Condemned: Criminal Origins

"The thing I remember most about this game after I had completed it was the suspense"

Condemned: Criminal Origins is one of the more interesting games of the Xbox 360 launch lineup. It's not a port of a PC game, nor is it a racing or sports game, but that's not to say that it wouldn't get your heart pounding. Condemned: Criminal Origins is hands down one of the creepiest games out there in terms of its slow, almost meticulous pacing, environments, and the pure savagery of the enemies you'll be up against. Condemned further ups the scare factor by bringing some of the most intense and satisfying melee combat ever seen in a first person game that will make you cringe with every blow and a soundtrack that will make you think twice about turning the lights off. Condemned is truly the best example of horror in the next generation.

Condemned puts you into the shoes of Ethan Thomas, a regular FBI agent who specializes in tracking down serial killers. The story starts off with a routine visit to a crime scene of a killer called the Matchmaker, but quickly goes awry. The whole situation leaves Ethan unarmed with the exception of a taser gun and some forensic tools and hot on the trail of a madman. All the while Ethan questions his own sanity in the process. The story starts off with a bang and quickly pulls you in to the point where you'll feel compelled to play more and more just to find out what's going to happen next with no sign of slowing down. It only opts to get more intense as the story progresses. Of course, you'll have an army of insane junkies who are more than willing to put an end to your investigation. The game touches on what has caused these people to lose their minds and aggressively attack anyone in their way, but you'll never really know the full story in the end.

Action takes place strictly from a first-person view which helps to make some of the game's more memorable moments even more intense and scary. This is evident in the examples of abuse Ethan has to endure which includes getting thrown out of a window among other crazy events you may yet have to experience in the first person. Since Ethan is essentially unarmed, he has to make due with makeshift weapons to stave away the nasties that will stop at nothing to kill him if he gets in their way. Luckily, weapons are abundant and can be found anywhere from pipes to nail-imbued 2x4's, desk drawers to paper cutters, and even signs and locker doors will become part of your arsenal at some point or another during the game. You can carry only one weapon at a time so you'll be pressed to decide between a heavier, more powerful weapon or settle for a smaller, faster weapon. You will come across the occasional fire arm here and there, but ammo is severely limited so make every shot count. Certain weapons like the fire axe, crowbar, and sledge hammer can be used to open special doors and objects to find hidden guns or a few of the game's numerous secrets.

Condemned becomes a literal fight for survival since you'll be on even ground with the crazies that come at you armed with the same makeshift weapons and an even larger lust for blood. The fact that the crazies are smart doesn't help to make matters any better. They won't hesitate to run off and find a bigger, badder weapon, hide behind walls to get the jump on you, or show fits of anger and retaliate with a lunging counter attack after you hit them. Their acts accompanied with the realistic animations that accompany them are enough to make you almost regret hitting them across the face with a pipe in the first place. The baddies only get bigger and harder to defeat as the game goes on. Blocking with your weapon is encouraged since it will let you go straight to the offense after a successful block, though it's a bit flawed and it seems that it takes a stroke of luck to get a good succession of blocks in. You'll find that using guerilla tactics works just as well as blocking. The fighting system is basic and you won't see any crazy twelve-hit combos here. While early parts of the game can be a challenge, things become much easier after getting your hands on an upgraded and overpowered taser gun that will allow you to get one hit kills on nearly everything you encounter. By the end of the game you'll feel like you're purely going through the motions just to get to the next bit of the storyline until the last level where the difficulty really gets turned up. There is some satisfaction gained by performing special moves on baddies that lie on the brink of death. By choosing an option from the d-pad, you'll be able to give them an impressive head butt, slam their heads on the floor, break their necks, or deliver a punch to the face. The best part about executing special moves is that you're not doing them to every enemy and happen every so often so the novelty really never wanes.

When you're not fighting, you'll be exploring to find miscellaneous dead birds, metal pieces. When you're not looking for items or fighting for your life, you'll be investigating the trail of the mystery killer you're in pursuit of. Of course, this isn't as good as it sounds – you're not mister CSI after all. You see, Ethan has an uncanny instinct that tips him off to when he should be investigating. Namely, it's an excuse for the game to basically prompt you to pull out your forensic tools and look for blood marks or hand prints in a room. If you stray too far away from your evidence, the game will have no qualms with letting you know. Sure, this may sound bad to those who love to explore or have a deep affection for David Caruso, but it's just right for those of us who are playing purely for the horror aspects.

Condemned is full of creepy environments that you'll be stumbling through thanks to the dim glow of your flashlight. You'll make your way through one run-down condemned building after another (and here you thought the title meant something else) with each exhibiting the beauty of run-down abandonment. While you'll be navigating more than your fair share of dark, narrow corridors, you'll also get to go through an abandoned farmhouse, a department store complete with freaky mannequins, and even get to go outside once in a while. Each environment gives off its own feeling of anxiety – some more than others obviously, but the creeps are always there.

The visuals resemble something you'd see running on a high end PC game. Not that it's a bad thing, but aside from the excellent animation, those who have played F.E.A.R. or Quake 4 may not be too impressed right away. You've got a good use of physics for inanimate objects and some decent rag doll effects on enemies but nothing too impressive there either. Both the enemies and your own body are able to clip through otherwise impassable objects now and again, but it's nothing too horrible. There are some pretty neat effects at work, but a lot of them are pretty subtle aside from the great animation that I just can't seem to shut up about. You'll also get some neat shadows casting off of enemies as well as your own body which is guaranteed to cause a couple of inadvertent scares for sure. Not to sell the visuals short, they really are amazing despite my incessant nitpicking and should be looked at with a keen eye (and some high definition help) to be truly appreciated.

The game's sound actively competes with the visuals for the prize of "best way to tempt one's senses" and it's pretty much a dead heat thanks in part to the game's great voice acting and ambient soundtrack. All of the main characters do a great job of voicing their lines and it's a welcome change to not play as a mute character who doesn't respond back. The best bits of voice acting come from the crazies you'll be coming across who all yell, curse, and grunt with a demeanor like that of a criminally insane person that's actively trying to kill you. Some of the best portions of the game are when you hear them yelling and scuffling with each other in other rooms and the floors above you which will definitely send the chills down your spine.

Condemned: Criminal Origins is definitely an experience that anyone looking for a good scare should experience. A mixture of excellent visuals, a compelling story, and a great soundtrack are enough to make you look past the somewhat repetitive portions of gameplay while the game can run a little short, about ten hours. Condemned is perfect for a weekend rental if anything. If Condemned is the defining example of the visceral and aural experiences we'll be experiencing in this next generation of games, then we're in for a fun five years.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/03/06