My very first review and I have decided to do it on Fahrenheit Indigo Prophecy a 2005 interactive movie game developed by Quantic Dream. Before we begin however a quick word; I have decided to review old and classic games and films to start off with and I won’t be using any pictures during the review. The reason for that is because once a few years on Youtube I had a warning about copyright and after that I decided I will never again almost breach it. Also these reviews will not be spoiler free because I will talk a lot about the story.
First off a quick overview of the plot of Fahrenheit; it is set in New York city during the worst winter in recorded history, you start off as Lucas Kane a man who wakes up from a trance in the bathroom of a diner to discover that he has recently killed someone. During the course of the game up have to uncover what caused Lucas to commit murder while along the way hide evidence from the cops on your trail. This is where Carla Valenti and Tyler Miles comes in; two New York homicide detectives who are in charge of brining Lucas in. It starts off sounding simple enough however half way through the game and near the end you discover that the murder is just part of a bigger plot, one that involves Mayan rituals, secret clans, corrupt A.I. and the destruction of the world.
Now to touch on what I thought of the story it is a love it or hate it kind and I for one loved it however I can easily understand why someone can hate it. It starts off as a murder mystery where you can play as killer and cops but soon it becomes a supernatural sci-fi, the sudden change in the concept of the story will not be for everyone. There are as well several nude and sex scenes in the game that I felt was slightly out of place and just plain awkward.
As for game play most of it is simple point and click; where you can interact with the environment and other characters. When you talk to other characters you can chose from a selection of dialogue for a response, each one different and may affect the overall story. That was a selling point for this game is that each decision you make will affect the rest of the game, for example; After you commit the murder with Lucas you can try to hide as much evidence about it as you can so that when you play as Carla and Tyler they can have a harder or easier time catching you. However as interesting as it the story inevitably remains largely the same with you decisions only having small consequences.
Another game play element which is interesting is the action sequences when you play as Lucas. This is similar to the game of Simon and you have to move your analog stick in the direction of the highlighted colour just in time for Lucas to make a move. This was a very interesting way to convey the action scenes and they can range from being easy to being a challenge. Some players however who do not like the second half of the story however will not like that later that these action sequences control Lucas as he fights and flies around like Neo from the Matrix.
The best part of the game however is the morale meter in the bottom left side of the screen. This is affected by the choices you make in the games and could fill up or go down and you lose all of it your character it will end the game with your character being either depressed or even committing suicide.
As for the characters I think they are very well done but the do have their flaws. Lucas is a very interesting protagonist who has to deal with the murder whilst keeping it a secret from his ex – girlfriend and trying to convince his brother to help him. He has a really good back-story however a low point of the game is the flashbacks where you play with him as a child; even though it reveals more of his history it is not the most exciting parts of the game.
Carla is a good character to control as well and her investigation scenes with Tyler are some of the best of the game. However unlike Lucas and Tyler she has nothing in her personal life to make her more interesting, it is just all about the job for her.
Now for Tyler and he is definitely one of my favourite characters because he provides the comic relief and he has an interesting personal issue where his girl friend wants him to quit the force. A downside to him however is that half way through the game his role in the story diminishes because it focuses more on Lucas and Carla which is a real shame.
As for secondary characters they are all interesting and well written like the Mayan Oracle who is the primary antagonist, Markus Kane who is Lucas’s priest brother who has conflicted between his faith and his brother and the mysterious Agatha who helps Lucas through the game. There are many more who just have small roles but all are very unique.
Lastly I will touch on the graphics and sound in Fahrenheit on whether or not they are good of bad. The graphics in this game are very good for its time especially with the characters and their facial expressions however that cannot be said about the backgrounds. While the backgrounds are very well detailed they do sometimes look flat and it is noticeable when you spot it but it does not take away from the gaming experience.
The voice acting in this game is some of the best I have ever heard; all of the voice actors play their roles perfectly and you can really feel the emotion off all of them. Like the Oracle for example has one of the deepest and most menacing voices I have ever heard. The soundtrack is great as well and even though I have never heard of most of bands whose songs are in the game the Fahrenheit original soundtrack really goes with the mood of this game.
Overall Fahrenheit Indigo Prophecy is a very unique game but it is not for everyone. It is more about telling a story than anything else each which you interact with it which is not for gamers for prefer game play over story. In the end Fahrenheit is a great experience and in my opinion one of the most stand out games of 2005. If I have any major issues with it is that as much as I like the second half of the game I wish the first half, which is all about the aftermath of the diner murder and Lucas hiding evidence, was a lot longer because it was the game’s high point. In the end I recommend Fahrenheit to all those who like major twists in their story and likes something a lot different from other games.
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