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What's this? A good PC port from Capcom? Could it be that the company responsible for publishing a version of Resident Evil 4 that didn't initially support lighting or shading of any kind, and a port of Devil May Cry that forced players to use the right analog stick for movement, has finally learned their lesson? Surely hell must look as snowy as the barren landscapes of Lost Planet right now.
Well, almost. This port is not without its issues, as I'll discuss a bit later, but it does offer a viable way to play a worthy version of one of Capcom's most interesting new properties. Lost Planet is an attempt by Keiji Inafune to borrow from Western-style third-person shooters and infuse it with Japanese design ethics. It features a traditional first-person shooter control scheme, featuring a dual analog layout or a classic keyboard and mouse.
The barren, snowy landscapes conjure up memories of The Thing and give Lost Planet a signature style that stands out from other sci-fi shooters.
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In its initial version, the shooting action bothered me a bit as a computer gaming snob. Enemies are not especially crafty or aggressive, giving generous allowance for the slower, somewhat clunkier aiming afforded by control pads. The giant bosses and larger fights are plenty hot, but shooting at enemies that were content to stand still and absorb lead left me a bit cold. The PC port excited me, because being able to aim with a mouse seemed like a big boon, but without the ability to adjust the aiming speed beyond a slow crawl, this advantage is somewhat neutered.
It's just one in a long line of missed opportunities. Capcom has done right by keeping this project in-house (unlike the aforementioned out-sourced shovelports), releasing this new version while Lost Planet still has some heat, and taking advantage of the latest hardware to offer an experience that improves upon the original. Unfortunately, their inexperience with the PC platform has soiled some of their would-be success.
I'm sure you notice this review is less than timely. That's largely because the game didn't actually work on any Windows XP system we tested it with for several months until a patch was released, taking us well into the holiday coverage rush. You're constantly reminded of the game's console roots with awkward menus that use odd conventions like forcing you to right click to go back, and on-screen directions that only show the 360 pad regardless of whether one is connected.
None of this makes the PC port a major downgrade, though. The graphics are still quite lovely, and while the advantages of the much lauded DirectX 10 support are minor at best, this was always a good looking game, and on a properly equipped system it runs beautifully, looking sharper and crisper than the original. The barren, snowy landscapes conjure up memories of The Thing and give Lost Planet a signature style that stands out from other sci-fi shooters.
The linear shooting takes you through 11 stages, which can be blown through in about seven hours. The showpieces of these stages are the giant bosses, with pattern-based attacks and brightly colored weak points, lending a nice old-school sensibility to the action. It's the long, slow trudges leading up to these fights that can be a bit of a bore at times. Your character is slow moving, and your foes brain dead, failing to capture the strategy and technique that is such a big part of what drives this genre.
In more ways than one, this release is a learning experience. Capcom of Japan is learning from the West in their game design, and learning how to do a PC port the right way. It's clear that this is alien territory for them, and they have missed some opportunities along the way. Still, they have created an enjoyable game and a port that satisfies, even if it isn't as grand as it could have been.
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