First of all, let me say that this is most definitely not a review for Alice: Madness Returns. Why is this not a review of Alice: Madness Returns? Well... because I haven't finished Alice: Madness Returns yet, and until I'm getting paid, no arbitrary obligation I've made for myself to the internet will inspire me to speed through a game that I'm enjoying and have been waiting to play for the better part of a decade, such as Alice: Madness Returns.
Oh, since were in that neighborhood, I would have liked to do a comparative analysis of A:MR versus Duke Nukem Forever, considering they came out on the same day and they both had an absurd (nigh unethical) wait time before release (though the wait for Duke was about 4 years longer). Unfortunately, I can't do that because I've never really been a Duke fan, so it would be terribly biased. All I know is that I seem to be exponentially more pleased with my long awaited game than the majority of Duke guys... not that I'm gloating, I'm just... yeah I'm gloating. A goth chick beat out the Duke, breath that in and savor it for a moment. Actually, I wonder if Duke wouldn’t have been into that sort of thing behind closed doors.
As I was saying, this is a fluff entry and it's indicative of why I don't review new releases. When I'm enjoying a game (or trying to enjoy it), I want to savor the experience, not jump through it; plus, how am I supposed to form my valuable opinions if I don't experience the game in an intended rational manner? I may have already mentioned too much about my opinion thus far, just know that even though I'm enjoying the game, my review will be through objective eyes. So until I've finish said review, I've cobbled together some of the notes I've taken and some personal reflections about Alice in Wonderland and American McGee's Alice, to not only keep readers amused, but also to trim the fat while still getting to pass heaping bowlfuls all around.
First, some self-serving autobiographical fun facts, presented as always in smaller font:
I've actually never been a PC gamer until very recently, from as long as I can remember, I've been a console baby. I didn't get my first laptop until I was 15, and even then, the only thing I wanted it for was gaming. The very first game I got for PC was American McGee's Alice, which had been out for almost 5 years at that point. When it was first released, not only could I not play it (due to an unworthy home computer), but I was also much younger and I was at an age in which I was beginning to outgrow the “everything scares the crap out of me” phase (for more info, see the tiny text paragraph here). But, by the time I was 15, I was reveling in all that was horror, and picking up the classic subverted fairy tale that I had missed out on was a natural choice. Barring the keyboard learning curve, I was in love from the start.
You see, I'm all into that Tim Burton-esque babybat stuff... which for all those somewhat familiar or unfamiliar with goth vocabulary, know that I don't use that as a pejorative against young, angsty Hot Topic shoppers (as is the standard usage), but rather as a term to describe a particularly somewhat cliché, somewhat commercial goth aesthetic. I have been watching movies like The Nightmare Before Christmas over and over as comfort material ever since it first came out in theaters (actually, that's one of the first movies I recall seeing in one), but when I came of that particular teen age, I wasn't down with dressing as many of my bondage pants-donning peers... as I much preferred making fun of them. So thus I obtained American McGee's Alice at a perfect time, allowing me to indulge in my closeted appreciation of all things that would be arbitrarily labeled “goth”, while not having to adopt that persona. Yes, for all those who have forgotten, when you are at that age, it becomes difficult to separate your actual personality from an amalgamation of the things that you are fond of.
Now, I am much older, and there was a significant portion of my senior year in high school in which I spent a lot of my free time studying the works of Lewis Carroll, which of course is the author of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, for you cretins. That year I was reading a lot of what I fancied would magically turn me into an intellectual, guys like Dostoevsky and even Bukowski, and I have no rational explanation why I suddenly spent a few months pouring over Carroll. It was either because I was fishing for unfortunate similarities between a recently read Nabokov novel (yes, that one) or it was entirely due to my fondness for American McGee's Alice.
You see, now if I was to be presented AMA or A:MR without having a previous affection for it, I would arrogantly scoff and quip about how “Wonderland is dark enough without needing a fresh coat of gawth paint.” But, lucky me, I was fortunate enough to appreciate something before I became all jaded and pretentious! Which allows me to actually make an intellectual argument that if it wasn't for American McGee, as well as all others who would present to mainstream culture a dark take on Wonderland (as well as other fairy tales), then there is a significant risk that the cultural conscious would have forgotten how dark this story actually was... and that that is a good thing!
Looking at the bigger picture, we have the Brothers Grimm and the folks at Disney to thank for how palatable and safe the world of fables and fantasy have become. That last sentence was sarcasm by the way, so consider re-reading it with this knowledge. You see, even though American McGee's Alice utilizes many... many many many many... artistic licenses, it is arguably a much more accurate interpretation of the thematic elements of fairy tales... at least from a 17th century perspective. See, it's a bit of a sticky wicket, because Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was written in 1865, a long time after the Grimm's made children's stories much less grim, and further literary and cultural evolution made darkness much less utilitarian. However, due to the surreal imagery, obscured political and cultural references, and the authors purported questionable reputation (though tarnished may be a better word), the works of Carroll are still worthy of intrigue for adult lovers of nonsense fiction and poetry.
Regardless, a stark and grim (oh wow, didn't realize how 90's it all was) version of Wonderland in the collective unconscious is a suitable counter-balance to the commercially innocent Disney version and the supposed psychedelia-encouraging nature that another percentage of the culture associates it with. You see, I do believe that Wonderland is a dark and frightening place in it's own right without needing tenebrous analysis. It is however, a very subtle type of uncanny. Whether it's the threat of beheading from the Queen of Hearts, a striking act of violence for children's literature that we'd otherwise be desensitized to. Or it could be something such as the ever so implied threatening nature of the Mad Hatter, that has been culturally retconned to be goofy and whimsical. Basically, the story is filled with disturbing elements that we have forgotten are disturbing due to over exposure, and sometimes it takes an obvious and blunt approach, such as delivered by American McGee, to remind us that this shit is creepy.
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| Gaze into the visage of MADNESS! |
So here it is.
Yes, it's the same video I linked in my first entry about A:MR... But after watching it, you should have one of three separate reactions:
Reaction 1:
If you found the visuals and the music as stunning as I did, or even if you are only a little bit taken by the artistic approach, then what are you waiting for? If you like Alice in Wonderland, either Gothic or goth imagery, artistic games, Victorian era London, psychological horror, or crazy white people... then go pick this one up, this is the video game you deserve.
Yes... go do it now. Spend your consumer points for the stuff that you believe needs to be supported!
Reaction 2:
If you watched the clip and had a neutral reaction and just want to know how it plays, well to you, I say just check it out. Put it on your list of games to rent, even if it's not your thing, it could be worth exposing yourself to something new. I think that's something that can be healthy for us all, amiright?
Reaction 3:
If while watching the clip you thought something along the lines of “wtf is this emo shit?” well, in that case... enjoy your Duke Nukem Forever! Trololololololol
The writer of this blog would like to make it clear to fans of classic Duke Nukem that he mourns your loss in these dark times, and that all critical statements herein are all for the greater cause of what the kids call “teh lulz”.
So, as I've habitually stated thus far, stay tuned for a full review of Alice: Madness Returns.
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