[ Transcript of review for Nali Bricks 1.0a | Posted by Shuri on 2003-05-13 | Score: 8.7 ]
For anyone who doesn't know what Breakout is, it is an old puzzle game in which you have paddle (like in Pong) and had to hit a ball at bricks, until they are all destroyed. Mr Evil has attempted to recreate this in the UT2k3 engine, and has done a great job of it.
It plays like the majority of good puzzle games. The controls are simple, the levels are simple, the aim is simple. The gameplay is great though. While it isn't new , as it is effectively an old game brought into this engine, the way it has been transformed from old into new is amazing. Particularly the graphics. With fully 3D levels (but 2D play), the UT2k3 effects and graphics are used to their fullest. Skyboxes, static meshes, particle effects, all astound you on some levels. There is also a lot of variety, from the firey 'Ifrit' to the spectacular 'TheGuardians'.
There are a lot of options to configure the game the way you want - paddle and ball meshes can be changed (everything from tennis rackets to skulls), and controls can be adjusted - the paddle can be moved by strafe buttons on the keyboard, or by mouse.
The power-ups on show are very impressive. When you destroy a brick with a '?' on the side, a power-up will fall down - catch this with your paddle, and you will get the power-up. Some are good - 'multi-ball' spawns multiple balls from your paddle, you can sometimes have as many as 7 balls flying around, destroying everything in their patch - while some are bad, having effects like shrinking your paddle, and so making it harder to bounce the ball.
The other type of power-ups are the weapons - catch these, and your chances of beating a level will be much higher. You can shoot the weapon with right mouse button, and the weapon will fire - whether that is a rocket, a shock beam, a lightning bolt or something else, it will destroy whatever it hits.
One original thing about this mod is the ladder - to unlock all the levels, you must first beat them all in the ladder. The levels get tougher as you go through them, but once beaten they are unlocked to play normally.
The game is very easy to learn how to play, but as you play more you will pick up new techniques. To raise your high score, you must win quicker, and lose less lives - as you play more, you will be able to aim the ball exactly where you want it to go, and tactics will play greater part in getting higher scores.
The high score system is very good. When you enter a game, the current high scores for the map will be listed at the left. After a level, you are told what position you are in the high scores. It also remembers the name of who got the high score, and the date! The F1 scoreboard has been revamped with information such as last powerup used. The HUD is the same as in a normal game, but instead of health there is the amount of lives.
This is a very impressive mod, especially considering that it has been created for a first person shooter. Breakout is an old favourite of mine, and I'm sure that newcomers and old-timers alike will love this. The perfect game to chill with after a few frags, and take your mind off things for a bit. Just like UTetris for UT1.
-Shuriken