Singularity Review

Sometimes I have to wonder how good ideas go bad. Singularity is a game that had a lot of promise and is actually quite fun to play at times, but just does not live up to the standards that other games in the shooting genre have set. It is a decent effort that will undoubtedly get overshadowed. If only the developers could go back in time to add an interesting multi-player mode and were able to speed up the overly slow storyline, we would be in business.

The game starts off in 2010 where you investigate a Russian island known as Katorga-12. A surge of radiation is coming off of the island and the U.S. is determined to investigate. The Russians found a new element, E99, which has the power to cause massive amounts of destruction and even time travel. Unfortunately, it is very unstable and ended with catastrophic results for people that come into contact with it. This is where you come in. Your team attempts to solve the mystery of Katorga-12 and get out alive.

Time travel is nothing new in popular culture. Time manipulation is even less original in video games where slow-time has been the craze since at least the early PS2 days with games like The Matrix and Max Payne. Singularity does not add a whole lot to the mix. It takes some interesting concepts, but does not fully utilize them. For instance, the game has a device known as the Time Manipulation Device, which has the capability of aging and renewing objects. It is used rather sparingly, mainly to fix a broken staircase or to age a safe. I feel that if they were going to make this part of the game, it should have been a little more fleshed out than a simple age/renew “on/off” switch.

The TMD does have a few other uses, but they don’t involve time manipulation. The TMD can be used to increase your health, upgrade all weapon accuracy, increase the damage of the Impulse knockback and purchase a weapon upgrade credit. You get two slots for weapons, which you can exchange and upgrade at a weapon locker (similar to BioShock’s upgrade system). Eventually your TMD will be upgraded so you can pick objects up. Combining the time changing abilities of the TMD with lifting objects is used for simple puzzle solving. Another ability it has is to have a zone of frozen time to slow enemies and objects such as moving fans. Finally, you can travel through a time rift using E99. This allows you to go back into the 1950s and change events as they occurred.

The shooting mechanics in Singularity are straightforward. You can aim with the left trigger and fire with the right. The left shoulder button on the Xbox 360 will age/de-age objects and people. A sort of shockwave attack is used with the right shoulder button, A is jump, B will crouch your character, Y switches your weapon and X reloads. Like I said, it is not a terribly original game, but it plays smoothly for the most part. The controls work well. One odd feature that is worth noting is that the developers decided to include health packs (again, similar to BioShock). You have a limited number, but this can be upgraded later in the game.

I enjoyed the time that I spent with Singularity. I felt compelled to beat the game, despite a weak selection of three alternative endings. The creatures that you fight on Katorga-12 are fairly stupid and the humans that you encounter can be equally dimwitted. The challenge level, or lack thereof, was not what I expected. That being said, it would have been even easier if they had instituted the Call of Duty “find cover and re-heal automatically” approach. Overall, fans of games like BioShock and F.E.A.R. might find Singularity fun enough for at least a rental.