Gaming Target - Xbox: Duality

Written by Leigh Culpin on September 19, 2002

First Impressions: Get out the duct tape; you're going to need something to keep your jaw from falling on the floor?

First off, I need to get this off my chest: This game is going to KICK ASS. Period. I don't think Trilobite could purposely screw this game up if they tried (and if they did I'd hunt them all down for messing up what should be the highlight of early next year. Yes, that includes Brute Force.) If things go to plan this game could possibly be the next Deus Ex ? a revolution for single-player gaming. Yes, online play rocks. So does co-op; in fact, I'd say that co-op play is generally the best part of any game featuring it (Halo and Hunter: The Reckoning for example). However, Duality has no multiplayer options, at all. Which is actually going to be a good thing ? there's more than enough multiplayer games coming out with Xbox Live just on the horizon, and I was getting worried that developers would forget about us single-player lovers. Luckily, I was wrong.

Now as a rule of thumb, I accept that multiplayer games as simply more enjoyable than single player games. However, every once and a while you get a real gem ? a game compelled by an amazingly in-depth story, loads of options, and some kick-ass gameplay. Duality is going to be one of those, following in Deus Ex's footsteps, and really the first to do so. The game is plunging into the hybrid category headfirst, mixing cyber-punk style with RPG, espionage, and a whole sweet load of action. Oh, and did I mention why they called it Duality? Set in the near future, the game contains two realities ? one set in the real world, another in cyberspace. You play three characters whose stories will intertwine as your journey goes on, meeting and even battling characters you have or will play. You start off as the mercenary, a character that earns his money by doing the type of work you'd expect a mercenary to do. He's strong and designed for all-out combat, which is where the RPG elements come into play ? you get to modify your character's traits, upgrading skills, weapons and armor, and each character is part of a different class. The mercenary's dominant in the physical world, but his hacking skills are dismal at best. On the other hand, you have your Hacker, who is sort of your in-between character of the game ? moderately skilled in both the physical and cyber worlds, her goal is to gain a presence in the online world. This is where the espionage and tactical elements start to come into play ? the hacker is physically vulnerable when dealing with cyberspace, so you'll need to set traps and alarms around yourself for protection while infiltrating enemy systems.

Lastly comes the mercenary's mirror ? the virtual being. Originally a scientist who's life force was accidentally transferred into the cyber world; you have little memory of whom or what you are, though by the end of the game, you'll practically be a cyber-space god. All three of the characters in the game will gather pieces of the story, so by the end you come to see the complete picture. This promises to be a very involving game, with nearly 20 hours in side quests alone, and it's shaping up very nicely.

The gameplay has been compared to that of Metal Gear Solid (by the developers no less), and personally I'd say it should rock?Solid Snake's?world. The graphics are nothing short of amazing, really showcasing what the Xbox can do, and the audio promises to be equally incredible. The cyber-world looks breathtaking, and should be a real journey in itself. Innovatively, the HUD format has been done away with altogether, and all your information is instead displayed by your character. This is really the only thing that may or may not work well for the game ? the rest of it looks to be the gaming experience the single-player world has been waiting for.