E.Y.E. Divine Cybermancy Review

Streum On Studios, a small team of 12, set upon the task of creating a cyberpunk themed RPG/FPS hybrid based on their role-playing game A.V.A from the 90's, and out popped E.Y.E. Divine Cybermancy.

The first thing I noticed picking it up, was that its built with the source engine, so right away I had mental image of how the game may look and feel, all source based games have a certain generic feel, so I went in expecting more of the same, and although some of my thoughts were justified, what lay beneath is a surprisingly good title.

E.Y.E. Is set in a very dark and cyberpunk styled universe, the whole atmosphere is quite eerie, you feel quiet tense but intrigued and the whole setting has a sense of mystery around it. From the moment you spawn you know you're in for something strangely different, appearing in a world that you cant help but feel is slightly mad, characters talking there own gibberish language that's quite disturbing, with large powerful armours that look like something out of a cult. Graphically its nothing amazing, its using the source engine after-all, but it feels right, the world gets it point across, and the setting is relatively well done.

The games set out as RPG/FPS hybrid, and as such your general game-play is that of carrying out storyline missions for your faction and acquaintances you meet along the way. Whether you play nice or mean is up to you, driven by the dialogue choices you make, some rewarding with money or xp depending on the path you take in situations.

Now all that sounds quite simple, but the way its been implemented unfortunately is not, and this is E.Y.E.'s biggest downfall. From the moment you create your character, you're expected to pick stats that you have no clue about, there's little help, no real idea whether your choice will affect your game and in what ways, and even after playing for a reasonable period of time you're left guessing in many aspects. There's an in-game tutorial system, that consists of brief videos showing you the ways through the what some may find overly complex UI to get to the options you need, but beyond that you're never really shown anything or told anything of much use. If you need your hand held in games, then E.Y.E. Is going to leave you in a mess.

All that aside, what we have here is a strangely addictive hybrid. If you can get through the first hour, I guarantee you will want more and more. A storyline of two factions in conflict, and its various betrayals along the way sounds generic, but its very well carried out, with enough twists and turns to keep you interested. Even as someone that often skips dialogue, I find myself stopping to read everything put before me.

Being set in a cyberpunk universe, you've got all the fancy gadgets and tech you would expect, from hi-tech weaponry to cybernetic implants and psionic powers, and best of all, everything is customisable. You have multiple armours, you have a mass of storage on your character to carry as many or little weapons as you please, you have a mass of learn-able powers that bring enhancements and skills to your character, such as cloaking, enhanced jumping, and even hacking, there's a mass of goodies to be found. Hacking is surprisingly fun, with the ability to infiltrate systems and machines through a mental war like mini-game, that's terribly satisfying when you see things turn on their owners and creators.

If you're a sci-fi or cyberpunk fan, you're going to feel right at home in E.Y.E.

Another interesting thing with E.Y.E. Is its multi-player implementation. What you have is two areas, Co-op Campaign, and Co-op Missions, and they both interconnect with your single player experience, meaning you need to be doing some of each to get the very most of the game and expand your character to the levels you will desire. In some of the missions you will certainly want your friends around you, especially when it comes to protecting allies from overwhelming forces.

When you bring all this together, you have what is a surprisingly solid indie title, and a substantial RPG/FPS hybrid. The actions there, the story's there, the setting is solid and maps are huge, there's clearly been a lot of work put into E.Y.E. And you can see the passion, its a shame there's some small let-downs in communication of in-game mechanics, but if you can persist and look past that, you're in for a very solid and fulfilling experience.