Aug 17, 2007
So it turns out that Deep Shadows was in on the joke all along. Their first game, the FPS RPG Boiling Point, was released in a shockingly unfinished state with bugs that made panthers fly, crossbow bolts destroy police stations and gave grannies grenades. It turns out it was actually supposed to put a smile on your face anyway. Underneath all the hilarious bugs, it was a silly, tropical action thriller.
The sequel, White Gold, follows Boiling Point's structure of enabling the player to go anywhere they choose and follow whatever missions they want. This time you're a mercenary, still played by actor Arnold Vosloo, in a South American paradise. Three large and six smallish islands hide a secret drug production factory - you're there to hunt it down and destroy it. Brilliantly, the reasoning behind this is because its potency is killing celebrities.
And you can drive sharks by grabbing their fins.
It's a close cousin to games such as Just Cause and Far Cry, but with a far more detailed RPG system tacked on. From the beginning there are factions to either appease or antagonize, including the military, mafia, police and civilians, and skills to level up. It's quite similar to Boiling Point and dipping into the inventory shows that Deep Shadows is simply broadening the scope, including things such as addiction to the FPS staple of painkillers, as well as alcohol (which has the expected effect: overdose on the 70% proof and the character sways and stumbles around). They're also adding a reward system - perks - so on top of leveling up your gun aim and running speed, you'll get, for example, 25% at animal skinning.
