Review: Fracture

smallclone · #1 (**permalink**) 10-28-2008, 04:50 PM

I’ve read a bit about this game but it wasn’t until actually seeing it in action on Playr a few weeks ago did it grab my attention. One of the development team ran through the game explaining everything about it, the game concept, the outline of the story and that the main feature with Fracture is your ability to reshape the ground using terrain deforming. This allows you change the terrain not just in the heat of battle to, for example, shield yourself from enemy fire, but to also help you get around by raising or lowering the ground to get around obstacles and such.
The story is that the United States is split in two. The east is cybernetically enhanced, the west has gone all genetically engineered. You play part of the Atlantic Alliance, the east lot. The leader of the east Pacificans needs a kick up the ass and you are the one to do it.
As with most games the first level acts as a tutorial, easing you into the control method as well as the various weapons you may pick up along the way. After a while this is second nature and you get used to using the shoulder buttons to raise/lower the surrounding terrain. The last Lucasarts game I played was Jedi Outcast on the PC many years ago. I was hooked, but needed a walkthrough as some of the levels seemed impossible. Thankfully this game gives you hints along the way thanks to radio messages from your commanding officer.
The story, and the cinematic cut scenes, keep you involved and seamlessly take you from one mission to the next. The difficulty factor is just right. This is not a game you will complete in one sitting. I feel some gamers might not even return to the single-player game though.
Onto the multiplayer side. I was keen to see what the terrain deforming feature would bring to a free-for-all battlefield. I’ve got to tell you, there is nothing more satisfying that raising the ground and squashing your opponent against a wall!! Although saying that on LIVE I seem to be the one who’s lifeless body is being thrown around!! The various match modes work well and add life to Fracture. The maps are well laid out and are not too cluttered. Plenty of space to frag and be fragged!! This will be one you just have to have a blast on at least once a week!!