Should you die without any retries, youll be forced to load the games last autosave, which is to say, the start of the current level. If you die at any point during combat or climbing, youll need these retries to be able to load recent checkpoints. These are retries, and you'll want to stock up on as many of these as possible. As you traverse the citys husk, youll come across glowing video cameras. That said, its not a huge issue, and once you get your head around the strategic nature of the combat mechanics, its satisfying enough to warrant beating the game. The same applies if you drop your gun the enemy is scared enough when its pointed at them, but seems to forget about its existence should you lower it. This is one aspect of the combat system I found a little frustrating enemies will halt at the sight of your pistol, but dont seem to care that theres a loaded bow aimed point blank up their nostril. Be careful though, as the bow wont intimidate attackers, and with it equipped theyll come at you just as fast as you can string your arrow. Eventually, youre awarded a hunting bow with one re-collectable arrow, signifying a welcome change of pace to the combat mechanics. You can even order them to step back to a ledge and then brutally kick them over (although said ledge will often be a long walk away, and ordering them back this far feels quite unrealistic). Those without guns themselves will submit at the sight of a levelled firearm - even if it isnt loaded - leaving themselves open to a melee attack.
Upon entering a room full of aggressors, youll have to decide in an instant who youre putting down with your one bullet, who youre going to kill with your machete and who youre going to intimidate with your empty gun. For starters, finding one bullet is a blessing the combat isnt about head-shotting, or spraying and praying, its about strategy. This ticking clock is exacerbated by a throbbing, ever loudening piece of tension music that creeps slowly into the sound mix as your stamina bar empties to around that half way mark, creating a constant sense of is he gonna make it?! Combat in I Am Alive, while again not panging of innovation in and of itself, houses a clever subversion that enhances the mechanic ten-fold. Our protagonist is fully human, and unlike Lara, Drake or Ezio, he cant climb forever and should his stamina deplete to zero, hell fall, forcing you to manage the stamina bar by resting on ledges, employing climbing gear or consuming resources. I Am Alive doesnt exactly beat the aforementioned titles in its climbing system but it does give it a unique subversion: the influence of the stamina bar. Games like Tomb Raider and its spiritual successor Uncharted have refined this age-old gameplay mechanic to the point where theres really no excuse for getting it wrong anymore. Climbing in action games is old hat by now.
Both gameplay aspects, while being somewhat expected in a third person action game, have been given interesting twists which serve to set I Am Alive apart from others of its ilk. I Am Alive has two main gameplay mechanics: climbing the wrecked husks of the citys skyscrapers and fighting off deranged survivors.
Upon saving a little girl who reminds the protagonist of his daughter, youre then charged with a series of missions, with the ultimate goal of aiding an escape from the city. Its a solid enough concept, but unfortunately, its resolved (or rather left, unresolved) rather quickly and the plot segways into something wholly unrelated. We join this mysterious traveller at the end of his one year exodus across a ruined America, as he returns home to locate his wife and daughter. You play an un-named protagonist who, during the event, was four hours away from his home city by plane. Youll have to keep your wits about you if youre going to survive this lawless, post-apocalyptic nightmare.
In this holocaustic environment, bullets are scarce, and arrows for your bow are practically non-existent. Its set in a dystopian present in which Earths infrastructure lies decimated by a cataclysmic event one year prior to the games opening, leaving the land at ground level blanketed by a thick layer of hazardous dust. Rating:3.5 Conceptually, I Am Alive is a winner.