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Ah, video game violence. Whenever the tabloids run short of celebrities to hound, you can be sure that there will be a gory game for them to latch onto, regurgitating the same old story of moral outrage whilst neatly sidestepping the role of irresponsible parents more interested in keeping little Timmy quiet than checking the age restriction of said software. For the sake of the industry, I hope they fail to pick up on Condemned 2…

The first Condemned (Criminal Origins) bucked the trend of the majority of launch titles by not being sports based, and offering a fairly reasonable dollop of originality into the bargain. Playing Ethan Thomas, stalwart police officer framed for the murder of his fellow officers early on and fighting to clear his name, the game effectively portrayed a “Se7en”-esque atmosphere with plenty of jumps, jolts and grimy hand-to-hand combat (involving helpfully located tools such as shovels, bits of wood, sledgehammers and fire axes, and a sparing number of guns). The premise wore a little thin later on, with essentially the same gameplay repeated throughout, but the nervy atmosphere and quest-for-justice plot kept things moving towards the fairly intriguing finale. Plus it had the best torch in video gaming.

So, to the sequel, and the torch is back, again presumably held in place by some kind of clip because Ethan can now use both fists (controlled intuitively using the triggers, with both triggers together to block) when not in possession of a blunt object with which to batter enemies. Whilst torch and real-world weaponry remain as before, Ethan himself has changed considerably since his last outing; no longer a cop on a quest for justice, we now play the role of a hard drinking, bar brawling drunk with a grubby T-shirt and bits in his beard. Nice. Within the first 10 minutes, Ethan has downed whiskey, beaten a passing hoodie’s face to a bloody pulp, given a tramp the finger, beaten a dozen bad guys to death and had his head staved in with a brick for his trouble. Not necessarily the fast route to character empathy.

As the game progresses, it becomes increasingly apparent that a lot of time has been spent honing the atmosphere throughout the grubby, decaying levels. As with the original, shadows and blind corners provide ample opportunities for pre-arranged jumps and surprises, which are (initially at least) very effective at scaring the crap out of the player. Guns appear sparingly as before (with our alcoholic alter-ego only able to aim accurately after a slug of whiskey), ammo runs out very quickly, and the effect of edging along a dark corridor clutching a bedpost for protection is generally pretty darn scary. Special mention must also go to the intermittent ducking/crawling/ladder climbing/ledge leaping, all animated in first person without dropping out of the game engine, and subsequently doing an excellent job of maintaining player immersion. Interactive crime scene investigations are similarly carried out without an alteration in perspective, and the combination brings Condemned a lot closer to the feel of a player-controlled horror film than a lot of comparable efforts.

Of course, there are associated problems. Firstly (and I have to start with a whopper), a game so closely modelled on cinema influences needs a compelling story, whilst Condemned 2 can feel a bit “straight to DVD”. At intervals the game steps away from the real world, presumably to explore Ethan’s fractured subconscious (why bother when the real world is so nasty?!), but the effect is badly explained and less interesting than it sounds, paling in comparison with games such as “The Darkness” which adopt a similar idea. In addition, whilst a movie can afford to jangle the nerves of its audience and apply a minimal sprinkle of baddies for the jumps, Condemned provides a fairly steady stream of burly gentlemen for you to beat to death with whatever falls to hand. After an hour or two the fear factor starts to fade, as you can safely assume that someone is probably waiting for you around the corner. Briefly glimpsing a junkie darting out of sight is unnerving the first few times, not so much when you start to expect it, and the shock resulting from an attack is gradually replaced by a shrug of the shoulders and a knuckleduster to their throat. Feel free to add a wry comment about the desensitising effect of violent games should you wish…

Technically impressive and undoubtedly once of the most atmospheric games around, my biggest problem with Condemned is that it’s all a bit too bleak and gloomy, and not always particularly fun. Look beyond the smart graphics and light effects, and you’re looking at another linear first person adventure with blunt objects the primary deviation from the FPS masses. The violence (ramped up from the original, now including environmental kills and slow-motion pummelling) is certainly uncompromising, but the excesses sit a little uncomfortably with the crime investigation theme; once you’ve beaten your foe senseless there is no option to snap on the cuffs and call the cops, but there are plenty of options for finishing the poor chap off (despite the fact that all enemies are supposedly victims of some kind of sonic mind control, and are therefore essentially innocent). What you’re left with is an unrelenting progression of fear and violence, with a central character that you never truly bond with and is forced to act in a way that the player might not necessarily agree with. Next gen game, old school rules.

If crime horror and street fighting are your thing, stay away from my house and give it a go. If your initial reaction is less than positive, best try something else. Condemned 2 is not a bad game by any stretch, but it isn’t all that fresh either, and beyond the issue of the themes and content, over-familiarity may lead seasoned gamers to lose interest before the end.

Score: 6/10

(Condemned 2 is out on Xbox360 (copy reviewed) and Playstation 3). 

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