Game Reviews Volume 2

Quantum Break (PC, Xbox One)

I'm pretty sure at some point we have all wanted a super power.Whether you wanted to climb walls like Spider-Man, fly like Supermanor simply be rich enough to turn yourself into a superhero usingtechnology like Batman and Iron Man. My favourite superhero is Dr.Manhattan from the Watchmen series, he has the ability to control thefabric of time and space, being able to exist in every moment of timesimultaneously and shape matter to his will. Though Quantum Break'sprotagonist Jack Joyce isn't quite as powerful as Dr. Manhattan, heis able to manipulate time thanks to a scientific experiment gonewrong.

Quantum Break is the latest TV/game hybrid from Remedy Interactive,the studio behind the original Max Payne titles and one of the bestgames of last generation Alan Wake. This time round though the TVportion of Remedy's storytelling techniques is significantly more TVthan ever before. Quantum Break splits it's 10 hour campaign up into5 gameplay acts and 4 TV show episodes.

During the game you play as Jack Joyce (Shaun Ashmore, X-Men films).When Jack gets caught up in an experiment to trial a time machine, heis given several time manipulation abilities to help him on hismission to stop time from ending, as well as fend off the securitycompany Monarch Solutions and their founder Paul Serene (AidenGillan, Game of Thrones).

During the TV show we follow several employees of Monarch, as well asPaul as they deal with the impending end of time, adding depth to thevillains of the story and giving the player a chance to reflect onthe decisions they have made during gameplay, decisions that whilstfor the most part are superficial, they can sometimes alter theoutcome of whether an important character lives or dies.

This perfect blend of live action TV show and thrilling 3rdperson shooting gameplay is Quantum Break's greatest selling point,providing an enthralling story from start to finish (that actuallymanages to avoid many of the paradoxial problems associated with timetravel stories) much like Remedy's previous titles.

Gameplay in Quantum Break is pretty standard for a Remedy title. Atypical 3rd person shooter with some kind of uniquemechanic thrown into the works to mix things up a little. In MaxPayne there was bullet time, in Alan Wake there was light and inQuantum Break there is time manipulation. Jack has a wide variety ofabilities at his disposal including the ability to briefly pause timein a small radius, create a time shield that causing all incomingfire to be suspended in time, dash from one spot to anotherinstantaneously and move at super high speeds to attack enemies inclose proximity before they can even react to his movements.

Combat in Quantum Break is a matter of managing all of Jack'sabilities, their cooldown times and keeping on the move whilst takingenemies down with a variety of guns. Jack can't take much damage sobeing aware of your environment and what powers you have at yourdisposal is key to survival.

You're also occasionally thrown into a platforming section thatrequires you to manipulate time to progress. Usually taking place inor on a collapsing structure that is stuck in a time loop, you mustuse Jack's powers and a keen sense of timing to traverse thesedangerous areas safely.

A lot of Quantum Break's story is explored in collectibles dottedaround the levels, these contribute to helping you understand thecomplex timeline of the game that spans 17 years, as well as givingeven more depth to characters and significant world real events thatcharacters have attempted to alter such as the September 11thterrorist attacks in 2001.

All of this allows Quantum Break to bridge the gap between game andreality, crafting an extremely believable world that you can easilylose yourself in, despite it being the type of hardcore sciencefiction that usually alienates those who are unable to suspenddisbelief.

Quantum Break is an extremely beautiful looking game and perhaps oneof the best looking games on the Xbox One. It's extensive use of fullbody motion capture allows the game version of each character to bealmost identical to their live action actor. There were several timeswhere I found it difficult to tell if the cutscene I was watching waslive action or computer generated. The sheer level of detail in theenvironments and the superb lighting system allows a level ofphotorealism that is rarely seen in games, again, when compared tothe live action segments it's sometimes difficult to tell thedifference and requires a second look. There were a few times howeverthat I noticed textures taking some time to load in, though the framerate rarely drops throughout the entire game.

The audio in Quantum Break, much like the visuals, is superb. Thesoundtrack is sounds like it's taken straight from a modern actionmovie, the guns and explosions pack a serious punch to them and thesound of time distorting around you is eerily disturbing. The voiceacting is top notch and is some of the best in recent years. Theacting in the live action sections rivals original series found onstreaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Video and proves justhow far storytelling and character performances in videogames hascome in the last few years.

Quantum Break could have been a really awful game, with it's hardcoresci-fi plot, live action video segments and somewhat repetitivecombat sequences. Yet much like a watch it brings all these separateparts together in just the right order and quantity to create whatwill be one of this years finest games, as well as one of the bestexclusives available on the Xbox One. Quantum Break is a game changerin terms of what is possible with storytelling in video games as wellas showing the TV industry and Hollywood just how to direct a liveaction adaptation of a video game.

Quantum Break is not just a story about time travel, but it gives usa glimpse into the future of video games as a storytelling medium andit's a brilliant game to boot.

QuantumBreak – 8/10

+ComplexStory That's Easy To Follow

+Likeable,Believable and Interesting Characters

+WellDirected Live Action Sequences

+TopOf The Line Audio/Visual Quality

-GameFeels Short When Live-Action Sequences Aren't Considered

-FrequencyOf Late Game Combat Sequences Feels Like Padding

-StorylineUnresolved For Live Action Only Cast