Reviewed: October 30, 2005
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Midway
Developer
Surreal Software
Released: September 26, 2005
Genre: Action
Players: 1
ESRB: Mature
8
8
8
8
8.3
Supported Features:
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
Just in time for another Halloween, Midway unleashes a terrifying new sequel to last year’s fright fest, The Suffering. Horror games are a dime a dozen this year no matter which system you own, so it is always nice to see something that is not only original but genuinely scary.
The Suffering: Ties That Bind is a clever title. Not only does this sequel “bind” itself closely with the original, it also gives us greater insight into the tortured depths of our blood-encrusted hero, Torque.
The game picks up right where the first one left us and Torque is in the process of escaping the island on which he has been imprisoned. But his journey to Baltimore is not a solo adventure…oh no. Plenty of twisted hellions are going along for this nightmare journey.
There is a lot more story in this game and we learn even more about Torque; probably information we should have known during the first, but hey, that’s what sequels are for, to fill in those missing gaps. The fact that Torque is actually escaping back to his home allows for some very convenient and trendy flashbacks into the events that put him in prison in the first place.
Ties That Bind is even more twisted than before with all new demons and hideous creatures that are often twisted exaggerations of the prisoners and their own special means of execution. Those who died from lethal injection now use needles as their weapons while those who got juiced in the chair can now shock you until you are a quaking mass lying in your own urine.
Torque is the resident bad ass and is still able to wield an impressive array of weapons, although in the sequel he is now limited to the number of weapons he can carry at any one time. You are allowed two weapons and a decent stockpile of grenades. Ammo is much more scarce this time around so you will always want to have a good beat stick handy when the bullets run dry.
Firearms range from pistols and machine guns to shotguns and assault rifles to the more impressive RPG and hand cannon. Of course Torque himself can still morph into his demonic form becoming what is probably the most impressive weapon of all. This is actually required in some parts of the game where your monster form is the only thing that can break down a door or kill a large creature.
Be warned, the level of difficulty is not only much higher in this game, but there are numerous surprises that can take you by off guard if you aren’t on your toes. There are plenty of those long creepy uneventful parts of the game where you are uneasy then you start to get lazy and that is when they jump you with a large group of monsters or one particularly nasty sub-boss.
Monsters aren’t the only things you’ll be fighting. A group of corporate security soldiers are as eager to find out what’s going on in this prison, as you are to get out. You’ll go up against numerous soldiers, often two or three at a time and with more intelligence and better firepower, they can prove more menacing than demons.
The various levels in the game aren’t terribly challenging. Often, you are led through linear designs, guided through doors, or pushed from objective to objective with the occasional combat or puzzle tossed in to distract you. The levels are designed and scripted to tell a story, which takes away a bit of your freedom to explore.
The "morality" portion of the gameplay is back. This is where you are allowed to dictate your own future and ultimately arrive at one of multiple endings based on your actions during the game. At any time during the game you have free will to kill or torture almost anyone, friend or foe. These choices crop up all over the game and the culmination of these decisions will determine your fate.
Visually, Ties That Bind looks marginally better than the PS2 version but fall drastically short of where last year’s PC version achieved. What few improvements I can see are probably more to do with the hardware than any updates in the engine. There is some nice support for HDTV and progressive scan, which makes things just a bit nicer than the PS2 version.
The sinister creature design and creepy animation is just as good as always and the human action is so lifelike it has to be mo-capped. There are some especially creative mini-cutscenes that introduce a lot of the old and new enemies inspiring a bit of fear before you even get to fight them.
The levels aren’t particularly remarkable but they do manage to create some spooky environments and there are some downright evil visual effects, especially for the numerous flashbacks, that really help sell the scare factor. And there is certainly no shortage of blood in this game. Everything will have a nice glossy coating of red including the floor, walls, ceiling, and Torque before it’s all over.
Michael Clarke Duncan lends his voice to the role of Blackmore, Torque's mentor now turned enemy; and you might recognize the voice of Rachel Griffiths (Six Feet Under who plays Jordan. The quality of the acting mirrors the fine script which backs up this story-intensive game.
There is also a riveting soundtrack with all sorts of haunting themes to keep you creeped out when nothing else is really scary. Combined with an authentic array of sound effects for the various firearms, environments, and supernatural noises for all the creatures, this could be one of the scariest sounding games of the year, especially with the ultra-immersive Dolby Digital mix that surrounds you in terror.
There are multiple endings but whether you want to replay the game just to uncover them is up to you. I found a solid 12 hours of frightfully good action in Ties That Bind and I might go back and play it again sometime down the road if I find myself in need of a scare.
Hardcore gamers and those that typically race through their games would find this better as a rental, but if you are looking for a good story with plenty of violence and terrifying action this would make a great addition to your permanent library.
The Suffering: Ties That Bind is a great sequel and even manages to stand alone as a solo title although you’ll get a lot more enjoyment fleshing out the story and filling in those gaps from the first game. Plus, a lot of the characters and events mentioned have more meaning if you are coming from the first game.
There seems to be a lot of horror titles to choose from this season, even on the Xbox, but you could do a whole lot worse than putting yourself in the shoes of Torque for a few days and learning the true meaning of terror. The game oozes with style and originality unlike anything that might dare to compete with it. And yes…there will be blood…