Second Sight
Score: 87% ESRB: Teen Publisher: Codemasters Developer: Free Radical Media: DVD/1 Players: 1 Genre: Action/ Third Person Shooter/ Stealth
Graphics & Sound: Take Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy, make the character slightly insane, lessen your control over the powers and provide an unnervingly jittery camera and you have Second Sight in a nut shell. The levels and models of Second Sight don't seem to be overly spectacular. In general they seem to be something taken out of Half-Life (yes the first one) and just don't seem to be up to today's high standards. I'm not saying that they are bad -- they just aren't awe inspiring, although the sometimes shaky camera does a wonderful job of conveying the unnerving and slightly off feel of the game. Like the camera work, the sounds and music of Second Sight go a long way in making me feel slightly off my balance as I sneak my way through halls and government facilities looking to find out exactly what happened to my psychically-endowed character.
Gameplay: Dr. John Vattic wakes up on a hospital bed and somehow manages to think his way out of his restraints. The confused, amnesiac doctor has no idea what just happened or how he was able to control the straps with his mind. Not long into the game, we find out that the good doctor is a specialist in debunking supposedly psychic phenomenon, and was taken in by a military group called WinterICE to stop a mad scientist from completing some strange and sadistic experiment dealing with paranormal abilities. Now it seems this once skeptic has to escape the military hospital, find out why he has these powers and try to regain his memories. As you progress through the game, Vattic will remember how to use his various powers. He will start off with telekinesis, then before too long gain healing, psi blast, charm and projection. It will take power to use each of these abilities, but thankfully this power regenerates itself (and rather quickly). Vattic will also be able to find various weapons to use against his enemies. After remembering his basic training at WinterICE, Vattic will be able to use handguns, assault rifles, sniper rifles and more.
Difficulty: There are two modes of play in Second Sight, Normal and Challenging. I played most of the game on Normal and I never found any parts of Second Sight to be difficult. I was able to sneak or shoot my way through many of the areas without much damage to my health -- and what damage there was, I could easily replenish with the healing ability. The Challenging setting was definitely more of a challenge, but overall I didn't find it overly complicated. Most of the time it just meant that some of the guards didn't run away just because an object moved next to them. Though I like the healing ability, I feel that it made the game a lot easier than it needed to be. Allowing the player to have free health whenever he or she wants it -- with basically no consequences is typically reserved for a cheat code, not a major game mechanic.
Game Mechanics: The control scheme for Second Sight is OK, but for some reason, my fingers could never get completely used to it. Many of the psychic powers use the shoulder buttons, but there didn't seem to be any uniformity throughout the powers. It seemed as if one power might use the L1 button to do one thing, while another would use the R1 button for the same purpose. This led to a lot of finger-fumbling. Also when I did get the right button combination, my control over the powers wasn't as tight as I would have liked. This led to quite a few frustrating moments and really detracted from my enjoyment of the game. Overall, Second Sight is a fair game. It doesn't do anything ground breaking, but it can keep you entertained for a while. I would recommend this as a rental. If you feel like using psychic powers along with a wide range of weaponry -- then check out Psi-Ops instead.
-J.R. Nip, GameVortex Communications AKA Chris Meyer
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