criticalhit.net
Fracture - Reviewed - Xbox 360
Lucasarts took a big risk when they decided that for Fracture, they were going to base the game around a technological advancement that allows the player to raise and lower the ground using a 'tectonics' gun.... After a whole bunch of natural disasters the entire nation has been separated between two factions, one that is all for cybernetics and the other which believes in genetic mutation and enhancements.... The game makes good use of it's terrain deforming technology, including a really cool remote detonated rocket that burrows underneath the ground and more importantly, cover, allowing you to blow enemies to kingdom come.... I can't put it any clearer than to say that I really just don't think that they thought this game through before making it.... When it comes to reviews, I usually play a game on medium as I don't want the game to be too easy or too difficult as it could affect my impressions on the game. This left me wondering 2 hours in why on earth I had nine bazillion enemies firing at me from every angle possible, leaving me with no choice but to jump around like a crazed hamster on nine different illegal drugs. I have a HUD-Ache I would try and take the enemies on but there was one little problem with that idea.... The HUD is so cluttered that you are left feeling like you are wearing a a pair of paintball goggles with a paint splat right in the middle of your vision. The developers then saw it fit to not actually have any mission information in the corner of the screen, nope, they wanted to put it more towards center.... The note that you can press a button to pick up the weapon pops up on the screen, but its not on the bottom of the screen, nope its in the center, somewhere between your crosshair and the edge.... All this wouldn't be too much of a problem because none of those really gets in the way of what you are actually aiming at, assuming that you find something to shoot at.... That's correct, it is actually apart of your crosshair, off to the right, making it even harder to see and to make matters worse, when you are being shot at red indicators come up around your crosshair to show the direction, making your view even worse.... The truth is this and you can hold it against me as a reviewer if you like but I think it makes enough of a statement as it is.... As a reviewer I prefer to finish games before I review them but for the life of me I couldn't bring myself to continue without risking having my controller becoming firmly planted in the center of my TV.... Some may find the game fun and interesting, I found it to be a frustrating and gimmicky experience with no inspiration and terrible design flaws.
Nick De Bruyne