Accessories

Overlooked title...lacks content, but has flaws
This is a typical FPS. In each level, the point of the game is to get from point A to point B. There are no specifics to each mission, there is very little to accomplish, nothing to gather, and there are virtually no goals. The objective is to "survive the enemies" and make it to each checkpoint, finishing each episode. There are a handful of bosses that are not that difficult to defeat. In general, enemies are not challenging, and the variety of enemies is lacking. It's a very short game, with some replay value based on the way the achievements are constructed.

The game is fun, though. The story is fairly entertaining, and the idle conversations between characters is sometimes funny. Parts within each episode are creatively titled, based on some common phrases used throughout the Bush administration. The story plays out like a typical low-budget sci-fi flick, so don't expect a lot of depth. There is a good mix of gameplay types -- from gunning, driving, and manning a turret on a chopper. The music and voice acting is actually pretty good -- the music develops at the right moments and helps build excitement. The controls are easy and once you figure out the layout, you won't need to consult the manual.

Visually, this game is superb. The character models are excellent and are about as lifelike as we can expect at this point in time in gaming. Most of the environments are extremely varied and well-rendered, with very little repetition in design and layout. Loading is tedious sometimes, but bearable.

I did encounter several problems. The game has crashed twice. I also managed to end up between two doors without clearing a milestone, so I couldn't actually open either door, causing me to restart from the latest saved checkpoint. At one time, a member of my squad was floating above the environment, and I encountered several issues of "cover crates" that just floated in the air. In the last episode, large concrete blocks would bounce away at the slightest touch, so the physics engine is flawed. Earlier levels are much more tightly-designed than later levels.

Even with these flaws, I think this game has been overlooked and is a fun FPS that can be completed in a relatively short period of time by even the most "recreational" of players. It lacks excitement, and you certainly won't feel immersed in it. It gets 3 stars because it could have been better, but it isn't bad.

BLACKSITE, a mediocre game-
Mediocre game- Would recommend to rent (a weekend should allow you to finish this) but not to buy.
My 2 Cents...

Better than I expected
I was excited about this game after playing the demo, but the mixed reviews made me hold off. However, when Amazon had a sale on this game, I went ahead and purchased.

I've played about 2 hours into the campaign and I'm enjoying the ride. The controls work well and there has been variety in game play (on foot, driving, turrets) so far. The story and voice acting are also good.

This is not Halo 3, Gears of War or Call of Duty 4... but it's a fun adventure and I recommend it, especially if you can find it at a budget price.

Okay, but nothing new
I was distraught after playing this game for a few hours. The game is dreadfully generic. This game is one of the more generic and ho-hum first person shooters ive played in a while. Its short and not very interesting. The game is not very fun and I just didnt get drawn into the story. Your a marine who is up against it all, havent heard that one in a few weeks. Overall if you find this game for 20 dollars I would buy it, but I payed 30 and I was dissapointed. The gunplay isnt bad if your new to the series but, after playing halo3, cod4, gears, graw1and2, this is just poor compared to them.
Overall 6.0-6.5

Black Eye: Area 51
This game is bad. Bad, bad, baddity, bad. I hate it with the passion of a thousand suns. Here's why:

* It crashes. Constantly. It would crash at random moments, whenever the game tried to load the extremely detailed environments.

* There are a million load sequences that interrupt the flow of the game. And the load screens are repetitive. And the "hints" the game shares with you are useless. Reload frequently? Thanks, Blacksite, I never thought of that!

* It's linear. At one point, the resident tough guy character quotes Star Wars, cause, ya know, the area looks like one of the chasms on the Death Star. When a character points out how linear the game is, you know there's a problem.

* The enemies are boring. There's one actually freaky alien, and it's telling that the thing is showcased in all the art advertising the game. All the other creatures look like they were ripped out of Starship Troopers. There's also the stupid "exploding monsters" which are a tired staple of FPS. Did I mention that one of them is a giant tower that slowly rotates and farts out alien bugs?

* Squad-based tactics? Sure, that amounts to telling people where to go (they never listen) and telling them whom to shoot at (because it's not obvious?).

* Non-destructible environments. Sure, the fuel trucks can be shot. There are crates you can break, but there's nothing in them. The environment is largely static.

* There's also a rail game component. With monsters that shoot projectiles at you. I've never seen this before. All that's missing is the "shoot me in the head" game.

* You can't affect anything the game doesn't want you to shoot at. You can empty an entire clip into your allies heads, shoot their vehicles, and basically act like a moron without affecting the game. And when I get bored, I can really be a big moron.

* You can jump about two inches in the air. There is no purpose to jumping. You can't scale any environment, except to slowly fall down a zip-line like you're on an elevator. In the one area where you can fall to your death, the final boss battle, your dead body stutter-steps down to the ground. This is a fabulous piece of code, let me tell you.

* It's short. I mean, really short. Even for me. I tried to play the game on a much harder difficulty, but the crashing actually drove me so insane that I wanted to at least get my money worth. So I played it on easy to get it over with.

There are some redeeming traits, but none good enough to make the game worth buying. It's got some interesting environments, including a battle in a suburban neighborhood. At one point you receive air support from a chopper flying overhead while you're duking it out on the ground. And the rail gun battles, while rote, are at least scripted to be exciting. There's also the amusing, ripped from the headlines dialogue. None of that saves this stinking fetid pile of excrement.

In the era of Bioshock, Halo 3, and Gears of War, Blacksite is proof that graphics alone are not enough to make a great game. The developers should be ashamed of themselves, but I can't tell you who they are because while I was forced to watch the end credits...the game crashed.