Game Review: Watchmen 'The End is Nigh'

Evan Narcisse - Mclatchy -Tribune News Service

"Watchmen: The End Is Nigh" (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3)

What's Hot: Killer graphics tech

What's Not: Lame voice-acting; Levels are too long and unvaried; Lack of depth

The Verdict: Fry It

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 3 and tested on the Xbox 360. No notable performance or video differences were noted. The PlayStation 3 edition supports Trophies.

Of all the comics properties that seem least likely to translate to videogames, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' thoughtful masterpiece of superhero deconstruction, "Watchmen," leads the pack. But, in the Age of the Inevitable Tie-In, all fans of beloved creations can do is grit their teeth when favorite comics, books or television shows get plucked out of their native soil and placed into the hands of game developers and publishers.

Now, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and developer Deadline Studios offer "Watchmen: The End Is Nigh" -- a $20 digital release connected to Zack Snyder's big-budget adaptation of "Watchmen." What will fans who want to take control of Rorschach and Nite Owl get in the downloadable title?

At best, a mixed bag. On the plus side, "The End Is Nigh" sizzles with some of the best graphics available for any digitally distributed game. Finely modulated light glints off of slick surfaces with impressive specularity; and quick, responsive animations invigorate the well-detailed character models. The downside to all that visual pop comes with the gameplay. The game's pretty much an action brawler that harks back to classics like the Streets of Rage or Final Fight series.

Each protagonist has a different set of special abilities. Rorschach, the disturbed detective with the shifting mask, has unpredictable attacks from the Crazy Orphanage school of combat, with flailing fists and brutal, unorthodox finishers. Always the brilliant improviser, he can pick up and wield weapons, either by disarming enemies or finding them in the environment. But Rorschach is stuck with a truly annoying lock-picking mini-game that takes away from the game's best strength -- the nonstop waves of action.

His ally Nite Owl, the tech-savvy nocturnal avenger, uses more traditional martial arts moves along with Screecher stun grenades. Nite Owl's electrically-powered uniform also gives him enhanced strength and a taser charge, while his grappling gun gives him alternate routes throughout levels. Both characters grow their sets of moves and abilities by finding collectibles throughout the levels, with a Rage meter for Rorschach that opens up more vicious attacks and a Charge function that lets Nite Owl unleash more power from his suit.

Scripted by the original series editor, Len Wein, the game's plot builds on events referred to only in passing in "Watchmen," namely Rorschach and Nite Owl's takedown of Underboss in 1965. The action starts in 1972, as that subterranean crime lord takes part in a prison break that may hint at something larger. The characters visit underworld haunts in an effort to find Underboss and the secret of his escape. The events of "The End Is Nigh" sit parallel to those recounted in the graphic novel, with context provided by animated cut scenes done in the style of artist Dave Gibbons. These framing sequences feel wrong because Gibbons' art style doesn't mesh well with the limited animation, and it's jarring to switch from hand-drawn art to the photorealistic graphics of the game engine.

In terms of expanding the "Watchmen" fiction, the sequences fail there, as well. Rorschach talks too much and comes off too gruff and politically vocal, while Nite Owl seems too bland and cavalier. Jackie Earl Haley and Patrick Wilson reprise their roles from the film, but Haley's line readings overemphasize Rorschach's clipped grammar, making him sound like Solomon Grundy and the Hulk had a lovechild. Basically, every line not penned by Moore shaves away the self-contained atmosphere of the original work. If the game were quieter, tenser or moodier, but still paired with the same gameplay, it might not feel as blasphemous.

Still, all kinds of cute Easter eggs await the sharp-eyed fan: posters for Mason's Auto Repair and Gunga Diner, appearances by Dr. Manhattan and Silk Spectre and nods to the political upheaval wrought by masked vigilantism. But, even that stuff starts to feel over-programmed. Rorschach had mommy issues in the comics, so the thugs will make mommy taunts. Does it make sense within the story? Not at all. This being Episode 1 of 2, a blind man could see where the story's going. The clumsy way The End Is Nigh tries to tack its story onto the conspiracy threads of "Watchmen" is just laughable.

Even in the Age of the Inevitable Tie-In, one of the best graphic novels of all time deserved better than a mindless beat-'em-up with needless vulgarity. "The End Is Nigh's" shallow fighting engine will bore you to tears, and other poorly thought-out elements like repetitive level design, annoying backtracking and tandem puzzle-solving will annoy you. The story's attempts to connect the movie and comic feel overcooked, and will dirty the warm fuzzies you had about Moore and Gibbons' great partnership.

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