Tim Schaefer, the man behind such games gems as Day of the Tentacle and Grim Fandango, has left the classic adventure genre but he certainly left his mark. From the very beginning, thanks to its Tim Burton-esque art style and bizarre and witty dialog, Insecticide hearkens back to Schaefer's creative genius. Not content on being a purebred adventure game, though, Insecticide attempts to mix up the game play by throwing in action sequences involving a lot of shooting and platforming.

Unfortunately, Insecticide's shooting segments are poorly implemented, which is evident from the very first mission, thanks to sloppy and imprecise movements. You can target enemies for precision aiming, but it feels clunky, partly because the rate of fire with the weapons is incredibly slow, and dodging enemy bullets is equally difficult. There are usually plenty of power-ups scattered throughout the levels, and the game is very forgiving should you die by falling off a ledge, but neither of these actually make the game more fun, only more manageable.

The investigation segments fair a little bit better, functioning in classic point-and-click style. You can either talk to other insects in the area to get hints, learn more of the plot or hunt for evidence. Finding evidence is strictly a matter of trial and error, as objects are not in any way highlighted to let you know what you need to examine. This can lead to a lot of wasted time as you end up clicking on every inch of the screen looking for that one item. As such, neither aspect of game play is compelling. Had the developers stuck to one style of play, perhaps they could have spent more time polishing.

Visually, Insecticide has a very nice look to it, especially in the investigation levels, where there is generally good detail in the 3-D environments. The action levels fair worse, as textures and buildings show less detail. The level design in these sections also leaves something to be desired, as random floating platforms that litter the world seem to have no place given the setting. The cinematic sequences that occasionally play at key moments look nice, but they are a bit underused. Lastly, the overall look of the game is incredibly dark, making it difficult to see exactly what is going on unless you play in a dark room.

Music in the game is very suited to the atmosphere, featuring a jazzy, film noir soundtrack. The voice acting is great, but the dialog is too often delivered via text, which kills the effect. The writing for the game, though, is top notch, with plenty of clever insect-related puns and jokes, and the story itself is solid, making trudging through the game worthwhile for those who dig the presentation.

Overall, Insecticide is a great concept that wasn't fully realized. Whether extra development time would have solved the problem is debatable, but the final product lacks polish in every area but the story and writing. This may be enough to satisfy hardcore adventure fans, but for the rest, Insecticide is best experienced as a quick rental.

Related Links

Insecticide Game Guide