Hector: Badge of Carnage was originally planned as a trilogy of point-and-click adventure games for the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch by Irish developer Straandlooper Animation. The first installment in the series, released in June 2010, was well received by both gamers and critics and ended with a promise of a second installment soon to follow.
![]()
Yet, months later, Straandlooper Animation remained tightlipped about if or when another installment was forthcoming, and many fans began to lose hope about the series' future. However, in February 2011, Telltale Games surprised the adventure game community by announcing that not only had it partnered with Straandlooper Animation but that it would be porting the entire series to the PC.Hector: Badge of Carnage Episode 1: We Negotiate with Terrorists follows the titular character of Detective Inspector Hector (officially titled Hector: Fat Arse of the Law). Hector is a crude and cynical drunkard of a cop who prefers to put in the least amount of effort possible in his job rather than an honest day's work. Naturally, when his town of Clappers Wreake is held hostage by a terrorist, the duty falls to him to fulfill the terrorist's bizarre, altruistic demands and save both the hostages and the city. In the span of just a few hours, Hector must fix Clappers Wreake's dilapidated clock tower, jump start its renovation and beautification campaign, and put a stop to its thriving pornography industry. Considering its overall content and subject matter, the game (and the series in general) is intended for only mature gamers who are not easily offended.The game attempts to push the boundaries of the adventure game genre whenever possible.
Hector has a puzzle where you have to pass a comatose heroin addict off as a defective sex doll as part of a plot to blow up a porn store. You don't need to know anything else. I could tell you about the plot, that it's more or less Peter Griffin as a cop. Sep 09, 2011 The Hector: Badge of Carnage series debut, We Negotiate With Terrorists, set a memorably sleazy tone filled with comedic cartoonish debauchery and clever detective work.
There are a few moments in the game wherein Hector makes it quite clear that he is aware he exists as a fictional character within the confines of an adventure game, often pointing it out (for example, by saying, 'You're in my inventory now.' ) to other characters. It goes without saying that the game's raunchy dialog pushes the boundaries of what has been previously established in comedic adventure games, but it is the combination of puzzles and inventory that deserve to be highlighted. A portion of the game's humor derives from how innocuous and filthy inventory items alike are used in puzzle solving.
For example, a puzzle early in the game involves fishing a paperclip out of a dirty toilet with a shoelace and a used condom. The challenge of the game lies in the player's ability to see past the initial shock of the inventory items (Hector even carries around a possibly deceased heroin junkie for a while) and figure out their ultimately mundane uses during the course of the game.Graphically, the game boasts colorful and smooth animation as well as a generally friendly cartoon style that belies the game's graphic content. The original soundtrack is fitting (though not particularly memorable) and does a good job of enhancing the game without overwhelming it. The voice acting is generally well done, with all voices performed by the same few male actors who also provide the humorous voices for the game's female characters.Gameplay is not particularly taxing for either newcomers or veterans of the adventure game genre. There are, however, a few puzzles that may prove problematic. These puzzles have to do with successfully navigating dialog trees rather than figuring out a combination of items to use. As many of the puzzle solutions involve using unconventional items to arrive at a conventional solution (using a disease infested syringe to pick a lock, for example), this style of puzzle solving may provide a temporary setback for some players.
However, once that potential hurdle is cleared, the rest of the game is easily beaten. The game is fairly short and very British (Hector is not shy about using slang), the latter of which may turn off some gamers. Additionally, Telltale Games' PC port has a few problems in execution. Often, when a cut scene ends, the game's interface overlay flickers on screen briefly before disappearing. In addition, sometimes the animation can become choppy for brief moments. I have played both the PC version and the mobile version of the game: although I can confirm that the choppy animation is present in both versions, it is presented more often in the PC port.Despite a few content and technical issues, Hector: Badge of Carnage Episode 1: We Negotiate with Terrorists is a throwback to the old days of adventure games, where the emphasis of the gameplay is placed on the writing rather than difficult or elaborate puzzles.
The experience of playing this game lies almost solely in its witty dialog and crass one-liners that Hector offers up. Simply put, it is a satirical, raunchy, fun, and comedic romp in adventure gaming—and not to be missed. All logos, trademarks, and media related to commercial software are copyrighted by their respective owners. All copyrighted works are reproduced here under the fair use clause. All opinions expressed within are those of the authors alone and do not represent the views of this site. Mistakes and inaccuracies are not intentional and cannot be held responsible by this site or its owner.
All original materials in this site are copyrighted by Adventure Classic Gaming (www.adventureclassicgaming.com) © 1996-2020 and cannot be duplicated without permission.
![]() ![]()
Review:
Point-and-click adventures are always interesting fare. They offer a particular style of play, everything must be clicked on, odd items combined, environments examined to overcome the next challenge. You might be in the future, or in space, or in a fantasy setting, or in the modern world. Telltale Games' new publishing foray into adult-orientated fare sticks to its roots while giving a refreshing, if crass, take on the genre.
Straandlooper's Hector: Badge of Carnage Episode I (appropriately subtitled 'We negotiate with terrorists') has you controlling the washed up inspector Hector who will do most anything in the name of justice. Expect to sexually harass an old woman, steal a perp's pants, use a dirty syringe as a lockpick and more in this wacky tale.
Set in the decaying, filth-ridden town of Clapper's Wreake, the story gets rolling when a local crazy kills several police officers and takes hostages, demanding the city be cleaned up and restored to its former glory. Your quest to fulfill the terrorist's demands send you on 3 main quests: Close down a local porn shop, fix a broken clock tower guarded by a war-addled shotgun-toting drunk, and help a trinket-peddling local raise money to restore the city. A variety of colorful and odd characters await you in these locales, and you have to go through a lot of weird stuff to complete each of your goals.
But this is where Hector: Badge of Carnage stands out. Clever and inventive puzzles await you throughout, and the voice acting and outrageous dialogue will keep you entertained while you go about your tasks. Clicking on anything will result in Hector's commentary or thoughts, which are most amusing, though a few will make you groan. Completing your to-do list requires you to go back and forth between the 3 main locations, and you often have to collect a few items from a different area to solve in another. Mouthwash? Free lube? Empty blow-up-doll box? All useful somewhere. There's no useless items which is a nice touch, everything is needed somewhere, it's just a matter of figuring it out. Should you get stuck there's a scaling hint system to help you along, although it will berate you constantly for using it.
Hector himself is crude but oddly likable. His gruff, sarcastic character grows on you, no matter how disgusting something is you just did. The rest of the game's cast is equally insane, disgusting and racy by turns. The game's hand-drawn animated style does take the edge off some of the subject matter, and surprisingly well done voice acting keeps characters vibrant. Despite taking every opportunity to create a funky or crude situation, the game pushes the boundaries just the right amount. Fortunately, things are mostly about the gameplay rather than just shock value and it succeeds with crafting a unique and hilarious experience.
The material is obviously aimed at an adult audience and while gross and lewd situations abound, the creative and satisfying puzzles, stand-out characters and charming graphics make it worthwhile. For $10 you'll get about 4 hours out of the game, unless you rely heavily on the hint system. The first in a planned trilogy, Hector: Badge of Carnage starts with a bang, ends with suspense, and though you may at times feel dirty for liking it, leaves you wanting more. Check it out.
• Unique Adult Puzzler• Unusual and clever puzzles • Good voice work and dialogue
Cons:
• Edgy material not for everyone
![]() Comments are closed.
|
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
March 2023
Categories |