8.0

Michigan: Report from Hell

Ever since the Resident Evil series of games, survival adventure games have become the new "buzz" in the industry but unfortunately many of these titles are a hit and miss affair. Fortunately for Michigan: Report from Hell, developers 505 CameStreet have really got something "different" on their hands that transforms gamers into a "cameraman" who has been thrown into a deadly world of the supernatural, not to mention the odd babe... living and dead here and there.

The story is carefully scripted from start to finish and when a mysterious fog engulfs an entire city, it is up to Zaka TV to give the world the scoop but unfortunately for you, the entire city is littered with dead corpses and your sexy news crew have vanished in this deadly new TV reality. Your job is to hunt, rescue, romance and fight your want through a city gone made, all in turn getting the best damn images a cameraman can get.

FEATURES

• Interactive game scenarios

• Get scoops for suspense, eroticism or immorality points

• More that 15 hours of play

• 5 different endings

• 20 different game areas

Ironically this game is a mixture of suspense and voyeurism with your news crew made up of three drop-dead (pun intended) gorgeous women named Jean Phillipe Brisco, Ann Anderson and Pamela Martel. However, as a cameraman, that is all you basically do in this title (although you do help solve the puzzles) but generally you use the camera to film the girls, monsters and keep the suspense happening for the viewers at home. There are some scenes where you must fight your way to victory but this is far and few. The control system is rather apt, with the X button used as your action button and the analog stick to move around the gaming environment, match that with a few other controls from your Sony DualShock controller and you have a title that almost anyone can play.

The characters in the game are rather detailed with high levels of polygons for that extra amount of realism and of course, all the female characters in this title have that extra "look" that once again plays with the voyeurism of this title. Apart from the three main beauties of this game, it also contains a plethora of twisted and bizarre monsters that really fits the survival genre. The only downside to the graphics is that everything is rather dark and sometimes bland but there are enough special effects and lighting effects to almost let the gamer ignore this.

The voice acting is pure "cheese" and sounds like it has been taken directly from a Namco game that actually suits the title perfectly from the sexy voice of Ann Anderson to amusing Jean Phillipe Brisco, this title has all the clichés. Match that with a plethora of "scary" sounds and a very in-depth soundtrack and you have one great sounding game.

In conclusion, Michigan: Report from Hell is a rather entertaining game that actually changes the script of the survival adventure genre by making you the "sidekick" with your heroines as the real heroes in this title. Impressive graphics, clichéd sound effects and a "different" gaming engine, this game is probably recommended for those that love adventure and with 5 different endings, you can't go wrong. Good stuff!