CBS has been talking a lot about how much there television series’ will be turning into video game series soon. If any of the higher ups at CBS are extremely bored right now and are surfing the web and happen to stumble on to this review… please don’t do that.
This game was mildly painful to play. The point and click, mouse style actions for nearly every function of the game were clunky and difficult to master. The murder mystery looked like it had the potential to be fun to solve but then it was time to interview a witness. That turned in to a series of questions that you were forced to ask and each was answered slowly and at great length. It felt like reading through a Choose Your Own Adventure book from my youth without any of the “Choosing” and none of the “Adventure”.
Solving the case and finding the clues is a must, there is no alternative. There is no making the wrong decision or messing up the case. If you can’t find all of the clues, keep looking, because you can’t do anything else until you do. Luckily, if you are stuck, you will be sent emails with hints as to what to do next.
Any positives? Yes, there are a couple. The cases offered are a nice mix of crimes to solve and for fans of the show, you will be able to feel like you are part of the action while you work along side all of the regular faces that you see every week. Ubisoft was even able to get the actors themselves to do the voice work which is a nice touch. Playing through the game even feels like watching the show, as there are breaks in the action where commercials would normally go. The only difference is that with television, you can watch it in HD, when playing this game it feels like you are viewing a very under-utilized graphics engine.
There are plenty of neat toys and gadgets at your disposal to help you sift through evidence. The lab, the interrogation room, the morgue are all at your disposal and will come into play at various times. Each offers ways to stumble upon more clues to help you solve the case. The puzzles will be very easy for a lot of people, but could also provide stumbling blocks if you aren’t used to doing them.
Overall, CSI: Deadly Intent is a game I would pass on unless you are a die hard fan of the show (people hated the Lost video game – I loved it). Part of it’s limited charm is having a conversation with Laurence Fishburne’s character. If you don’t watch the show though, or don’t know who that is, then it is just another poorly animated pile of pixels. Ubisoft has something here with this series of games, I just don’t know that they have figured out what that something is.
FINAL SCORE – 62/100
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