Æon Flux
The heroine gets a realistic shape, but in translation loses nothing but her life.
Published: May 20, 2005
Fans of the Liquid Television-derived series will rejoice: the trailer for Æon features a shapely rendition of Æon herself, infiltrating a futuristic research facility. Though she doesn't speak of her mission (or at all), suffice it to say, circumstances conspire to slay her in the end, in a death worthy of the old series.
For those unfamiliar with the television series, it made it's debut nearly a decade ago on MTV's Liquid Television. The quirky animation and direction by Peter Chung made it a cult classic. No one would speak in these episodes; the stories would revolve around Æon, a secret agent in the future, infiltrating a government or private facility only to die in endlessly inventive ways (becoming, in essence, a high-tech Kenny).
The half-cartoon, half-CGI trailer for the game features a cut from the anime/cartoon, with Æon infiltrating a base. This cuts and resumes with incredibly detailed and beautiful Æon, fully rendered, dropping into the base and planting a bomb. Unfortunately for her, the cleaning drones discover this bomb, and as she makes her escape, the obedient drones bring it back to her. The look on her face as she sees the timer is priceless.
The controls of the game are simple and sweet, a Tomb Raider-esque over-the-shoulder perspective with enhanced jump controls and an auto-tracking fire feature. Æon herself is vaguely reminiscent of Charlize Theron; unsurprising, as Theron voices the smoothly rounded but doomed agent. Chung himself lent a hand in creating the game, assuring an accurate portrayal of the world. The demo level features Æon sprinting over rooftops, avoiding fire from flying gun platforms. During the course of the level, you must trick these platforms into coming closer, then make the leap onto one, commandeer it, shoot down the rest, and crash it into a forcefield preventing further travel.
Though details of the game are few and far between, but if the trailer is any indication, Æon will be dying several times throughout the course of the game. Some players might find it unsatisfying to keep a character alive through multiple levels, only to see her die at the end, but some will welcome the innovation.
For those unfamiliar with the television series, it made it's debut nearly a decade ago on MTV's Liquid Television. The quirky animation and direction by Peter Chung made it a cult classic. No one would speak in these episodes; the stories would revolve around Æon, a secret agent in the future, infiltrating a government or private facility only to die in endlessly inventive ways (becoming, in essence, a high-tech Kenny).
The half-cartoon, half-CGI trailer for the game features a cut from the anime/cartoon, with Æon infiltrating a base. This cuts and resumes with incredibly detailed and beautiful Æon, fully rendered, dropping into the base and planting a bomb. Unfortunately for her, the cleaning drones discover this bomb, and as she makes her escape, the obedient drones bring it back to her. The look on her face as she sees the timer is priceless.
The controls of the game are simple and sweet, a Tomb Raider-esque over-the-shoulder perspective with enhanced jump controls and an auto-tracking fire feature. Æon herself is vaguely reminiscent of Charlize Theron; unsurprising, as Theron voices the smoothly rounded but doomed agent. Chung himself lent a hand in creating the game, assuring an accurate portrayal of the world. The demo level features Æon sprinting over rooftops, avoiding fire from flying gun platforms. During the course of the level, you must trick these platforms into coming closer, then make the leap onto one, commandeer it, shoot down the rest, and crash it into a forcefield preventing further travel.
Though details of the game are few and far between, but if the trailer is any indication, Æon will be dying several times throughout the course of the game. Some players might find it unsatisfying to keep a character alive through multiple levels, only to see her die at the end, but some will welcome the innovation.
