There Came an Echo (PC) Review

Corrin Webb was just enjoying his time while on his job, when a voice from "above" started talking to him, informing him about some people that are closing in on his location, and who are willing to do some…not so good stuff with his programmer behind. The voice, a girl named Val, finally convinces him to escape their grasp, something that will happen in a sequence so similar to the one in The Matrix that Corrin will actually reference Morpheus.

Codenamed Sam, the one who will do all this will be the player, but instead of mouse clicks and button presses, everything will be done by using a microphone! "Sam" says "Corrin, move to Alpha one," and Corrin will do so. Later on, when there will be more than one character on-screen, it will be possible to say "Corrin, on my mark, move to Foxtrot three. Miranda, on my mark, focus fire on Target one," and no, these two puppets won't have any problem following the order…theoretically, that is.

Programming a good voice recognition system is a tricky business, with 'good' usually meaning "working most of the time." While it's possible to play with the microphone settings to adjust it, and while it's also possible to create custom commands (enabling phrases such as "Boobies, breath fire on Simpleton one"), this is a flawed mechanic that will give a very hard time to anyone without a clear US accent. Therefore, don't expect the game to understand sentences that go something like "Corrin, on me mark, move ter charlie wan."

It's possible to use the mouse, of course, but this actually creates even more problems, and obviously takes away from the immersion that voice recognition manages to create when it decides to work. Besides being buggy (the system will frequently respond to sound commands even if there's no microphone attached to the PC), it uses an abysmal contextual control scheme which feels very uncomfortable.

Each stage pits the party against a couple of enemy soldiers, and Sam can command the characters to do anything, anytime, but since voice recognition requires precision, the places where they can move are specific, codenamed spots. In other words, if Corrin wants to avoid enemy fire, he can't go behind any random wall, but only behind the one with the "Bravo one" label. Obviously, this removes the usual sense of freedom that the genre provides, and the structures of the few levels don't help either, since most feel like chapters from a tutorial mode.

The only strategic aspect here is weaponry, with each armament having a specific use. Snipers, for example, are quite lethal, but their user can be interrupted. Rail guns are strong but consume a large portion of energy (which is actually each character's HP for some reason). Charge weapons have splash damage, and Screw rifles are weak but quick - no difference between the various characters, though.

Note that this three-and-something-hour journey is very plot-heavy - so much, in fact, that the few interactive bits feel more like optional side-quests. Thankfully, the story focus is much better than the actual gameplay, with a small but great cast of characters voiced by a team of skilled professionals like Wil Wheaton, Ashly Burch, and Laura Bailey, amongst others. Yeah, they won't exactly rock anyone's world, but they have well-written dialogue sequences - although they try a bit too hard to be funny at times. What about the actual storyline, though? Is it good, exciting, or gripping? Yes, no, and no.

The themes of morality in science and conscience that are explored here are indeed very interesting, and the way the whole thing is presented is certainly not bad, but somehow, it never leaves an impact, and feels a little bland. For example, the final plot twist is so magnificent that whole libraries could be filled with the branch of philosophy it delves into...but it all happens 10-or-so minutes before the very end of this tale, and therefore, it's hard to care about it. Just like the finale of Final Fantasy VIII: "Hey, I know you don't recognise me, but I'm actually the final boss!"