Ghajini The Game [PC Review]

[VelMurugan]

Ghajini The Game [PC Review]

It's not everyday that one comes across a game based on a Hindi movie, which in turn is based on a Tamil movie that was inspired from an English film. Ghajini the game is based on the Blockbuster Hindi film, Ghajini, starring Aamir Khan and is a worthy effort from FX Labs, the developers of the game. Now let me clarify a few things before there is a major flame war. As a gamer I think the game needs a lot of fine-tuning and technically the game needs at least a year of refinement, but I also feel that FX Labs in on the right track. Let's get into the game's details.

If you have seen the movie, you would know that Sanjay Singhania suffers from short term memory loss and his objective is to find his girlfriend's murderers. The game starts-off in Sanjay's apartment, where you have to interact with the objects in the room and look for a few things before you leave the apartment. Finding objects like the mobile phone, the city map and his case file can be quite a daunting task. Once you have all the required items, you are allowed to exit the room.

Throughout the game you have Aamir Khan's dull voice over directing you towards your next objective and giving you hints. The game developers in their quest to ape Max Payne's style and feel have made it very similar to Max Payne in terms of design and presentation, which isn't a bad decision, however, the execution lacks polish.

Once out of his apartment, Sanjay heads to the heavily guarded CBI HQ to retrieve some information. As this is the first level, I was expecting an action-packed intro with guns blazing, but it turns out Sanjay likes the silent approach. Unlike the stereotyped Bollywood hero, we start the level sneaking around cops instead of beating the crap out of them.

Pressing "R" gives you visual cues, which includes a vision cone of patrolling cops. You go in, pick up some stuff and come out, the level is very slow and not the best way to start a game. The remaining levels offer a fair bit of combat against mediocre AI, who rarely pose a threat. The gameplay jumps from sneaking missions to all-out action, to a few scripted sequences. However, this unexpected jump in gameplay is quite overwhelming. The combat is decent but with limited moves and bad animation. You do get the pleasure of picking up various items and beating the crap out of your enemies. The game isn't too long and can be completed in one sitting, depending on how much time you take to finish the first sneaking level.

I think FX labs have done a commendable job with the visuals but it's the number of bugs that kills the game. As a game critic I would say the game isn't that impressive, but I see great potential. I am sure most of you would love grilling the game and labeling it a dud, which is fair as the game is very buggy. If the developers take an original idea and give it two-three years of development time, I think they can come up with something really very good.

Overall the presentation is good, with hand-drawn animations filling the gaps in the form of a graphic novel, with the option to rewind, stop or skip, just like in Max Payne. However, there are a lot of bugs here ranging from clipping issues, sound errors, missing textures and bland level design.

The city of Mumbai has been recreated, but not very creatively. The city, in the game, feels dull, boring and empty; this isn't the Mumbai we know. There are way too many ads in the game, which can get quite irritating. The combat gets old very soon and later becomes a chore.

The game just doesn't live up to today's standard, but then again this is targeted at an audience that will never play Bioshock . I fully support the developer's effort, but I feel they should develop an individual property and give it some time, as today's gaming demands much more than mere star presence. This isn't a game that a hardcore gamer will enjoy, but if you fancy loud colors, cliched plots, unexpected dancing and singing, a.k.a Bollywood, you might give this one a try.

Source : TechTree