The Nomad Soul: Omikron is, much like Fear Effect, a game I love to pick on. It is not a good game in my book, but, most interestingly, it had many strong points: it is technically brilliant (the year is 1999), artistically audacious, and has received the full support of pop demi-god David Bowie. Yet, the result is not convincing. Why?
Three explanations come to mind: genre confusion, no hero, overdose of "French touch". Let’s see.
Genre confusion
The Nomad Soul appears like an adventure game in a science-fiction world. Those adventure/action games have been the dominant game form in the wake of Tomb Raider, Resident Evil or Soul Reaver. The player expects certain things of the genre: go around environments, pick up stuff, talk to people, solve puzzles, and, occasionally, overcome a minor action scene. The game looks like an adventure game because of its structure, with a beginning and and end, because it has a linear storyline, and because the first moments of the game play just like a typical adventure game.
But the Nomad Soul "adds" to that adventure game schema an FPS and a fighting game. This could be OK if the FPS part or the fighting part were purely optional. Adding them in the game would just be like spending lots of resources on something useless. But no. The player has to endure both phases, there is no way to avoid it.
Now, an interesting quality of FPS and fighting game is that the number of hours of gameplay they offer is virtually unlimited. The only thing that will keep a Quake III fan from playing Quake III is the release of Quake IV. The same goes for Tekken III. Both of these games have been fine-tuned for years of development by some of the best teams in the world, focused on delivering the best game in their genre. And to make a long story short, the FPS and fighting components of the Nomad Soul do not live up to Quake III and Tekken III, which they openly copy. So it is highly unlikely that FPS fans will pick up copies of The Nomad Soul for their FPS moments (and the same goes for fighting).
In other words: the compulsory FPS and fighting components do not bring value to non-FPS and fighting fans. The sub-par FPS and fighting components do not bring value to FPS and fighting fans. Conclusion: putting those in the game was a wrong good idea.
No hero
The principle of the Nomad Soul, which is not bad per se, is that the player is a soul which can wonder from body to body. So, certain characters can be possessed. Once this is done, the character controlled by the player has characteristics that depend from the body they happen to inhabit. Each character can also become stronger, by fighting for instance. There are many characters, who are well modelled, with interesting background information. While some are plain boring, most of them are quite endearing.
The problem is that the game forces you, on several occasions, to possess a specific character. This means that the one you were previously playing with dies and will be lost forever. This goes against hero mechanics. While incarnating heroes should draw you towards the universe of the game, forcing you to reject them, especially after you’ve built them up, breaks the spell.
French touch
During the development of the game, the founder of Quantic Dream published a few columns on the company’s web site, one of which insisted on how much their games couldn’t be compared with what people call "French touch". I’d have to agree: Nomad Soul doesn’t compare with that, it defines it!
Arty graphics and character design? check. Clear emphasis on game aesthetics to the detriment of technique and game mechanics? check. Gratuitous sex and libellous content to make the game look more "mature"? check. A certain form of arrogance? let’s see.
Every article about the game mentioned near the top that it featured David Bowie. Apparently, PR has done their job well! It’s truly extraordinary that a world-famous icon accepts to get involved so much in a game, writing as much as 8 original songs and being modelled in the game (along with a few of his close relatives).
Now, interview after interview, the head of Quantic Dream would assert that while David Bowie’s presence is certainly an honour, it’s not that important in the game and that Nomad Soul should not be known as "that game with David Bowie".
So, arrogance? check.
"French touch" is not bad in itself. The French have a respectable videogame tradition, with great artists, and coders who have benefited from both the strong mathematical emphasis of the French educational system and the emulation of the avant-garde demo scene. But trying to do a game denying one’s own culture is always a bit tricky and a welcome invitation to criticism.
Conclusion
The Nomad Soul had everything to be a fantastic, breakthrough game. Much time and love have gone in the design of the universe of Omikron, and it shows. Plus, they had been blessed by the gods: Eidos, their publisher, has been admirably patient and has given them an almost complete freedom of action, and, at the risk of repeating myself, they had the full support of a true rock star. I feel this has been wasted by much arrogance, which has made the game inconsistent and unfair. Lately, I have heard that a sequel could be in the works. I wish Quantic Dream the best of luck, and urge them to focus on the fundamentals, rather than trying to make the ultimate holistic game. If they do, I’m sure that the Nomad Soul will have its revenge.
