Customer Reviews

The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena" was such an enjoyable game for me that it killed me that one significant flaw kept the game's fun level down. (I'll go into that below.) Aside from that, you get two games on one blu-ray disc. In fact, one of the opening screens upon booting up offers you a choice to play "Escape From Butcher Bay" or "Assault on Dark Athena", much like a movie DVD/Blu-ray menu, so the games are separate and are on the same disc. So you really get your money's worth, IF you haven't played "Escape From Butcher Bay" before, which I hadn't.

"Escape From Butcher Bay" is an engrossing game that really (even being 5 years old) takes first person shooters into a different direction. You are able to interact with a whole cast of believable characters, many of which are better scripted and animated than ANY of the non-playable characters in "Fallout 3." The next-gen gloss really makes everything shine--no pun intended. The character models are very detailed and the backgrounds and levels are very sharp. Another reviewer complained about the graphics and I have to say I am shocked by that. There are very few times the graphics are anything less that next-gen. "Assault On Dark Athena" is built on the same engine and has equally sharp graphics and an interesting cast of highly detailed characters.

The stories for both are very much part of the Riddick universe and canon, with "Escape From Butcher Bay" being the one mentioned in the actual movies. I would say the story for "Escape From Butcher Bay" is superior to "Assault on Dark Athena", but not by much. Both are very detailed and your main quests (and side quests) add a lot of depth and time to the playing experience.

I thought the controls were very good and the selection of weapons was particularly generous--though I preferred the Ulaks, as they were quite lethal for silent kills or melee combat. The other weapons were nicely detailed and animated and it was always cool to walk into a room, shoot out the lights, and turn the Riddick eyeshine on so I could see in the dark.

The sound is great and many have mention the top notch voice acting. I have to agree, the voice acting was superb and it even has some musical cues from the movies.

The enemy AI is rather good and relentless. It really forces you to use Riddick's stealth abilities (which include the awesome eyeshine, where he can see in the dark) to perform quick kills.

Riddick, at times (in both games) can step into robot-like suits and then use them against the enemy. This is fun and adds variety. In "Dark Athena" he can even take over and control the zombie like soldiers, in certain areas.

Now to the issues that keep this from being a solid 4-5 star game. Well, the checkpoint save system is the worst I have seen in a long time. Many times you will be down to one health block and you move ahead and it automatically saves you progress there. You die and you start back there with one health block. If you die enough, the game generously gives you another one and I have heard if you die enough, then another one. But this save system saps the fun out of the game by constant loading screens and then you finding out you have a large amount of enemies or big enemies to fight, BUT you only have one to two health blocks. It is very tiresome and adds a lot of deaths and restarts. Also, the map system in "Escape" (which is actually non-existent in "Dark Athena") doesn't help at all as it doesn't show your location or direction on the map! These two flaws seriously affect an otherwise awesome gaming experience and that is sad.

There's some minor glitches I noticed like one of the cut scenes had dialogue spoken, but there was a serious delay to the characters lip-synching. Also, there was some slowdown and choppiness.

Overall, it is a fun game despite the flaws and glitches. I had a great time, though cursing at the screen from time to time, and I think most will enjoy the game if they can overlook these problems.

3/5 stars

Pros:
*15+ hrs. of gameplay.
*Great graphics for the character models and levels.
*2 games for one price.
*Well constructed levels, with multiple non-linear routes.
*Controls are pretty solid.
*Enemy AI is good.
*Sound is good.
*You get to play as Riddick with Vin Diesel voicing the character.

Cons:
*The worst checkpoint save system that results in many loading screens and many deaths due to reloading with few health blocks. (Should have had a nice hard drive install to speed up loading times or do away with them.)
*Enemy AI can get too good in some areas and also, while the game developers want you to be sneaking around, many enemies carry flashlights on their guns which makes sneaking almost a gimmick.
*Map in "Butcher Bay" is terrible and no map in "Dark Athena."
*A few glitches and slowdown.

I have the PC port of Escape from Butcher's Bay from 2004 and loved the game. I don't play too many games on my PC anymore and was debating whether or not to spend the money on this game. I'm definitely glad I did. There are two episodes to this game. The first is a remake of the 2004 release "Escape from Butcher's Bay" and the second is an all new campaign "Assault on Dark Athena."

Butcher's Bay is as good, if not better than I remember from 2004. There's plenty of ways to play the game and there's more than one path to get to some places. All of the FPS, stealth an melee elements work really well together and the game does a very good job of making you feel like Riddick.

What worried me is that the reviews I read indicated that if you've already played through Butcher's Bay, then Dark Athena might not be worth a rebuy on it's own. It doesn't matter. It's been 5 years since I played Butcher's Bay and it still holds up so well that it's definitely worth it on it's own. Dark Athena is a good addition and makes the package worthy of full game price. The environments are varied and interesting, but the story is lacking polish and continuity. Loose ends are left hanging, like SPOILER "what ever happened to Johns? Isn't he supposed to leave with Riddick at this point?" END SPOILER The game shifts gears into shooter territory for a little while with some neat foes, but brings back the stealth elements before the game is done.

For those wanting a game with a decent story to follow, gameplay variety and a good cast of characters, this package of Butcher's Bay + Dark Athena is a very good choice.

I just picked up The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena and I have got to say Its a great Game! I really like how they put the Butcher Bay story in the game as well. I liked how it showed some of Riddick's past on how he got his Eyeshine even though we all know it was from Surgery. The butcher bay graphics are decent not bad but sometimes a little blurry. What I really like about this game is the difficulty of it I am on Normal and it seems like a hard mode which is a blast.

One you get the hang of Butcher bay the weapons and combat is a little hard at first but once you get used to it, its flawless and the killing and neck snapping action. The blood and the terror of the tortured people in the cells or that are trying to run free is just a great version of a prison also the pit brings the reality of the game out.

On to the Dark Athena part of the game. The graphics are crystal Clear, and amazing. The sound is where it should be and Riddick's Eyeshine is really neat in the darkness. I really like the way this story worked out with the weapons and the characters. I especially like how Riddick and the Capt have a history together and they are going to fight it out hopefully. I will just say Riddick is right "the dead should stay dead" and that's where you come in. I also like how you can sneak up people and since your used to the fighting from Butcher Bay you should be good to go with fighting and sneaking around.

Overall this was a great purchase I enjoy these games a lot and I look forward to beating Dark Athena soon. I will be looking forward to possibly a multilayer or something along those lines. I recommend purchasing this game 2 great games in 1.

I could not put it down, my brother and I both got it on the same weeknd and with a few phone calls back and forth we did not stop until we finished.Also we did not find any bugs!! Its just a great game.

This game if for adults or older teenagers. Lots of curse words and blood. But it is a great game. Graphics are very good and story line is awesome. We ordered this after trying the demo online and for $19.99 we made a good choice. If you like the tactical games and sniper/fighting games then this one is for you, it is combo of both.

I give Riddick 4 stars based more on "value" than gameplay, but it's a fun title nonetheless. At first I didn't like it because in Escape From BB, you're obviously in a prison environment (double-max slam) with long stretches where you have no guns...Just Riddick's stealth mode and a shiv or screwdriver, etc. This is where the game is more like a boring RPG where you have to interview ALL of the unseemly characters in the slam, find out what they want/need, then go on somewhat of a quest to find it without getting Riddick's head blown off. The checkpoint/kill/respawn system is lacking, as others have discussed, and can become pretty frustrating. Eventually, I just changed the difficulty setting from NORMAL to EASY to get around that and have a better gaming experience. This is the first game I've ever had to go through on easy...But I probably would've just thrown it in the sell pile otherwise.

Also annoying is the in-game loading scheme. When you're about to enter a new section of BB, a 10 sec freeze frame load occurs...Then when you have to go back to the area you came from, another 10 sec load occurs. These extra loads occur more often than they should because of poor gameplay design. For example, Riddick has to go see "Centurion" to get him to set up a fight in "the ring". So instead of Centurion actually setting up the fight like he says he will, Riddick has to go wandering around BB, section by section, looking for his opponent because Centurion only gives him the opponent's name. Once Riddick locates him, the opponent then says, "So you want to fight me, huh?" Then Riddick has to walk back to Tower 17 where Centurion is/was and talk to him again in order to actually get into the ring and fight the opponent. All the time there are load screens after load screens when entering and exiting each area, and Riddick just ends up back where he started, talking to Centurion...This is either FILLER or it's just horrendous game design. This has to be repeated about 3 or 4 more times, until there's nobody else for Riddick to fight. I was GLAD when there was nobody else for Riddick to fight!!

The eyeshine gimmick is neat at first, then it will nearly blind you at times when Riddick comes out of darkness into a lit area. I was also ticked-off near the end of Escape when your mission is to "get past the guards to reach the transport ship at the Spaceport". I found the easiest way was to not confront the Riot Guards, but sprint past them and easily handle the "basic" guards at the ship. After all, there is a "stealth" aspect to the game isn't there? So I spend 30 minutes walking around the ship, trying to jump up on the ship, crawling under the ship, trying to grab the platform where the hatch is located and NOTHING worked. I could've spent days doing this because you have to actually KILL the Riot Guards to trigger the hatch to open so Riddick can enter the ship. I don't see why this was necessary and since it obviously was, why wasn't it explained more clearly in the mission statement? However, the scene that follows was probably the BEST in the entire game and the ending was really satisfying...So it leaves you with a good feeling.

Assault on Dark Athena was the better Riddick game, in my opinion. But it REALLY IS "Dark" Athena! Most of the time you spend on the ship, the screen is almost completely BLACK it's so dark in this game and this is further complicated by certain areas requiring precision moves and timely maneuvers when the controls themselves aren't so exact. This makes the platforming exercises particularly frustrating when you know what needs to be done, but getting the controls to actually do it without Riddick plunging to his death or alerting guards can require multiple attempts. Eyeshine helps somewhat...But you have to keep flipping back and forth turning eyeshine on and off and it becomes annoying. Fortunately Riddick does get off the ship and explore a planetary environment that consists of some of the BEST parts of the game. Here's where he acquires the S.C.A.R. gun and it's almost too much fun to blow stuff up with it!

At the end of this game (I believe it was DA, not EFBB), there is an extended platforming/puzzle-solving exercise that seemed like it would just go on and on forever. It was overkill as far as I'm concerned and time could've been better spent shooting/fighting/blowing stuff up instead of jump...walk...climb...jump...walk...jump...climb, etc. Just boring stuff here...

So overall there's a great deal of gameplay on the Riddick disk considering you actually get to play through 2 complete games. While gameplay itself wasn't extraordinary (or even memorable), there were some enjoyable parts and nothing was so bad that I was throwing the controller around the room. That may not be a "glowing" endorsement, but that's why I said I'd give the package deal 4-stars because you do get sufficient gametime with BOTH games. Since Riddick's recently plunged in price, it's certainly an even better deal now and it's worth a playthrough...

Escape from Butcher Bay was an excellent first person adventure game when it came out 5 years ago. It has undergone a nice visual upgrade, here, and remains a solid game. More old school classics deserve this sort of treatment!

The Assault on Dark Athena chapter is serviceable, but does have a couple of pacing and gameplay issues that are disappointing. Without giving too much away, there is a planetside section that has beautiful scenery, but also has repetitive bad guys in spades, after which there are some boss battles that aren't very challenging... this means the last hour or two is just grinding away at the game, which is too bad, because the initial run through the ship is pretty satisfying as a sci-fi noir beat em up.

Where this game shines in the overall is that it's a solid return of a good franchise, a great character - if you are a Riddick fan, then I recommend this as a nice addition to the series.

But the price? Top dollar for new seems a bit much to ask for a 5 year old Redux of a great 10 hour game, with another good, but not great 10 hour game added in to the purchase...

I think a better deal for everyone would be by releasing EFBB as a Playstation Network download and Dark Athena as Add-On content (because that's what it is). Just a thought.

This is a fantastic game (or more accurately two games, compiled on one disc) that unfortunately is coming out without much fanfare or buzz. Developed by Starbreeze, whom I personally consider one of the most talented and underappreciated developers in the business, this is an immensely enjoyable "shooter" that's unique in the fact that its core gameplay focuses more on stealth gameplay and hiding from the enemy than you would normally expect from your typical shooting game. As the silent-but-deadly Riddick, you stalk your well-armed enemies like prey and then proceed to quietly take each guy down one-by-one until the path is cleared for you to continue on with your quest. This is basically a Splinter Cell-inspired stealth gameplay formula (although you also have the option to do a full-on assault with the enemy alerted to you, using either guns or brutal melee weapons like knives, brass knuckles, and billy clubs) and this is the same gameplay that got a lot of critical acclaim back with original Riddick: Butcher Bay on Xbox 1.

The best part about this game is the accomplishments on the presentation side; the digital character voicework and dialog, the overall cinematic/story presentation and production values, are simply top-notch among videogames, and in many ways outclass anything else you'll see in the videogame world. If you want an immersive and movie-like sci-fi experience in interactive form, then this is what you're looking for.

Contrary to the developer's previous game, The Darkness, the PS3 version looks and runs quite well, with good special effects and texture details, and overall comparing decently to the 360 one; PS3 owners shouldn't hesitate on buying this game on the fear that it's an inferior product on their system. The multiplayer is okay, but it's mostly a forgettable inclusion that the developers crammed in just to add a checkmark on the "standard features needed in all games" list; but everyone should already know that the main attraction of a Riddick game lies in the single-player campaign. Or rather "campaigns," plural; this game is a great value because it essentially offers two games in one: a next-gen remake of the original critically-acclaimed Escape from Butcher Bay (Xbox), and a whole new sequel, Assault on Dark Athena, for gamers to sink their teeth into.

Fun, fun, fun........

I am a Riddick fan, let that be known. I like the antagonist as a protagonist idea, especially when said antagonist is known as such because his version of righteousness and truth probably shines more clearly than the normally ambiguous version most humans entertain.

Having said that..... this is a great game.

Having played Escape From Butchers Bay when it was released on the original Xbox I had high hopes for the newest incarnation and I have not been disappointed. Starbreeze was able to take everything that worked in the original and update it - Butchers is on the new game disc in all of its updated glory - and also add much more to the package.

Assault on Dark Athena is a complete and excellent addition to the ongoing Riddick mythology. There was the danger of just tacking on another mission to the first game but Starbreeze made sure that they not only added another complete game but also realized some of their vision that they were not able to implement in the first game. This title is both full and robust in its scope.

Returning from the first game is the sneak and destroy idea. After playing the new game I was a little taken aback at one review I read that suggested the classic game play was traded in for gun play.... not so!. You don't even have access to guns until the third act and the creep and kill element is alive and well in the first and second acts as you defy the surprisingly vigilant patrols on the Dark Athena. What makes the game even more compelling is the drone idea; there are remotely controlled (formerly human) drone carcasses that patrol the ship. While in normal patrol mode they are ripe for the killing... if one becomes aware of your presence they are controlled by a sentient merc which completely changes the AI of said drone and proves a whole new challenge!

In addition to the core elements expected from this title Starbreeze effectively works in platforming, "escape the enemy spotlight", and mech combat segments that are both well implemented and truly fun to play.

The voice acting is top notch: Vin Diesel?, Lance Henrickson?, John Di Maggio?.. yes! yes! yes!...., as well as a host of other talented voice actors that make the cast very compelling. There are some very dramatic theatrical elements that both pull the heart strings and also fill in the void left by the absence of another Riddick film.

If you are even remotely a fan of the franchise you are probably already playing this... if not do yourself a favor and make sure this is part of your library, you'll have a blast with it.

I have been waiting so long after the demo came
to PS3. I didn't think it was going to be crystal
clear judging by the demo. They were using to heavy
of a certain HDR setting and it did not look right. But after playing this and finding out that Escape
From Butcher Bay comes with it. It looks sharp and clear. This game can it really get my adrenaline going if you know what I mean. Very few games do that anymore for me. Now I'm huge Chronicles of Riddick fan but I think even for someone who has not ever played the Escape From Butcher Bay is in for a great treat.