Runaway 3: A Twist Of Fate

By Conrad Reyners

If there is one thing gamers can be rightly criticised for, it must be the slow death of the adventure game genre. Back in the 1990s we were awash with great point and click titles, from Tim Schafer’s Full Throttle (protip: the dude who made Brutal Legend first made groundbreaking and awesome adventure games) to the iconic Monkey Island and Sam and Max franchises. There was even a pretty decent Indiana Jones title. The genre was that pervasive.

At the turn of the millennium the adventure genre began to wither and wilt. Some blame the rise of strategy titles; others blame the dearth of good writers. I blame Gordon Freeman and Counter-Strike.

So its pleasing to see that in some small corners of the gaming world the adventure genre is still hanging in there and putting on a good show. One such place is Spain, where the little known Pèndulo Studios is still carrying the adventure game torch. Their breakout 2001 title Runaway: A Road to Adventure spawned a series, and they are now up to its third and final installment - Runaway: A Twist of Fate.

The Runaway series follows the antics of Brian Basco, a doctoral candidate in physics from the University of Berkeley (read: super nerd). The main premise is kinda in the title. Brian gets himself into a string of sticky situations and has to, well… run away from them. In the first title it was mafia hit men, in the second it was pirates, spies and surfers. Along the way Brian falls in love with a girl named Gina who accompanies him and helps him out in a multitude of ways. This third installment continues after the conclusion (or non-conclusion as it may be) of Runaway 2. A Twist of Fate opens with Gina (now a playable character), a priest, and an undertaker all staring at a grave. Inside that grave is Brian... but he's not dead yet. Gina, along with the help of a paranormal scientist, needs to get him out.

As Gina says "well, this is an interesting start." And it is. But this is an adventure game, that kind of stuff is par for the course. If there wasn’t something irreverent and quirky going on, I’d be very disappointed. In this preview I was tasked with getting Brian out of the grave and back on firmer ground – all the while keeping an eye out for two thugs who wanted to fill me full of lead.

In true adventure game style the narrative looks engaging and interesting. These titles have always required some pretty lateral writing (and thinking) skills. Adventure games delight in hiding the story in plain view and allowing the player to peel back the layers. From what I had the chance to preview, Runaway: A Twist of Fate does a very good job of getting this right. The clues are not too obvious and some actions and item combinations are just bizarre enough to work. This quirky storytelling is made all the better by some great voice acting. Adventure games have always had hundreds of lines of dialogue with some pretty immersive characterization and some of the lines (while perhaps not quite up to the thigh slapping level of the Monkey Island series) did get a hearty chuckle out of me.

Pèndulo have obviously done their homework; there are shades of previous eras of adventure games scattered throughout this title. In one animated cut scene two thugs bicker in the front seat of a car. I had an immediate flashback to Bolus and Nestor from the 1995 adventure classic Full Throttle. Any game that can imply that level of characterization homage gets a big tick in my book.

The graphics are on the whole looking good. Adventure games are always a bit hamstrung when it comes to the graphics, the whole point-click 2D environment doesn’t really leave much room for fancy explosions and intricate level design. So where these titles have staked their claim is in the art direction. These games look brilliant, and Runaway: A Twist of Fate is no exception. The scenes are luscious and vibrant, and the art style is pleasing. Even if adventure games aren’t your thing, one has to admire the great way that these scenes are designed and rendered. It’s unfortunate that while the game looks great, the conversation animations are a bit buggy. The voice syncing looks a bit odd which is a damn shame – it frustratingly detracts from the great dialogue (and hidden verbal clues) on offer.

These minor quibbles aside, does Runaway: A Twist of Fate look like fun? Yes. Yes it does. Did I have a good time playing it? Yeah, I think so. If you are an adventure game buff and are looking for something decent to sate your point and click desires (presumably after you’ve finished Monkey Island 5 for the umpteenth time) then be sure to keep an eye out for this title. Runaway: A Twist of Fate is by no means groundbreaking – but from what I saw it’s a solid addition to a niche genre and if adventure games are your thing you are sure to pleasantly surprised.