MINORTY REPORT

INTERESTING GAMES YOU'VE NEVER PLAYED

Words by Sean Seanson

MINORTY REPORT

INTERESTING GAMES YOU'VE NEVER PLAYED

Words by Sean Seanson

PSYGNOSIS PLAYSTATION GAMES

It played a huge role in the breakout success of Sony’s first console and gave us iconic series like WipEout and Colony Wars, but did you know Psygnosis brought over 50 games to the original PlayStation? Let’s take a look at some you might have missed

» [PlayStation] Just one of the many bizarre interactions you can have with the crew. The guy in the back seems impressed at least.

SENTIENT

■ DEVELOPER: PSYGNOSIS ■ YEAR: 1997

» [PlayStation] Don’t you hate it when you get whisked away from work to wander around a dream maze?

Actually, that doesn’t sound so bad!

» [PlayStation] The Space Station Icarus flying a little too close to the sun. Who could have seen that coming?

■ You probably wouldn’t think it just by looking at it, but Sentient is one of the most ambitious games to ever grace the PlayStation. In this first-person adventure title, you take the role of medic Garritt Sherova, who has been sent to investigate a breakout of radiation sickness aboard the Space Station Icarus, only to arrive and find out that might be the least of his worries. With the captain dead, the crew divided and the Icarus on a collision course with the sun, things are clearly sounding quite dire.

But of course, since you have protagonist powers, only you can save the station from certain destruction, and you do this by walking around and talking to people, as is adventure game tradition. This may not sound very exciting, but few games do walking and talking quite like Sentient. You see the crew of the Icarus, all of whom feature unique AI patterns and dialogue, well they each have their own goals and personalities, and depending on how you interact with them, it can lead to different paths and endings in the game. This is all done by using an impressive dialogue system that allows you to ask a variety of specific questions about characters, items, or even directions to somewhere else on the ship.

The characters might oblige and help you, or maybe they won’t. It depends on your reputation and how you’ve interacted with the various other characters on the station. On top of this, the game is also running in real-time, meaning characters will wander around the large and maze-like space station, interacting with each other and going about their tasks, even if you’re not there. It’s a game where, as an outsider, you really need to rely on the crew to help you both navigate around and get to the bottom of what’s going on, and thanks to the game’s very indepth systems, there are dozens of ways you can accomplish this.

Sentient also features some of the most surreal imagery you’ll see in a game from this era. Whether it’s the oppressive halls of the Icarus and its suitable range of retro-future

MINORITY REPORT: PSYGNOSIS PLAYSTATION GAMES

IF YOU LIKE THIS TOY...

DEFCON 5 PLAYSTATION, SATURN, PC, 3DO, 1995

■ Defcon 5 is a slow-burning and immersive first-person action title that sees you play as an engineer tasked with protecting a deep space mining installation from unknown alien attackers. The end result is an interesting blend of action and strategy.

PLANET LAIKA PLAYSTATION, 1999

■ This Japan-exclusive RPG from developer Quintet about an anthropomorphic dog with dissociative identity disorder visiting Mars is somehow even stranger than it sounds. It also recently received an English fan translation, so there’s never been a better time to experience this oddity.

MARTIAN GOTHIC UNIFICATION PLAYSTATION, PC, 2000

■ Resident Evil meets The Lost Vikings in space, but if any of your three playable characters meet up in the same location, they fuse into a ball of meat and the game ends. It’s certainly one of the more unique survival horror experiences out there.

TALK TO ME

■ An example of the impressive dialogue system in action. Not a bad way to practice your small talk.

WHO AM I?

■ Dialogue options branch off into a variety of new choices. Handy if you need to ask for directions to the bathroom.

gizmos, or the crew, who are sporting some of the most hilarious and terrifying facial scans imaginable, it’s a game that definitely lingers in the mind. The problem, however, is that while it’s hard not to admire the scope of Sentient, it unfortunately just isn’t all that fun to play. The game is held back by its repetitive environments, confusing navigation, and very cumbersome control scheme, which would have made it a chore to get through in 1997, let alone 2023. It’s a game that demands a lot of patience and commitment from the player, but those willing to stick with it, will be rewarded with one of the most unique experiences the PlayStation has to offer.

FACE ON

■ Each member of the crew is based on facial scans from the development team. You can’t say it doesn’t make for a diverse and memorable cast.

FACE OFF

■ This little disembodied head is our player character Garritt. The poor fella is about to have an awful day.

ASSAULT RIGS

■ DEVELOPER: PSYGNOSIS ■ YEAR: 1996

■ If you were to ask a kid in the early Eighties to imagine what videogames would look like in the future, we get the feeling Assault Rigs is what you’d end up with. This early PlayStation release allows you to partake in the hot new sport of the future, which is putting on a VR headset and blasting some foes in your weird cyber tank. Combat is a core and enjoyable part of the experience, but your goal in each level is to simply collect a set number of gemstones and then reach the exit before time runs out, which sounds simple enough, but the quick-fire levels will toss a variety of new and exciting obstacles in your way.

You’ll have to navigate mazes, puzzles, and even platforms to succeed in Assault Rigs, and keep in mind that this is all while driving a tank, of which you’ll have three to choose from, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. These tanks, along with the environments, receive visual updates throughout the game. One minute you’re in cyberspace hanging out with the bizarre mouths and eyeballs fused into the walls, and the next you’re carefully navigating platforms in the treacherous industrial zone. If you’re a fan of arcade classics like Battlezone or Cyber Sled but crave something with a bit more substance, Assault Rigs should be right up your alley.