[NSFW] Haunt (XBLA)

The Xbox 360’s Kinect has been a huge disappointment in my opinion. By far, the most useful the unit has been is in impressing my friends by yelling “XBOX NEXT EPISODE” on Netflix or Hulu. The system’s entire library seems to rely on gimmicky hand and body controls with very little depth. In fact, the games all seem to be shallower than the size of the living room space required to play them. What I was hoping would be a “Wii 2.0” experience has turned into a hammy tribal dance offering to the television.

More importantly, I haven’t even been impressed with the technology itself. The lighting has to be perfect to recognize the player consistently. There is a definite delay in the movement. The camera also loses the player sometimes. So, in all, while it’s true that you are the controller—it turns out you’re a pretty shitty controller.

Press “X” to continue…this at my place.

That being said, I’m always looking to be pleasantly surprised by a good Kinect experience. If for no other reason than to prove to myself it was actually worth buying in the first place.

I haven’t really spent much time on the Xbox Marketplace. But I was recently given a few Microsoft points. While perusing the mixed bag that is the Xbox Marketplace, I stumbled onto a game that immediately got my attention.

Not this one, pervo.

I was drawn to a little FPS horror Kinect game called Haunt. And with a modest price point of 800 spooooky Microsoft Points, I couldn’t go wrong.

Or could I?

…No, I couldn’t, because Haunt is actually a pretty decent game. Here’s a trailer:

The game begins with your character lying on the dirty stone floor of a basement. After a brief tutorial, you’re set loose armed only with a flashlight. The first thing that really tickled my fancy about this game was its ambiance. The atmosphere is a great blend of horror and cartoony elements that look rich and detailed. The game is very reminiscent of Luigi’s Mansion. In fact, I would say that this game is the closest thing to a first-person Luigi’s Mansion you are ever going to get. So shut up.

The story revolves around a friendly ghost who appears in random paintings. He explains that he needs your help repairing a machine. Evil ghosts have stolen three key parts of the machine, and it’s up to you, the player, to heroically rummage through the mansion for shit.

The controls are both the greatest part of the game, and the worst. They truly polarize the experience to the point of both making and breaking the game simultaneously. The player uses either hand to control a flashlight. Moving your hand around moves the light beam on-screen. Besides a minor delay, the effect is fantastic. Moving the light to the edge of the screen turns the character in that direction. The same dynamics work for looking up and down. Having the flashlight’s beam as a cursor is genius and gives the game a feeling of depth that I was not expecting.

When the player encounters an object that can be interacted with, it sparkles. But unlike Edward from Twilight, these objects actually have a purpose. Aiming the light at the object will cause the beam to get more and more focused until the item is accessed. Then the controls change to a specific hand motion for you to perform. Encountering enemies can be “in your face” fun because they also require specific hand or body gestures to defeat them. These segments add a level of realism that feels fresh and new. Requiring players to move their bodies actually makes the exploration and battles more fun and enhances the sense of realism considerably. Could this be the Kinect game I was waiting for?

Not so fast, Team Jacob.

Let’s talk about walking. Ah, yes: the game’s Achilles heel. We all knew this was coming. What mode of transport did the developers conjure up for us to navigate this beautifully eerie mansion? Walking in place like an asshole, of course. The big problem is that, since the Kinect requires a full-sized gymnasium in order to function properly, the average living room is too small to allow for a comfortable stroll, even in place. I found myself constantly drifting out of the “zone,” causing the screen to freeze and recalibrate. The player has to be in the perfect area to perform a walk. Frustratingly, walking forward in real life actually impedes walking in the game, because it causes the player to be too close to the sensor.

I’m torn. On the one hand, the game’s hand gestures are nearly flawless and very intuitive. One the other hand, it is impossible to walk. I feel like Christopher Reeves: torn between being the all-powerful Superman and the weak and puny Clark Kent. (…What did you think I meant?)

I really can’t blame the developers, though. I certainly can’t think of another way to implement walking in the game. I am extremely thankful this game isn’t a rail shooter. I will take clumsy walking controls over no walking controls any day. Besides, after playing for a bit, I did get accustomed to the walking mechanics. So although it isn’t always pretty, it works.

Navigating the mansion’s corridors is entertaining. Aw shucks, guys, I’m not going to lie—it’s a lot of fun. There are surprises around just about every corner. The game allows a very close glimpse into the realm of stereotypical poltergeist activity. Suits of armor will try to attack you. Books and other haunted knickknacks will be thrown at you. Different ghosts require different hand motions to kill. However, the last thing I expected was to be actually scared by this game.

But then…it happened. (spoiler alert)

Here’s the play-by-play: I enter a room, feeling the full effect of the creepy atmosphere. The lighting is flawless; the music is eerie. There are candles and cobwebs, and all that other haunted shit. I see a bulletin board with scraps of paper and clippings on it. I always love examining these kinds of places in videogames up close, because they often give a great opportunity for Easter eggs. Amongst the scraps of generic art and scribble I see a real picture in the corner labeled “Employee of the Month.” I see that it’s a real person, most likely a developer. However, upon closer inspection, I see that is isn’t at all a developer. No.

It’s a fucking picture of ME!

The game took a fucking snapshot of me and put it into the game without my knowledge. I had to take a picture of my television.

Pictured: pure sex.

So the Kinect can do that. OK. I guess I already knew it could take pictures. I saw my picture in Kinect Adventures once after I beat a level or something. But this was different. I was creeping through a mansion, in the dark, and I found this. I took it as the game’s way of telling me that it was watching me. It reminds me of a stalker mailing candid pictures of the victim in random places doing random things. It was actually very cool.

One complaint I have about this game is the lack of useful items. Besides the flashlight and a vial that replenishes life, there are few items in the game for the player. Sure, there are keys, machine parts, and other event items that are used to progress through the mansion. But it would have been nice to see more useful treasures to upgrade to. For this reason, the game gets a bit repetitive. It also makes exploring a bit less exciting, even if the mansion is peppered with glorious pictures of me.

As the player “marches” through the rest of the game, there are more surprises, items, and enemies that require different motions. In all, the experience was enjoyable. For $10, I would say give the game a shot. At least download the demo.

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