Night Watch

Night Watch Review (Wii)

The gameplay was a welcome break from the frantic, action-packed outdoor adventuring of Instinct: Terran Conflict. The idea behind Night Watch was to make it a gameplay twist and have it fit right in with the mainstream game culture of its time, and, well, this idea is both intriguing and fun.

The premise of Night Watch is simple: you're a robot. You're an archaeologist working as a general. You'll learn about things such as the smog that only scientists can see and are more interested in analysis than any actual knowledge. The video that I've seen of the game features alien dinosaurs (that, like Jurassic Park, aren't that real-life dinosaurs, so they're actually just made from plastic), deadly UFOs, and a world full of dinosaurs.

It's pretty simple. Just as the video describes, the game is centered around a boy's mission to help a town's generator repair a series of robots that have been destroyed by an evil virus. However, in this case, the game will include a reference to the blockbuster that is The Matrix, and in some of the video clips shown I can see that the game will feature a "darker" plotline than the others. I'll admit to being a bit skeptical of the way Night Watch will be turned on, but it will certainly make the game less like a movie, especially since the film will feature something that takes place hundreds of years in the future.

In Night Watch, you'll take on the role of an amnesiac boy who just so happens to be a member of the odd cast of characters who are scattered throughout the city. In order to get rid of the virus, the boys have to go about their daily tasks in and around the city. While I understand that Night Watch will include a quirky and colorful cast, most of the time you'll be doing the standard role-playing trappings that all games do, such as leveling up and collecting items to improve your character, such as swords, axes, and so on. I don't think I've seen a lot of the variety that's going on in Night Watch, although it certainly looks like a game that offers a wide variety of gameplay types.

GS: What kind of gameplay do you think will appeal to fans of the genre? How long have you been working on the game?

You'll play as the male character, as well as a female character in the game.

BB: The story in Night Watch is a bit of a departure from the other games in the series, in that it's a pretty heavy role-playing game with a lot of walking and talking. I've played a lot of the quests in other games and in other role-playing games, and I also played a lot of strategy games. Of course, I've always enjoyed role-playing games, as I'm happy to see them in the spotlight. We tried to write a backstory for the main character of the game, but I felt that it was a bit much in line with the genre that I'm used to. There are a lot of interesting plot twists and a lot of cool things in this game, so if you're a role-playing gamer, I think it's going to be very interesting to see.

GS: You mention the different kinds of quests in Night Watch. Can you give us some examples?

BB: You play in a pretty open manner, and you get different tasks as the story unfolds. You start off on the corner of a small town, and the adventure continues along a huge sort of linear path. As you go through the game, you'll find quests that lead you down the road. The larger the quests, the more story-driven you become in the game. We didn't want it to be the kind of experience that's like this, which is going to feel right at home in the Matrix universe. We wanted it to be a very immersive experience, and we wanted it to feel as though you're part of that world.

GS: Will there be any overlap in gameplay between characters and the story?

BB: That's a good question. This is a game that has a lot of history. We're hoping that the action and role-playing elements will feel like they can really add to the experience.

GS: Will there be any RPG elements in the game?

BB: We are creating this action RPG based on a story, and then we're building the story around that.

GS: What will be different in the game?

BB: The story is the same. You will find that in the beginning, and we're aiming for a very high standard for storytelling. We want to make a compelling and diverse game that offers an environment to explore, a story to discover, and characters to interact with.

GS: Will the game use the movie's special effects?