One must feel for the developers of Second Sight (Free Radical) as they have produced an interesting concept for a game. However with the simultaneous release of Psi-Ops which has a very similar theme it must be quite hard to bare as you watch a lot of attention being focused on a rival product. What Second Sight and Psi-Ops share is the use of psychic abilities in their games however that is where the similarities stop, to a degree as Second Sight has its own style that is unmatched by Psi-Ops in every way.

In Second Sight players take control of Dr John Vattic, a man with an interesting past and pretty much an undetermined future or perhaps not. In this tale of intrigue, deception murder and changeable outcomes players get to bear witness to the horrors of experiments of the mind in this 3rd person action game.

Upon starting the game players are introduced to the games general workings and can get to grips with the first of many abilities that John possesses. In this case is the famous telekinesis which allows the player to move objects, pull switches and later on in the game lift human adversaries into the air. Players will also learn some of John’s stealthier moves such as leaning against walls and peeking around corners. This is great fun to use and begins to highlight the games underlining tone of stealth rather than all out action. So for an example there might be a particular section that requires you to sneak passed a guard. However at this early stage in the game John has no weapons except his wit and fists. The player could decide to rush in for a fisticuffs finish or perhaps use more lateral thinking and use telekinesis to move an object, which would distract the guard enabling John to slip by unnoticed. This feature of the game becoming more apparent as you complete missions and especially as you warp back in time to a zone where John has no abilities at all and has to go through some army training even though he’s only an advisor. The training offers players further depth into the standard game play without the use of special abilities. It is here that players will learn to use the games lock on feature and weapons such as pistols and the much touted sniper rifle.

The lock on feature is rather disappointing as it can sometimes cause frustration to the max; as there are a number of enemies firing at you yet the lock on wont target the immediate threat but will target a barrel or computer monitor instead. Yes you can cycle through targets once locked on but this doesn’t always work. The game AI is also questionable as enemies seem to be programmed with the intelligence of dung beetles. Guards will often watch you escape into a cupboard and then ignore you because the game’s alert timer has elapsed. For those wishing to be stealth like, then getting caught isn’t ideal as there is usually no way to fight out as guards will re-spawn infinitely. These stealth action moments reminded me of Metal Gear Solid 2 and in fact some of the décor reminded me of it too, however the comparisons are only skin deep as Second Sight is no where near as polished as a stealth/action game.

On a plus point Second Sight does boast those special abilities and this is where the game breaks away from its clichéd stealth antics. Once more moves are available to the player such as possession and an upgraded telekinesis the game becomes much more entertaining and unique. Also the interaction John has with other characters feature some excellent moments where John fights alongside a squad of troops. Although highly scripted these moments are very good and help to break up the stealthier sections. Other missions require John to escort one of his comrades who will follow of wait on his command. These sections featured some puzzle elements which again added something different to the mix of styles the game has.

Graphics:

Graphically Second Sight looks clear and sharp although not overly detailed. The whole look of the game is one of cartoon yet serious looking characters. If you have played any of the Time Splitters games then you will know what I’m talking about. The levels themselves are an interesting mix of indoor and outdoor environments and offer enough diversity to remain interesting throughout the game. However the graphics do not display any kind of special effects and overall are fairly average for an Xbox title.

I also found problems with the games camera which would not pan very well in places. The option to switch to fixed and free camera is a welcome option to include but frankly I cant see why they didn’t go the whole hog and opt for a first person camera as well which would have help for the more action orientated moments.

Sound:

Second Sight features some reasonable voice acting throughout but nothing that is going to cause inner emotion. The sound is very much Time splitters as many of the sound effects and music are almost identical. Whether this is a good or bad thing is not really for me to decide as it does its job and that’s what counts.

Longevity:

Second Sight is a reasonable length game that offers a wide mix of styles that players can mess around with. There are plenty of stats for players to check and improve upon should they decide to. There are also extra levels of difficulty as well as the added difficulty of being stealthy or perhaps not, depending on the situation. Other than that there are those abilities to mess around with which are fun and may keep some players coming back for more. For me this wasn’t the case as I found that once beaten I’d had enough.

Overall:

Second Sight is a good attempt at a stealth/action game hybrid with special abilities thrown in to give it some character. Whilst not as polished as the Splinter Cells or Metal Gears of this world, Second Sight is still a fun and deserving game. If you can overlook the poor camera and aiming system and get into the game’s diverse story then there is a fun game to be had here. I would recommend renting this game first before buying.