Never have I ever been a big fan of the first-person shooter genre. With each new game released in the genre, the more and more my view of these games have become jaded. Looking all too similar to one another, these games don’t exactly seem to offer me much that I’m likely to enjoy. When I first heard about Geist for the GameCube, I immediately became interested in the game because it’s not often that Nintendo publishes a Mature rated video game and it’s also not often that a game tries break away from the modern FPS mold and pursue something different. However, after the numerous amount of delays the game went through, I began to have my doubts about Geist. Additionally, hands-on impressions from trade shows, such as E3, didn’t seem too promising. Of course, my final judgment on the game had been reserved until I got the retail version in my hands, and I have to say that I’m quite pleased with with the final product.
Puzzles and Possession
The concept behind Geist is an interesting one. What n-Space attempted to do is create a game that puts players into the shoes of a specter, and as this being players are able to possess other living creatures and inert objects. For the most part, this concept is applied well in the game and is easily the game’s most entertaining gameplay element since it adds a refreshing puzzle element.
In order to posses any king of living creature in the game, whether it’s a soldier, a dog, parrot, or rat, you’re going to have to frighten them. Often, in order to do this, you’re going to have to find something in the near surroundings that you’re able to posses. It’s not too difficult to find objects to possess since they glow red after reading their descriptions. After possessing them you’re given the option to trigger some sort of scare tactic, such as exploding a light-bulb, making blood come out of a faucet, or even make dog food jump out of it’s bowl. These actions are usually part of a grander puzzle that also needs other items and or persons to be possessed. I understand that this could be a difficult concept to understand by simply reading about it in this fashion, and because of this, I think that the only I can give a just description of it is by giving you a gameplay example. Take note, that if you plan on trying this game out and want to get the most enjoyment out of it, I’d suggest passing over the rest of this paragraph. However, if you’re unsure about the game, read on... In one of the game’s possession
"the game’s possession elements make for some pretty entertaining puzzles"
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puzzles I had to poison the food at the military cafeteria by taking control of the cook and putting rat poison into the daily soup. First, in order to posses the cook, I would have to posses the stove and make the cooking temperature increase significantly so that smoke starts coming out of it, then I would have to possess a ceiling fan near by and blow the smoke from the stove towards the chef so that he takes notice of it. As he’s checking out the stove, you exit the fan, and then go to a stack of washed plates and possess the stack; what this allows for you to do is throw plates towards the cook and he starts to freak out. Now, you can possess the chef and poison the food so that the soldiers are rendered unconscious for you to get back to other mischief.
I simply adored the puzzle element of Geist. It’s very similar to the kind of puzzles you would encounter in a good PC Adventure game. However, I’ve heard a handful of complaints which say that these puzzles are far too obvious at times, and yes, I must say that sometimes the solutions to these puzzles are very clear, since you just have to search your surroundings for anything that turns red, but there are others that will keep many players stumped for quite some time, if not search for an answer through a strategy guide or FAQ. With this said, the game’s puzzle element could see some improvement and because of this I’m already hoping for a sequel to Geist, but it’s still very entertaining for what it is and I enjoyed it a great deal.
Failing as a Action Game
The shooter element of Geist is the weakest part of the game and it’s shame because if the shooter element were to have been worked on further and expanded, I’m sure the general gaming public will have received Geist much better than they have at this current point in time. When starting the game, any gamer familiar with the FPS genre will point out that the sensitivity of the right analog stick, for the default control scheme, needs to be tweaked because it feels somewhat sluggish. This issue could’ve easily been solved by having an option to adjust the control stick’s sensitivity, like in most shooters, however, the option does not exist. Although, after spending some time with the game, you can easily become adjusted to the game’s sluggish aiming system and the issue sort of dissipates, however, there are still many other areas in which Geist falls flat.
An interesting analyzation I’ve made about the genre of the first-person shooter is that when a game in the genre comes out with a new and praiseful gameplay element, such as dual-wielding, this gameplay element soon becomes standard fare in every generic FPS released not too long after it. Well, I was disappointed to discover that Geist lacks a great many things that most first-person shooters have. For one, you can’t carry more than one weapon at a time. This may not seem like a big deal, since different characters you posses each have their own specific weapon, however, later on in the game when you’re equipped with weapons that take too long to load, you’ll be aching to switch to a secondary pistol or knife in order to make up for those lost two seconds reloading that machine gun or rocket launcher, and trust me on this, there’s a point in the game where these seconds will be very important to you. Additionally, there aren’t any melee attacks, and some characters don’t even have the ability to crouch. I’m sorry, but it just seems silly to me that some characters can crouch while others cannot. I’ve never been known to be the biggest fan of first-person shooters, but I’ve played enough throughout my life as a gamer to know what is currently expected from a modern FPS. Sadly, my complaints won’t end here.
The game’s AI is, to say the least, unimpressive. It’s just sad to play a first-person shooter in which your enemies simply stand motionless while you’re attacking them. It just doesn’t make for much of a challenge and takes away from a gaming experience that could’ve easily been better if the game’s AI had indeed been a challenge. Making things even worse is that most enemies in the game can be killed far too easily and that’s not anything be proud of either.
With all of this said, there are a few redeeming elements found in the shooter portion of Geist that I really enjoyed. For starters, in the latter half of the game you can face off against other ghost, much like yourself, that can possess the bodies of other soldiers, and once these bodies they possess are killed, they roam around the area attempting to possess the body you’re currently in, often trying to move you towards a ceiling fan or flame pit that could kill you easily. To escape their grip,
"[Geist] finds itself amongst the few games only appreciated by the most hardcore of Nintendo fans"
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you’re going to have to tap the "A" button rapidly until you break free, but they’ll keep coming back at you until you start grenading them with a special weapon you receive later on in the game.
Not to sound too negative, the game’s action element is partially redeemed by some excellent boss battles. Much like in Metroid Prime, Geist has you facing off against large bosses and these battles are very Nintendo-like in approach. Each one of them as a pattern of attack and a weak spot, and its up to players to learn their weaknesses in order to defeat them, whether it’s through trial and error, or just your intuition as a gamer. Oddly, the game’s more interesting boss battles, or boss-like battles, aren’t encountered till the final hour or two of gameplay. You’ll fight against two giant stone statues that look as if they tower over you by a few hundred feet, a missile launching old man in chair, and a demon creature from hell that looks as if he came out of Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings movies. All of these battles come one after another, can be very frustrating and, in a way, fatiguing. Additionally, the final boss battle changes the gameplay mechanics players have become accustomed to in favor of Star Fox-like final battle in which your controls are being manipulated by these ethereal beams, giving you a physical force to fight against while trying to move around the battlefield. While this climactic ending to the game left me a bit frustrated, I have to admit that it’s somewhat memorable and refreshing. I wish there were more of these types of boss encounters in the game because it would’ve surely made things more exciting, because as it is, there just aren’t enough until the final hours of the game.
Story? There’s a Plot!?
I haven’t mentioned much, if anything, about the game’s plot up to this point in the review and unfortunately the game’s plot isn’t the most noteworthy aspect of the game. It’s unfortunate that n-Space didn’t put more effort into the game’s plot because there’s plenty of potential to expand on the story elements introduced to create an damn good epic. There are hints of traditional science fiction, horror, and military action (in the form of terrorism). Expanding on these could’ve made the game much more entertaining and appealing, thus appealing to a larger audience, but instead finds itself amongst the few games only appreciated by the most hardcore of Nintendo fans.
Surprisingly Good Multiplayer
Geist’s single-player is the most lengthy campaign for a first-person shooter. Actually, it’ll take most gamers no more than ten hours to complete and thanks to the linear nature of the game’s puzzles and level design, there’s not much of an incentive to go back and play the game anytime soon. Of course, in order to make up for this lack of replay value, n-Space is offers up some multiplayer modes that are actually very entertaining. Not only is the level design great (very similar to the maps seen in the Nintendo 64’s GoldenEye), but the possession-theme injected into these Deathmatch and Capture the Flag modes makes it feel as if I haven’t played something similar a thousand times before.
In the game’s Possession Deathmatch mode, players first start the battle in ghost form and have to search the battlefield for a host to possess, which then allows for the traditional FPS showdown. It’s a pretty unique setup and it gets even cooler when you can possess other objects on the battlefield and even dispossess the bodies you were once in. The game’s Capture the Host mode is even more unique because instead of bringing a flag to your base, you actually have to possess a host and bring them instead. The multiplayer modes in Geist would be greatly appreciated if they were playable online, but as they are now, they feel outdated. However, if you’re not an online gamer, you and your friends can have a great time the game’s split-screen multiplayer, especially since the game’s modes are unique and fun.
Ho-hum Presentation
As for the game’s presentational aspects, they aren’t up to snuff with many of the games we’ve seen in the final years of the GameCube’s lifespan. The visual presentation of the game is reminiscent to that of Silicon Knight’s Eternal Darkness, one of the
"the action element of Geist is the weakest part of the game and it’s shame"
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GameCube’s earlier adventures, and even when that game was released it wasn’t too impressive looking. This isn’t to say that Geist looks bad, because it has that clean look that I’m quite fond of and a framerate that stays solid for most of the single-player campaign, but it isn’t one of those games you’d look to show off to friends because of its visuals.
Describing the game’s audio isn’t much different than describing the game’s visuals. It has its ups and downs, but more downs than ups. I liked that there’s actually some voice acting in the game, because you can’t always expect that from a Nintendo game, but it isn’t used as much as it should have been. Voice overs are only used during in-game cinematics and not when simply speaking to non-playable characters. In all honesty, if it had been used all the time because it could’ve only made things betters. The game’s soundtrack is half bad either. In fact, I rather like it because it gives off this eerie atmosphere with a classic sci-fi vibe, thanks to some themes that feel as if they came straight out of James Cameron’s first Terminator movie.
Not the Best Place to Spend Fifty Bucks
Geist is the type of game that I would say would make an ideal rental. The reasons behind this is because the single-player portion of the game can easily be completed under a week if someone were to play it for about two hours a day. Also, that which is found in this portion of the game is far too linear to go back to and play again after things are done. You’ve basically seen all Geist has to offer the first run through. Of course, the game’s multiplayer is fun and unique, but without an online component I just can’t feel excited about it. As for the gameplay itself, it’s pretty refreshing since the game’s possession elements are pretty entertaining and make for some pretty interesting puzzles, but it’s not enough for anyone to willingly drop $50 for the game and feel as if they’ve made a worthwhile purchase. Even with all of this said, I’m hoping to see a sequel to Geist on Nintendo’s next-generation console that improves on every aspect of the original. There’s lots of potential here.
