The Dig

"A Game Worth 'Digging' Into"

The Dig is an adventure game developed by LucasArts. It's a ''point-n-click'' style of gameplay, very similar to LucasArts' previous adventure games, which would include titles like Sam and Max, Day of the Tentacle, and Full Throttle. If that isn't clear enough, basically it's a puzzle based game with a fantastic story that is definately worth playing.

The Story: 9/10

You might begin to wonder, ''What the hell is this game about?'' when you see a title like 'The Dig.' Well, the story is about a pretty good sized asteroid that finds itself in a collision course with earth. Three astronauts are assigned to go up to the asteroid, plant explosives on it, and move it into a safe orbit, similar to a second moon. The task seems simple at first, but it is anything but routine. For the three characters: Boston Low, Maggie Robbins, and Ludger Brink: accidently activate a relic within the asteroid and find out that it is actually a star ship. It blasts out of orbit some light years away from earth to a distant, and dead planet. The team must then dig beneath the planets surface to uncover its mysteries and find a way back home.

The story is quite compelling, and is one of the best stories that sticks out in my mind when thinking of good videogame plots. It was a concept that was thought up from Steven Speilburg, but instead of making it a movie, he signed it over to LucasArts and had them make it a game. And this is one of those games that really could work out as a great movie. The game even came with a novelization by author Alan Dean Foster, and that even further enhances The Dig's story.

The voice talent is wonderful as well. The character you control, Boston Low, is voiced by Robert Patrick - or better known as the T-1000 in Terminator 2.

The character development and interaction is absolutely terrific as well. Granted, there are basically only 3 main characters in the game, but that's what makes it all more intriguing. The relationship between the 3 characters grows in both good and bad ways and it really enhances the story.

The only slight downside to the plot is that there isn't too much action in it. But it's not exactly an action game. It's a puzzle/mystery game. You aren't trying to blow up the aliens, youre trying to find out what happened to them and how to get back to earth.

Gameplay: 8/10

Like I said earlier, The Dig is a point n click. You have a cursor to click on the screen and an inventory for various puzzle purposes. The puzzles in this game can be quite mind bending to say the least, but once you figure them out it actually makes sense. There are actually a few puzzles that were ridiculous though, and one that sticks out to me the most is one where you have to put in a certain color coding a certain number of times. Other than that, the gameplay puzzle design is done quite nicely. It's an alien world, and the gameplay really makes you feel like you're actually on one yourself, because of the different technology of the alien race, youre trying to figure out what it means.

Graphics

This part is a bit shaky. The game came out in 1995, and for back then, I would give the game an 8. It wasn't up to par back then, but it also wasn't outdated. However, in the 21st century the graphics aren't good at all. I'd score them around a 6 or so.

The game looks like a cartoon, and it's supposed to. However, I feel that if this were to be ''updated'' to modern, non-cartoony graphics, then it would work out even more. The cutscenes are pretty cool too.

The games environments, regardless of time, look absolutely wonderful. I really felt like it was an alien planet.

Sound/Audio: 9/10

The music is wonderful. It really does set the tone and mood of the entire games atmosphere. And the voice talent is top notch as well. Usually I feel indifferent about the games music, but I found The Dig's to be exceptionally well.

Worth Buying?

To be blunt, yes. The game is pretty old though, so keep that in mind. The game itself won't run on modern systems though, but there is a way around that using a recently released emulator called ScummVM that will allow you to play The Dig, and other LucasArts adventure games on modern systems like XP. If you can find it, buy it, especially if it comes with the novelization. The game might be easier to find in compilation packs though.

Final Thoughts

The Dig may have cartoony graphics, but it is by no means a childrens game. There are a lot of adult oriented themes in this package, and I honestly dont understand why the games rating is E. I'd rate the game T at least. If there's one thing that makes this game truly great it's the fantastic story. Granted, it's not up to par with a lot of modern games, but if you have the chance to play The Dig, I wouldn't pass it up.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 09/19/03