Alice: Madness Returns
Alice in Wonderland is a tale we all know, one that has been retold and refashioned many times. One of these came in the form of American McGee’s Alice, which was released on PC in 2000. This game was built off of the Quake III engine and played in the vein of 3rd person shooters from that time period. The story telling and the visuals are really what carried the game for me, as the gameplay itself wasn’t all that great. However, the same can’t be said for the sequel which changes almost everything save for the look and feel that made the original so popular.
This game picks up years after the conclusion of the first. Alice is now living in an Orphanage under the care of Dr. Angus Bumby. Dr. Bumby, through the use of hypnosis, is trying to get Alice to forget her past so that she can let go of the tragic fire that killed her family and ultimately put her in the asylum. However, Wonderland doesn’t want to be forgotten and Alice soon finds herself back in the twisted and macabre world that it has become. Things here have changed, and the broken world of the last game has twisted in upon itself, seemingly in worse shape than it was before.
Wonderland isn’t the only thing that’s changed, as Alice’s abilities and weaponry have shifted as well. She now fights with a combination of melee and ranged mechanics while also being gifted the ability to dodge, double jump and float right from the start. Having this much freedom of movement right away is a rather nice touch, as many gamers are used to having to wait to get them half way through the game. Another mechanism that is used a lot, and attained rather early, is Alice’s ability to shrink on command. This ability allows her to see hidden platforms, enter smaller passageways, and read hidden messages written upon the walls of the levels. Alice also has the ability to enter a “Hysteria Mode” which makes her do more damage, while receiving none. Through the course of the game, Alice will attain other weapons which can all be upgraded via collected teeth. The game, being of linear design, requires exploration of each level so that the player can acquire all the loot. While this might annoy completists, it hasn’t hampered my enjoyment of the game as upgrading everything is not necessary. The game doesn’t offer anything that hasn’t been done by other games in the past, but it’s way of handling the material makes the game enjoyable, never the less. It’s also nice to see a 3D game handle platforming so well, as any gamer can easily say that 3D was and has been the bane of platforming games. My only complaint would be the side scrolling levels and some repetition of things throughout the game. These are minor when compared to the rest though.
It’s impossible to talk about this game without taking the visuals into account. The use of the Unreal Engine has allowed for the game to more closely resemble the artistic renditions of Alice and the twisted Wonderland around her. The set design of each level gives a sense of vastness, despite being stuck, more or less, on a one way track. There were many times I wanted to wander outside of the level to take a closer look at things just out of reach or far off in the distance. I also can’t help but mention the fact that Aquaman no longer has the best flowing hair in a videogame anymore as Alice easily dethrones him. This is a sad fact, since that was the only thing he had going for him in his abysmal game.
While this game won’t hold up to the likes of Ninja Gaiden and Devil May Cry (which I’m sure people are wont to compare it to) it does hold up pretty well with games like Mario 64 and other such platformers. Anyone interested in this twisted world of Alice shouldn’t hesitate to pick this game up.
