Haunting Ground (PS2)

Like the Clock Tower games, Fiona Belli (the protagonist) spends much of the game completely unarmed, reliant on sheer wits and her cainine companion Hewie to defend her against the dangers lurking inside the castle. The relationship dynamic between the two characters is very life-like indeed, as Fiona can issue a number of important commands to Hewie in two different modes, Normal and Battle. If Hewie ignores her or misbehaves, Fiona can scold him in order to teach him discipline. The dog does not follow you unfalteringly from the moment you meet with him, his trust must be gained over time, through praise and careful training, which adds an extra challenge to gameplay.

The 'Panic Mode' feature is also interesting. As Fiona does not have a 'health meter' or HUD as such, one must determine her condition by examining her physical state such as stance, movement and even visibility. Her stamina can be restored over time by getting her safely out of harm's way or using certain restoration items. Some artifacts can even be refined in an alchemy laboratory to create new ways for Fiona to defend herself, such as concoctions that temporarily stun her foes so she can escape et cetera.

Not only are the puzzles in the game thought-provoking, but avoiding detection from enemies requires a large amount of stealth and stategy. Fiona can hide in closets/under beds/under tables until the coast is clear, or she can duck into the shadows and wait. If she IS detected, she can also use elements of her surrounding environment to cease her enemies' pursuit for a time (or she can simply order Hewie to attack the on-coming foe to buy her time to avoid danger).

This title has been a most refreshing change of pace from the various disappointing action-based survival horror games released of late, but it certainly isn't for those expecting a frenzied, gun-toting gore fest.

With it's beautiful graphics, innovative gameplay features, slick control system and multiple endings, Haunting Ground's suspenseful, sinister atmosphere and delicate moments of terror will satisfy many horror-hungry gamers. A must-have addition to anyone's collection.

I say running, because for the most part, that's what you are going to be doing. In this game, the main character does not attack her foes. Like "Clock Tower" before it, if an enemy appears you are faced with a few options which consist of running for your life, hiding, or finding hot spots in the castle where one-off retaliation actions can be sprung. This is on the most part well implemented, plus the chase situations seem more perilous than those in "Clock Tower", as the baddies seem far more persistent and less easily fooled in this game. The mechanics of panic are very similar, with Fiona getting more frightened the closer the pursuer gets and the more near-misses she withstands. Expect to see the screen shudder and the colours to drain as Fiona starts to lose her cool, culminating in a total washout of colour and blurring of the picture if she loses it totally. In this condition, Fiona will run at random and fall over most of the time...if you let things get this bad, you're pretty much looking at Game Over, as the baddie will more often than not close in and finish off our heroine for good (particularly nasty death scenes in this game - relying mostly on sounds and your imagination). Cleverly, the use of hiding places is only randomly successful, as Fiona might successfully hide in a closet on one occasion, only to find that the enemy doesn't just walk past the next time she's in it, but comes right up and opens the door!

Luckily there are curative items that you can use during chases to alleviate panic and injury, plus of course one major feature that I haven't even mentioned yet - Fiona has a pet dog! Well, it's not really a pet. Fiona befriends the animal early in the game, and he becomes her constant companion. Now this aspect of the game I really like. Fiona has several commands that she can give the dog (Hewie), and it's up to you to decide when, and which things to say and do to get Hewie to provide help. It's during chase sequences that Hewie shows his real worth, as Fiona can set him on the enemy to bite and attack while she gets away. He also helps with some puzzles, requiring some lateral thinking from the player as he can go into small spaces where Fiona can't fit, and she can also go places (climbing ladders, for example) where he can't follow. So expect a bit of fun in working out how to get both your characters around the castle when needed.

On that note, the castle is a beautiful environment and quite large, although it's very oddly designed, and I don't mean intentionally. Sure the place is creepy and has traps and dead ends that make Fiona's life more of a misery than it already is, but it feels like the designers just built the required rooms and chambers and then linked them up with long passages to suit the gameplay, without a thought as to how this would make a realistic building as a whole. If you look at the in-game map, it resembles a maze for lab rats more than a real building! ( A bit like the mansion in the original Resident Evil, which had loads of rooms completely inside the building with bizarre shapes and no windows). However, as I said, the cosmetic look of the place is wonderful, and the same goes for the characters. Fiona is absolutley beautiful, and her face moves realistically to portray happiness, sadness and fear when required. It's almost a given now that seeing the Capcom name on a game means the graphic quaility is going to be above average, and you can definitely see that company's almost "in house" style and standard present here. Hewie is also wonderfully rendered, and has a real life of his own. Much enjoyment comes from training him with constant commands, and watching him explore, sniff around or just lie on the floor if he gets bored - a great character and with perfect AI - responsive, but prone to whims of his own. I couldn't resist having Fiona stroke him and tweak his ears all the time - I'm sure I spoiled him!

This is not a game for action fans - you won't be using any weapons or firepower here. The constant chasing can be quite wearing, as it can take a good few minutes to escape, which often results in you running a long way away from where you want to be, and backtracking all the way back again to carry on looking at that puzzle. It's also a very lonely game, there castle is totally devoid of life apart from Fiona and Hewie, and there are a mere handful of NPC's, and that includes enemies (there is only one enemy after you at a time). Luckily the two main characters are so appealing that you will enjoy the growing companionship of a girl and her dog, and hope they both make it though alive.

In closing, it seems to me that this whole game is an expansion of the final level of "Clock Tower 3" (which was also set in a castle), and is something of an exercise in refinement for the game creators, who are hoping to make the ultimate version of their unique survival/run away-horror brand of gameplay. It succeeds, but it's thanks to the new addition of dog-related game-play that it really comes alive.

What we get, then, is a Clock Tower style game in which you must tip-toe around, solve the traditional puzzles, and run and hide whenever you are discovered by the local madman. Or woman, as that may be - the game excells early on with the introduction of the deliciously confusing Daniella, a character who will never truly be topped after she departs from the main thrust of the action.

Combat is handled by giving commands to Hewie, and after a short period of confusion this becomes second nature. You can also make him search, sit, shake hands with you, run away and other things, along with being able to praise or criticise him as need be. The Hewie / Fiona partnership is a strong one - playing as a helpless Fiona, you are almost pitifully reliant on Hewie, and as such you become quite endeared to him: his presence is calming and reassuring in a game which frequently comes very close to being terrifying.

But then again, it's just survival horror. The characters play out their parts in rusty voices, and the script is just a tad short of being 'cleverly concealing', and is instead annoyingly incomplete. I've completed the game, and I'm still not sure why everyone was after Fiona to such an extent. Unless, that is, they were attracted to her: Fiona is one of a relatively new breed of young, nubile, underdressed and over-sexualised protagonists who, for all their failings, rake in the pundits merely for their feminine qualities. It's questionable as to whether the average male player feels more inclined to protect Fiona because she's a scared young girl, or because she's a sexy young thing.

Well, whatever works for you. I have no shame in admitting I spent more than a fair few minutes deciding exactly which outfit to put her in, but what's more important is that I spent a good few days fully engrossed in an entertaining and involving game. It's easy to be genuinely worried about Fiona and, by the end, it's easy to see why Haunting Ground has been flying off the shelves to a far greater extent than Capcom considered possible - it's successful on almost every level.