Review:- "Worth Playing"

[The Dogfather]

Now that I have finally completed the actual game I would have to say it's definitely worth a playthrough.

Alice has finally been released from the Asylum to the Orphanage convinced that she herself started the fire which killed her parents and sister. Racked with guilt that is slowly driving her towards the brink of insanity she once again descends into the imaginative world of Wonderland looking for some comfort from old friends but with her mind fast unravelling the Wonderland of her childhood has now fully transformed itself into a dark cellar of a world filled with the grotesque and unimaginable.

As for the game it's a mixture of platforming, puzzle-solving, adventuring with more than a touch of horror. The games earlier scenes are visually stunning as we move from a grey 1800's London to a the lush beauty of the Vale. The differences in colour palette used is so striking that for a minute you will almost believe that this safe haven for Alice's shattered mind is the rightful place to recuperate. It doesn't take long, however, before Wonderland starts to distort and disfigure itself.

It's a pity that those striking sequences aren't matched by what follows as Alice visits three area's in succession that diminish the power of the opening stages - The Mad Hatter's Domain, the Deluded Depths and the Oriental Grove (with the Grove looking particularly under developed and rushed with terrible textures everywhere - in fact it looks like an entire different team developed this section as it doesn't match the quality of the other areas). It was at this point that I was getting weary and a bit tired of Alice's shenanigans and her search to find out the truth about what actually happened to her parents that she initiates once in Wonderland by cleverly having to collect memories of her childhood that slowly piece together the events that led to her family's death.

I am glad I stayed along for the ride because Alice really shows off its strength in the last two areas of the game - Queensland and the Doll house. These two worlds are such a horrifying joy to explore (and I mean horrifying with the Queen of Hearts castle literally blood-soaked or being attacked by dolls with missing eyes and limbs during the Doll House sequence amongst other disturbing imagery). It's during these stages that Alice really hits its creative stride soaring past the earlier levels in design and creativity. If I have one gripe during these magnificent levels, its seems as if the game itself has gotten much, much easier posing very little in the way of a challenge.

The game is also a very long one - it took me 18hrs to complete and that time does not include searching for all the collectibles on each level. The game's soundtrack is also truly immersive managing to hit all the right notes to keep you audibly invested in the adventure even though the Alice is a game of two halves - one utterly brilliant and so imaginative that I could lose myself to a larger gaming world just comprised of those areas.The other feeling completely souless and devoid of any charm.

[Mortal Motö]

Oprindeligt skrevet af Fatonium:

Oprindeligt skrevet af Motö And Other Horrors:

What did I just read O.o That's excatly a game for gamepad. FPS and RTS games would be the only one that are not for gamepads. I mean really, are you serious :o How do you think people managed to play Mario back in the day?

I didn't know Madness Returns was a sidescoller.
I played Darksiders, Darksiders II, the new Devil May Cry, Psychonauts,etc with keyboard/mouse just fine. Those games have proper keyboard/mouse support and don't feel like half assed console ports. So again, the fact that AMR doesn't play well with mouse is not because of its genre but because of how bad of a port it is. Not to mention the bugs/glitches/random stutters I've experienced thus far.

Those seem to be your computer's problem. And there's also 3D marios, just in case you didn't know.

And opinions =/= facts, remember that. I never had a problem with kbm on AMR, so it's a fact too, right?

[The Dogfather]

This type of game plays better with keyboard and mouse - are you ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ me! That’s the most ludicrous thing I have ever read!

Honestly some of you PC gamers need to get your head out of your own asses with regard to playing with a gamepad. As console dominance continues, I don't see it being any different when the PS4 and XBOX ONE come out you may as well just get with the times and realise that since games get designed first and foremost for those systems in mind that the reliance on gamepads for future releases will just keep increasing. Sure they have half-assed attempts at making the keyboard/mouse combo work but since the PC platform is such a small number of sales compared to what a specific game will sell on the other platforms, do you honestly think they really care if you can play it with a keyboard and mouse or not! I am going for the NOT if this generation of ports have proven anything and since I got the gamepad for my computer my gaming experiences have been less frustrating plus I get to enjoy a wide of variety of games because I’m not wearing blinkers over my eyes that give me permanent tunnel vision which leads to frustration.

Games are meant to be an enjoyable hobby but the way some PC gamers go on maybe it’s time for them to take up a new hobby, like knitting or sewing.

[Mo1ecu1e]

Oprindeligt skrevet af Motö And Other Horrors:

Oprindeligt skrevet af Fatonium:

I didn't know Madness Returns was a sidescoller.
I played Darksiders, Darksiders II, the new Devil May Cry, Psychonauts,etc with keyboard/mouse just fine. Those games have proper keyboard/mouse support and don't feel like half assed console ports. So again, the fact that AMR doesn't play well with mouse is not because of its genre but because of how bad of a port it is. Not to mention the bugs/glitches/random stutters I've experienced thus far.

Those seem to be your computer's problem. And there's also 3D marios, just in case you didn't know.

And opinions =/= facts, remember that. I never had a problem with kbm on AMR, so it's a fact too, right?

There was no 3D marios "back in the day", just in case you didn't know.


It's not my computer's problems. I run a fresh Windows 8 x64 install on a SSD, all of my drivers are up to date. 680GTX, i7-3770K, 16GB RAM
I'm sorry you have low standards and don't know what a good PC port should be like.

[Mo1ecu1e]

Oprindeligt skrevet af Sir Faulty:

Honestly some of you PC gamers need to get your head out of your own asses with regard to playing with a gamepad. As console dominance continues, I don't see it being any different when the PS4 and XBOX ONE come out you may as well just get with the times and realise that since games get designed first and foremost for those systems in mind that the reliance on gamepads for future releases will just keep increasing. Sure they have half-assed attempts at making the keyboard/mouse combo work but since the PC platform is such a small number of sales compared to what a specific game will sell on the other platforms, do you honestly think they really care if you can play it with a keyboard and mouse or not! I am going for the NOT if this generation of ports have proven anything and since I got the gamepad for my computer my gaming experiences have been less frustrating plus I get to enjoy a wide of variety of games because I’m not wearing blinkers over my eyes that give me permanent tunnel vision which leads to frustration.

Whether some devs care about making proper PC ports was not the point I was making. My point is that Alice Madness Returns is a ♥♥♥♥♥♥ console port and my point still stands.

[Mortal Motö]

Oprindeligt skrevet af Fatonium:

Oprindeligt skrevet af Motö And Other Horrors:

Those seem to be your computer's problem. And there's also 3D marios, just in case you didn't know.

And opinions =/= facts, remember that. I never had a problem with kbm on AMR, so it's a fact too, right?

There was no 3D marios "back in the day", just in case you didn't know.


It's not my computer's problems. I run a fresh Windows 8 x64 install on a SSD, all of my drivers are up to date. 680GTX, i7-3770K, 16GB RAM
I'm sorry you have low standards and don't know what a good PC port should be like.

Mario 64 and other stuff was back in the day, unless you're ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ old.

Also, windows 8. 'nuff said? No one ever said it will work on Windows 8. And since it works for me, and for the guy who wrote this thread along with many others, I really can't blame the game.

[Mo1ecu1e]

Oprindeligt skrevet af Motö And Other Horrors:

Also, windows 8. 'nuff said? No one ever said it will work on Windows 8. And since it works for me, and for the guy who wrote this thread along with many others, I really can't blame the game.

I'm not the only one complaining about the poor PC controls.

Anyway, I just finished the game, it was frustrating at times but overall it was quite fun. The artstyle and the soundtrack stood out for me the most. As a PC port, it fails big time but as a game, it's actually pretty good.

[The Dogfather]

Oprindeligt skrevet af Fatonium:

Oprindeligt skrevet af Motö And Other Horrors:

Also, windows 8. 'nuff said? No one ever said it will work on Windows 8. And since it works for me, and for the guy who wrote this thread along with many others, I really can't blame the game.

I'm not the only one complaining about the poor PC controls.

Anyway, I just finished the game, it was frustrating at times but overall it was quite fun. The artstyle and the soundtrack stood out for me the most. As a PC port, it fails big time but as a game, it's actually pretty good.

I am glad you actually enjoyed it in the end - for all the problems - and I am sure this is probably one of those games that may have issues with Windows 8 (the sole reason why I asbsolutely refuse to upgrade to that edition even if some claim it's a faster more sleeker experience) - the hassles with running games are just too many from i've heard. On windows 7 I never had a sinlge issue with it. It did not crash once or there were no glitches of any sort throughout the entire 18hr playthrough.

I totally agree with you that the controls for the PC are rubbish - I am not refuting that point. But then so was the controls for Dark Souls and even though that was a really bad PC port it did not distract from how absolutely awesome the game became once I had managed to install the mod and played with the gamepad. Had I refused to accept the nature of Dark Souls I would have done myself the greatest of disservices and denied myself the joy of playing a game that has become ledgendary in my years of gaming. And yes I am one of those "old" gits who still play being comfortably in my mid thirties.

PC gamers need to be more maleable and less cynical (something the younger facebook generation seems to be battling with). I see so many of these threads with people getting themselves worked up into a frothy over stuff like this. Maybe its because I am older and things like this don't bother me as much as perhaps they would do if I were younger. Lifes worries and concerns seem to eclipse the nature of these kind of things the older you get.

Anyway - that's my take on it.