Gaming Age
21st October 2008
Author: Dustin Chadwell
Publisher: Lucasarts
Machine: PlayStation 3 (US Version)
Fracture
Moving mounds of dirt with a gun isn't quite enough to put Fracture ahead of the pack.
Can we officially call "Bald Space Marine" a genre now? If so, the design of Fracture absolutely fits that bill, and not just because of the main character's appearance. Apparently in space clippers are everywhere, and hair stylists are extinct, along with a sense of identity and artistic merit.
That said, while I'm no fan of how Fracture seems to take ideas from other popular (or not so popular) first and third person shooters like Gears of War, Haze, Mass Effect and more, I can't really say that it's a game completely without merit. Sure, the main mechanic of terraforming with a weapon is a bit gimmicky, but it's still an interesting gimmick, and I enjoyed the idea and how it was put to use in each level. It's a bit like playing a ground level Populous, without the wrathful God vengeance and annoying swamp tiles.
Even the story isn't all that bad, and while it doesn't really propel the sci-fi genre to new heights, it works enough as a vehicle to get the player thru the main game, and does enough to keep you mildly interested throughout. The main character, played by you, is a young soldier named Jet Brody. For whatever reason, this name instantly reminds me of Flash Gordon, but the storyline here is strictly business, there's no real levity or camp going on. The plot revolves around Jet being thrust into a civil war in a future America, where floods and earthquakes have divided us, literally separating the East Coast from the West, creating two sides that call themselves the Atlantic Alliance and the Pacifican States. Of course, simply being divided isn't enough to put these two groups at odds; instead, the Pacifican States have adopted the use of heavy genetic modification, while the Atlantic Alliance opts for technological and cybernetic improvements.My one big complaint with the plot is that the reason for these choices isn't exactly made clear. We're told that each side has adopted their particular strategy in order to better survive, but why? It seems like both paths would be difficult for each side, but why choose technology or biology over the other? Better techs on the East Coast than the West? Or is there some type of underlying religious issue? It's not always clear throughout the entire story, and it's something I would have enjoyed knowing a little more about.
Instead, the main plot revolves around Jet Brody, who is sided with the Atlantic Alliance. Jet is an orphan, raised at a young age by another soldier, who you'll side with early on in your various battles. You're pitted against a defector, a man named Nathan Sheridan, who recently lost his twin daughters to disease, a disease that could have been thwarted by the research of the Pacifican States, a point proven when they find the cure for the disease six weeks too late. This spurs Sheridan into action, which in turn starts the war proper. Sheridan is portrayed as a tortured soul of sorts, and while he features as the "villain" early on, I'll give the writers credit for not making him one dimensional, a route that too many shooters often go.
Once you sit down to actually play Fracture, you'll realize quickly that there isn't much to set this game apart from other third person shooter experiences, outside of the use of the Entrencher. The Entrencher is your terraforming weapon, it allows you to target a certain selection of land, and either raise or drop it according to whatever you need to do. Early on you're shown some basic options, like raising the land to reach higher spots, or lowering it to sneak under obstacles. It can be used in combat to give you higher ground, or some other type of tactical advantage. The Entrencher is actually a pretty neat addition to the game, but at the same time Fracture really limits the potential of its use. There's a restriction on height, you can only rise ground so far or so low, and you can't do much in the way of causing structural damage to property that rests on the ground you want to manipulate. The game really holds your hand, so to speak, and constantly clues you in on when you should be using the device. Outside of these instances, the Entrencher isn't all that necessary to succeed, and really doesn't provide much of an advantage in a firefight except when the game deems it necessary to advance.So by limiting the use of your gimmick, Fracture takes a hit in the gameplay department, because outside of this single weapon there isn't enough going on here to set it apart from the list of other like-minded shooters on the market, and those that are still coming out this year. The visuals are nice, and the sound for the most part is solid. The voice acting isn't particularly note-worthy, and neither is the soundtrack, but they're also not painful to listen to. Much like the gameplay and story, it's not great enough to put it ahead of the pack, but at the same time not bad enough to feel completely mediocre.
If you're absolutely, positively dying to play some type of action oriented title, and you're not feeling particularly picky about the story aspect or how engaged you'll get with the characters used, then Fracture will probably satisfy that itch for a short while. There are multiplayer modes available, with standard Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Capture the Flag style games, along with a few game specific modes, particularly Excavation, but none of these are all that great outside of experimenting with the Entrencher. I don't see the community supporting the online side of this title for a long while before going back to the old favorites, so while it might pass the time for a bit outside of the main story, don't expect it to last.
