Games With Grey

Adam’s Venture: Origins is a decidedly unoriginal and decidedly ambitionless title; dullness and forgettability abound, dominate. The narrative proper embodies these two negative principles in equal measure, though damnably dullness and the unmemorable exist alongside a plodding pacing, a ploddingness which never disappears; traction is never gained, even as the narrative reaches its conclusion after some six or seven winding, pained hours of play time. Some focusedness exists, to be sure: consider only the protagonist Adam Venture, who is suitably introduced in the narrative’s opening moment, grounding the entire affair. His presence is emphasized throughout, even as his characterization is defined by failings and missed opportunities; it is impossibly difficult to identify with Adam, and accordingly he becomes a source of alienation, suffering from his pervasive genericness. No player / player character bond is ever forged, and Adam’s unimaginative character model and poorly spirited voice acting inspire further player disinterest – or even outright frustration; passive Adam contributes to the narrative’s eventual and total destruction. His academic nature is initially intriguing, as his archaeological inclinations are communicated to the player, neatly explaining away his fascination with adventures, discoveries, and scholarly matters, though this thread is not pursued nearly enough. In order to combat Adam’s terrible mundanity, another character is introduced – Evelyn. Just as Adam’s character modelling is poor, so too is Evelyn’s character model. Just as Adam’s voice actor gives a halfhearted performance, so too does Evelyn’s voice actor; she nearly matches and perhaps even exceeds Adam’s dullness, and correspondingly she cannot stave off narrative collapse, but instead contributes to it. The banter these two central characters engage in is sporadically amusing, and their relationship clearly and naturally develops with the passage of time, but these few displays of excellent and charming writing only serve to illuminate the poor writing seen elsewhere. Still, the pair embark on a globe-spanning quest, initially in pursuit of the fabled Garden of Eden, though eventually growing embroiled in a conflict waging over Solomon’s Temple, a venerated structure said to contain untold knowledge – and riches.

Accordingly, the pair venture deep into the Holy Land, eventually arriving in Jerusalem where conflict erupts in earnest. While an antagonistic organization was introduced almost from the first (called the Clairvaux Company) their motivations are largely underdeveloped for much of the narrative. Simultaneously and tragically, the menacing group initially lacks a distinguishable figurehead, a major failing which directly lessens their menace and intrigue. A larger, named antagonist is in time revealed, though his emergence transpires far too late, only minimizing his reveal’s impactfulness and weightiness – it is inconsequential. Still, this figure sought Solomon’s Temple just as Evelyn and Adam sought it. But whereas their quest was founded upon altruistic and scholarly objectives, this antagonist was guided solely by avarice and the lust for power. Believing the Temple’s contents capable of wreaking untold destruction and confer upon him power, this villain acts, exploits those around him, even and especially those unfortunate souls who remain loyal to him, deluded perhaps. Still, the narrative is characteristically defined by boredom, and this is observable even in the narrative’s conclusion, painfully predictable and cliched; the antagonist and his supporters have been toppled, the world has been saved, while the two adventurers embrace, a bright and engaging future supposedly awaiting them, the world poised for prosperity. The conclusion’s sappiness and excessive sentimentality are particularly frustrating and repelling, and directly reflect the game’s overall lighthearted tone. Lightheartedness is not objectively a failing, can indeed be an asset, but if more mature themes were inserted here, if anything approaching darkness were included and emphasized to temper the sometimes sickening levity, then the overall narrative, the overall experience, would improve dramatically. But it is not to be, and the player is instead left with a poor player character, a poor companion to that player character, and an antagonist who is scarcely antagonistic; narrative failures abound, and a startling degree of missed potential exists.

Just as the narrative is defined by flaws, so too is the gameplay. The greatest failures are directly connected to genre, specifically the limited number of explored genres. A useful comparison must be advanced here: Adam’s Venture: Origins must be considered alongside the recent Tomb Raider reboot trilogy. Foundationally, these two titles are fairly similar. In practice, however, ample distinguishments exist, in that Tomb Raider emphasizes multiple, seemingly disparate genres, while Adam’s Venture: Origins is a puzzle game at its heart; a puzzle game and little else. In Crytal Dynamics’ wonderful Tomb Raider installments, the player might be presented with a bombastic combat scenario, thrilling them, exciting their emotions, quickening their paces. Immediately succeeding this intense loudness, the developers might throw a relaxing platforming sequence at the player, permitting their nerves to dissipate. Platforming might be followed by stealth, which might be followed by puzzle-solving, and so on in fantastic repeat. This frequent and constant vacillation preserves player interest by staving off potential repetition. If this thought is followed, then player interest in Adam’s Venture: Origins is indeed fleeting, for the entire gameplay experience is defined by repetition – puzzles and puzzles alone predominate. Expectations must be adjusted here, certainly. If the player purchases this title and begins a playthrough armed with this knowledge that the game emphasizes puzzle-solving at the expense of all other gameplay systems and gernes, the overall intensity of disappointment will be lessened dramatically. But I lacked this information, and accordingly disappointment swelled; the screenshots suggest one experience, while the actual experience is something entirely different than that presented; a strange sort of deception exists here, and more forthrightness regarding genre would be welcome indeed. Instead, whatever strengths are inherent to the puzzle-solving were somewhat diluted in greatness.  

I say somewhat, though, for many of the puzzles show a clever and wonderful genius and depth, frequently engaging the player cerebrally. Puzzle repetition is largely lacking, too, each puzzle having its own distinct identity and methods of completion. Inconsistency exists, though, in that some puzzles are needlessly and excessively cryptic, while others are wonderfully logical, easily completable after a bit of careful study and examination. But it is not these exemplary puzzles which will be remembered. Instead, the frustrating ones are most memorable, for they only contribute to the pacing’s destruction. Just as the pacing seems on the verge of quickening, some obtuse puzzles emerges, and that promising pacing is quickly brought to a halt; all throughout vigor and spontaneity are rejected in favor of slowness and ennui. The frustrating nature of these gameplay failures, this terrible, pervasive slowness, is exacerbated when considering how easily and seamlessly the failures could be remedied – all that is required is an injection of greater gameplay diversity and freshness; if more genres were explored, life and vigor would return to the experience; player interest would not be fleeting but would be persisting. Some tentative efforts at experimentation are indeed undertaken – consider only the platforming sequences. While Adam is far from a lithe and maneuverable individual, his animation quality being painfully janky, his jump height being laughably low, still he is armed with a grappling hook which enhances his mobility, as the player can frequently interact with anchor points and such, which allow the passing of some sprawling chasm or some other, similar obstacle. While these platforming sequences certainly have their place, and while this grappling hook is frequently exploited to fantastic success, heightened emphasis upon the platforming would only make the puzzles far more intriguing and engaging; a puzzle / platforming / puzzle / platforming approach potentially preserves the freshness actually lost by puzzle solving’s neigh complete gameplay monopolization. Just as soon as these wonderful, sometimes exhilarating albeit janky platforming sequences begin, they conclude; Tomb Raider’s gerne experimentations are again rejected; the player is instead bombarded with puzzle after puzzle; the game suffers.           

In a bizarre and fascinating turn, however, the developers did engage in some tentative gerne experimentation, strove to distance themselves from the puzzle-solving emphasis. These experimentations are observable in the stealth sequences, roughly three or so in number. Foundationally, they are extremely simplistic – detection or evasion is entirely determined by line-of-sight, as sound production is totally irrelevant and inconsequential; as long as a patrolling guard is facing away from Adam, detection is ensured. Reflecting this, objects will inevitably be used as makeshift cover, and while these sequences are largely governed by a trial-and-error gameplay approach, still they must be lauded for injecting some variety into the experience. Indeed, at times these sequences are exhilarating, as the player observes a patrolling guard, the direction of that guard’s flashlight, as the player decides when to advance, when to halt; the rudiments of stealth gameplay have absolutely been discovered and implemented here, and I do value these sequences greater than they are deserving, simply because of their refreshing nature, which directly counters whatever frustrations the trial-and-error design might evoke. Still, they seem included entirely out of expectation; the developers’ heart and inclination absolutely aligned with puzzle-solving above all else, and they were forced to compromise that vision somewhat by including basic platforming and basic stealth sequences. This halfheartedness directly explains these systems’ fairly flawed implementation. The experience typically benefits from these inclusions, certainly, though it is readily apparent that most dramatic emphasis was placed upon the puzzles. A few scattershot moments of energy and spontaneity exist, too – see a handful of sequences where Adam enters a mine cart, slightly controlling that cart as it soars down the track, the player occasionally tasked with manipulating the tracks’ direction through deft usage of the grappling hook. But these too feel forced. The motion blur and sound design in these sequences masterfully communicate the sense of speed accompanying the mine cart’s motion down the tracks, though the entire sequence is almost completely automated; player interaction is scarce. Tragically, too, a few times in the narrative Evelyn and Adam both enter into an automobile, and rather than giving the player complete control here, a simple cutscene plays, briefly conveying their journey and what was spoken upon it. Direct control in these sequences would only be greatly appreciated, in that it would likely be another source of energy and gameplay diversity. Heightened, protracted exploration sequences would serve a similarly beneficial function.  

While the animation quality and voice acting reflect the game’s lesser budget, the overall presentation and environmental design are characterized by fair successes – and also considerable inconsistency. Color and vibrancy are embraced throughout, and a general sense of fantasy and whimsicality are captured here, directly reflecting the narrative’s tonal gaiety and light-heartedness; darkness, the uneasiness it might inspire, is lacking here, even as a considerable portion of the narrative actually transpires belowground. It is this aboveground / belowground split emphasis which prompts and sustains that damning inconsistency. Aboveground, the environments are frequently dazzling, the sweet, shining sunlight contributing to these arresting sensations – consider only Evelyn’s and Adam’s time in Jerusalem, an especially vibrant and sunbaked locale (though tragically one largely devoid of life, abounding in the invisible walls which are fixtures even in the game’s largest explorable environments). The NPCs patrolling the Jerusalem streets are essentially puppets, never speaking or responding to the player’s presence, while even their character models are suspect to repetition. Ambient noise and the sounds accompanying city life are absent here, too – constraints exist. Logic suggests that Jerusalem would be dull and alienating, characterized by boredom and hollowness. In practice, however, the environment is singularly beautiful, largely because its design reflects the developers’ hearts and sincerity, wellsprings of greatness and achievement. Something similar could be said of the brief moments spent in the French countryside, that region visited early on while Adam makes headway towards the Holy Land and the Garden of Eden. Expectantly, the sequence is dominated by puzzle-solving, most specifically windmill manipulation, as the player must restart stalled and malfunctioning windmills. A mundane action indeed, it is made enjoyable by the environmental design, as the player tampers with these windmills on beautiful French cottage rooftops, navigating over planks and other objects, the cobbled streets some distance below, beautiful French mountains and countryside observable always, sprawling about endlessly all around the player; it is a truly fantastic environment, quite impressive – and more importantly endearing; the developers’ hearts again show themselves.

But major failures arise whenever the surface existence is left behind, whenever subterranean spaces are inhabited, a not uncommon occurrence. Foundationally, these environments are quite similar, frequently damp and dank, though some variation does exist to counter this: some subterranean locations are claustrophobic in construction, while others are magically and intimidatingly expansive, directly communicating Adam’s smallness and the player’s smallness. Efforts at injecting whimsicality, meanwhile, are present even here, as bizarre, bluish crystalline objects have a prominent presence in the cave complexes, marking a distortion of reality for wonderful, fantastical effect; whimsicality is again advanced. But even with these gleaming crystals of blue, the caves themselves are simply boring, are eclipsed in greatness by, say, Jerusalem or the quaint French village and countryside. The Solomon’s Temple explored towards the conclusion is admittedly quite impressive and grandiose, marks a considerable departure from the common cave complexes seen elsewhere, though coming so late into the narrative, when the experience lags, its magicalness is lessened; whether exploring caves or a mythical Temple, one yearns only for the countryside’s brightness.    

Adam’s Venture: Origins is defined by many failings – see only its gameplay and its core narrative. The greatest failure of all, though, is related to enjoyability’s general absence; the game is frequently a chore to play through, and one hour and feel like three or four; the experience is laborious throughout, and the general sense of reward is lessened, observable only whenever completing some especially complex or cryptic puzzle. In great games, time is susceptible to evaporation; five hours become one. By this metric, Adam’s Venture: Origins, tedious always, is terribly flawed – nothing memorable is ever advanced. To reiterate the comparison briefly made above, it is useful and vital to consider this alongside the rebooted Tomb Raider trilogy, whose second main entry released a scant year before this title. Imbalances here are immense and intense, that title eclipsing this one in essentially every consequential way. There was ample and wonderful gameplay diversity and genre experimentation; here is dramatically lessened diversity, as terrible repetition runs rampant. It would be totally unfair to instantaneously and automatically dismiss productions from smaller development studios – and Adam’s Venture: Origins was clearly developed by a small studio. Smallness does not equate to failure: see the wonderful growth defining the indie scene in the present moment and in recent memory, indie games asserting an increasingly important presence. Here with this precise title, matters are saved – total destruction is averted – by the frequent insertion of heart and sincerity, both of which are most observable within the charming world design and world building, though some inklings of sincerity and charm are certainly present in the narrative, scattershot and directionless though it is. The developers’ passion clearly overflows, and this passion’s existence must be lauded indeed. But such passion does not permeate all facets of the title, and when it is at its weakest the entire experience becomes insufferable; heart makes the experience endurable, and its absence only amplifies the failures inherent in all other facets of the game design – see the clunky and uninspired platforming sequences (admittedly ideal for expansion) or the barebones stealth systems (similarly worthy of expansion). Adam’s Venture: Origins, then, is alternately soulless and brimming with soul, alternately showing sweet sincerity and disinterested apathy; the overall experience is divided in an almost singular fashion. For that reason alone, for that overwhelming strangeness and uniqueness, the title is worthy of examination and a playthrough – it is an excellent curiosity, though not an excellent experience.