The Saboteur is a very good game

Well, sometimes you have to bit the bullet and admit that you are wrong.

I tend to be nasty, really nasty about things that I don't care about. Last year I was very mean to Pandemic because I really hated the Mercenaries 2 demo and I expected The Saboteur to be "not very good", after reading Ryan Davis' review of it.

Well, I still bought it new because I was very curious about it, and unlike Mercenaries 2, it seemed playable. Well, I have to take back all that I said about it because I think The Saboteur is really good. Not in a "for what it is" way, like Legendary (review coming soon? hint: it's not as bad as everybody says) but with a heartfelt recommendation. This game is silly and certainly over the top, but also a lot of fun.

First, the game is really pretty. If like me you take the time to play in short succession this game and the already stale GTA IV (probably the worst looking game in my whole experience with the PS3, and I'm not kidding), The Saboteur just kills. The German-dominated areas are black-and-white, with isolate colour elements very well placed (fire and explosions, certain items), and then when the colour comes back, it really shows. It's not the usual bland current-gen colour, but intense primary colours. Think Uncharted.

The gameplay is just great, and not broken in any way (on PS3 I didn't find any game-breaking bugs in my 30-hours-for-the-story/45-hours-to-get-all-the-trophies playtime). The alarm triggering and evading system is quite good: when you create a disturbance (shooting guns on the street, or detonating a bomb), someone will come to investigate. If they see you, you have a moment to shoot the soldier(s) who see you before they blow a whistle for reinforcements. Then you'll see how the enemies physically arrive in cars, which is reasonable. It's definitely an improvement over the Just Cause or Mercenaries 2 method of "suddenly, dozens of enemy soldiers spawn from thin air and shoot at you from everywhere". This change deserves big points.

So the game is great about style and execution. What about substance? Well, here's possibly the "low" point about the game: it has not much to do with reality. For some people, it will feel "dumb", but it's clear that it's not out of stupidity, but because the developers realized that it would be more fun this way. Anachronisms abound, the most conspicuous of them being outdated zeppelins which fly through the skies and offer a setting for several story missions. But they are clearly intentional, and if Roger Ebert is right and games just can't be art, why shouldn't they do anything they can to be more fun? So the story isn't afraid to go crazy in places (nothing supernatural, though), and the shocking climax in the Eiffel tower is impressive.

It has also been said that there are some baffling similarities to Assassin's Creed. Yes, it's true, and it's a bit odd at times, but I think it's coherent with the "anything goes if it's fun" approach of the game. Also, the climbing is a bit more realistic (in AC the constructions seem to be a bit too square-ish at times). The developers don't even try to hide it, and they even offer you a car named "Altair". I think this approach fair, and it's more honest to incorporate those elements shamelessly than just creating a clone of another game while trying to pass it as an original. Anyway, I still think they should have gone all the way and put some soothing music when you reach a viewpoint...

Not everything is derivative, though. The stealth and bombing mechanisms are interesting innovations, and I wouldn't mind using them in other games. You can dress as a German soldier to do things not allowed for civilians and enter restricted areas. This is not a free pass, though: you can't move quickly and attract attention while you are wearing a disguise, and you can't stay too long close to other soldiers. It's a balanced and fair system. Also, the use of anachronistic songs (including compositions from the 60's and 80's) that sounds like 40's music works really well in the game.

What I liked the less about it was that there are just too many optional missions around, if you are a completist or an achievement/trophy hunter. These "freeplay events" are still fun, and they are thankfully varied, but there are still too many of them. At least they are all marked on the map, unlike the banners and feathers in Assassin's Creed, and you know you just can complete everything if you are willing to spend some time without the need of checking the internet for maps and clues. I don't like to spend too much time with that, but at least it's easy. I hate when it's just impossible to get 100% completion if you aren't a god with the controller.

So if you don't mind about some occasional stupidity, a cliché story and the obvious fakeness of it all (including French accents by American actors, and an English actor playing the Irish lead), this is just a great sandbox game. It's just sad how EA lost faith in it before it was even released, and now I'm actually sad that Pandemic is now closed. The irony!

NOTE: Yes, this game has some nudity! I thought it only happened during the first 30 seconds of the game. While trying to find some videos for this review, I found about this secret area. Damn! (Now I'll have to reinstall the game to visit it...) Too bad the busty and naughty Skylar keeps her clothes on all the time, even if your character gets to hump her (offscreen) several times. Bummer!