The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay (Xbox)

About 4 years ago, director David Twohy released a low budget sci-fi flick called Pitch Black which introduced the character Richard B Riddick. The film did reasonably well at the box office but has since achieved something of a cult status with good reason I might add. Riddick was an anti-hero in every respect describing himself as the ultimate baddass and was brought to life by newcomer and former bouncer Vin Diesel.

Four years later and we come to the release of the first sequel, Chronicles of Riddick. To co-incide with this Starbreeze Studios bring us the game Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay. It isn't necessary to know any background to the character but it would enhance your appreciation if you did.

Ok, so is the game any good or do we have yet another lame tie-in. I must admit I was dubious having read all the hype. Well for once believe what you've heard or read about. The intro movie sets the tone perfectly but its only when you actually take control of Riddick that you realize just how good this game really is. The story is basically that Riddick has been incarcerated in Butcher Bay, the toughest slam in the galaxy and its your job to get him out.

The big selling point but by no means the only one are the graphics. You have never seen graphics this good in a game, not even Halo. It is a visually stunning. Thanks to a new process called 'normal mapping' detail and realism have been brought to new levels. Riddick looks like Vin Diesel, and I mean exactly. The detail on the character models is amazing, and there a lot of characters in this game each one with their own distinctive look and personality. The whole environment has an almost organic feeling to it, it all looks so real. Not since Splinter Cell has there been such a good use of lighting which all adds to the whole experience, just watch Riddicks shadow as he creeps around the confines of Butcher Bay, and then theres the sound. Vin Diesel himself brings Riddick to life with his 60-a-day gravelly delivery but all the voice actors in the game do a great job and really bring personality to their character. Cole Hauser reprises his role as Johns the merc responsible for Riddicks incarceration and an array of talents bring the other characters to life.
Controls are intuitive with the X button performing a variety of tasks dependent on what you're doing at the time. For example, pressing X whilst standing next to a box will make Riddick climb up on top of it. This action as well others like climbing ladders or crawling into vents are all viewed in the third-person and the transition is seemless and works well. The left thumbstick moves Riddick whilst the right is used for the camera, standard in most FPS's. The right-trigger is used for firing weapons and throwing punches in unarmed combat, whilst the left is used to guard. Other features include stealth mode, the addition of the trademark eyes (see Pitch Black) which allow Riddick to see in the dark, (available later in the game), and my personal favourite, turning an opponents weapon against them for a devastating attack, I wont spoil this little gem for you, in close quarters just press the right-trigger at the right moment and you'll see what I mean.
There are missions to undertake, extras to unlock, a whole host of characters to interact with, some great weapons and so many other cool things about this game that I could go on for hours. The game does carry an 18 certificate and the language reflects that not to mention the depiction of graphic violence, (I can hear the outcries already). The only bad thing I can say about Chronicles of Riddick is that it is quite short and there are loading times to contend with but the quality of the game is so high I can live with that.
Easily one of the best titles for the X-Box and an outstanding achievement from Starbreeze Studios. If they can produce this, think about the possibilities for Doom 3 and Halo 2, and Half Life 2. I for one can't wait. Lets see the PS2 compete with this!!

1. GRAPHICS-realistic. Lightning effects are superb, creating a dark, spooky atmosphere when needed. The characters are excellent and very real, down to how they walk, how they talk, etc.Rag-doll effects mean that bodies act like real bodies. Riddick looks exactly like Vin Diesel. Textures are superb-from the cold, metallic interior of a jail cell to the elaborate, plush, decorated quarters of the owner of the prison.

2. SOUND-realistic. You often enter a scene and hear people talking to each other, from guards to prisoners. The guns sound realistic, especially the assault rifle that sounds like a beast of a weapon when fired. Shouts of rioting prisoners (or mentally disturbed ones) are realistic, as is the screams of the dying ones (when they mess with armed guards). Music is good, changing with the mood. Breathing of mutanty-freaks or the sound of alien mosnters eating a corpse are also quite realistic.

3. ATMOSPHERE-brilliant. The prison feels like a prison, down to the urine and vomit on the walls and floor, the mentally-distrubed inmates, the gang-warfare between prisoners, the trigger-happy guards who only need a small excuse to pump you full of lead, the strict camera-turret system, which means that if you break a rule, such as fightning with inmates, then a camera warns you, in a typically robotic voice, that "You are in violation" and then either stuns you or shoots you. Later levels when you are in a mine are brilliantly done with very dark scenes.

GAMEPLAY-very good. You can communicate with people by walking up to them and pressing X. The information that they give you is often valuable. Sometimes, for information or for rewards, you need to do jobs for some of the inmates-this is a bit like in GTA:San Andreas. The environment can be interacted with: bodies can be dragged and dumpled down cliffs, oil barrels can be blown up, valves and buttons can be used, overhead vents can be accessed, etc. A basic system of money allows you to buy stuff from prisoners or guards.

WEAPONS: Range from simple (but nasty) weapons, such as knives, screwdrivers, clubs, batons, knuckledusters, to more, heavy-duty weapons, such as pistols, shotguns, assault rifles, grenades, miniguns, etc. You can carry out special attack moves with these weapons, and if you are unarmed and facing an armed guard, you can use their weapon against them by executing a special move on them. Cool feature.

UNITS: other units range from prisoners, to light/medium/heavy armoured guards, to guards in big, robotic suits (very formidable), to small, flying droids, to freaky humanoid mutants (in later levels), to alien-like lifeforms. Basically, a good range of characters to battle.

TIME: The game is not a long game, and I finished it in about a week. But it is a fantastic game, which meant that I wanted to play it again. There are 3 modes of difficulty, and you play whichever one you want.

There are not many bady points, and overall, it is a fantastic game, with amazing graphics, that is worth the money.

About 4 years ago, director David Twohy released a low budget sci-fi flick called Pitch Black which introduced the character Richard B Riddick. The film did reasonably well at the box office but has since achieved something of a cult status with good reason I might add. Riddick was an anti-hero in every respect describing himself as the ultimate baddass and was brought to life by newcomer and former bouncer Vin Diesel.

Four years later and we come to the release of the first sequel, Chronicles of Riddick. To co-incide with this Starbreeze Studios bring us the game Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay. It isn’t necessary to know any background to the character but it would enhance your appreciation if you did.

Ok, so is the game any good or do we have yet another lame tie-in. I must admit I was dubious having read all the hype. Well for once believe what you’ve heard or read about. The intro movie sets the tone perfectly but its only when you actually take control of Riddick that you realize just how good this game really is. The story is basically that Riddick has been incarcerated in Butcher Bay, the toughest slam in the galaxy and its your job to get him out.

The big selling point but by no means the only one are the graphics. You have never seen graphics this good in a game, not even Halo. It is a visually stunning. Thanks to a new process called ‘normal mapping‘ detail and realism have been brought to new levels. Riddick looks like Vin Diesel, and I mean exactly. The detail on the character models is amazing, and there a lot of characters in this game each one with their own distinctive look and personality. The whole environment has an almost organic feeling to it, it all looks so real. Not since Splinter Cell has there been such a good use of lighting which all adds to the whole experience, just watch Riddicks shadow as he creeps around the confines of Butcher Bay, and then theres the sound. Vin Diesel himself brings Riddick to life with his 60-a-day gravelly delivery but all the voice actors in the game do a great job and really bring personality to their character. Cole Hauser reprises his role as Johns the merc responsible for Riddicks incarceration and an array of talents bring the other characters to life.

Controls are intuitive with the X button performing a variety of tasks dependent on what you’re doing at the time. For example, pressing X whilst standing next to a box will make Riddick climb up on top of it. This action as well others like climbing ladders or crawling into vents are all viewed in the third-person and the transition is seemless and works well. The left thumbstick moves Riddick whilst the right is used for the camera, standard in most FPS’s. The right-trigger is used for firing weapons and throwing punches in unarmed combat, whilst the left is used to guard. Other features include stealth mode, the addition of the trademark eyes (see Pitch Black) which allow Riddick to see in the dark, (available later in the game), and my personal favourite, turning an opponents weapon against them for a devastating attack, I wont spoil this little gem for you, in close quarters just press the right-trigger at the right moment and you’ll see what I mean.

There are missions to undertake, extras to unlock, a whole host of characters to interact with, some great weapons and so many other cool things about this game that I could go on for hours. The game does carry an 18 certificate and the language reflects that not to mention the depiction of graphic violence, (I can hear the outcries already). The only bad thing I can say about Chronicles of Riddick is that it is quite short and there are loading times to contend with but the quality of the game is so high I can live with that.

Easily one of the best titles for the X-Box and an outstanding achievement from Starbreeze Studios.