Condemned puts players in the shoes of Ethan Thomas, an SCU agent falsely accused of murder. He must attempt to clear his own name while searching for evidence and hunting the real killer in the condemned sections of a fictional American city.
GenreFirst-Person Shooters
Platforms xbox360
DEVELOPER Monolith Productions | PUBLISHER Codemasters | RELEASE DATE
Condemned: Criminal Origins Reviews xbox360
freep.com review
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talkxbox.com review
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cheatcc.com review
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mygamer.com review
Finally there is the storyline. Games have been getting better and better in this area, and I am happy to say that Condemned continues this trend. It has a very strong storyline throughout the majority of the game. For a game that is based around tracking down a serial killer, I was surprised to find that the storyline worked really well in justifying the variety of enemies and the different locales found throughout the course of the game. It is not perfect, however, as once you have finished the game, you will still have some unanswered questions (make sure you collect all the metal pieces hidden throughout the game, or you will have a LOT of unanswered questions). It would appear that the developers are leaving room for a sequel, which is fine if they follow through, but sucks if this is the only game.
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planetxbox360.com review
When you are not fighting the bad guys, you will be looking for their trail using your investigating tools. The game will let you know when to take out your tools, which can be done by hitting the X button. Some of the tools, like the camera, will need you to use your analog sticks for, in this case, increasing or decreasing the focus on the camera. Once you are ready to take the picture and send it to the lab for processing, just hit the Right Trigger button.
gamechronicles.com review
Condemned just oozes with creepy atmosphere from the opening movie that smacks of real movies like, Se7en, and 8MM to the periodic black and white “visions†that Ethan will be forced to endure. Apparently it is these visions that have made Ethan a top priority with the feds, and if you watch these premonitions, or recollections, you will gain useful knowledge in the location of clues and crime scenes. Be warned, some of the shadowy enemies in these visions can deliver very real damage.
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gamingtarget.com review
As you play through the game you’ll be able to unlock achievements (now mandatory and built into every 360 title in one way or another) by collecting dead birds or pieces of metal. As well, there are hidden secrets to find and rewards for chapter completion. All of this is recorded on your gamer card and at the Xbox.com website, so you can compare achievements with friends or just check out the stuff you’ve accomplished. Pretty cool, and it shows how well MS has integrated the 360 gaming community, with extensive stat tracking for virtually every title.
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gamebump.com review
One important factor to every game is its control scheme, especially in relation to combat. Controls are easy as you can simply pick up weapons, push the right trigger to fight/swing, left trigger to block and push in the right analog to kick. There are also a handful of finishing moves related to the D-pad if you really want to knock off an enemy. Overall the control scheme is very simple and quite intuitive although it can get slightly repetitive.
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atomicgamer.com review
Condemned is a very solid game with great horror elements, great sounds and voice work, and plenty of in-your-face action. It’s nothing like pretty much any other game on the Xbox 360, and really helps to fill a niche in this new console’s library. While the replay value is going to be little to none for many players, it’s still worth going through no matter how you get your hands on this game.
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gamershell.com review
The best part about Condemned is exploring new areas without having a clue as to where you need to go. Sometimes the game will have a random person appear for a split second or have someone run across the screen real quick just to keep you on your toes. Soft, ambient noises are also haunting and help build up on the overall intensity. Leaking pipes, random footsteps, and sporadic yelps can make it scary to move on. Sadly, this also works against the game, because there is very little replay value. Once you already know all of the surprises, plot twists, and enemy locations, it can be overly repetitive to deal with the same situations more than once. Despite this, playing Condemned the first time through is nothing short of spine-tingling.
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ign.com review
Melee combat and exploration are the heart of Condemned’s gameplay, and both work very well. The melee system is responsive and lets you deliver blows without flaw. You and your enemies are able to block attacks, which opens up an opportunity to counterattack. You can’t just hold your weapon up to block, either, you’ll need to time it according to when your enemy’s swing will hit you, so there’s actually some depth here. Combining your kick, taser, and weapon effectively is a decidedly entertaining experience and the responsive controls help to more accurately give you the feeling that you’re actually beating your grimy opponents senseless.
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gamingtrend.com review
The controls in Condemned are fairly straightforward. You use the A button as your action button, the B button turns the flashlight on and off. The X toggles between your weapon and the Forensic tools, and the Y button checks your ammo if you are carrying a firearm. The left analog handles movement, while the right analog handles the camera. The right bumper toggles between firearms and melee, and the left bumper fires your stun gun when you get it. You can depress the left analog to sprint, and you can depress the right analog stick to kick your target. You can use the controls in the game to change the sensitivity of the analog sticks, as well as remap the controls. You can even switch to southpaw mode if you happen to be a lefty. The ability to invert the pitch, turn on subtitles, and turn off vibration may interest some of you as well.
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gamingillustrated.com review
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gamezone.com review
Being one of the first titles for the Xbox 360 is a tough challenge. Our expectation for a new system is sometimes higher than the final results. Condemned might not exceed all of our expectations but it’s still a quality title for the Xbox 360. For anyone looking for a creepy, original title for their shiny new 360 look no further than Condemned.
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game-over.net review
When all is said and done, smashing a street thug over the head with a crowbar and then snapping his neck with your bare hands has never felt this good. Condemned: Criminal Origins is all about delivering a disturbing atmosphere and brutal melee combat. In that regard, Monolith has hit the nail on the head. Although it’s a little rough in spots, particularly with regard to the forensic evidence collection and all the backtracking required, Condemned is a unique blend of first-person shooter and survival horror genres that will have you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire experience.
gamerevolution.com review
Tons of unlockable art, opened by collecting bird carcasses, and an online leaderboard (Go Zombiebot!) round out this blood-soaked package for a great Xbox 360 start from Sega and Monolith. Some shallow gameplay mechanics and weird environmental limits keep this corpse from the most elite graveyards, but that shouldn’t scare you away from grabbing this awesome, and awful, thriller. It’s one of the few Xbox 360 launch titles we have no trouble recommending, blood, guts and all.
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gamebrink.com review
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gamestyle.com review
Snooker does not have an image of an exciting, action packed, free for all sport and in these days of extreme pursuits must be overlooked by the majority consumers. What I know about snooker isn’t much, pool is my pub game as it involves fewer rules and therefore less thought, which is helpful after a few. Even Jennifer Lopez offering me a game of snooker wouldn’t normally be enough to entice me from my drink. However friends who are fans of the sport soon found themselves presented with a rare invite for a few sessions of World Championship Snooker 2002. Together we were very surprised by this excellent game from Codemasters; who are building a reputation for creating good sports games without the need for flash licenses. The game is approved by the World Snooker organisation and therefore comes with all the famous names (27 in total) that you see on Big Break with Jim Davidson.World Championship Snooker 2002 continues the series that started successfully on the Psone and PC last year.
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thunderboltgames.com review
He’s considered guilty until proven innocent, and no one is going to make any effort to prove that he isn’t a murderer. Instead of allowing himself to be arrested, naturally our hero flees from the scene of the crime and begins a quest to clear his name and maybe figure out what the hell is going wrong with the world. Our hero doesn’t have any visions of grandeur and isn’t setting out to fix the world, unlike so many lame, giant-sword wielding RPG characters. He’s a simple man, just like you and I, just he has a career that is a little more interesting than your day-to-day job probably is.
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darkstation.com review
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gamesradar.com review
The sound design here justifies a surround setup; there’s nothing creepier than hearing footsteps behind you and turning around to find nothing, only to hear the metal cabinet to your left get perforated by a shotgun blast. Little things from birds cawing to kicking a glass bottle across the room not only showcase the interaction of the environments, but also make an already terrifying setting that much scarier. Rarely does a survival horror game frighten you on so many levels.
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