Title: I Expect You To Die
Original Release: April 25, 2017 (Multiple)
Finished Release: Oculus Rift Release (2017)
Hey, it's finally another game that was released this year!
Now, I've never been the world's biggest James Bond fan. I've seen a swathe of the movies, and I'll occasionally decide to sit down and watch a few of the ones I haven't seen. But it's never become one of "my things." Hell, my favorite Bond movie is Thunderball, what does that say about me?
Still, I've always appreciated the whole aesthetic of the series, and I'm of the opinion that the new movies, while mostly good, are just missing something that made the old movies so endearing. All this is basically background to say that I was pretty excited at the prospect of playing a secret agent trying to escape a deadly situation.
I Expect You To Die is a first-person VR game in which you take on the role of a nameless agent of a secret organization. You have an office, from which you receive your missions. When you accept these missions, you're put into a deadly situation, and your task is to make it out alive, with nothing more than the use of your hands, your telekinesis(I'll explain later), and the items immediately around you.
So basically, it's an escape the room puzzle game. But make no mistake, the whole approach of casting you as a Bond-type secret agent trying to escape a death trap really adds a whole other layer of charm.
For the record, I have thus far only completed the four original missions that came packaged with the game. That is to say, I have not yet taken the time to finish the more recent First Class update content. Still, I did finish the game as it existed when I bought it.
So there's not really much of a story to talk about, outside of the individual missions. Really, even the mission briefings are actually just backdrops for the deadly traps you invariably find yourself stuck in.
The only real "character" outside of yourself is your boss at the agency, who only ever speaks to you via voice-over. He does a pretty good job, though, especially considering the fact that he has to carry you through pretty much the whole game. He's likable, and gets a fair amount of funny lines.
The graphics are fine, nothing too special. There are a few assets that get reused more often than I would like, but it never became a major problem. I did especially like the faux-60s aesthetic they went with for everything, it adds a lot to the James Bond feeling.
Outside of the character I mentioned above, there are a few one-shot characters here and there, usually with no more than three or four lines. The voice acting is fine, considering the fact that the budget for the game was on the lower end, presumably. What few sound effects there are are fine as well, but honestly you're usually listening to white noise or, occasionally, dead silence. Still, when the music does kick in during moments of tension, it's all pretty good. I especially loved the opening title song, which sounds like it came right out of a classic Bond movie.
The term "gameplay" is a bit of a misnomer, but it sounds a lot better than "grabbing and poking things." I don't mean that as an insult, either. I was promised a game in which I would be a secret agent who escapes from death traps, and that's exactly what I got. I haven't tried the game without the Oculus Touch controllers (I'm actually unable to get a clear answer on whether or not it's even possible), but I genuinely feel like that would take away 90% of the fun.
And it definitely is fun, if this is your kind of thing. I've always liked escape room games, but being able to actually interact with the environment directly just adds a whole new layer to things. The game invites you to experiment with the objects you find lying around, because usually you can find something fun. For example, I found a hat in my office and, on a whim, decided to put it on. It worked.
The downside to the VR experience is usually that you're restricted to an operating radius of just a few feet. This can sometimes make certain games feel too enclosed. While that problem isn't alleviated completely here, the developers came up with an interesting way of getting around it. See, not only are you a secret agent, you're a secret agent with mind powers. And what I mean by that is that you can move objects with your mind. So sure, that screwdriver you need may be on the other side of a large room, and you can't move over there. But that's okay, just use your telekinesis to move it to you. Like I said, it doesn't completely erase the problem, but it's an interesting idea that I think allowed them to make much more dynamic puzzles than they would have been able to otherwise.
The one major downside to the game is, unfortunately, its price. I've noticed that VR games have a tendency to be a fair bit more expensive than I feel they probably should be, and this one is no exception. I don't like to do direct comparisons, since it's usually not fair to one of the games being compared. But on the other hand, it's also difficult to ignore the fact that this game normally runs for $25 USD, and even with the new First Class content, I can't see you getting more than five hours out of it. Compare that to something like Hollow Knight, which goes for about $15 USD, and I'm rapidly approaching the 50 hour mark on that one. Again, it's not really a fair comparison, for a lot of reasons, but it's definitely something worth thinking about.
Still, there's no doubt that I Expect You To Die does what it does very well. And it's a VR game that actually makes perfect sense as a VR game. With a few more hours of content it would be a definite recommendation, but if you can get it at a good sale price, then you should definitely snatch it up.
And if you do play it, just remember this: bears like hats.
Until next time!
Current interests:
Listening - Various
Playing - Avernum (2000)
Reading - Hyperion (Dan Simmons, 1989)
Watching - Christmas stuff
The graphics are fine, nothing too special. There are a few assets that get reused more often than I would like, but it never became a major problem. I did especially like the faux-60s aesthetic they went with for everything, it adds a lot to the James Bond feeling.
Outside of the character I mentioned above, there are a few one-shot characters here and there, usually with no more than three or four lines. The voice acting is fine, considering the fact that the budget for the game was on the lower end, presumably. What few sound effects there are are fine as well, but honestly you're usually listening to white noise or, occasionally, dead silence. Still, when the music does kick in during moments of tension, it's all pretty good. I especially loved the opening title song, which sounds like it came right out of a classic Bond movie.
The term "gameplay" is a bit of a misnomer, but it sounds a lot better than "grabbing and poking things." I don't mean that as an insult, either. I was promised a game in which I would be a secret agent who escapes from death traps, and that's exactly what I got. I haven't tried the game without the Oculus Touch controllers (I'm actually unable to get a clear answer on whether or not it's even possible), but I genuinely feel like that would take away 90% of the fun.
And it definitely is fun, if this is your kind of thing. I've always liked escape room games, but being able to actually interact with the environment directly just adds a whole new layer to things. The game invites you to experiment with the objects you find lying around, because usually you can find something fun. For example, I found a hat in my office and, on a whim, decided to put it on. It worked.
The downside to the VR experience is usually that you're restricted to an operating radius of just a few feet. This can sometimes make certain games feel too enclosed. While that problem isn't alleviated completely here, the developers came up with an interesting way of getting around it. See, not only are you a secret agent, you're a secret agent with mind powers. And what I mean by that is that you can move objects with your mind. So sure, that screwdriver you need may be on the other side of a large room, and you can't move over there. But that's okay, just use your telekinesis to move it to you. Like I said, it doesn't completely erase the problem, but it's an interesting idea that I think allowed them to make much more dynamic puzzles than they would have been able to otherwise.
The one major downside to the game is, unfortunately, its price. I've noticed that VR games have a tendency to be a fair bit more expensive than I feel they probably should be, and this one is no exception. I don't like to do direct comparisons, since it's usually not fair to one of the games being compared. But on the other hand, it's also difficult to ignore the fact that this game normally runs for $25 USD, and even with the new First Class content, I can't see you getting more than five hours out of it. Compare that to something like Hollow Knight, which goes for about $15 USD, and I'm rapidly approaching the 50 hour mark on that one. Again, it's not really a fair comparison, for a lot of reasons, but it's definitely something worth thinking about.
Still, there's no doubt that I Expect You To Die does what it does very well. And it's a VR game that actually makes perfect sense as a VR game. With a few more hours of content it would be a definite recommendation, but if you can get it at a good sale price, then you should definitely snatch it up.
And if you do play it, just remember this: bears like hats.
Until next time!
Current interests:
Listening - Various
Playing - Avernum (2000)
Reading - Hyperion (Dan Simmons, 1989)
Watching - Christmas stuff
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