Alpha Black Zero review

This game must surely possess the most generic title possible for a tactical shooter. We have the standard Greek character (alpha), which presumably carries with it a notion of intelligence, professionalism and cool, and calls to mind such units as the Delta Force or Bravo Two Zero. Then there's 'Black', that heartless, menacing, intimidating colour that makes ideal evening wear for any Clancy disciple. 'Zero' is just the icing on the cake - who can be so mysterious that their numerical classification is zero? Perhaps this means they're utterly uncompromising? Maybe, officially, they don't exist?

I assume that's the kind of thoughts we're supposed to entertain, at any rate, but whenever I hear the name 'Alpha Black Zero' or repeat it to anyone else I can't help but cringe. Could this be the Chuck Norris of PC games?

Jawbreaker

Oh God, it is. Less than three minutes into the game I find I'm cast in the role of a square-jawed Lieutenant Kyle Hardlaw. Hardlaw? I suppose that's one particularly unsubtle way of telling me this man is firm and uncompromising when it comes to his attitude to truth and justice. The square jaw seems to be the side effect of a low poly count.

Hardlaw is on trial for crimes against the state and each of the stories he recounts in his defence makes up one of Alpha Black Zero's missions. Of course we know he's innocent, but the only way to prove this is by guiding him and his squad through these flashbacks as he explains his side of the story. These are third person shooter affairs in which you can switch to different members of your squad and issue orders to the others as you see fit, running and gunning your way across the remote worlds of the far future.

Short sighted

Well, you would be gunning your way to glory if you could aim your blasted weapon correctly. Right from the outset I had problems with Alpha Black Zero's controls, firstly because it would not let me redefine keys as I wished, rigidly insisting that I was clicking my mouse when I wasn't, and secondly because the mouselook is abysmal. Mouse response is twitchy and inaccurate and this combined with a camera that is rather spasmodic and slow to respond makes combat a terrible, torturous ordeal.

Fortunately, the AI of the opponents you'll face in the early levels is very basic and most of them are quite content to remain stationary while you struggle to get a bead on them. If your weapon has a sight, you can switch to the optional first person view and squint down it, which is somewhat easier, but not every gun boasts this option and the alternative is a zoomed in third person view where, criminally, your own squad member blocks most of the screen in front of you. Who’s idea was that?

Lost in spaces

That low poly count I mentioned earlier isn't just a treat for the cut scenes, we're lucky enough to enjoy such visually bland presentation throughout the game and, when many of the missions involve trudging considerable distances from one objective to the next, in a largely linear fashion, with nothing but hordes of bland, samey opponents to keep you busy, you soon realise the landscapes are as ugly as they are expansive. They're not without the occasional feature but the path you find yourself following is often flat and exposed and so each engagement has you hitting the deck or strafing like crazy to avoid being whittled down by enemy fire.

Progress is essentially a battle of attrition, as you try and hold out against the hordes long enough to find another weapons cache or crate of medical supplies, after which you repeat the whole process again, traipsing across unexciting scenery, desperately trying to fire accurately at hordes of enemies in open ground and hoping your team member's AI doesn't suddenly switch itself off or make them decide to toss a grenade at the spot you're standing on.

Black out

There really isn't any reason I can recommend Alpha Black Zero. It tries to muscle into a genre we're not exactly lacking on the PC, and it makes such a poor effort that the end result would be just as underwhelming were it unique in its class. Its ugly presentation and poor execution are an insult to both the recommended system specifications (one gigahertz for this?) and to all the progress that's been made in designing shooters over the last few years. This is one to avoid.