by Kyle - April 21, 2005

Several years ago, in Leafmore High School, strange things started taking place. Some students heard loud audible screams where others would mysteriously disappear. You enter the game as Kenny, who�s curiosity gets the best of him as he makes his way through the underground chambers of his own school. You witness him being abducted and restart with his other four friends on a mystery to find him.

A horrifying thriller

The story line is just amazing. Everything fits together as it would for an interesting movie. I can easily see a movie with a story line this unique attracting many viewers.

The controls, on the other hand, were a bit confusing. I have yet to figure out how to give a teammate a weapon of any type even after she has asked me for one. You can only bring one teammate with you at anytime, and you can switch your character between any of them. When the computer is your partner, you use the directional buttons to control your teammate�s actions. Your control over your partner includes; regrouping, help, and following.

The best part of many video games is fear. At some areas in the game, enemies burst through doors and walls right in front of you. For instance, after you rescue the first person, he begins to lead you out of the underground chamber. Just after you exit the second room you see a demon trying to hold you both in. I�ll admit it, I jumped to several sections in Obscure.

The camera angles were positioned like they are in Metal Gear Solid. However, they do rotate slightly depending on what you�re near.

Darkness is rising

The graphics in Obscure were outstanding. I only noticed a few glitchy areas throughout the game. It did become quite hard to see when the screen would change dark from the ghouls surrounding your character. A simple flashlight taped to a gun cleared up that problem.

The short clips between game play fit together nicely. Each little film showed very thoroughly how everything was happening right in front of my eyes.

Sum 41 and Span included

The selection of music was perfect for a high school setting. The game begins with an outside shot of Leafmore High School, giving an average interpretation of it while playing the hit song, �Still Waiting� by Sum 41.

The only downfall audio wise is the lack of audio/visual distinction. It wasn�t as bad as some that I�ve seen like Psychotoxic was, but it still was quite noticeable. Everything else within that category looked realistic. The distinctive sounds from enemies were perfect. I could hear them growling and scratching from outside rooms.

Each of the weapons had different sounds. When I was equipped with each type of bat, I could tell what is was by the sound it made when I hit the wall with it.

Fun spelled in many ways

Everything in Obscure is very distinct from most other games. You can only save the game as many times as you find a Save Disc. These are found easily and can stack up in your inventory. There is a bit of thinking involved with Obscure. For example, instead of having to switch from a gun to a flashlight frequently, you can tape them together for an easier approach. Some of the other stuff I�ve had to figure out was common sense and made me want to slap myself after realizing.

Most versatile multiplayer ever

The thing I enjoyed the most was the very flexible multiplayer option. You can allow a friend to enter the game as your teammate at any point, even if you�ve been playing alone the whole time. Also, being able to let player two choose to exit at anytime and their player turning back into the computer helps out a lot. When you are in multiplayer, you are both on the same screen. Once one player leaves a room, the other teammate will reappear beside him.

Hours of an unsolved mystery

Obscure is probably one of the most entertaining mystery-like games I�ve ever played. It has everything you could ever want, multiple characters with different backgrounds, great sound distinction, and much more. I would recommend this game for anyone who likes a great theatrical thriller.