GAMETECH: Quantum leap with TV-game combo

IF YOU’RE reading this, it’s already too late. This column has travelled back in time to warn you, erm, not to read the first line of this column.

Now you have no choice but to see this through and read to the end, or this column will break.

Welcome to time travel, dear readers, a trope that — somewhat fittingly — never gets old. In Quantum Break, nothing new is added to the time travel blueprint, but the story is presented in a very unique manner: this is the first game to seamlessly and effectively combine with a TV show.

Quantum Break stars Shawn Ashmore, Dominic Monaghan, Lance Reddick and our very own Aiden Gillen, which is a pretty serious cast for a game — except this isn’t just a game. Between each of the five acts, there are 22-minute TV episodes to watch, fleshing out the villains and the supporting characters. Depending on your choices, the content of these episodes may change. As the live-action kicks in, the video game models come to life in exhilarating fashion.

It’s a brave and bold move, one that pays off brilliantly. Sure, Quantum Break isn’t the best TV show you’ll ever see (think 12 Monkeys crossed with 24), nor is it the greatest video game ever (think Max Payne meets Alan Wake). However, both elements are handled with enough quality that the effect is somewhat mesmerising.

This really does feel, for the first time, like you are interacting with a TV show through a game. Unlike lengthy video game cutscenes, in which character models remind us we are watching polygons, we are accustomed to processing TV with genuine emotion, because we are, after all, watching real people. To have those lines blurred so effectively in Quantum Break is a testament to the skill of Remedy and the vision of Microsoft.

The gameplay is never less than fun, either. In Quantum Break, time isn’t an arrow — it’s an armour-piercing bullet. The main character, Jack Joyce, has been imbued with the power to manipulate time in short bursts, from freezing enemies where they stand to a quick ‘time dash’, but for the most part he just shoots people. Quantum Break keeps things very simple in that regard, with the cover shooting aspects punctuated by brief exploration, bringing opportunities to collect narrative diaries to flesh out the story.

The graphics are beautiful, the gameplay is slick and the actors are top notch. The question, then, becomes entirely subjective. As a story, Quantum Break is sci-fi nonsense that we’ve seen a hundred times before, in which the phrase, “This is the end of time”, is delivered with dead seriousness. It doesn’t carry the emotional weight of Looper or even Back to the Future. It is, however, never less than entertaining, mainly because of the magnetic villains. A lack of depth hurts both the gameplay and the live action bits, but if you can enjoy popcorn time-travel thrillers and you like satisfying cover shooters, then Quantum Break is well worth your attention.

Now, this column must return to the future, where it leads an underground resistance against all-conquering video blogs.

GENERATING GAME CHANGERS

The future is always a topic of contention in this industry. Many developers and players would like more diversity and accessibility in gaming, but the landscape has traditionally been ruled by white males, leaving little room for variety. There is no easy way to tackle this problem.

One developer recently took matters into his own hands. Garry Newman, the developer of survival game Rust, has instructed the character generator to give players random gender and ethnicity upon creation. In other words, a white man in Nebraska may end up playing as a black, female character, and likewise the reverse. Players have no control in the process.

According to Newman, the reaction has been vitriolic in some quarters, with one gamer complaining: “I just want to play the game and have a connection to the character like most other games I play. Not have some political movement shoved down my throat.”

Of course, that’s the complaint women and players of non-Caucasian ethnicity have been voicing for years now. There’s no perfect solution, but at least Newman gave it a shot. Only time will tell if it makes a difference.