Stealth Inc 2 - A Game Of Clones - Review

When a game touts stealth as its big draw, most gamers will start to compare it to something like Splinter Cell, but when the viewpoint is fixed to the 2d viewpoint, that is a harder thing to compare. Does this latest stealth focused title succeed in its goal, or is it to hard to make out?

For those that are not aware, there are companies out there who do things that we don’t want to know about, PTI is one such company. As makers of the most sought after spy gear they have a production deadline they have to meet. So you getting loose and risking that is not good for business.

You are a clone, one of hundreds built for a single purpose, be used in a series of tests and then when you fail, your spy googles are taken away and sold. But you are different, you know something is not right here, in fact you are so much of a threat to PTI, that the man is doing all he can to test you and if you fail, he still wins. Actually the only reason you are loose is because of this man, he wanted to become the best at PTI, a silly reason really, but as you won’t do as your expected you need to die.

The game thankfully is a lot easier to understand than the story, the controls are really easy to pick up and as they add more and more elements to the title they give you plenty of time to adjust to them before you are left to your own devices. You are loose in the massive PTI facility, which means you can go just about anywhere, assuming you have the right tools. When you start, all you can do is walk, jump, crouch and hide in the shadows, some very simple sounding options but ones that you can’t forget about.  Your ability to hide in the shadows is what will keep you alive when security is onto you, which will be often. In fact the security is quite good at their job, all you need to do is avoid their sensors and your fine, but sadly its not that easy.

The facility that you are in is full of areas that you can’t do much in, until you get the right tools, very Metroid in that regard, however as you explore the facility you will uncover test chambers and here is where the fun really begins. The test chambers start of simple but they build fast, the first few will have you simply solving puzzles to unlock the exit, once you move onto the puzzles using items, you have to start dealing with some more complex problems. The test chambers will have you navigating various hazards from security robots to laser grids. You will also have to deal with switches that cause walls to shift, which if you are not careful are a quick way to a messy death.

In fact you need to get used to that fact as you are going to die a lot, but that is ok because you respawn almost instantly, the game itself has almost no loading times at all. As you progress through the world, you will see the no load in action as going between the complex and a test chamber is almost instant; even the few cutscenes that are present in the game load very fast. One element that is not fast is the clone himself, he moves very slowly and without a run function exploring the world is not as fun as it could be. The other bad element is that the wall jump function does not always work, which can result in some frustrating deaths.

Where the meat of the game comes in the form of the test chambers, you are actually ranked against other players to see where you stack up. You are scored on time, deaths and times spotted so not only do you need to be fast, you need to be stealthy about it. You can also retry any test chamber whenever you are at the entrance to it, should you desire to improve your time. Another feature the game gives you as a level creator, a place for you show off your level building skills, the problem with it though is that there are very few instructions on how to create anything, so it is a trial and error, which will most likely result in some frustrations. But for everything the game does less then well, it has at least two elements that shine through, the clones themselves are endearing thanks in part to their design, but also how they are shown in cutscenes. I mean they themselves don’t speak, yet they are always able to show the right emotion or expression for the situation. The game has a very clinical feel in the main space, but once you enter the test chambers, you will find stains, broken walls and more, which gives them a sense of challenge.

Stealth Inc 2 A Game Of Clones is a title no-one should pass on, it offers up great challenges that will test everyone at some point and it does so while taking cues from games past.  Where the game falters is in lack of progress past those old games, while being retro is usually a welcome thing, for the type of game on show here, it does not suit. Don’t let that discourage you however, if you give the game a chance you will find things to love.

Thanks to Curve Digital for supplying the game for review.

The Score

8.0

Review code provided by Curve Digital

The Pros

+Fantastic stealth, paired with inventive puzzles

+It is a throwback to old school games

The Cons

-The controls are not as tight as one might like them to be

-The level creator works, but offers little in the way of guidence