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Undying is easily the early leader for Game of the Year

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 18 / 19
Date: February 25, 2001
Author: Amazon User

Undying has more to offer than any game in recent memory and is an absolute blast to play. I agree with what some game reviews have already said, calling it the scariest game ever made (Seeing how Clive Barker was involved, it's not too surprising!).

Graphics: Beautifully detailed and textured environments. Awesome creatures with uncanny realism. Cool special effects and plenty of blood!

Sound: Enemy and ambient sounds are among the best I've heard. The voiceover is tight, most notably being Aaron (the ghostly brother). I read that Clive Barker himself is the voice of Ambrose (one the main characters in the game) and he too, does an admirable job.

Gameplay: Most your basic FPS elements with an interesting twist on accessing your weapons & spells. The wheel-based selection system takes some getting used to, but is quite effective during battle (the game also allows you to use a more conventional system of hot keys if you prefer). Fighting creatures in Undying stands apart from the crowd when the player (you) gets hit. Blood splatters on the screen and your view is knocked in the direction from where the impact came. Very Cool! Most puzzles are rather easy except for a handful that will have you scratching your head and feeling silly once you figure it out.

Presentation: The game comes with the normal PC stuff (jewel case and manual = sigh). However, Undying does come with a big diary full of back story on the family and is extremely well written.

Pros: Just read anything I or nearly all the game reviewers are saying. Hands down the early pick for game of the year.

Cons: A little short for my liking, but that's a PC game issue in general. You'll get longer play with some console games, but few as fun as Undying.

You definitely won't be sorry if you get this game. Maybe scared.... But not sorry.

Action and Terror from the first person view-point!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 15 / 15
Date: June 07, 2001
Author: Amazon User

I have played many, many FPS games. Doom. Doom 2. Quake. Duke Nukem. Half Life. Aliens vs. Predator just to name a few. And none of them, not even Half-Life or AvP could have prepared anyone for this.

This game is terrifying beyond all belief. Not since Silent Hill has there been a game so utterly nerve wracking. I have played games that were designed to scare you, but this, from the mind of horror master Clive Barker, will have you trembling in your seat. Unexpected occurences, such as monsters bursting through walls, the ground suddenly falling out from under you, terrible shrieks that sound like they came from right behind you....you walk into a dark room and see nothing. The door slams shut, you turn around......the beast standing there will take your head off if you aren't fast enough!

Crisp, beautiful graphics that look great even on older video cards (such as Voodoo 3), and incredible sound effects make this game what it is. Very cool weapons, such as the Tibetan War Cannon which shoots a blast of ice at your enemies, and amazing looking spells, such as the ectoplasm, which fires bolts of pure energy at your enemies are just some of the weapons you will use. There is 'duel-weilding', where you hold your weapon in your right hand, and your left hand is free for spell casting. Spell power can be upgraded through 'Mana Wells' found throughout the game. Helpful items such as 'Ether Traps' can keep monsters at bay while you try to find your way out!

The story is rather good, but there are many events in the game that will get you sidetracked while you are trying to perform a task asked of you by one of the NPC's, and then all of a sudden you find yourself being led one way by something else when you are trying to go the other way.

There are some other annoying aspects, such as being unable to backtrack, so if you miss something, thats it, you've missed it. Doors will often shut behind you, and will be unable to be opened again. There are also many doors throughout the game that cannot be accessed until much later in the game, where you will find yourself scrambling around the many beautifully detailed areas in the game, trying to find them again. There are quite a few monster types in the game. However, at some parts, these monsters respawn at an overwhelming rate, and some of these creatures are VERY difficult to kill because of their unique skills.

The inventory system and weapon selection systems were rather annoying as well, with the '1' and '2' keys cycling forward and back through weapons respectively, and '3' and '4' to cycle through spells. There is a button that allows you to access a 'weapon wheel' where all weapon icons are displayed on screen, allowing you to pick which one you want. However, if you have to quickly switch weapons in a tense situation, both methods are rather difficult to pull off.

Despite those gripes, the game itself is very good. The monsters are scary, the ability to cast a spell that shows you things that are not normally there, such as ghosts and alterations in the scenery, which will help you understand the story, or just plain terrify you, add to the atmosphere and mood of the game. If you are a fan of horror and FPS games, this one is for you! Not for the weak of heart! Difficult controls, but all in all a good game!

Single Player First Person Shooter

Solid horror adventure.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 18 / 20
Date: July 14, 2002
Author: Amazon User

In Clive Barker's Undying, you take on the role of an occult investigator named Patrick Galloway. You've arrived at the request of an old war buddy, Jeremiah Covenant, at his manor in the hopes that you can solve the mystery of its hauntings and find out what exactly happened to the other members of his family.

The first thing that bears mentioning is that this game is actually scary. The suspense is high and the atmosphere is enveloping. The original Quake is the last game that held my interest this way (Thematically, I prefer supernatural adventures to futuristic ones like Unreal and Quake II.) I had to keep a light on while I was playing this, especially in the early stages.

There isn't a lot of logic to the proceedings, the most glaring example being the way housekeeping staff casually go about their chores as other workers are being slaughtered a couple rooms over. But if you can ignore things like this, you'll get by.

Graphics are impressive. Though things like sky and water are not as exquisitely rendered as in Unreal, other scenery still looks great. The snowfall in the monastery level, in particular, is beautiful. Monsters look real and other characters look nice as well (Was I the only one who was sorry to see Lizbeth go?) Cinematic cutscenes are well directed and exciting. You almost forget you're watching a computer game.

Just as important is the sound which puts you right in the middle of the action, with well-defined directionality (try rotating while one of the servants is talking to you.)

The game isn't exceedingly difficult to work through. My biggest difficulty was getting lost in the mansion and monastery, because I just don't have a great memory for finding my way around those kinds of scenarios. (I had the same problem with the Sunspire Tower in Unreal.) Puzzles aren't too obscure.

Complaints regarding the lack of multiplayer capability are not legitimate, in my opinion. The story is such that having more than one player simply wouldn't make sense. This isn't a blastfest.

My only real complaint concerns the amount of resources required to play the game. Unbelievably, the manual actually suggests you shut down *every* background process (via task manager) other than Explorer. You shouldn't have to do this, and in fact you don't, although it took me a lot of fiddling before I finally got the game to run. It still crashed a couple more times while I was playing, but that was forgivable (as every gamer knows: save early and save often!) At the very least, make sure you have the latest drivers for your video card.

I finished the game today and I have to say that I am quite satisfied with it. It isn't perfect, but it will keep you entertained (and frightened) for a good while. For the budget price it's now selling for, it's a great deal.

Play This With The Lights ON

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 9 / 9
Date: April 25, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Just for the record, my sister at the other end of the house could hear a delightful assortment of freakish howling, orchestral crescendos, the loud banging of bullets being shot, maniachal laughter, and crying... and then she heard my startled shrieks. I often found myself in front of the screen with my hands icy cold and trembling.

I originally got this game because of the trailer on American McGee's "Alice", and having heavily enjoyed that game I went ahead and tried this one out. I was prepared for the horror of this FPS, but how can anyone ever really be fully prepared for that unbelievably large, multiple-canined, tentacled, flying creature that comes at you eager to bite into your flesh and you know there's no way to exit this room unless one of you is on the ground twitching?

Granted the game is linear (most of the doors, save the one you have to go into in order to progress, are magically locked or stuck so you HAVE to go into that one open door) so that you can't really beat the bad guys in your own choice of order and one who enjoys exploring before progressing might find this annoying. This isn't such a big deal though because you do get a good amount of blooming in the story line in this way without skipping or missing any steps. And I found that the ending was a little disappointing (this was why I gave the game a 4) but I won't get into details (I don't want to be stalked by angry mid-gamers).

I've read that some gamers were annoyed by constant loading breaks, but this never really became a problem for me. They were brief and were a good opportunity to save. The only thing that rocked my boat was the few glitches and freezes I had to endure (but they were very few!), and this was just a reminder to save OFTEN. My new WindowsXP had very little difficulty with this game, but my friend's Windows 95 did, so if your computer's old, buy with caution! Another thing that got frustrating was weapon reloading... because sometimes it took so long, you were dead by the time your weapon was ready to fire again. But this little anger-making piece only made it a bit more fun because you could use both hands independantly at the same time. Once you got the hang of this (keeping off enemies with spells by your right hand while reloading your gun with your left), you were set.

Overall, a great game. Horrifically entertaining, with awesome cutscenes that were borderline movie clips, great graphics, very good orchestration. Looking for a good spook and some fun? Get this! But don't play with the lights off.

A solid scare, and great fun!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 9 / 9
Date: June 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Being a fan of Clive Barker, I was very anxious to see what Undying had to offer. Well, I played the demo once, and actually had nightmares about it -- a clear indication that I had to have the full game!

I was not disappointed, either. This is the most frightening game I've ever played, and I've played a lot of games. With creepy atmosphere, eerie settings, chilling sound effects, dark storyline, and horrific adversaries, Clive Barker's Undying offers solid scares that just don't let up. For fans of the genre, this game is a must-have!

The wait for the pre-order was well worth it!!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 13 / 16
Date: February 21, 2001
Author: Amazon User

UNDYING is probably the most revolutionary 3D FPS since Half Life! When I first heard about it (from American McGee's Alice), I *knew* I had to pre-order this game. Being a big fan of macabre horror [Clive Barker], I knew I would enjoy it. But when I received it on my doorstep I slapped the CD in and began my journey into brialliantly designed 3D enviornments with atmospheric marvels and blood-chilling special effects! Faaaaar from the typical FPS, this one actually has a story that makes you want to play it for hours on end. Many FPSs loose their luster when you wander through the same-looking levels shooting the same, old unchallenging enemies -- Not Undying! Using the power of the Unreal Engine -- the Undying team took "3D worlds" to all new heights, using textures and geometry that cannot be described by anything short of 'beautiful'. Standing in Jeremiah's grand manor hall, looking at the ornate carvings in the wood, the flowing tapestries, and the lightning flashing in through the windows and billowing curtains....EXCELLENT!

Another thing that really caught my attention was the sound. The sound effects used in UNDYING are 2nd to none! With a good sound system, you are thrown right in the middle of a freightening horror movie, battling Jeremiah's undead siblings -- each with their own creppy personality. Ghost and demons, occult magic and 19th century weapons, amazing storyline and thrilling paranormal encounters that will keep you up for nights at a time!

Buy it and buy it now!

4 and 1/2 Stars. This game is really Good & Spooky

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 10 / 11
Date: March 02, 2001
Author: Amazon User

First of all, I am biased. I love most of Clive Barker's work and I liked the movies based on his writings. But that doesn't mean I gave him a free pass while evaluating this game. Also, I never purchased Unreal Tournament (just didn't like the whole concept).

After playing the game for about two hours, I am completely lost in the big Irish mansion (well, actually, I just opened the wrong door and I am now lost in some lower dimension), running low on health and have "died" about 4 times already but I like this game. The game's engine is wonderful: The lighting effects, textures and character movement are great. The plot is also wonderful; it's the main reason why I don't get that sense of futility that comes with playing mediocre games.

This game does have the familiar "find the key" type puzzle but it does not have the standard "run - jump - shoot" action of most FPS games. Undying is more like a "walk - investigate - what happened to the lights? - duck! - that's not my reflection in the mirror! - NOW run" type of game. This game adds many Barkerish touches (the long gloomy hallway with the white curtains wafting gently across it - pure genius.) that add to Undying's quality.

Aside from the care taken by Undying's creators to provide the right atmosphere, the user interface is very easy to understand and configure. The dual weapon/spell control is a little daunting at first, but I am getting used to it.

One reviewer compared this game to "Resident Evil". That game is a mess that bored me to tears. Undying is a really engrossing, spooky adventure. Electronic Arts and Mr. Barker have created a superior gaming product that is well worth Amazon's price and my prediction is that it will be popular for many years.

Overlooked, but still wonderful.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: November 08, 2002
Author: Amazon User

It's absolutely terrible how few people know about this game. Not only can it run well on older systems, but it is also one of the best designed games I've ever played. THIS IS A SCARY GAME If you want a scary game to rival Resident Evil, BUY IT NOW. The ESRB rating is "Mature". They're right. This spectacular game is very violent, very gorey, and very realistic (Only in terms of physics and such. The storyline is a bit fantastic). Speaking of storyline, this was based on a novel, and tells the story very well. It is almost as if you are actually reading Clive Barkers book, with visuals.

An "Undying" Classic!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: April 30, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Clive Barker's Undying is a terrific break-the-mold-FPS. The plot, which involves an evil curse on a family and their mansion, will satisfy anyone who enjoys story-oriented FPS games. Any fans of H.P. Lovecraft will be pretty impressed too--the game borrows heavily from the author. The visuals are a real treat-dark,gothic,and often unsettling. This is one to play with the lights out! I can't think of any other game that had me this on edge and creeped out! Ambient sounds and music are great too. If you're one of those people that loved the flow of "Half-Life" and the jump-out-of-your-seat moments of "Resident Evil", this one's for you!

Nice Cool Awsome

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: May 04, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I very much enjoyed this game. It was fast paced, fun, and very addictive. I loved when I was scared out of my mind. Very cool graphics and good dark mood setting. I hope to see more like it.

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