Syberia II

"The rewarding jounrney greatly out weighs the small problems"

If you are reading this and plan on playing Syberia 2, I strongly suggest you play Syberia if you have not already, because playing Syberia 2 before Syberia will likely ruin Syberia's story. Syberia 2, the sequel to the epic Syberia and the end of the series made by Benoit Sokal, is a point and click action game which you will either love or hate. Syberia consists of many puzzles which you will attempt to solve to further the game and overcome the obstacles the game will place in front of you. This game will be very rewarding for those who have the patience and focus to play it.

The gameplay in Syberia 2 consists of solving puzzles, which may need items, or may just need some thought process. First and foremost this game takes patience, patience and attention to details so that you will be able to go through this game without being lost frequently. Throughout the game you will find a variety or items which will enable you to solve the puzzles, however some puzzles will not need items at all, but rather focus on details and logical thought. The puzzles can range from rather easy to exceedingly difficult depending upon how much thought you put into them. If you are not exceptional at puzzle solving games then you may find yourself resorting to the guide often, though I did this and it takes away from the satisfaction of finishing a puzzle. The main struggle with the puzzles is that some of them are not designed that well, such as puzzles that may lead you to trying random items if you overlook one small detail. This can become very frustrating and lead many people to give up on this game, but don't because you will feel a great satisfaction when you complete the puzzles, making the effort rewarding.

The story is an epic tail of Kate Walker's journeys through different towns and places, those of you who have played Syberia will know Kate very well. The story is the largest draw to this game from the simple cut-scenes, to the near tear-jerking moments which will in affect make you more addicted to finishing this game. As you complete certain puzzles there will often be a cut-scene, the cut-scenes are very important to pay attention to as they may give you a clue to solving puzzles throughout the game. The cut-scenes and story will be satisfying when you finish certain puzzles, but not so long that they make you want to walk away from the television and have dinner.

The presentation of this game is fantastic, from the nice cut-scenes to the brilliantly rendered back rounds. Though the back rounds will often not have that much action or movement; there will be people and objects that move in the back round to give the game life. The cut-scenes will have the most movement and music giving the game a dramatic and exciting feel. The character models are not fantastic, but they still are nice. Often there will be a variety of sounds throughout the game, however sometimes there will be a lack of sound such as when you are walking between places and all you will hear are Kate's footsteps. Even though the game will be quiet at times, after solving certain puzzles there will be a burst of vibrant sound indicating possibly nearing the end of that part of the game or just a celebration to you for solving the puzzle. Overall the presentation is rather nice and the sounds are nice even though there is a lack of sound at some points.

Now I feel that I must devote a paragraph to the controls. First the controls do not feel awkward and are not the problem; the problem is that often times it feels as if you do not have great control over the character. For example there will be many times where you will want Kate to go one direction, but an invisible wall forces you to go another direction. The invisible walls in the game are everywhere and constantly dictate Kate's movements. Also the walls will make it tough to find where you are supposed to go at times; such as in parts where it is already tough to see the alternate path or path you need to take. This will become a bother because you may not realize until 15 minutes of walking in circles that you had to walk around an invisible wall to find what you are looking for. Sometimes the problem relates more to the back rounds, as there are times when the draw of the back rounds will make it harder to see alternate routes in the back of the screen. This can be a major problem with controlling Kate, and may lead you to walking up and down invisible walls at times. Overall the control needs to be improved in this sense because Kate's movement is at times out of the player's control.

The amount of time you spend playing Syberia 2 will be determined by how quickly you finish the puzzles. If you have to go back and find items that you may have missed the game can become very time-consuming and frustrating. However if you do not mind a little help then resort to the guides to avoid aggravation. The game took me approximately ten hours, however I used the guide where I struggled. Tragically, I must admit that I was expecting the game to be slightly longer considering that it is shorter than Syberia, and since the game does not offer alternate endings or extras, the game has little replay value since you will know all the solutions to the puzzles second-time around, which is disappointing. However the 20 dollar price tag does help to motivate one to buy a quick game.

My final comments are that this game is very rewarding for the patient and logical gamer who is willing to analyze puzzles to find a solution. The spectacular presentation, good sound, and overall pleasing calm atmosphere within the game greatly outweigh the frustration from annoying puzzles, and minor sound problems. In the end you will step back and realize you have just witnessed a brilliant and touching tale of Kate Walker's journeys.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/31/05, Updated 02/01/05