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Bluntly, Too Human is not a great game. Yet I can't get enough of it.

Too Human is eccentric developers Silicon Knights' first original game since Eternal Darkness six years ago. Too Human's concept has been floating around for ten years: initially a PS1 title to follow up Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, then moved to GC with SK's exclusivity deal with Nintendo, then to Xbox 360 when that deal was up. [You can still visit online gaming magazines and view screenshots of each cancelled iteration]. That said, Too Human for the Xbox 360 has only been in development since the system launched, but it still has a lot to live up to.

So how did it turn out? Well if you rely on mainstream critics, bad. Very bad. From what I can tell though most of the very bad response seems to be from either a lack of time spent with the game, or confusion over exactly what type of game this is supposed to be. It seems many people either think this is a Ninja Gaiden/Devil May Cry type action beat 'em up or a Mass Effect/Oblivion western role playing game. In Silicon Knights tradition, the reality is that it's neither and both of these things.

Too Human's closest relative is I feel the Phantasy Star Online series. Like PSO/PSU, Too Human is a dungeon crawler loot game with action elements. Like PSO, you can choose a class based on close combat, ranged combat or healing. Like PSO, you are expected to run the same levels repeatedly to gain levels and gear until you are either infinitely powerful or bored to tears. Too Human's combat system has a lot more action elements than PSO and they are much better implemented, but essentially the two games are very similar.

So knowing what this game is "supposed to be," first I'll discuss what I feel this game does wrong.

1. The camera is bad. In a developer interview the designer team explains that the camera is programmed to show the biggest threat, not necessarily what you are facing. Honestly, I'm not sure if it actually ever works out that way. In combat, the camera is usually fine. You can cycle through several camera modes, from very close to "Iso," which is usually similar to an overhead Diablo style set up. But far too often the camera just spazzes out when you are running, turning a corner, or hugging a wall, leading to an instant headache. Since nearly all chests are along walls, this is no good. You can tap LB to reset the camera

behind you, but it does not always work and sometimes it instantly snaps back to where it was. There just really needs to be a way to manually control the camera.

2. The game is too short. The story mode will take about 10-12 hours, and I'm ok with that. You're supposed to run each dungeon into the triple digits, right? So it's actually packed with hundreds of hours of gameplay. But I still say it's too short and here's why. There's only four dungeons to play through, and they are all tediously long. So you get bored of playing the same dungeons over and over, and you get bored of being in there for up to an hour longer than feels necessary. With only four areas, it also limits the opportunity for storytelling, which is mostly done in between dungeons. The story is strong but only pulls together right as the game ends, making it feel underwritten and badly paced. I strongly feel that if the game had six shorter dungeons instead of four incredibly long ones the story and gameplay would feel more naturally paced. While the game is the first part of a planned trilogy,

it still feels incomplete. It's as if Star Wars ended when the Millennium Falcon left Tatooine.

3. Cyberspace is boring and pointless. In the game there is another realm that you sometimes visit called "cyberspace." In a not so clever twist, it's the only area that does not look cybernetic, looking instead like lush forests and gardens. Some of these areas are very large. You are required to enter them to do some brainless puzzling to unlock doors and paths in the main game. There are no enemies in cyberspace, though there are "chests" full of good loot. But they really feel pointless and like a chore to access, especially through multiple playthroughs.

Note: A lot of people gripe about death in this game. When you die, your equipment takes damage and can eventually break, your combo meter resets to zero, and a Valkyrie descends from Valhalla and lifts you into the sky. Many people complain that there is no penalty at all, which is completely untrue. It's very irritating to have your combo meter depleted since it fuels all special moves and has to be filled by killing enemies. Equipment damage is also no good, as when it breaks all armor and benefit is cancelled. Many people also complain about the Valkyrie animation, specifically that it takes too long and is unskippable. It takes about 20 seconds. Then you're playing again. No Game Over screen and load from menu, no running back to your body, just a 20 second animation that happens to be gorgeous. I fail to see the problem.

There are other small issues here and there, but those three main points are MY biggest complaints. So here's what the game does right.

1. The combat is a lot of fun. The combat in Too Human is unique in that the triggers control ranged weapons and the right stick controls melee attacks. After a brief adjustment period, I think this layout is very fun and effective. It's awkward at first but after a while becomes second nature. The only problem is that it leaves no way to control the camera. Combined with the slide mechanism, the game becomes a thrill when there is lots of stuff to kill, and thankfully that happens a lot. Melee and ranged (guns) are well integrated, and it's a lot of fun to bat an enemy into the air with a hammer then juggle with your pistols. The ranged combat is handled with the triggers and an auto lock. The auto lock is flawed in that it often remains locked on dead targets or sticks to a target when you try to change, which you do by tapping the right stick while firing. But overall the melee/range relationship is fun and well implemented. Stringing combos together by striking, sliding, air combat, and finishing moves fills your combat meter which fuels special attacks and abilities that are determined by your class and alignment.

2. Customization is deep and balanced. There are several modes of customization, although character appearance is not one of them. The primary choices are class and alignment with a skill tree for each, and of course gear. There are five classes that let you specialize in various types of combat, such as high melee--Berzerker, high ranged--Commando, average all around--Champion, high defense--Defender, and health regeneration--Bioengineer. After completing the first dungeon you must also choose an alignment, either Human or Cybernetic. Generally Human is more combo reliant and Cybernetic is more gear reliant. Each class and alignment has a skill tree that you put points into as you level. The trees are fairly simplistic when compared to something like World of

Warcraft, but do add to the overall customization experience. Lastly there is the gear, which is seemingly endless. Not only are the combinations of weapons and armor immense, but many are slotted meaning you can add additional properties in the form of runes. You also have charms, which cause status effects in combat, such as gives a chance to freeze targets or gives a chance to explode on contact, but are activated by completing quests and inserting other runes or charms. The customization possibilities alone will keep you playing for dozens of hours.

3. The story and presentation are top notch, and have that special Silicon Knights touch. I mentioned above that the story feels cut short due to the lack of game content, and that's true. However, the integration of story, characters, art direction, and gameplay make for a rich gameplay experience. It's here where SK consistently is able to overcome technical setbacks to create something truly special. The developers always have great success in drawing from history and mythology to create a living world within their games, and Too Human is no different. This time Norse Mythology is the source, though from the

perspective of a cyclical history where the ancient gods were in fact much more techologicaly advanced than we are today. The graphics and art direction reinforce this concept with massive architectural environments that really feel alive. Character and enemy design is also top notch, highly detailed to the point of being flamboyant but not silly.

In my opinion Too Human is not a bad game and does not deserve the rabidly negative response from the internet gaming community. It does have some major flaws though that keep it from reaching its potential. That Silicon Knights charm manages to overcome a lot of the frustration brought on by the bad camera and limited game content, but not as much as in the past I'm afraid. Dennis Dyack, lead designer of Too Human, insists this is the best game they've ever made, but I just can't find truth in that statement. In fact I think it's the weakest of their three major projects behind Eternal Darkness and Blood Omen.

If you love loot grinding games like Diablo II and Phantasy Star Online, there is much to love about Too Human. When you are killing waves of enemies it's a blast, and thankfully that is happening most of the time. It's a game that you "get" or you don't, but if you are willing to look past its flaws, it is ultimately addicting and very fun.

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Let me say that I too like many use metacritic and gamerrankings.com as a guide when I am looking for a new game. For the most part I agree with the reviews and average scores. This game however is a bit of conundrum in that 'professional reviewers' gave it bad scores and most 'regular gamers' have given it great scores. I usually do not write reviews, but this one time this game is getting an unfair reviews.

To start of with when reviewing games one has to review games and compare them to compeating games or games within its genre. One cannot compare this game to Halo 3, Gears or Wars, CoD, 4, etc and then compain that the game 'sucks'. The best game to compare to is the gold standard for this genre and that would be Diablo 2. If you loved diablo 2 (or World of Warcraft) then you know what type of game you are getting yourself into. It is a game where you mindlessly kill 1000's upon 1000's of bad guys, mindlessly loot, mindlessly treasure hunt, and cointinue to try and achive perfection for your character (Collect all pieces of 'elite gear', complete elite charms, etc). And then after that start all over again with another character type. The whole concept of skill trees, modifiers, resistances, etc play significant role. If you never liked Diablo or World of Warcraft (or any other similar games) then you are not going to like this game. Don't even bother trying to play the game because you will never understand the 'concept' of the game. If you do like this genre, then read on.

The game mechanics are 'different'. We (as gamers on consoles) are so used to FPS controls than anything different automatically becomes bad. Its like PC gamers claiming that the only way to play shooters is with KB/mouse. It is not the only way, it is that individuals preference. Similarly, there is a learning curve (but it really is not that bad), and instead of mindlessly (I like using that word) button mashing 'A' or 'B' like many games have, this game you use the R stick instead. After playing for hours, I really like this setup and I think in the long run lessens the 'strain' on your hand because of this. The learning curve is not bad, but one has to have an open mind to trying the different setup, and if you do not have the ability to adapt, then the game mechanics can become a little difficult.

1. Graphics are pretty good, I play on a 130" projector and even at that size I am happy. They are not the best on the console, but they are far from the worst. They are better than launch game graphics.

2. Sound is great, especially playing in a home theater setup

3. Action is non stop, and extremely fun. Even better when playing co-op. Compared to games in its genre, the mx of enemies, the difficulties etc are great.

4. Monsters level as you do. Some people like this (Oblivion does this) but some people want to feel like gods when they reach level 50 (this will not happen). The main advantage is that rather than being confined to a tiny area for looting and treasure hunting for high level items, the entire game is available to treasure hunt because all monsters will be max level as well. This is a good thing.

5. Camera issues. Again it is differnet. There are 6-7 different camera angles too choose from. Like the controller setup, it is different and thus you have to adapt, and truthfully, it makes sense after playing for hours. Just like the controller issue, it is 'difficult' if one plays for a couple of hours and then passes judgement (like the professional reviewers), but after playing dozens of hours, the camera makes sense. Think about it, Silicon Knights probably spent thousands of hours making this game, and felt that this was the best options, and I tend to agree. The flow-panning-handling is very smooth, and I like the way it is setup.

6. 2 player Co-op. I know many of us really want 4 player co-op and apparently it is in the code to do so. The option was removed because it apparently made the game unbalanced. I have no doubt that either in a patch or more likely in Too Human 2 it will be available. That being siad, 2 player coop is even more fun than playig solo. The monsters are also much harder and more challenging.

7. Cutscenes could have been better quality

8. The story is complex and makes no sense to begin with. However the story makes much more sense at the end of the game as everything falls into place, and leaves you wanting more (thus Too Human 2 and 3).

There is so much more positive things to say (inventory management, the menu system (maybe a little 'dumbed down' but again a good thing for a console, etc). Comparing games in its genre I give it a solid 8.5/10. It could be a little more polished (thus not a 9), but the game is just so much fun and addicting.

Best Deals for Too Human - Xbox 360

My advice is to pick up the demo or something and give it a spin. If the camera (which is terrible and basically completely out of your control) doesn't ruin it for you, then buy the game, because that's really the only down side to it

The game itself reminds me heavily of Mass Effect, except without the conversation trees. The art and level design, especially in the base area, looks like it was done by the same people

Anyway, the game is easy to get into, has a somewhat hard to understand but passably interesting story, and there's lots of replay value, so like i said, if the camera doesn't make you throw it down in disgust then you should be good to go

Honest reviews on Too Human - Xbox 360

I was hesitant to purchase this game based on the reviews from sites such as ign.com and gamespot.com, but I started to hear people say that the game is a lot of fun so I picked up a copy. They were right! The game isn't perfect by any means (the camera does take a lot of getting used to and can be a pain sometimes) but overall it is entertaining and fun. My first night playing it I put in 5 hours. If you enjoy games where you constantly search for upgraded equipment you will get hooked on this game. This is definitely not game-of-the-year material, but I would highly suggest at least trying it out if you enjoy games that center heavily around searching for new items. Personally I give this game a 4/5, but for the general public I say it will probably be more of a 3/5.

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Too Human is a spiritual successor to Phantasy Star Onlinethere are 4 large 'zones', lots of items and rare loot, online co-op (only 2 players here instead of PSO's 4)... but there is a lot more meat on the bones here. 5 distinct character classes, a much larger variety of weapons and armor, and a customizable skill tree that you can re-spec anytime. The way you go from enemy to enemy, launching and juggling them in the air, shooting lasers and grenades all over the place... it's the most hectic (and rewarding) action gameplay in any dungeon crawler yet.

It can be fairly difficult, but the challenge pushes you to discover the deep game mechanics and strategies with the unusual (and initially awkward) control scheme Silicon Knights has cleverly crafted here. Armor and weapons have many varieties of status effect and skill buffs, and they can be customized. By planning out which kind of effects you want your gear to have, you can re-spec your skill tree accordingly to create specialized, powerful characters. If you just found a sweet new laser rifle, you can re-spec your skill tree (for a cost) to maximize laser damage, rifle damage, and increased ammunition as well as customize your gear with runes (inserting a +5% laser damage rune on your rifle, for example) to optimize your effectiveness with the laser rifle.

Too Human has great graphics but with some rough edges (mostly in the character models) and overall it doesn't quite live up to the extremely high expectations we have with the current crop of games on the 360. The audio though is truly spectacular with lots of deep sub-bass and some excellent sound effects.

The menus are a bit sluggish and cumbersome, and the auto-camera can sometimes be a painbut they aren't dealbreakers. The flaws are overshadowed by the unique fun that Too Human offers.

edit: After playing it more, bump it to 5 stars. This game is paranormally deep. You can legitimately obsess over ithoning your skills with the game, learning all of the techniques and when to use themif you have the patience, it's as rewarding as a video game can get.