To be fair, the game also relies on a fair amount of item-combination and pixel hunting; these activities are par for the course for modern adventure games. The game does at least include a scan feature, whereby Perry's futuristic technology scans the premises for objects worthy of interaction. It's slow and artificial, but it's always there for frustrated players. In a field where we see games like the Penumbra series and Indigo Prophesy, it's annoying to be forced back to decades-old tactics. There must be a way to update the adventure game, to make it about something other than poking at random objects until they combine to form new random objects. Some of the puzzles are sensible, but it doesn't stop the whole game from feeling like a combination of imperfect elements.

Luckily for us players, the environments you travel through are almost all attractive and interesting. The game allows you to pump up the numbers of rendered passersby. This saves the game from the "ghost town" effect that so many games suffer from. The game features a pretty good mix of pre-rendered scenes and 3D graphics, and most of the time they do a great job of communicating the otherworldliness and advanced technologies of your settings.

The one place where the graphic don't hold up is the character models. Perry Rhodan and his fellow interstellar travelers may look pretty enough as the stand around doing nothing, but when they speak to each other, they might as well be in a trance. Their features register absolutely no emotions. This would be less of a problem if the voice work weren't so average. Characters (especially Perry) recite their lines with a modicum of feeling and expressiveness. Perry always sounds mildly annoyed with every situation he finds himself in. It's especially unfortunate given the interesting nature of the dialogue. Perry, being immortal, has a unique perspective on the struggles that take place around him. This allows the writers to introduce some interesting ideas and situations, and for Perry to react to them in an unusual fashion.

The Immortals of Terra is the kind of game that makes you wish it were just a bit better. It has all of the prerequisites for an amazing game: good graphics, strong fiction to draw upon, and an interesting plot. Unfortunately it stumbles in its execution of gameplay, and not because it tries to hard to do something new. On the contrary, where Immortals falls short is in its stubborn emphasis on tried (but definitely not true), uninventive adventure game staples. The game is fun enough (and has enough of a built-in audience) that it should do well at retail. Here's hoping that the next game in the series takes a chance and tries something new.

In The End, This Game Hath Been Rated: 75%.

« Page 1