The Fall Trilogy: Chapter 2 Reconstruction

The Fall Trilogy is an amalgam of two genres, point and click adventure and hidden object; It was developed by Kheops Studios and the first two chapters have been released earlier this year. The first game had the unnamed protagonist, apparently suffering from amnesia, fall into a strange jungle temple and have to work his way out by solving puzzles and finding objects. But just as he discovered the exit he, for no apparent reason, started falling again through what appeared to be a high-rise laundry or garbage shoot. Now in the second chapter, Reconstruction, you wake up in the basement of a office building. A phone starts to ring and a mysterious man talks to you, calling you John and tells you to make your way to the 13th floor and search for a USB drive. The conversation seems to imply you are some type of spy or secret agent. With no other direction in your life you decide to follow the mans directions and head to the 13th floor search of the USB drive, a task that will take up the rest of this chapter.

Probably the most lacking part of the entire game is the story. For the most part, in both games, you are dropped into an environment, told little or nothing, and periodically given glimpses of your family as you start to remember your past. In both games you never really see anyone, but in the second chapter you do get instructions once from a mysterious voice and have to avoid security guards in at least one occasion. This lack of plot is really compounded by the bland lifeless environments in both games; These environments really seem like they could never really exist and only exist to hold the next random puzzle that is blocking your path, if you can call following the only available route simply for something to do, a path.

Taking a broad overview on the series looking for clues to what might be going on I first contemplate the name of the series, The Fall Trilogy. After playing the first two chapters I have come to the conclusion that Fall might simply refer to the character falling all the time, which is not a really interesting conclusion. The first game seemed to have a lot of allusions to Indiana Jones, and kind of portrayed the protagonist as an adventuring archaeologist, while the second, disjointedly, seemed to say that the protagonist was a secret agent or spy; The only incite I can gleam from this is that the protagonist must be completely insane and hallucinating or possibly in a coma and simply imagining all of this.

But the game is not nearly all bad, it has many redeeming qualities, and comes off at least as a somewhat average game. It has moderately enjoyable puzzles, and unlike the first game some challenging ones. Additionally, you cannot really get stuck as there are layers upon layers of hints, tips, and help, all intelligently incorporated into the game.


Positives:
Some interesting and even mildly challenging puzzles.
Negatives:
The new location is even more bland then the first game's.
Summery:
A solid game that does not really standout, if you where a fan of the first game then it is mostly more of the same and you will probably enjoy this game, but if like me you were getting bored of the game even before the first chapter finished then there is nothing in this game likely to reawaken your interest.
Rating:
3/5
Developer:
Kheops Studio
Publisher:
Kheops Studio
Release Date:
September 29, 2010
System Requirements:

• OS: Windows XP or newer
• CPU: 800 Mhz
• RAM: 1 GB
• Video: 64 MB, DirectX 9.0c
• Hard Drive: 133 MB

Game Web Site:
http://www.the-fall-trilogy.com/chapter2-reconstruction