As a kid, I must have watched the original Indiana Jones trilogy 100
times. I could never get enough. I had all the soundtracks, and I'd often play
them while I was pretending I was Indy, attaching my belt to my bedframe, and
imagining it was a truck pulling me across the desert. At some point, though, I
realized the closest I'd ever come to being Indiana Jones was controlling him in
a video game. Unfortunately, not every Indiana Jones game was very good. Some
were okay (i.e.,
the SNES game), but only one was truly great: 1992's PC point-and-click adventure game,
Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis.
Fate of Atlantis, directed
by Hal Barwood, got everything right, from the tone, to pitch-perfect gameplay.
Much to my joy, in the late 90's, LucasArts announced Barwood would be directing
an action-adventure Indiana Jones game in the style of
Tomb Raider for
the Nintendo 64. This seemed too good to be true. The first Tomb Raider game was
great, and clearly inspired by Jones himself. Strange things happened, though.
The game, for some reason, was only available to buy from Blockbuster Video or
the LucasArts store. Why was the release so limited? Eventually I bought and
played this game,
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine, as far as the
Nintendo 64 cartridge would let me progress, and I get it now. I can say with
all honesty: this game seemed too good to be true because it was.
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At least he still looks cool in defeat.
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Things start off well enough.
Infernal Machine's graphics look pretty
good. The Indy model, shown and played from a third-person perspective, is
excellent, high-polygon, and very well-animated. Seeing him whip a beam and
swing over a pit is a thrill. The 3D environments, from vast outdoor areas, to
deep, immense caverns and temples, are almost unbelievably huge. The music,
composed by LucasArts' excellent Clint Bajakian, nails the spirit of the
character and the films. Often, levels are scored by only ambient sounds, only
for Bajakian to break out a triumphant piece when Indy does something heroic, or
an ominous one when he discovers something mysterious. The game's box and main
menu feature beautiful artwork by the legendary Drew Struzan--the guy who
created the gorgeous original posters for the original film trilogy (and the
best ones for Star Wars too)! From a production standpoint, this games is at an
almost astounding level.
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Yes, it's got the opening location and date over an epic, sweeping shot.
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And yes, I got chills when the camera swooped behind Indy, and he
suddenly became playable.
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Likewise, the level designs are brilliant. On average, each of the game's (17)
stages are as big as the biggest temple in either of the Nintendo 64's Zelda
games. Puzzles are intuitive and brilliant, and finally reaching the ends of the
massive stages feels like a major accomplishment. Every time you think you're at
the end of one, another challenge presents itself. Speaking of Zelda,
Infernal Machine takes a page from that series' control scheme. The
player can set an item or weapon, like Indy's whip, lighter, or one of the
game's firearms, to three of the C-buttons, just like in
Ocarina of Time.
Unfortunately, the control scheme isn't quite as smooth as Link's, as the player
has to press the b-button to utilize whatever item is selected, then press the
exact correct c-button to put that item away. Also unlike in those Zelda games,
manual jumping is a major component of
Infernal Machine's gameplay.
Often, Indy has to jump a long distance and grab onto a ledge. If you forgot to
put your whip away, you can't grab ahold, and you plummet to your death. Maybe
the whip, which is often used, should have just been mapped to B, like Link's
sword, and the other items just useable with their assigned c-buttons.
And...maybe Indy could automatically put what he's holding away when he jumps.
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For an Indy fan, every chance to swing across some chasm with his whip
is a thrill.
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If only the controls were the game's worst issue. If that were the case, I'd
still be giving this game between a 7.5 and an 8.0. The sense of being Indy is
just so spot-on, and even on a simple nostalgia level, hearing Doug Lee return
from
Fate of Atlantis to voice Indiana Jones here is 90's LucasArts
goodness--not to mention hearing Bajakian expertly utilize John Williams
"Raiders March" at just the perfect moments. Factor Five, just like in their
previous work on the Nintendo 64, is able to cram loads of dialogue and
high-quality music onto this cartridge, utilizing their miraculous compression
techniques. This game should have been like a dopamine avalanche, like
video-gaming catnip. Unfortunately,
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine has a giant rolling ball of an
issue in comparison to its spotty controls.
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They even nailed the map! Why couldn't this game have been good?!
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This problem, for me at least, started rearing its death's head on the
game's massive third level, "The Tian Shan River." This particular stage is
unbelievably huge, taking place in a snowy mountain valley, and featuring
several segments involving white water rafting. At one particular rafting bend
in the river, my game crashed. By crashed, I mean the image on the TV screen
froze in place, and I could not proceed. Thankfully, you can save your game at
any moment, and I had recently done so, so I reset my N64 and loaded my save
file. This time, I was able to progress past this bend in the river, but I died,
and had to start back where I saved again. Unfortunately, on this try, my game
froze again at that same bend in the river. This happened four or five times
before I finally made it past that portion of the level. This was annoying...but
the problem gets worse. Much worse.
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Dammit, Indy, even the swimming portions are decent! Why couldn't this
game have been good?!?!
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I completed
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine. It was six
levels long. The box promised 17 levels, and if I entered the "all levels" cheat
into the password section, I could access all 17 of them. However, after sinking
about 12-15 hours into the game because, as I've said, these levels are really
long, I made it to the end of level six. In order to complete the level, I
needed to push a crate onto an elevator. As in
Tomb Raider, block puzzles
are an integral part of
Infernal Machine's gameplay. However, as I began
to push the block, my game froze. I tried again and again, reloading my saved
game file over and over.
Infernal Machine froze every time. I tried
finagling the block to where I could push it from a different angle. Still
froze. Always froze. My game ended at level six. This game is aptly named...and
I am angry.
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I haven't even mentioned the combat in this game, which features a nifty
lock-on that makes shooting Russian soldiers a cinch. The soldiers
aren't the brightest, but they're fun to shoot. Also, I didn't mention
the plot of this game, which pits this older Indy against communist
Russia for an ancient Babylonian artifact.
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I am angry because, despite its non-game-freezing flaws, I really liked
Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine. Even without the Indiana Jones
license, the game would still be fun. Yes, the jumping mechanic is a little
finicky. Some jumps are tougher than they need to be. All of the other flaws I
listed are frustrating. But they're not game breaking, and what's here is fun,
flaws and all. The archeological adventuring is a blast. Treasures, which give
Indy money to buy weapons and medicine between stages, are deviously hidden, and
fun to search for and find. The strengths here are huge, and when the Indy
license comes in to play,
Infernal Machine should have been a slam dunk.
How could LucasArts let this happen? How could they release to market a game
that freezes and won't even let you progress? Is this why they limited the
game's sales? Because they didn't want the word to get out that the game is
broken?
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Pulling out the lighter to illuminate a spider-webbed cavern entrance?
Awesome! WHY COULDN'T THIS GAME HAVE BEEN GOOD?!?!?! I mean, that scary
thrill of venturing into the unknown is totally intact here...there
could be a Temple of Doom around any corner...why couldn't this have
been good?
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Whatever the case, gamers and Indy himself deserve better. How dare LucasArts
release this broken game. I will only recommend
Infernal Machine to
hardcore Indiana Jones fans who won't mind going to the password screen to skip
a level when it freezes and prevents them from progressing. For everyone else
who wants an archeological action-adventure game with late 90's flavor--just
play the first few
Tomb Raider's. For the
Tomb Raider-less N64,
stick to Zelda. Maybe one day, Indy will get his due again.
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Because this game leaves him hanging...
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