Related Media: Too Human – Hands On Video
Even before getting to E3 I have been intrigued by Silicon Knight's Too Human for sometime now. I don't know what exactly intrigued me about the game really, I just felt myself drawn into it ever since seeing screenshots and video.
Well now I can take how intrigued I was about Too Human and multiply it by a large number of your choosing because after seeing what I did today here at E3, I couldn't be more excited about a game.
I had the pleasure of having a 15 minute session playing the current build of Too Human and Editor in Chief Andy Turner and I were also able to sit down with Silicon Knight's President Denis Dyack and Director of Technology James O'Reilly.
If he had a hat on the ground people would be throwing him bills
Before going any further let me give a rundown of the game. Too Human is the first installment of a trilogy of games coming out exclusively for the 360. The story takes place in a distant future where man and machine wage constant war. The humans look to "gods" for protection from the machine onslaught. These "gods" are actually cybernetically enhanced humans that are so powerful they are looked at as gods. Gamers take the role of Baulder, one of these "gods."
The Hall of Heroes
Playing Too Human gave me a real kick. Right off the get go this game is visually stunning (and it's not even running at 100%). The level I played in was the Hall of Heroes, which seemed to be an ancient ruin temple of ice and metal. Another notable stand out in the game is its cinematic presentation. When you begin the level you are placed in a cinematic type scene as soon as you start but soon realize you are actually playing; this is further shown when running along the hall and the camera cuts away to the perspective of an enemy machine on the wall watching you run, still being in full control of Baulder. Controlling Baulder is very flowing and different. Silicon Knights has taken an under-utilized way of controlling combat. Fighting with melee weapons is done entirely with the movement of the right analog stick, only using the buttons when getting a combo. Weapon wise, I had a sword and pair of pistols. Pistols were controlled by the L and R triggers, L being for the left hand and R being for the right, and holding in both meant double the fun. The sword, as I stated before, flowed with the control of the right analog stick. Moving it every which way to hack away at whatever pitiful mechanical soul that got in the line of contact. Enemies first consisted of only pesky, easily destroyed, flying droids but soon became much tougher when huge mechanical androids came into play. My session soon ended after all the dismantling of cyborg parts and I was soon left waiting impatiently to get another dose of Too Human
"Come here… I can fix that"
Well that second dose soon came when Andy and I got to our appointment with Denis Dyack and James O'Reilly. Denis Dyack took the speaking role while James O'Reilly demonstrated the game on, coincidentally, the Hall of Heroes level. Dyack told us [i/] Too Human uses a variant mod of the Unreal 3 engine. He also explained how the games story is taken largely from Norse Mythology. After asking the reasoning behind this Dyack replied, "The fact that the gods are not immortal and don't try to escape their fate is what is so different about the Norse Mythology." Dyack also addressed the almost constant cinematic feel of Too Human talking about how they want gamers to feel as if they are playing an interactive movie. On the topic of cinematics, Dyack addressed how there is virtually no HUD on the screen. He stated how they want to be as "unevasive as possible" with the presentation of the game. In the area of gameplay Too Human employs RPG elements by letting gamers level up Baulder and "enhance" themselves to become stronger and stronger, along with that Co-op over live will be available for up to four players. "The co op and role playing elements really separate it [Too Human]," said Dyack. It was also stated that gameplay time lasts about 20-25 hours, not counting multiplayer and replay value. Another cool thing announced by Dyack that players can take their leveled up Baulder's and import them to the next installments in the trilogy.
Baulder having a meet and greet with a giant cyborg
Dyack really stressed the concept and story behind Too Human stating how "we really believe this generation is not about the hardware, it is about the game." Well by looking at Too Human, I believe Dyack is a man of his word. Check back as we will keep close track of this anticipated title.