Reviews::
Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future
Written on 08.17.2000

Ecco the Dolphin was one of the franchises created by Sega during the 16-bit Genesis era. For anyone who remembers that series of games, they will probably tell you that the first noticible thing about Ecco was the extraordinary animation. The second thing they may tell you is that it was a slow game. However, Ecco did find a following in its ethereal gameplay and soothing music, as well as its somewhat high difficulty and sci-fi hint towards the later levels.

Appaloosa Interactive has returned to bring Ecco back to a current Sega system in their recent Dreamcast release, Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future. The overall gameplay feel, while 3D, still seems true to the original games, and in these advanced times, Ecco does seem different than anything on other systems.

In an age full of 3D shoot-em-ups and action titles, Ecco is swimming against the tide with a game that could be categorized as adventure, action, or puzzle! However, will the broad 3D gameplay style garner new Ecco fans with this 128-bit update, or is this just a weak attempt at updating a classic?

Visuals:: If anything, Defender of the Future is a beautiful game with some all-too-familiar camera problems. The animation of the animals that inhabit the underwater world is stunning; fluid and lifelike, truly drawing you into the environment. The visuals themselves are great, with sharks looking fierce, dolphins looking friendly, and turtles looking apathetic.

The actual environment is what really is stunning. Your jaw will drop once you get some of the "light" fish to swim with you through a dark underwater tunnel. The glow of the walls and the fast frame rate help you to lose yourself in the game. The realism in the title increases the surprising suspense of the experience, having you question what's just around the corner!

The only detraction to such a beautifully detailed world is the camera. There are three cameras in the game: one is right behind Ecco at all times, one is behind Ecco in a very flexible manner, and one is an overhead cam (mainly used to see your overwater flips and tricks). The problem is, coupled with the game's sensitive controls, the cameras can sometimes make it difficult to understand where you are. All in all, this game is visual sugar, soured a bit by the camera direction. A little more tweaking may have prevented the "dizzying" problems that occur at times, but it may have more to do with the control than anything (as you'll read later on).

Audio:: As beautiful as the visuals are, Defender of the Future really impressed me with the quality of the audio, in all aspects. We'll break this section into three aural parts: environmental sounds, music, and sound effects.

If you ever smiled at something in a movie or in a book just because something was "done right," this is the aspect of Ecco that will make you do that. That is, the environmental sounds are just so impressive. At parts of the game when the music takes a backseat and these sounds take over, your heart rate will go up and the suspense will be kicked up several notches. The bubbling sounds of the deep, the underwater waves, the distant animal sounds, and more come together to make you smile at just how "into" the game you get after just a few minutes in the water.

The music is also great; if anyone remembers the Q-Sound enhanced music of the original games, you'll remember that the music was, if anything, calming and soothing. Defender of the Future is no different, with its mixture of what I'll call "new age-water type-echo sounding goodness" (look for that category at your record store's shelves). The music in the environments will shift as danger or safety comes into scope. At its best, the music will act much in the way Jaws' theme does: uncertainty at what's coming up, tension increasing as you see the shark in the distance, and pow, a nice blast when you get eaten (and yes, you will get eaten). At its worst, the music provides a decent background that doesn't detract from the game.

The sound effects seem to be the only way in which the game's audio is lacking. While the environmental sounds and music work well to draw you in, the sound effects could just as easily take you out ...that is, if you're an audio buff like me. I couldn't help but notice the lack of sound effects when there "should" be sound effects. For example, when Ecco crests the surface of the water, even when Ecco swims, sound effects that (in my opinion) should be present, are not. However, most of the world is not as picky as I am in this category, and even to me, this slight negative is not nearly enough to take away from the overall accomplishment of Appaloosa in this field. Well done.

Gameplay/Control:: The gameplay is what will make or break this title for most people; it seems this is a game you will either like or hate after just a few minutes into your first mission. If you're expecting an underwater Rayman 2, you've come to the wrong place. Ecco is largely not an action-packed game, and to me, that's great; there are enough of those in the market. Instead, Ecco is a soothing adventure that will really rack your brain with the missions.

No, Ecco is not an easy title; never was, and it hasn't changed with this update. Much like Seaman, you have to go into this title with some saintly patience and a passion to explore and explore ...and explore. To me, the audio and the visuals make this an enjoyable experience, but when the difficulty gets up there, it will be easy to get frustrated.

Some of the missions are just puzzlingly difficult, and require some luck and maybe even some guide-help. Scattered throughout the sea are information crystals that will help you in your quest, but sometimes this is not enough. Just remember every communication you encounter with fellow dolphins and other undersea creatures, and utilize the songs you receive from some of them to your advantage.

Now Ecco is not all puzzler; it does have action, but it's not what you think. Again, some people may be looking at this like Sonic Adventure, but it is so much more like the Resident Evil series. The action that comes in when fighting sharks with your thrust (B) gets the blood pumping, especially because it looks so realistic, and that "look behind you!" music doesn't help calm you down! This is a game that will make you jump at times, and it has plenty of opportunities to make you return to a normal state.

Much like Pilotwings 64's Birdman bonus level, Ecco's ability to just swim and chill, jumping out of the water and doing some flips and tricks, will alone make many people enjoy this title off the bat. If you're into calming titles, Ecco is it. If you're into suspenseful titles, Ecco it it, too. So is Ecco perfect?

The difficulty really gets too high in later levels, and you will be itching to use a guide after awhile. Also, the controls to move Ecco are pretty sensitive, with the dolphin sometimes turning too sharply or flipping back a bit too far. You will have to temper your thumb to really enjoy this title, and thankfully you have the pre-game Aquamarine Bay to help you do that. However, the learning curve is pretty high, and fickle gamers looking for a quick lesson to become an expert will be disappointed.

Overall, Ecco is fun, but I'm the same guy who spends a ton of time flying and looping through the first stage of Nights over and over again. This game can bring you that kind of break from life, transporting you to an underwater environment unlike any other, unless you live in The Bahamas.

Extras:: No real extras to talk about. Basic options menu and saving structure.

Overall:: Ecco, it's good to see you on the Dreamcast. With multimedia splendor, this dolphin makes a great (ahem) splash on the system we love. For those who are looking to get into a quick action game, Ecco is most certainly a rental. The difficulty and slow pace of the missions may not be too many people's cup of tea. However, for those of us who like open-ended adventures that require a good amount of time (and maybe some guide perusals), Ecco is a solid title, so long as you can handle the control learning curve and shaky camera system. For the patient, this $40 game is a steal, if not for the adventure, then for the impressive demonstration of Dreamcast's power!

Score:: 7.5/10
 

Written By:: John Benyamine
Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future (2)
Written on 08.25.2000

Brilliant, fun, addictive and classic are the first words that come to mind when describing this epic masterpiece. In fact, the only thing keeping me from giving this game a perfect score is a few minor nitpicks that took very little away from the overall gaming experience.

The story is a familiar one for fans of the original series: Ecco must save Earth from evil while swimming about in a fantastically rendered oceanic environment. In this iteration, Ecco must defeat an ancient alien race known as "The Foe". Travelling back and forth through time while learning new skills and abilities, solving puzzles is the main focus of gameplay.

Visuals:: This is the best looking game on any system. This includes anything shown on the PS2 at this years E3. There are a few Dreamcast titles later this year that might give it a run for it's money, but as of right now this game is king. Moving at a constant 30 fps with very little slow down, brilliant lighting and the best textures seen in any video game, there is very little you can complain about. The "fogging" might have been better had it been pushed back about 20%, but it actually suits the atmosphere of this aquatic adventure fairly well.

The sea life is animated in extremely life-like fashion and the vegetation has amazing variety. Every creature appears almost completely rounded due to the high polygon count which litters this title and Ecco himself is practically photo realistic.

Level design is the key to any successful adventure game, and Ecco has 30+ of some of the best I've seen. You'll swim over waterfalls, through caves, cavern labyrinths, lost cities and even through a couple 2D genesis-style levels which simply look incredible.

Audio:: The sound effects are great. Every creature-type has it's own "song" and Ecco has sonar and chirping sounds which seem pretty authentic. Soothing background music plays throughout and it is some of the best to come around in a while. The only problem is that the audio tends to loop quite a bit on some of the longer levels which can sometimes take a long time to complete. The audio during the cut scenes definitely adds momentum to what can sometimes seem like a slow paced game.

Gameplay/Control:: Control is nearly perfect. Everything is intuitive and well laid out. The only glitch is that sometimes you might get caught between a couple of rocks which can take a few seconds to free yourself. This is a rare occurence though and didn't frustrate me at all. Some of the water jumps can take some patience, but rarely do you have to try anything more than half a dozen times.

This game plays fairly slow, punctuated by moments of fairly intense action. For example, when you happen upon a large group of ferocious sharks. Similar to a Resident Evil title in it's ability to surprise you, most gamers should feel comfortable playing this title. Don't take the slow pace as a negative thing. It is wonderful and fairly addictive to roam around the various levels taking in all of the visuals while completing your tasks at a pace you feel comfortable with.

This game is hard. It does require some patience and I don't recommend it to anyone with a low tolerance for story and adventure. With that being said, you'll find yourself more and more competent as the game progresses and the game doesn't really get cooking until about level 8. You will learn Songs of Fish, Turtle, Shark and Ray. You will earn gifts of Vigor, Endurance, Air and Stealth. You will love this game the more you play it.

Extras:: This game has the best extra anyone could hope for: the ability to go back and play any level you want after you complete it. The save points are extremely common and you don't have to redo anything you've already done if you don't want to. Amazing. I wish the makers of Shadowman and MDK2 had also realized the obvious value of these features. Other than that, there isn't any other extras of note.

Overall:: If you like adventure games: go get this game now! Even if you don't, you will still find something to like in the visual department. This is a Dreamcast classic. The first since Crazy Taxi some six months ago. If I had to pick one game of the summer that you had to get, this would be it. With 60+ hours of gameplay, you won't find a better value.

score::
7.5/10

genre::
Adventure

developer::
Appaloosa Interactive

publisher::
Sega

players::
1

vmu support::
Yes

net access::
No

jump pack::
Yes

esrb rating::
Everyone

pull quotes::

"Will the broad 3D gameplay style garner new Ecco fans with this 128-bit update..."

"...or is this just a weak attempt at updating a classic?"

screenshots::

Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future

Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future

Ecco the Dolphin: Defender of the Future

video::


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