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The Suffering (Xbox)

• Developer:
• Publisher: Midway
• Genre:
• Official Website: http://www.thesuffering.midway.com
• Score: 5 of 5: Purchase

The suffering of a man within a suffering world is largely what The Suffering is about. John Torque is awaiting punishment for an incredibly heinous crime: the murder of his own family. In Carnate Penitentiary, the punishment for such a crime is the lethal injection. However, fate has far worse than death in store for Torque. No, he will face his suffering, and he will face the suffering of Carnate itself.

Heh, I seem to be good at pushing a game's mood and emotion, and I feel that it's the best way to introduce a game that is very much focused on getting the player to engage with its story and atmosphere. One thing The Suffering has going for it is a tremendous introduction to its gameplay. Torque is thrown into a cell in Carnate's death row. He never talks, but people around him speak. It is through what they say that you begin to understand just what has brought Torque to being in this dire situation, and it leads to a lot of questions. Is it really true? Is the character you're playing really a murderer? Does he even deserve to live? Well, it's best to save those questions for later because the conversation between Torque and his cell mates is broken up suddenly by a power outage and some very nasty bladed creatures. From there, Torque has to stay alive and find a way out of the prison, and eventually off Carnate Island.

However, his journey is wrought with peril. It soon becomes apparent that Carnate has a tragically awful past full of death, cruelty and of course, suffering. And that suffering seems to have come to life in the form of creatures that symbolically represent each of Carnate's most horrible incidents, as well as the methods of execution used in the penitentiary. Torque also seems to have an odd ability-that is, if turning into a monster is considered odd these days. You're not really given much of an explanation as to why Torque can do this, but given all the other strange happenings it's not that much of a credibility stretch. You're also introduced at the same time to a mysterious, insane and ghostly Doctor Killjoy, who is an extremely interesting character. But it would be spoiling a good deal of the game's story if I say any more than that. However, he becomes a recurring character who is very important to The Suffering's plot.

So, we've established that The Suffering has a very interesting plot, a plot tied together by visions, strange happening and brutal events. But what of its gameplay? Well, it is a bit of a shame to say that as a third-person shooter, it has very much been outdone by a certain little game called Resident Evil 4. However, just because of that game's presence does not mean that The Suffering isn't a very solid effort from Midway, who quite frankly have upped their ante the past couple of years with games like this, Psi Ops and the recent, very enjoyable Mortal Kombat games. The game has some very interesting elements to it-I think most well represented by the multiple endings and the way you get them, shamelessly ripped off by a certain dark hedgehog. Throughout the game, there will be situations where you can choose to act in a certain way. You can appeal to Torque's humanity and the voice of his late wife, or you can do what the evil, monstrous voice tells you to do. This is easily the game's most original aspect, as here you are offered the chance to truly be a hero or to be a monster, and it actually affects the game‘s outcome. There is also a neutral ending for those people who like a little from Column A, and a little from Column B.

The combat is satisfying. The game offers an optional first-person view that, when used in the right circumstances, works extremely well. Generally, I recommend to use it while cornered, as it gives you a clearer view to aim at enemies. Heck, FPS buffs can play the entire game that way and it does work pretty well, though the third-person view does give you a better view of your surroundings. Offering these two options that both work well is a technical achievement that adds a lot to the game's experience and helps it be a more appealing game in general. As for the creatures you'll be blowing apart, there's something of a Silent Hill crossed with Hellraiser type of look to the enemies. They're varied, nasty and will kill you quickly if you haven't got your killing shoes on. It's very interesting what these creatures symbolize. They're existence is never really explained in this or the sequel, so it's possible that we may see a third game that perhaps explains them, and I for one would look forward to that.

The game looks great and sounds great. It also looks and sounds very ‘adult' to0. This is not a game for kids. I feel confident in saying that because while a kid might enjoy the mindless running, driving and shooting of Grand Theft Auto, this game is anything but mindless. It has a method of twisting the player's psyche to think like Torque, and that means that what you have here is a darkly imaginative game that has earned its M rating by its themes as well as its content. It's pretty extreme, however, and will only appeal to people with rather macabre tastes. It's the kind of game you can judge whether you'll like it or not based on what kind of movies you watch.

If The Suffering has one weakness it is the one weakness that affects all horror games. It's never going to have as an effective an impact on the system on subsequent plays compared to the first time. And while the game has three endings that require changing the experience just enough to make it worth playing those three times, it doesn't have too much replay value past that. However, like RE4, it is fun, so it is worth playing for its gameplay if you really feel like it; but again, that very much depends on the kind of person you are. Also, some people in the past, and I'm not talking about Jack Thompson and his ilk, but rather proper gaming journalists have gone on record to say that this game is just too over the top with its content. I don't feel personally that this is the case because unlike certain games, The Suffering has a point to it and does not glamorize violence in any way. However, it probably is best to keep in mind that this game easily matches and probably surpasses the likes of Silent Hill and Doom in terms of graphic imagery. I won't defend it, other than to say some people like that kind of stuff. I know I do.

The Suffering is a game with a superior story tacked onto enjoyable but somewhat familiar gameplay. For the right price, this game will give you a worthwhile experience. It will also do one thing that was quite clearly planned to do: make you buy the sequel, which is a direct continuation necessary to find out just what the hell is going on with Torque. Still, I will detail in my next review just why The Suffering: Ties That Bind has more reason to play it than just it having one of the coolest names for a game ever. However, worry not about that. Go play The Suffering first and have a dark, dingy, shocking, twisted and ultimately enjoyable time.

Jan 9, 2006 | 1 comments
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