn, each with its own personality and style. The characters do, however, have a rather wooden appearance when talking, which gives them the look of actors in a dubbed-language film. But this is more than made up for in the delightful look of them in their costume and bearing.

Puzzles in Beyond Atlantis are for the most part inventory-based, and they are extremely difficult. One of my biggest points of contention regarding the game is that some of the game actions that need to be done are not clear from one step to the next.  This is a recurring problem throughout the game.

Locating inventory pieces in some instances was really like finding a needle in a haystack. There are skull pieces in Ireland, for example, that are placed in such a way that they look exactly the same texture and color as the spot they’ve been laid down into, and this dissolves gameplay into a pixel hunt, scanning each screen to see if the cursor will change (and thank God for a well-designed smart cursor that does this, because it is certainly needed).

The game also has some puzzles that are so convoluted as to act as dead ends. For example, in China, there is a door that can be opened either one of two ways. The incorrect one will cause the player to hit a dead end later in the game. There is no indication that it has been opened incorrectly. Later, a character makes an inexplicable statement that is a quasi-hint that this was done wrong, and if you don’t get the hint, why, just hand up your dancin’ shoes, because for you, my friend, the jig is up, and the game is over. You can work on the next puzzle until kingdom come, but you’re not going to get anyplace, and the unforgiving design will not tell you that you are stuck either.

There are a couple of puzzles that are either timed or action-oriented.  These are not impossible to complete for the average adventure game player, and they are actually a lot of fun.

I experienced a couple of problems: First, there was some sound distortion in the Yucatan portion of the game that nearly split my eardrums, a little white noise. Also, in a couple portions of the game, the speech was out of synch with the game. But these were minor and confined to specific spots in the game, and they were not excessive.

There is a fair amount of disk swapping, but this is, for the most part, kept down by having each of the various worlds on one disk each. This is quite a feat, given the fact that the game comes on four CDs (oh DVD, where art thou?) and it is a fairly long game. The game can also be started from whatever CD the player is currently on, a real time-saver.

Beyond Atlantis is an enchanting diversion for those players who delight in exploring strange lands, wallowing in glorious scenery, and diving into fiendish puzzles. For the experienced gamer, this will fix any Timelapse/Crystal Key/Qin jones you may have. The End

The Verdict

The Lowdown

Developer: Cryo Interactive Publisher: Dreamcatcher Release Date: August 2001 (Mac); December 1999 (PC)

(Released in Europe by Cryo as Atlantis II)

Available for: MacintoshWindows

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Screenshots

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System Requirements

Mac: Mac OS 8.6-9.1 G3 233 MHz 64 MB RAM Minimum 80 MB free hard drive space 8X CD ROM drive Quicktime 4.0

PC: Pentium 200 MHz processor 32 MB RAM 8X CD-ROM drive 2 MB video card 65,000 colors Soundblaster-compatible sound card 70 MB available on hard drive DirectX 6.0 compatibility (supplied with game)

Where to Find It

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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