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"Pariah"

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 23 / 23
Date: May 27, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Let's face it, the press has been kind of hard on "Pariah," an Unreal-powered shooter that admittedly lurks in the shadow of games like "Halo" and "Far Cry." That said, in reality there are more reasons to recommend the game to first-person shootists than there are reasons to condemn it, as it's quite a worthy sci-fi effort once you get past its laundry list of problems.

"Pariah" starts out with promise aplenty. A mysterious ship transporting a cryogenically frozen woman crash lands on Earth, which as a planet is now the refuge of criminals and mercenaries. Shot down by unknown attackers, Dr. Jack Mason and said token femme seem to be the only survivors, but as luck would have it she's infected with some kind of super-virus that could be all kinds of trouble in the wrong hands. And, as is par for the course with these things, the wrong hands are certainly trying to claim her so that they can harness the power she possesses. It's seemingly up to Jack to forego his Hippocratic oath and thwart these evil ambitions by killing lots and lots of bad guys. After that, the story gets quite muddled and certainly wouldn't be one of the game's stronger points except for an ambitious twist at the end that breathes fresh life into something that seemed virtually D.O.A.

In terms of gameplay, "Pariah" flirts with a few innovations that truly are interesting. First, the hero character's medical background makes him adept at healing himself. The tool he uses for this task is located in Jack's inventory alongside his weapons, and is in fact used like a weapon, complete with ammunition that must be gathered to make it of any further use. When selected a quick pull of the trigger initiates the healing process. The fact that this item is used much like a weapon and cannot merely be summoned with the press of a button for an instant resurgence of health adds a strategic element to the game's firefights. Run in with guns blazing and you'll die almost every time because using the medical tool is a deliberate and time-sensitive process. Not only does this fit in extremely well with the hero character's profession, it's a unique spin on health recovery in the FPS genre that I hope to see again in other games. It promotes an attack and retreat philosophy similar to the regenerating shields in "Halo" (which is no doubt the source of inspiration).

Second and perhaps even more importantly, "Pariah" offers several satisfying weapons, each one with no less than three available upgrades (apart from the useless melee weapon and an energy canon found late in the single player game). Upgrading these weapons further adds a dose of strategy, pure coolness notwithstanding. But because you never accrue enough points to enhance each weapon in your arsenal, there is the aforementioned strategic concern. Do you upgrade your shotgun to deal maximum damage to your opponents in close quarters, or do you enhance your more well-rounded assault rifle instead? The choice is yours, and these upgrades really do make a discernable impact on how punishing said weapon becomes as you near the end of the game. Again, this is a feature more shooters should pay rapt attention to.

Apart from these innovations, however, "Pariah" is fairly derivative in its structure, owing a tremendous debt to the aforementioned FPS hits "Halo" and "Far Cry." The game's drivable vehicles are testament to this fact, but add little to the experience thanks to their poor implementation and less than stellar driving mechanics. On top of that, many of the game's levels are boilerplate science fiction and offer little in the way of originality. That said, a few of the missions do stand out as particularly enjoyable - primarily two later ones which take place on board a speeding train and a flying carrier ship respectively. It's just that the art direction, which envelops the enemies as well as the landscapes, is just so bloody trite.

Clichés aside, the game sure is pretty. It takes the aging "Unreal II" engine to the max, and despite a few polygonal jags here and there, it ultimately provides some pretty sumptuous eye candy on the Xbox console. The sound effects are equally excellent for the most part. Weapons discharges in particular really enhance the sense of power each weapon emits.

Unfortunately, "Pariah" is chock full of bugs. On at least three occasions I slipped through the very floor and fell to my death. In no way shape or form is this acceptable in a supposedly finished product. Another grating issue is collision detection, which is spotty at best. Sometimes you can shoot a baddie three times and drop him dead where he stands, while other times your enemies seem to absorb your attacks and keep on coming without regard. Their herky-jerky movements, a holdover from "Unreal II," compound the issue, making them more difficult to drop than they should actually be.

Another negative feature on loan from its big brother is the overblown rag doll physics present in "Pariah." When reacting to explosions, the aerial death spins of your opponents can be quite satisfying, but when merely shooting them to death they drop to the ground, bending at angles so awkward you know there's nothing even remotely resembling a skeleton anywhere inside of them. It's as if they've all been stuffed with rice. Add into the mix an automatic weapon switch that can put a rocket launcher in your hands at close range when you just used up the ammo for your assault rifle, an insanely unpredictable check point system, and vague mission objectives such as "disable the turret," and you certainly can't order "Pariah" without its fair share of lemons.

In the end, though, "Pariah" softens its hard edges with a few key features that really should become the fashion in shooters, as well as decent production values, slick, responsive controls, and a story that redeems itself with a ballsy conclusion. As far as FPS games go, "Pariah" is far from king of the hill, but just as far from the bottom of the junk heap. If science fiction shoot `em ups are your bread and butter, you'll feel right at home here.

There's got to be a game here

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: May 12, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Pariah's a title that a few people have been waiting for. In the end it's probably better if we waited longer. The game doesnt really break any molds or even really try.

The graphics are good enough from a distance but look cheap and thrown together at closer distances. It's obvious the Unreal engine needs to be put to rest once and for all. Havoc adds a little level of fun but what good is it really when the enemies vanish practically before they hit the ground? Weapon and player character animations are smoothly done but nothing really awe inspiring.

Although the first "song" you hear is quasi entertaining, it gets old fast after looping for an hour over and over. The worse offense in the sound department has to be the enemy "barks" The programmers gave enemies about three phrases for the entire game and it is etirely common to hear ten enemies say the same exact quote as you kill them in succession. " Doe Rae Me Fa So long sucka!" is corny the first time you hear it and just as bad the millionth (per level)In essence it feels like you're gunning down the same zig zagging target over and over. Ambient noises, weapons and voice acting pull the experience together. The weapons genuinly sound lethal and vehicles do sound powerful.

One of the games selling points is the AI. Every interview from creators claim that the AI is among the best on the market. It's more like the most dissapointingly mediocre. Enemies ignore walls in front of their faces and fire missiles trying to kill you. They also don't co-ordinate like in other games. Between mediocre enemy AI and poorly designed levels, I found myself accomplishing half of the game and wishing at some point it would start becoming enjoyable.

Finally, I've read a lot of bravado about how Hollywood screen writers are collaborating to create a compelling story for Pariah. Ok...where's the evidence? half way through the game you know as much as you did just reading the back of the box. Cutscenes don't really tell you what's going on and most of your objectives are to find Karina.

In all, Pariah leaves a bad after taste and the sense of being scammed for $50 that could have better been invested in another game. If this was a game three years in the making, the Pariah team must have spent two of those years fooling around. The verdict: bland graphics, average soundtrack, inexcusable AI and no real plot. look for it in the bargain bin in a week or two before spending the full 50.

A Weak First Person Shooter.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: May 13, 2005
Author: Amazon User

When I first started playing this game I was like maybe this will be a kool game ,because it kinda reminds me of halo but I quickly learned its a weak copy of HALO2.Pariah tries to play like Halo2 but comes up way short. The controls are somewhat standard FPS controls,but they operate a little sticky.When you walk over enemies dropped riot shields ,your player will have a hard time of walking over it & there's just a general sense of stickiness to the walking in certain parts.Also when you brush up against a wall it seems like there's glue on them. Its not a very smooth game.You can upgrade your weapons by finding certain upgrade thingys and you can upgrade your weapon about 6 slots .I didnt notice a huge difference after upgrading them.By the end of the game I upgraded all of them except the last weapon titans fist which is not upgradable.The enemies all sidestep throughout the game ,It may be alittle harder then other FPS but you'll soon easily be taking them out.I beat the game in about 3 days on the third highest difficulty. The vehicles are very simular to Halo2's ,even the way you mount them is simular .But they just dont feel smooth as HALO2'S .The weapon on the jeep type vehicle( I forgot the name of it) ,its the one that shoots out what looks like two small exploding cannon balls,is seriously weak.It fires horribly and the enemy scooter type vehicles seem to take it out almost too easily.When your vehicle is on fire and about to explode ,instead of jumping out ,your player gets out very slowly like an old lady goin to church.Also when your player reloads the weapon it seems to take forever,its almost like he relishes in reloading ,all the while bullets are flyin over your head. La La La Im gonna watch myself reload .I shot an enemy while he was in a scooter jet ski type thingy vehicle in the head about 5 times with the sniper zoomed in but he didnt even fall off,so I guess you cant take out the enemy and save the vehicle for yourself,you have to take himout by destroying the vehicle.There is a bug in this game that for some reason you instantly die for no apparent reason .I noticed that it happened when I just touched or walked by a regular barrel & even flammable barrels that have long since spawned out after exploding from being shot.The way the bullets come at you from the airship turret towards the end of the game(the ship you have to jump on) look like mid 1970's quality graphics.Its kinda weird seeing modern graphics with 1970's bullet fire.The music tries to copy HALO2.The way the open areas are designed try to copy halo2 .I was very bored with this game it just doesnt play like a solid FPS.I only compare this game to HALO2 because its very obvious the developers where trying to copy HALO2.Everything from the music,the vehicles,the open type spaces and even the HUD are simular.Also when you get shot your health will regenerate if it is not below a certain level just like HALO2 does.There are some good things about this game like the map editor.But I never bothered with it I was just happy to be done with the game after I rented it.Not a great FPS game.Pariah just plays like a rushed game ,the graphics are ok ,the gameplay is sticky and unpolished.I cant say I'd recommend this game at all,except for maybe the online & the map editor,but if they play anything like the game forget it.Rent First.

Pariah, the best fps' since Doom 3

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: June 22, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Pariah has been beaten down time and time again, but the funny thing, is that it gets back up every single time. Many people say it sucks even if they haven't played it but the truth is they have no freaking clue what they are talking about.

The graphics are insanely good and the characters are way better than Halo or Halo2 COMBINED. It is a much better game than both Halo games as well.

After playing this I really think that first person shooters will actually have GOOD stories of wich Halo greatly lacked.

Multiplay is a little crazy and I only like to play it to see what kind of maps people can come up with.

I love this game and would choose it over any other fps out there. WAY, WAY better than Halo 1 or 2. I never want to put the controller down when I play this game.

Ratings

Graphics:10
Sound:10
Replayability:8
Controls:9
Drawn In Atmosphere:10
Fun:10
Multiplayer, Co-Op:10, Multiplay:7
Overall:9.25

Adios, and I'll see your maps on Xbox Live.

"Doe-Ray-Me-Fa-So long, Sucka!!!"

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: June 05, 2006
Author: Amazon User

Nope. This game got on my last nerve. I was absolutely compelled to take it back to the used video game shop & get my money back in less than a week. First I want to point out how annoying the voices of the AI enemies are. There are two main things they say when they notice you, being;

1)"Doe-Ray-Me-Fa-So long, Sucka!" and
2)"You can die fast or you can die slow, your choice, Doc!"

or something like that. I tell you, when you've heard each of these inane litanies for the 100th time, you get [...] After such audio masterpeices as "Halo" & even "Raze's Hell" (who ever heard that game's AI chatter?) you really see how shoddy "Pariah" is in the voice department. Graphics were just so-so. At the time the game came out, being on Xbox, this thing should've looked better. Game play just did not impress me in any way. If you are gonna do a first person shooter you need to do it really well or bring something new to the table. No such luck here.

Maybe to online Xbox Live game play is good? I did not have Xbox Live at the time I owned a copy of "Pariah" so maybe the game has a redeeming multiplayer aspect.

...That single-player story mode was for the birds.

Fast Paced Highly Changeable Game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: February 14, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This is a fast paced game online and is very adaptable. The Map Editor is easy to use. The sniper quality of this game is not that great. When you zoom it isn't very close but you do have a thermal lense. The game relies alot on quick tactics and long range missle weapons as well as vehicles. You will die quickly and kill quickly. The close range cutting saw is fun if you can get close enough to use it.

What the Heck?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 4
Date: June 19, 2005
Author: Amazon User

First off, I would like to say that I'm usually critical of most games. Having read all the crappy reviews for this game I almost didn't rent it. After the first ten minutes of playing I was hooked and didn't put the controler down until the credits rolled. This game is non-stop action from beggining to end. I love first person shooters and I love this game. For crying out loud don't compare it Halo 2. This game can stand on its own 2 feet. I highly recommend this game. Oh, and for all the people that have said the graphics suck, they need to get their eyes checked...

great game that gets way too much crap

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: June 20, 2007
Author: Amazon User

I'm a guy that swears by the unreal series (particularily the original unreal and the return to na pali mission pack) so when I heard that digital extremes did another FPS, I immediately went to amazon and ordered the game.

it was only AFTER I ordered the game that I found out how much crap this game gets - and now after playing it, I wonder why there are a lot of bad reviews for it.

most of the crap it gets is for the storyline - which, I thought, was excellent. you just need to get to the last level to really understand what's going on. you're INTENDED to not have a clue until the end.

anyway, onto the gameplay...I love it. weapons are great, levels are great, and this game introduces a few cool new aspects of gameplay to the FPS scene. also, the drop-in/drop-out 2 player coop is really awesome. the only reason I gave this game 4 stars was because of the multiplayer aspect of the game. there were far too few maps - if there were more, this game would definetely rank up there with some of my favorites.

so...yeah. in a nutshell, I highly recommend this game.

Pariah, the bad Halo clone

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 12
Date: September 24, 2005
Author: Amazon User

My first experience with Pariah was, in fact, single player. I started out, and chose the 3rd difficulty down, which had heroic in its name (Halo + Halo 2). Then it started me out with a cg that was entertaining and inmormative, and was jumping and moving around with all the ease of Halo (1, not 2). It gave me a melee attack and health. Then, as i tried to jump over an obsticle the game was trying to tell me to duck under. I hit an invisible wall. I knew how high i could jump, but it wouldn''t let me go over, so i went under (FIRST mistake Groove Games...)
All was fine and dandy. Then i got a gun and fought off some generic baddies with the same gun as me. They seemed to be really hard to kill and i almost died (SECOND mistake, Groove Games... if I almost died, then the normal player would have died easily)
During that 1st skirmish. I healed myself with the (i admit it) COOL healing tool, and proceeded. I tried to jump over a low ledge after climbing a mountain (which, once again, I KNEW i could get over), but another invisible wall stopped me (THIRD mistake, Groove Games...), so i went around and fought through some more people. I picked up a weapons upgrader and my SMG became tons better (FOURTH mistake, Groove Games..., its not that the idea of upgrading weapons is bad, its just that a non-upgraded weapon is practically useless in this game)
Then i fought some more baddies and reached a checkpoint (FIFTH mistake, Groove Games..., enough with fight the same type of guys all the time!)
Second level time. 1st skirmish (same baddies AGAIN), and this time one had a grenade launcher. At that time, i realised that until then, i had no such weapon. I killed him first, nabbed the weapon, and used all its ammo trying to take out the rest of the group. Being that it was unupgraded, the grenades flew out of the barrel, and when they hit the ground their timer began. They bounced around for 1, 2, 2.5 seconds before they exploded near nothing. WAY to long. i died alot(SIXTH mistake, Groove Games..., the load screen is real long, and each time you die, you start at a checkpoint after a loading AGAIN)
in that spot and decided to restart. I realised i was not playing in slightlyharderthannormal mode, but in fact, just as it said, it was like heroic in Halo. i was fooled. it was like this, diff 1: easy... diff 2: normal... diff 3: hard (has heroic in the name) diff 4: very hard (SEVENTH mistake, Groove Games..., it should be 1=easy, 2=little easier than average, 3=little harder than average, 4= hard, especially if you are gonna use cute names as opposed to real levels of difficulty).
So I started again in normal. Enemies dealt less damage, but still dealt too much damage and weren't much easier to kill. But the AI was more idiotic. I got past where i previously was and upgraded the nade launcher, which actually made it worth using. I got a lot farther until i got to the 4th level (the levels were short). I killed some guys, then got killed. I did this about 4 times (EIGHTH mistake, Groove Games..., ever hear of a learning curve? + i HATE long load times!)
Then i killed a guy with a flamethrower, he ran around like an idiot, then blew up and killed me. now i know that, so the next time i went there, i underestimated the flames and got killed in 5 seconds, a lot longer than it takes to kill him. then i killed him and i had to go down a ladder (NINTH mistake, Groove Games...)
I went down some, and then jumped down. The fall killed me (load again) BTW: the fall was shorter than falls i have survived without a scratch in real life. I got to the ladder again (2 tries :P ) and this time, i didn't even get on the ladder. I stepped towards it, and into the great beyond (TENTH mistake, Groove Games...)
By then, i had seen enough of that stupid single player mode. I tried out the watered down map editor and realized that it was not for me. No stacking levels on top of each other, it was just a topographical editor with some built in bunkers which were way to confusing to get around (ELEVENTH mistake, Groove Games..., let me have some more freedom!)
Then, i went online. There were few people in games, just some dedicated servers with bots. I killed some bots and realized something. The only good weapons are Plasma rifle fully upgraded, SMG upgraded twice, and the Granade launcher upgraded at once or twice. that's right, upgrading weapons in Multiplayer (TWELTH mistake, Groove Games..., BALANCE the weapons, and upgrading in multiplayer, while cool, leads to unfair advanatages. Once in lead, stay in lead.)
I played some CTF without anything to help me find my opponent's flag or anyhting to help me get back to my own flag (THIRTEENTH mistake, Groove Games..., make it easier for new people to the maps. Let us find the other flag and bring it back without wandering for 2 years).
So i played some deathmatch. Then an actual player joined the game. After killing me 4 times from the back, i realized another thing that was wrong with the game... NO RADAR OF ANY SORT! (FOURTEENTH mistake, Groove Games..., being omniscient is not what i ask for, all i want is not to die as often!)
After owning the game for four hours, i am going to return it to the place i got it. See ya!

not all that great

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: May 06, 2005
Author: Amazon User

i was really looking forward to this one too but now that its out it seems like just another FPS that was rushed and also made by amateurs. theres so many things that could have been better like the AI for one,its not to bright. pretty much all they do is zig-zag back and forth and sometimes they'll blow themselves up like idiots. another thing that could have been better,and this bugs me the most,is that when you come into contact with any kind of obstacle, whether it be a rock or a wall or something, you seem to have a slight stickiness to them. i mean it almost brings you to a complete stop when you just graze a wall while running down a hall or touching something,this is not good when overwhelmed in a firefight and backing up to evade when oops you touched a rock so your gonna take a few unnecassary hits or worse...get killed and have to start over. also the save system works by the checkpoint thing,so you can't save whenever you want like you should be able to do in a game like this. controls are standard fps style with a few selectable layouts but no custom settings. gameplay is a mixed bag with the controls,they just feel weird for some reason,definately not nearly as smooth as halo. yet the graphics are great in most areas and theres no real slowdown ...at first. it seems all fine till this one level where everyones fighting each other in some sort of detainment building, thats where the framerate drops considerably a few times. the game doesn't seem to have much of a story either, theres some chick with a virus and some dudes called the shroud. during pretty much the whole game you don't know who's who,why their fighting each other or what their doing there...all i know is that they all seem to be the enemy so you just gotta shoot everybody. all in all this game might make a good rental but definately not worth 50 bucks.

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