Customer Reviews

SIN Episodes: Emergence DVD

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

When John Blade wakes up from a deep sleep, the last thing he expects to see looming over him is his archenemy, Elexis Sinclaire, also known as "Mother Nature". Elexis is the power-mad CEO of SinTek, a genetic research corporation that makes Microsoft look like a dimestore. In the past she has plotted to accelerate human evolution at a faster pace than God allows and her mutations got a little out of hand and started killing people. It looks like she's back to her old tricks again and this time she's enlisted a drug lord named Viktor Radek in an as yet secret plan. And what strange substance has Elexis injected into Blade? It's up to John and his newest partner-in-training, the sexy but inexperienced Jessica Boone to stop this evil duo and save not only Freeport City, but the human race!

Straight-up, Sin is a first person shooter, and a pretty average one at that. That doesn't mean it wasn't fun, but besides the improved graphics, how far is this removed from the first Doom game? The graphics are pretty good but not really that stunning, especially when it comes to outdoor scenes. Where Sin really shines is in combat. That's when the adrenaline begins to pump, even though there's not a lot variety of weapon choice. The keyboard controls were not really ideal, as I found Blade getting stuck on deskchairs, or sliding off ledges when he was supposed to jump forward. The game pulls a fast one by offering you a quick save whenever you want, but if you die, you simply go to the last checkpoint regardless of what point you saved your game, so I felt the "Quick Save" was a lie. Something I enjoyed about the game was the sense of danger and exploration. I think this is good start to a nine episode series, IF they can solve the save mirage, and offer more support for a joystick. Also, add more weapons. The only other complaint I have is the laborious process of installing the game. The setup and verification of your game disk is done by "Steam", some shadow organization that watches over your every move when you play Sin, a software which is not very simple to uninstall.

As soon as i started this game i was addicted, the graphics are great the game play is amazing, the only problem i have is that im in the middle of upgrades and my current video card doesnt like a certain gas texture in the game and will make the screen black out except for the hud till i evenually die. I'm using the Radeon 9250 on comfortable settings, (highs aside from certain texturing). Steam is in work to fix this and with many cards already has, till then i just keep restarting till they get the patch for me. Would recommend the game to any one.(of age due to some adult material) but the game is a must have for any first person shooter type, plus hl2 episodes isnt out yet so this will hold you over till then, lol

This game made me realize how stale the FPS genre is. Asides from a few gems, there just isn't much new here, and this game is a perfect example.

The levels are uninspired and boring. We have seem almost all of it before. There are a few cool details, such as the jetpack enemies that are flung around by the physics engine when you shoot them. Towards the end of the game, it also gets a little better in the level where you work your way up a high-rise building. This level is OK and would do nicely, but it can not elevate the game to greatness.

Overall, I was rather bored by this game. Not that there is anything really wrong with it, but it simply made me feel like I would not miss a thing if I never played another FPS again. Also, like most Source-powered games, this game makes me nauseous. I guess the problem is more with me than the game, so I won't deduct any stars, but still...

Oh, and in case you want to play this game because a game magazine wrote "this puts the hooters back in shooters": If you are over the age of 15, there isn't much in this game you'd find titillating...

This is also another Steam-game, which means that you have to install Steam and be online to play the game, even though there is no online component to the game. Due to Steam, it takes forever to install the game (this is supposed to be an episodic game - a concept inspired by TV shows - but it takes twice as long to install this as it would take to watch an episode of a TV show... odd). Also, Steam will now sit on your machine and deliver advertisement to you and generally keep an eye on the things you do. Valve has now fixed Steam to a point where at least it won't take you days to unlock the game, but I still do not care for it. I have also bought Half Life 2 - Episode 1 together with this game, but unless it blows me away completely, I will probably not buy another Steam-game in the near future... (I might have actually rated this game a 3 overall, it if wasn't for Steam).

this game is very immersing.. but just when you think you are 1/3 or 1/2 (at most) of the way through it and are expecting just a cut scene before more play: it just ends. they sure don't make em as long as they used to. Makes ya feel swindled.

also the enemy is impossibly accurate. Annoying. if they are in view they will emediately hit you on the first shot to the last. Only 3 weapons. beautiful graphics. 5 stars for fun. 3 overall due to the quick end and weird software (steam thing)

Overall, this is a very fun game to play. The graphics are excellent, character animations are good, the storyline isn't too bad, and of course, the physics engine is great, thanks to Source. I do have a couple of gripes, however, but none of them detract from the overall experience of the game. First of all, there isn't much variety in the levels. While they are beautifully done and there are some awesome panoramic views of Freeport City, they're just the average levels you find in fps: labs, offices, and warehouses/docks. My second problem is the small armory and the lack of any new weaponry. In HL2 you have the gravity gun, in FEAR you have the particle gun, in Sin you have...a pistol? Sure, it's functional, but not very exciting. I'm hoping they'll come out with something better in the next episode. My third problem is enemy spawning, as a previous reviewer mentioned. I suppose it makes it more challenging to have enemies magically appearing out of areas you already cleared out, but it's too unrealistic for me.

Despite its shortcomings, I definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys fps games. It's fast-paced and exciting, and worth it just to see the some of the graphics.

I tried on 3 separate occasions to get this game to work... and unless you have a high speed internet connection, you WILL NOT be able to play this game AT ALL - even in Single Player mode.

I'm not a newbie at this, I've played Half-Life in all of it's incarnations, I've dealt with Valve and Steam before. Heck... I've been playing/programming computer games since 1979!

The problem is registering the game. Apparently, there is some sort of massive content downloading/registration/confirmation going on that completely defeats the "time out" on my dial up. Repeated queries to the VERY convoluted "Help" areas were a waste of my time.

Recently, high-speed Internet became available in my area and I tried to register again... and was told that I was ALREADY registered and that my game could not be activated because it was associated with another account, one that I had created in my first attempts to register. I did not save that account info... and thus am unable to play this game at all.

What a horse$#%@ setup.

The ONLY game I've ever bought that I've thrown away UNPLAYED because I couldn't get it to work due to crappy registration procedures. And, as I explained time and again to their "Help" people... I only wanted to play Single Player, at home, not connect to the Internet at all.

I would say I'll never buy from Ritual again... but they've already been disposed of through absorbtion into a company called MumboJumbo. Somehow, with Ritual's "Customer Service", it only seems appropriate.

This was a lot of fun very good graphics, plays well and it also comes with the original sin game which was archaic in comparison but still fun to play. Be warned that this is a steam game and you wont be able to resell it unless you want to rip someone off. i picked this up for 6 bucks be sure you buy this new otherwise you wont be able to play it(anyone that tries to sell this to you used is trying to rip you off) Because its a steam game you can only register it to one computer, once its used thats it .

I played the original SIN and Wages of Sin. Good game, too bad not around any more.

Ok this is just a brief synopsis, since I have Mostly already forgot most about this game even after just playing it. steam game - means you need a new copy more than likely - cause if its used and it has already been registered on steam it becomes useless to any subsequent users unless you are willing to jump through alot of hoops. this is a shooter straight and simple - the story is quite good IMO especially if you follow the series. Not alot of weapons - true, but that is the beauty of the game - its simplicity - it doesn't try to be some big blockbuster and I doublt that many people have even heard of it. But it is worth playing and it is somewhat fun - I am a fan of the now defunct series so I may be biased. Price is low now so if you can get a new one and don't mind steam I say go for it, you should not be disappointed. graphics look nice too- not awesome but nice.

Enjoyment of a game sometimes is a subjective experience and sometimes can subconsciously be, in some cases worse, if players want to justify not spending any more money another FPS. I think this is the criticism that was leveled at games like Chaser and Rise of the Triad (which at least for its time period, was imo, a good game - although it can't compare with games of today).
The graphics in this game a pretty good and the action was pretty good as well too. Just nothing too exceptional or unique that you can't find in other games.
And of course, watch out for dopefish in a secret area (secrets are usually not too hard to find in this game), and also the character remarks at the end of the game.
Since it is a steam game, you might have issues - like you won't be able to play when the steam servers are too busy. Or the steam engine will constantly update the game when all you want to do is play.
I haven't played the steam versions of the sin episodes that also come with the game, so can't comment on them. I did play sin a long time ago though, and it was an okay game.