Sid Meier and John Romero — these are guys who have earned the right to include their name as an official part of a game’s title. And for that privilege also comes responsibility.The success (such as Sid Meier’s Civilization), or failure (such as John Romero’s Daikatana) of such games often determines the future of that designer’s stature in the industry, and, at times, their very livelihoods as well. So, when semi–known designer American McGee (yep, that’s his name) decided to christen his latest first–person shooter American McGee’s Alice, I figured this guy was a total head case. However, I did respect the amount of "cajones" it takes to stick your name on a box and therefore take full responsibility for the success, or failure, of your product.
Fortunately for Mr. McGee, Alice shows that not only is American a top–notch game designer, but also a bit of an artist as well. While the actual game mechanics of Alice leave a little bit to be desired, there’s no denying that this is the finest display of level design ever to grace a first–person shooter. Alice is more a work of art then a game — one that is certainly worth investing some time.
The premise of the game is ripped straight from an acid–induced Lewis Carroll Wonderland tale: Alice, who has been pretty much comatose in a mental institution after a fire killed her entire family, is summoned by the White Rabbit back to Wonderland. It seems that since her departure, things in Wonderland have gone straight down the rabbit hole thanks to the totally evil Red Queen. Alice’s mission is, quite simply, to hunt down and defeat the Red Queen, and return Wonderland to its normal Disney–esque splendor. The plot takes some interesting twists and turns as you begin to realize that even the reality of fantasy is not to be taken at face value.You’ll encounter familiar characters such as the Mad Hatter (madder than ever), Tweedledum and Tweedledee, and the ubiquitous Cheshire Cat who acts as your mentor throughout much of the journey.
The voice work is exquisite, (with the exception of the person whose voice was used for Alice’s comrade–in–arms, Gryphon), especially the actors who portray Alice and the Cheshire Cat. The proper British dialect contrasts well against the totally chaotic game environment to produce a very surrealistic and disturbing effect. The plot could’ve been fleshed out a little bit more than it was, given the robustness of the universe in which the game takes place. But the developer’s stinginess with story details is all but forgiven, once you plunge headlong into Alice’s absolutely stunning levels.
Before I begin to describe the level design, let me make it clear that I have never taken LSD. Having said that, after experiencing American McGee’s Alice, I felt that I had a decent concept of what "tripping" must be like. The swirling colors, the timepieces flying by in the distance, floors that twist and bend — all this and more are what make Alice the pinnacle in artistic level design. One level entitled Pale Realm finds Alice heading into the land of the White chess pieces to try and gain allies for her battle against the Red Queen. This level is basically a chessboard rendered in black and white, with the only break in color coming from the evil Red chess pieces that attack you in much the way their mundane counterparts move. Rooks come barreling at you in a straight line, Bishops move along the diagonal, and Knights hop about wildly in their quest to eliminate you. Red and White pieces will even fight independent of your actions, giving the feeling of an actual invasion into White’s territory by the "Red Menace". Level design this interesting and creative hasn’t been seen on a PC monitor since the Tumbling Ship level from Jedi Knight. The amazing thing about Alice is that the high quality design continues consistently, all the way to the end of the game! The artists and designers that worked on American McGee are to be commended for their amazing talents and incredible efforts.
Unfortunately, the game play doesn’t really live up to its side of the bargain, as Alice often becomes less of a first–person shooter and more of a console platformer. There were times when the jumping required was so annoying and frustrating that I thought that I had died and gone to Super Mario Hell (note to self: contact Nintendo regarding future game concept). The ritual of SAVE, JUMP, DIE, RELOAD, REPEAT became quite maddening after a while, and had me on my knees thanking the gods of gaming that they invented such a thing as cheat codes.
The weaponry available to your on–screen avatar are actually more like toys then weapons. As a matter of fact, they’re called toys in the game documentation. You can bash bad beasties with a croquet mallet, launch a deck of cards at your enemies as if they were throwing ninja–type stars, play a deadly game of jacks, set a trap with an exploding jack–in–the–box, stop time with a stopwatch, or simply carve up your competition with the very useful Vorpal Blade. Additionally, every weapon has a more powerful secondary attack. For instance, you can throw your Vorpal Blade from a distance with the trade–off of you having to wait for a little while before you can attack again. Some of the weapons, such as the deadly Jabberwock Eye Staff, require energy called Strength of Will (it’s like Mana), which, when depleted, renders these weapons harmless. Fortunately Strength of Will and Sanity (health) can be replenished by defeating the denizens of Wonderland and collecting their "meta–essence" (far out!).
While there aren’t many different types of enemies in Alice, the enemies you do face are very well thought-out and challenging. Bayonet–wielding soldier ants, the aforementioned animated chess pieces, buzzing bees that drop exploding acorns, and of course, playing cards that carry incendiary pole arms guaranteed to make your trip through Wonderland a perilous one. The boss monsters are also pretty tough as well, and are often impervious to your attacks — save for one Achilles’ heel which you must figure out. Rushing in and attacking your enemies is a sure recipe for a quick demise in Alice, so it’s always good to make the best use of your wide array of weapons when attacking the bad guys. Some bad guys go down quicker when attacked with specific weapons (hint: chess pieces don’t like exploding toys), so it often takes a few re–loads before you discover the right weapon to use against each enemy. But reloads are something you’ll get used to quickly with this game; between nigh–impossible jumping puzzles and sometimes overly aggressive enemies, Alice can quickly become an exercise in hair–pulling and monitor punching, frustration.
So the question is: Does the superior level design make up for the mediocre (but not awful) game play? Surprisingly, in this case, the answer is yes. For once in PC gaming, form actually does outweigh function.You’ll find yourself wanting to see the next level so badly that you’re willing to deal with a little bit of non–innovative game play to get there. If there is a sequel (and there should be), and Rogue Entertainment can combine their excellent artistic design with the innovative game play of a Half–Life, then we should be looking at one of the top first–person shooters ever to hit the market. In the end, American McGee’s Alice is a fun, if not at times frustrating, journey through a wonderfully detailed world. So "pop a mushroom" and take a trip through the looking glass with Alice — you'll wish you had brought a camera.
"American McGee’s Alice is most curious — in a rather fun–filled way."
