Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy

"Potentially great, but inevitably mediocre."

Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy, a truly original idea, plagued by the most elementary action game problems. Every two steps it takes forward it takes one step back, and sadly, no matter how close this game comes to justifying 50 bucks spent, it inevitably leaves you disappointed and wanting more.

Your alter-ego in Psi-Ops is some guy with amnesia. I forget basically everything about the convoluted plot as it was so laughably bad to begin with, I simply skipped every cut scene, accept the pre-rendered CG's, and went on with the game.

Fortunately Psi-Ops' gameplay was given a little more thought than its heroic tale. The main gimmick that Psi-Ops implements, and it implements this very well, are psychic abilities. Throughout the game you'll acquire six indispensable extrasensory powers. Things like controlling enemies minds, picking them up and slamming them against walls, and lets not forget, exploding their whole bodies sending their dismembered limbs afar; will come second nature to you as the game progresses. You can also pick up new guns as you travel, though the game limits you to two guns and unfortunately the pistol you started the game with is with you forever, so in reality you can really only pick up one new weapon at a time. The developers obviously meant for the fire-arms to come second in favor of your telepathic competency, but since the two work with each other so well, you'll often wish your armory consisted of more than a pistol and an assault rifle; and the fact that there are no usable explosives in the game (grenades, mines, etc.) is something of a let-down itself.

The enemy A.I. is, on all difficulties, a total pain. Not in the sense that their intelligence is above average, but in the sense that as soon as that single sentry hits that giant alarm button, it's all over. Immediately your surroundings become flooded with dozens of guards who seem to know where you are no matter how well you've hidden yourself. This dismisses any stealth aspect of the game that the developers were trying to create. You may be able to creep inches behind a guard as he makes his rounds, but as soon as that alarm goes off, everyone and their brother knows where you are. What's the point of having shadows or crates to hid behind if the enemy cuts a path right to you with ease? Also your health bar and energy bars deplete at a far too rapid rate. Bullets cut inconsistence chunks out of your life and it seems after sparsely using your psychic energy for a few moments, your whole bar is exhausted. This isn't as much of an inconvenience later in the game when you learn the ability to suck the remaining psi-energy from your diseased enemies, but since the developers obviously emphasized your psychic powers, it's a wonder why they run out so easily. They could have at least compensated for this by upgrading the usefulness of your weapons, but alas, you run of bullets quite quickly, and it takes an enormous volley of hot lead to keep guards incapacitate.

That's not to say Psi-Ops isn't a fun game, because it is. I've spent countless hours decimating enemy forces and not once did it get boring. The combination of things at your disposal to take down your opponents is fantastic, truly a step in the right direction for action games. But like all good things, this fun eventually comes to an end. Psi-Ops' fun factor decreases steadily the further you get into it. Levels are designed for those players who love fighting all the way through countless hordes of enemies, tactically sneaking around arbitrary gun placements, and figuring out ways to get up to that roof to collect that coveted key to that door you can't get open; only to find out that once you complete all of you this, you have to turn around and go all the way back from wince you came. It's frustrating to say the least, and represents why developers don't design levels like this any more: it's boring. Not only is it boring, but it makes the oh so powerful psychic abilities you have seem somewhat less potent.

“I've mastered the ability to levitate my enemies, take over their minds and make them do my biding. I can even see through lead walls and explode my opposition into a bloody collage of entrails, but I'll be damned if I can't open this metallic sheet blocking my path without the blue key card that I missed at the beginning of the level!”

The game just becomes more of a burden then anything else; especially towards the end where the repetitive nature of the levels really becomes apparent. It's sad really, because as hard as I tried to like Psi-Ops', too many factors kept holding me back, and number one on the list was the backtracking.

Luckily the saving grace of this game really does save it. The graphics are simply irresistible. Character models aren't skimpy on the polygons and are nicely detailed. Particle effects really stand out and make the game more aesthetically enjoyable. The environments are particularly noteworthy and add a much needed sense of realism. Dimly lit areas are illuminated like light shows with muzzle fire and make you appreciate the lighting effects that much more. However, what really takes the cake is the havoc engine used in Psi-Ops, which translates to really fun rag-doll physics. No two enemies will assume rigor mortis the same thanks to this baby. The frame-rate, while mostly stable, will slow down quite a bit during times when many enemies fill the screen at once and open fire. It quickly corrects itself but is an annoyance nonetheless.

Audio wise Psi-Ops doesn't do anything specifically groundbreaking. The only thing that stands out are the well done voice overs and the musical score is pretty pleasing. Objects found in the levels sound decent; sending a soon to be corpse smashing into it a crate sounds very satisfying.

At first glance Psi-Ops appears to be just another generic third-person-shooter, but a closer looks reveals a much deeper, more gratifying experience. Unfortunately, an even closer looks uncovers all the little flaws that keep it from being the great game it could be. Psi-Ops, like most games, is fun while it lasts. However, there are lot of other fun games out there that don't contain the same frustrating defects as this one. Life it too short to spend ten hours on a game that you'll eventually realize wasn't really worth your time.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 07/08/04