A Great Adventure Game as Far as it Goes, But Unfinished... Look Out for the PC Sequel in 2009 (Still Life (Xbox))

Member Name: Mask_and_Mirror

Product:	Still Life (Xbox)
Date:	24/07/09 (25 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Atmospheric, clever puzzles, intrigueing characters and situations, great artwork

Disadvantages: Does not have a proper ending, sequel has finally been released but only for PC.

Still Life is a 3rd Person adventure game released by Microids for the PC and Xbox in 2005. This review is based on my experiences with the Xbox version although I understand there is little to no difference. Still Life is also apparently the sequel to an earlier game called Post Mortem which was released only for the PC, but it is not a direct sequel, and you will not miss anything in Still Life by not having played it.

Although the game is presenterd as starring Victoria Macpherson, it actually has two main characters. An interesting feature of the game is that the storyline switches between one character in the past and another in the present both investigating similar serial murder cases. This is a dynamic way of showing the relationship between the case Victoria is investigating and the one her father investigated many years before as she discovers more and more about it from his old notebooks.

It can be fairly gory and graphic, particularly near the beginning (it does have an 18+ rating), though in a game where the central plot line involves the serial killing of members of the sex trade this is probably to be expected, and is never trivialised or sensationalised. As a result, the game is very atmospheric and genuinely involving.

In terms of gameplay, it is similar to many other 3rd person adventure games, involving puzzle solving, clue collecting and inventory manipulation. Unlike many others, however, the solutions are usually logical and rarely feel far-fetched. I can only think of one occasion when a puzzle did not seem to involve anything but trial-and-error, but even this may have been a lack of insight on my part.

The dialogue is very good for this type of game (compared with the dire writing and voice acting in Secret Files: Tunguska for example (I almost said 'dire-logue' then, but thought better of it...)) and rarely becomes annoying. The graphics are nice too; the locations are beautifully drawn, and the artwork, around which much of the game revolves, is cleverly rendered. Controls are often an issue in console ports of games like this, but I found this to be one of the more successful efforts.

My biggest criticism of this game is it's lack of any proper ending. Not to give too much away, the game ends at a point where the plot feels as though it should just continue. The story does not resolve.

Perhaps due to the disappointment caused by this, a sequel has finally been released in 2009. This is perhaps a little late for some, though, especially those (like myself) who played the game on the xbox. Obviously, the sequel will never be released on that console, and is currently only available on the PC. I have yet to play it, as I do not own a PC capable of running it.

On the other hand, if you have played or are considering buying the sequel, the price of the original is now so low (particularly on xbox) that it is more than worth getting.

Summary: A must for fans of the genre, but beware of the incomplete ending.