1. potsherd86

   9

   I must come to this game's defense. Clearly there is a discrepancy between the critic's opinions and the gaming community's opinions. Alice was not without it's faults, but I think the good far outweighed the bad.
   
   First, the visuals are great. The graphics are good, but what really makes the game is the attention to detail. Each environment is elaborate and littered with interesting objects that made me spend a lot of time just observing my surroundings. I also really enjoyed how Alice's outfits match the theme of the chapter (if you don't manually pick her dress and use the standard story mode). Apart from that, the gameplay was also very enjoyable. There were definitely glitches; these usually occurred when I was jumping from platforms or using the smoke vents to take me places. Other than some hiccups here and there, the gameplay worked fine. The 4 weapons are unique and fun to use and I liked how you could upgrade them and their appearances changed. My only complaint with this is they only upgrade to level 4 and I had collected so many teeth that by the beginning of Chapter 5 I upgraded everything and I still had a decent amount of the game to go. That being said, the battles were fun and some were very challenging on my first play through. FInally, the other elements like puzzles, chess, arcade mode and 2D platformer levels were a lot of fun and a good way to break up all of the running and fighting. My one final critique was dialogue glitches. When Alice was engaging in conversations with other characters. some of the words were not even said--they was just silence instead of the character talking. Other times, Alice and the characters would talk over each other and the dialogues would overlap. It is a minor problem, but when coupled with the few gameplay glitches, I think Spicy Horse should have either had a BETA test (if they didn't) or a more rigorous BETA test (if they did). Overall, this game was wonderful. The details from the environment to her wardrobe to the characters and weapons made this game one that I will definitely play over and over again.
   
   And if you can, BUY THE DLC. It was only $1.99 in the PSN store. It comes with 6 new dresses that each have special attributes and 4 weapons that are variants of the original 4 weapons. It is awesome and adds a lot of fun elements to the game. And it's cheap!
   
   One last comment regarding the bonus content. I didn't play the original Alice until I purchased Alice: Madness Returns and got it as a free download with the ore-order. I played it for a few hours and barely got anywhere--and it was on easy! It was obvious that no real changes were made to the game to make it more compatible for consoles. I can only speak to the PS3 version of course, but it was obvious that it was originally a PC game by the way it played and the reacted to the controls. Spicy Horse pretty much just took an 11 year old PC and made it accessible for the PS3 without putting much thought into translating it to a new system. On a positive note, I enjoyed the game's soundtrack that also came with the pre-order. The music was also another element of the game that I enjoyed.… Collapse

   • Helpful? 2 of 2 users said Yes.
2. LookinLikeMagic

   8

   Alice: Madness Returns is the sequel to the critically acclaimed American McGee's Alice. It takes place a year after original game in 1875 were Alice has been released from the asylum and now lives in an orphanage under the care of Dr Bumby. Alice is still traumatised by the fire that killed her entire family and Dr Bumby encourages her to go to Wonderland in her mind as a coping mechanism. However in her visions Wonderland has changed and is much darker and twisted than how she left it. After several hallucinations of the Jabberwock Alice once again arrives in Wonderland.
   
   Story: 8/10 Madness Return's storyline is very strong but it does have some minor pacing issues. New players to the series will have no trouble keeping up with the storyline as it references the first game and the Lewis Carroll novels at the start of the game and through collectable memories found throughout the game. The storyline is quite engaging and you'll want to play on to continue Alice's adventure. However I found myself wanting the game to pick up pace as I progressed towards the later chapters. The characters and voice acting however are superb and actually likeable compared to most games these days. American McGee gives an interesting edge to each of Lewis Carroll's original characters such as Hatter who is a mechanical genius who is obsessed with time and clockwork. Gameplay: 8/10 From what I have played, Madness Returns's gameplay is quite similar to the first game but it has much more emphasis on hack n slash combat aswell as platforming. Like most hack n slash games it several basic moves such as a light attack, heavy attack, ranged attack aswell as dodge and block. Alice equip several weapons and items at a time such as the Vorpal Blade and Pepper Grinder etc. The game has a basic upgrading system were Alice can upgrade several weapons by collecting"teeth" throughout the game. Personally I am a huge fan of the combination of hack n slash, platforming and RPG elements that Madness Returns uses however it does have several problems that bring it down. The camera angles and targeting system is very flawed and can be quite frustrating, for example when in a semi-large area and facing 3 or more enemies the targeting system can irrational target far off enemies. Graphics: 9/10 The environment and character designs for Madness Returns are very unique when compared to other games on the market. The artistic design really brings Lewis Carroll's Wonderland to life with a unique darker edge that only McGee can do. There is a wide range of environments that Alice travels through ranging from classic Wonderland forests to harsh arctic wastelands making each stage very different. Every new environment brings with it new diverse enemies that look and act differently such as goblins that use cutlery as weapons, undead card soldiers and sharks that hide in ice. The designs for characters in both Wonderland and London have their own unique style. Both the environments and character designs remind me of the Fable and Medevil series but with a refreshing edge. Extras: 7/10 Madness Returns only has a singleplayer campaign but due to the diverse levels and the long length of story this is to be expected. I also cannot imagine however a multiplayer or co-op feature would play into the story so I am happy with just the singleplayer mode. However if you buy a new copy of the game on either the PS3 or Xbox 360 you are entitled to a free download of the original American McGee's Alice. This much appreciated extra expands the average play time of about 10-15 hours to about 20-25 hours. It is a simple port of the original game without any graphical updates which is slightly disappointing but not a problem. Enjoyment: 8/10 Personally I found Alice: Madness Returns extremely enjoyable but this is my type of game because its a little bit of everything as I mentioned earlier such as hack n slash, platforming and minor aspects of an RPG and a 3rd person shooter. The characters and environment design of this game really made the storyline very intriguing to me and I will definitely be buying my own copy of this for the PS3. As I mentioned earlier the problems with pacing and the targeting system are the only things that brought the enjoyment of this game down because at times they can be a big issue. I would recommend this to fans of the Fable series and platforming games such as Crash Bandicoot, Medevil and A Series Of Unfortunate Events. Overrall Rating: 8… Expand

   • Helpful? 2 of 2 users said Yes.
3. podzorama

   7

   OK, I agree with most of the critic's comments of the game, it is a one paced game, there is nothing new in the gameplay, the graphics are pretty average, as is the narrative that runs throughout, but I loved playing it. Alice in Wonderland should be fertile ground for a console game, but neither of American Magee's Alices are particularly fantastic. There is a strange mix of levels in "Madness returns", from the dark grimy streets of victorian london, to the dreadful childish Undersea and Tundra levels, through to the druggy trippy levels, and it is perhaps this that makes the game passably playable.
   It might be worth commenting here that I was reminded initially, when Alice was collecting lost memories, of the superb PC (anti)game, "The Path", (now that IS a truly disturbing and Gothic piece of art), but Alice Madness Returns never quite reaches it's potential.
   Play it by all means, you will enjoy it, but it falls well short of being a great game… Expand

   • Helpful? 1 of 1 users said Yes.
4. Muuvinki

   4

   I hadn't played the original Alice McGee game but i still decided to check this game out because it looked creepy and interesting. What a huge disappointment i got. Every single level in this game follows the same pattern, platform jumping, fighting some enemies and collecting collectible items. Okay first i thought Wonderland was kinda cool but the truth is you cannot do anything other than enjoy views besides the actual playing. Game has huge problem with controls, sometimes character doesnt respond to my button pressing at all or does it way too slowly. Combat system is a huge f***kin mess, lock on system is useless because most of the enemies are too fast and attack you while you focus on other one. Last thing i want to make perfectly clear is that this game has ZERO horror in it.… Expand

   • Helpful? 0 of 0 users said Yes.

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