Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen! Review (PSN)

…or back to the past, to the future, to the past, to the present…

**WARNING:SPOILER ALERT** Logically, this review contains minor spoilers of the major plot twist in episode 1 (although even goldfish fans of the films could probably get it). If you’re yet to play the episode or don’t like long sentences, read the pros and cons up top, check the colourful score and TURN BACK NOW.

Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen!Since being fully thrown into the events of Back To The Future last month, I’m beginning to wonder whether or not my favourite cinematic trilogy was truly worth the bother. The sheer stress the Doc and Marty are going through from one trip to the pass seems to extend to several attempts to fix the past. Christ, at the rate they’re screwing up the timeline, it’s going to take an estimated 5 episodes to regain some momentum in the time stream.

The Doc is saved and Marty is now ready to get out of 1931. However, just as Marty is ready to leave, he begins to fade away. Doctor Brown’s corpse on the courthouse steps has also faded away…and been replaced with Marty’s grandfather. This obvious stab in the McFly family tree can’t be ignored, and so Marty must travel back to Episode 1 to avoid both a nasty fate due to lack of breeding and to avoid bumping into himself.

Episode 2 practically follows the same plot pattern as the second film played backwards…in a different time period. There’s the dodging of your past self playing through the actions of the previous episode (although it hasn’t recorded your frantic combing of gazebo’s and hubcaps for attempted solutions). There’s the clear realisation that you haven’t changed the future for the good and the frantic return to fix everything yet again. Thankfully, the charm and cheeky references to the films mean that Episode 2 get away with the rather formulaic plot line.

The puzzles are now starting to enter that phase of requiring some true McFly ingenuity to wiggle out of. Unfortunately, they’ve also got much easier. I dunno if this is me simply entering the mind of the underdog, but many just seemed way too simple and could be blitzed through at the same rate of a film. Difficulty seems to extend to how many miles you have to plod to get to solutions, as objectives of the more ‘complex’ missions are scattered across Hill Valley, and the constant back and forth is a little frustrating over time.

Thankfully this driving force manages to hook you despite the ever decreasing difficulty

What doesn’t help is the strange camera. When running around Hill Valley, the camera no longer looks over the whole town square, but has nigh on zoomed so close in on the back of Marty’s head it’s like witnessing an air to nit missile launch. Navigation is no where near as smooth as it was previously, and just builds on the frustration of running around Hill Valley. Thankfully inclosed spaces are much easier to traverse, and hopefully this is an unbroken issue that can be refixed before Episode 3. This lack of polish can also extend to the cutscenes, with scenes sometimes jumping and voices not quite matching up to characters expressions. It’s not a gamebreaker, but does fumble the excellent work that’s been put in for the characters and locales.

AJ LoCascios’ performance as Marty McFly has leaped from outstanding to indistinguishable, and the other characters seem to be getting a lot more confident in deliverance. Hill Valley still looks as brown as it did previously, but a few new locations in this episode show some interesting artistic merit, and does well to liven up the previously dreary scene. The trademark soundtrack is still in place, yet with this being a much more tense race against time, there’s noticeable flurries of panic to the score which sound great. Once again, goosebumps do rise whenever the crescendo of the theme blasts forth when you’re doing well.

Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen!Back To The Future:Episode 2 doesn’t really deliver any big surprises, but if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Dialogue is funny, the characters are memorable and the plot though pretty basic, manages to throw in enough intrigue to close the chapter on this segment of Hill Valley’s life. Thankfully this driving force manages to hook you despite the ever decreasing difficulty and sometimes sketchy development, but is really something that needs to get severely kicked into action. Episode 3 will really need to step up the challenge…even when the trailer looks like it’s shaping up to be a very different game that we’ve been accustomed to so far.

The Good: Strong and funny storyline, Great looking characters and locations
The Bad: Even easier than the first episode, Feels slightly rushed due to lack of polish in some scenes


Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen! Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen! Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen! Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen! Back To The Future: The Game-Episode 2:Get Tannen! 


3 3 / 5

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