Customer Reviews

Still Life 2 [Old Version]

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

 

 

I was really looking forward to this game. Like many, I really enjoyed the original Still Life. It had style and a great story that stuck with you after you finished it (except for the cookie puzzle).

This new game, however, really spoils the fond memories I have from the first one. It wraps up the story from the first game in a very unsatisfying manner. There was no real investigation. Just a few flashback sequences that basically tell you "The killer was _____, now onto the new mystery!"

Not to mention, the new mystery is a garbled mess by the time you have all of the answers. Add to that the game takes place mostly in one location and it adds up to Still Life 2 being a total dud. I wanted to love this game based on my love for the original, but it just didn't come together.

Oh yeah, and it was buggy and sluggish and annoying.

Yes, definitely a let down. The original Still Life and it's unofficial precursor Post Mortem were both strong games with interesting story lines and sensible puzzles (except for the cookie puzzle!!!). Both of those games also had a supernatural element in them that was done with a very light touch and did not distract from the mystery part of the story. And in my opinion Still Life's artwork was beautiful, if a little disturbing. Still Life 2 has none of those finer qualities. The only positive thing it has going for it is I think the voice actor is the same for the main character (Victoria McPherson) but other than that the game is just a complete disappointment to Still Life fans.

As the previous reviewer remarked, the story line is a mess and at some points unintelligible. I think Microids originally planned to have Still Life continue online but because of financial/managerial reasons couldn't do it. I think this is the result, a cobbled together version of an installment game that never quite makes sense (because some installments were cut?) and heads toward a conclusion very, VERY slowly. The timed puzzles, the multiple character viewpoints, the out of nowhere characters (there is little character interaction, you just learn by reading reports how someone is known to/by Vic) just did not make for a fun or interesting game.

To add to the frustration, the load times were sloooooowww. Seriously walking from room to room there was a three second lag between screens...this doesn't sound like a long time until you have to walk from room to room, level to level, searching for something REPEATEDLY.

For those new to this franchise, this might be an ok game, but for someone who was a fan of the original this was a bust.

I am kind of surprised at the poor ratings this game received from other reviewers. I agree with all the reviewers that there are quite a lot of bugs in this game. That part of is granted. No arguments there whatsoever. And I have no idea why this game should have so many bugs when Still Life I did not.

However, the way Still Life I ended was perfect in my opinion, since it added suspense to the storyline and it was a good marketing strategy on the part of Microids if you really give it some thought. They are basically telling you - "You want to know what happened afterward? Then buy our next game!" I think that part of it was brilliant. Nothing to be ridiculed at. However, in the end, for whatever reason, the gamers did not like it. So, ultimately the strategy seems to have failed. But, I don't blame Microids for believing it will work. Any reasonably sane business person in the gaming world would have thought it will work.

As for the completing the Still Life I storyline in this game, I do not see how it can be an after thought when they explicitly indicated from the very beginning that that was not the main focus of this game. I think the intention was pretty clear here. From the very beginning of the game, Microids pointed out that they are bringing in a new investigation, and that this new investigation will be the main focus of this game. When they have clearly indicated that from the very beginning, they obviously cannot do things to take that focus away. So, I personally feel that the Still Life I storyline was completed in this game in the appropriate and if I may say so "PERFECT" manner.

And the new investigation storyline was perfect, much more suspenseful than the first, and to be entirely honest, a little more nerve-wrecking for the weak heart. The music fit the scenes perfectly well, and the game had everything it could possibly have to make a reasonable civilian sick to his/her stomach, what with all the gruesome murder scene, photographs and videos. I do not see how Microids could have done a better job with this.

It is way too easy for some gamer who loves shooting games to come play this and say - "Hey I hate this game. It stinks." That is because these types of gamers do not know anything about this type of genre for a game. In all honesty, that is precisely what is wrong with the other reviews here. It is severely biased and unfair because it has been reviewed by an entirely different genre of gamers. It is also way too easy for any gamer, regardless of genre, to come out and say - "This story stank. It was stupid. That stank. This stank. This game is not worthed." It is much harder for writers to write a good story, for gamers to design a good game, and for game manufacturers to put everything together in a good way. We live in a world where everyone believes they are writers. That is the problem. That is why we have so many blogs full of nonsense. Not everybody is, and can be. My point is that this story was written by an "ACTUAL or LEGITIMATE" WRITER. And I think the writer did a great job of it.

Having said all this, I once again admit that there are plenty of bugs in this game. That part of it was inexcusable, especially from Microids; a company that is damn good at game design. At any rate, I would give this game five stars for fun and four stars overall. Certainly not just one or two stars. That is just harsh judgment. And this game is very reasonably priced and is definitely worth buying for gamers interested in crime-solving games. This is not a game for the weak heart, for kids, or for those interested in action games. This is for those who have a taste for a good murder mystery.

I am not looking for great acclaim here. If anyone is frustrated with my review and disagrees with it, give me all the unhelpful ratings you need to. In fact, I expect it, because of the poor ratings for the game. I am not looking for fame. This is not a popularity contest. If anyone finds my review dis-interesting, it is purely a matter of difference of opinion. I recognize such difference of opinion, and request those who are wondering about buying this game to look at some other good reviews besides mine. And I mean good ones with good criticisms. Not just purely positive ones or purely negative ones. There are very few of them who write a good review, and I am not saying that I am one of them. You have to use your judgment in figuring out what is a good review.

Understand that my review comes strictly from comparison to the first Still Life game, which I loved. If you have not played Still Life for some strange reason, then this review won't be all that useful.

This game did not have a single puzzle. Not one! The first game had many very creative and unique puzzles throughout the game. This game also did not have the artistic flavor, the classy yet gothic feel that the first one had. The majority of the game was at a single setting that was not all that engaging. I'm trying to be vague as to not give away any spoilers but the visual stimulation just wasn't there. Even the cutscenes were just so-so.

The plot didn't captivate me all that much and that was even with the strong desire to find out who the killer was!
In all I would say this game might be entertaining for someone who had never played the first one but I can assure you, if you really enjoyed the first, you will find this one lacking at best.

An ok game. It was a little too point and click for my taste. That's because for a good portion of the game all you do is scan whatever particular scene you are in for that elusive piece of evidence to use your CSI kit on( which is what the game seemed like at times, just an evidence collecting game ). Some of the puzzle solutions were really abstract, especially one near the end regarding letters in a name corresponding with numbers and were pretty much unsolvable without consulting a walkthrough, which took away from the enjoyment of the game. The plot started out ok, became choppy as it progressed (especially with regards to the identity of the killer), and finally crashed with an anti-climactic ending. In the end, a game that should have been really good and started out as such but lost steam soon afterward.

The first Still Life was vastly superior to this one, which is a jumbled mess that focuses more on cashing in on (or blatantly ripping off) the "Saw" craze of the last several years than delivering a quality game with a solid storyline. The huge "Who was the killer?" cliffhanger of the original Still Life is finally resolved here, but the big reveal (during a flashback, no less) was only done as an afterthought, and it felt like a slap in the face to the fans of SL1 who waited years for it (myself included).

No insane cookie puzzles here, but the ones that SL2 utilizes aren't much better since, like the "Saw" movies, there's a time limit and every decision you make could lead to a terrible death like getting shot into Swiss cheese, dismemberment, poisoning, explosion, electrocution, etc. Also like the "Saw" movies, the game suddenly goes into a flurry of plot twists & turns near the end that it rivals the Cirque du Soleil, and it personally left me with a bad case of whiplash.

With the exception of dear Victoria (who is annoyingly called "Vic" throughout the game - pet peeve, sorry - I kept expecting her to turn into an 85 year old lounge singer), I didn't care about any of the characters. The character of Paloma Hernandez (and her voice actress, ay ay ay!) grated on my nerves with her over-the-topness and overall uselessness to the story. The killer... *sigh* Musical chairs, anyone? That's all I can say without spoiling.

Bottom line: The hours I spent on this game, I will never get back. If you have hours to kill and want to give it a try, go for it. However, if you want to save yourself time and money but you're still curious about what happens, then I strongly suggest watching any number of gameplay videos (YouTube) that you'll be free to stop watching at any time (and you'll be tempted, believe me). Don't buy this game, or at least hold out until you can get it on the CHEAP.

We got this game after playing and enjoying both Post Mortem and Still LIfe (we have yet to write a review for those two, but would probably rate them at 4 stars).

Still Life 2 started out with a lot of potential. The graphics were good, we got closure for the story of the previous game and the concept of the game was interesting. There were some good puzzles and overall a good mix of inventory puzzles and thinking puzzles.

I will warm readers that this game is pretty dark: you are on the trail of a psycho-killer who likes to psychologically torture his victims and at certain points in the game you are not only investigating him but also being a victim yourself. This means that there are parts where you are playing the role of a woman being placed in pretty bad situations and it can get quite dark and could be upsetting for more sensitive players.

We found this concept quite interesting - playing multiple angles and having multiple situations was great.
The length of the game was also very good: it didn't move too slowly, but it was plenty long enough to keep us interested for several whole days of gameplay.

We should also add that this game has gone back to the old concept of having a limited inventory. We haven't seen this in a very long time in quest-type games. You can only carry so many things, and only things of a particular size. Also, you can't just randomly drop items. You have to stow them away at specific, designated locations (cupboards etc.) We honestly can't say if we liked it or didn't like it. On the one hand, it is a bit annoying to have to worry about how much you can carry. On the other hand, it did add an interesting additional challenge - deciding what to take with you and what to leave behind, how many things to carry at any given moment etc. So, this element is a toss-up for us.

So, overall were prepped to really enjoy this game and like it. Unfortunately, two things ruined parts of it for us and caused us to lower the rating to 3 stars:

- First, at times the game was buggy. We played this game on a brand new and powerful computer with an excellent graphics card, memory etc. Nonetheless at several points the game crashed irreconcilably and we had to load an old save to get it to play. At other times it kept walking us in directions we didn't intend.

- Second, the game has quite a few timed puzzles. The timing is "sensible" in the sense that once you know what you need to do, you have plenty of time to do it. However, it is not always obvious what you need to do and it often takes a lot more than the allotted time to figure out what you need to do. Annoyingly, if you lose the timed puzzle, you die and the game does not restore you to before you started the puzzle - you have to go to your last save. Since there is no alert letting you know that you are about to start a timed puzzle, this can be very irritating if you haven't saved recently. Towards the end of the game there was a long series of these timed puzzles and we found it really ruined our overall enjoyment of the game.


So, we won't say you shouldn't get this game. It was overall well made and had an interesting plot and some refreshing concepts. However, if you do get it - be sure to save more often than normal and be prepared to face some pretty frustrating puzzles.

I really enjoyed this game. Yes there may have been a few bugs but the story kept me interested. I did use a walkthrough because I'm a casual player so I'm basing my opinion on that. I would definitely enjoy a third installment of this game.

I am glad that I am not the only one who is disappointed in this sequel. I really enjoyed Still Life and looked forward to this release. What a disappointment! The inventory storage closet was so annoying and found the puzzles to be ridiculous for the most part. It became so bad for me that I went to the walkthrough and pretty much followed it just to finish the game. Microids has had such great games in the past - Syberia I and II so I was pretty much a fan. I don't know what happened. Big mistake on my part was not reading the reviews before I purchased SL2. I won't make that mistake again.

Microids proves themselves once again to able to hold the adventure game market. If you have ever played Microid series games, you should know what I mean. (This game is full-install if anyone wants to know.) This is not the so easy level introductory adventure user game! This was a very challenging pc adventure game to play. Still Life 2 does use the portage system (which means one can only carry so many items), which I feel made the game somewhat realistic. This aspect was something I missed when I went on to play other games. There is a DEMO available, so you always may want to try this first (however, as you know, it will give away some of the game). I have learned my lesson buying cheap games before research. Newer games are always more satisfactory. The are a few tricks one must learn to master the game on the learning curve. You are given a very handy evidence kit, which I thought was kinda another cleaver introduction by Microids. One must spot to first find, then zoom in to sample. It took some getting use to. This is an on and off setting for a help function. Not everything and needs always needs to be done to continue to the next chapter, but I always try to play in the nature of the game as intended.
All in all I believes this is one of the best mystery adventure games I have played, and it will not easily be forgotten. So I gave it a solid 4 stars.