n a planet of uncertain origin, with a plot of unknown parameters, Sentinel Returns awaits. The time is somewhere in the future, when players have been transported to a world of altered reality in hopes of discovering something that is, as of yet, not understood.
Would-be gamers take on the role of an entity that must try to usurp the Sentinel, a being that guards the chessboard-like world to which gamers have been sent. To unseat the mighty guard, players must rise to a position both higher than and with a direct view of the Sentinel. When such a vantage is obtained, gamers may drain the energy from the Sentinel.
Players vie for this positional advantage by building boulders to rise above the surrounding landscape, installing robot hosts on the boulders, inhabiting the robot hosts, and then scouring and subsequently draining the surrounding territory of energy sources. The game is played from a first-person point of view, and the interface is simple. Players need only learn a couple of mouse clicks and three or four keyboard commands before diving in. Although the submergence is initially simple, each level becomes progressively more difficult.
Despite its surface simplicity, Sentinel Returns' challenge lies in deep strategy and quick planning. The Sentinel does not sit idly by while gamers drink energy from its world. The massive being/weapon continually scans the landscape, and any player's robot host caught in its energy-sucking gaze will soon be dead. As the levels become more challenging, the Sentinel posts Sentries with equally devastating powers and Meanies that have the ability to teleport players to any disadvantageous location on the board. Astute gamers will assess the land, seize key locations and maintain the initiative; those not astute will fail.
A game that cannot be defined
Sentinel Returns is a true genre buster. It's not action, but it does require quick wits and a good aim. It's not strategy, although without the ability to plan gamers won't last long. It's not Tetris, but many levels truly feel like a positional puzzle. In fact, it's much easier to say what Sentinel Returns is not, rather than what it is.
One thing that can be said about Sentinel Returns, however, is that it's innovative. Based on a game originally created by noted racing simulation designer Geoff Crammond, Sentinel Returns is a unique genre blend. The moody music (written by John Carpenter) and the eerie new-age terrain creep under the skin like an uneasy worry, while the fast pace keeps the unease from abating.
Fortunately, there is no drama in the interface. Those unfamiliar with the original may be initially confused with the concept of rock hopping, robot building and teleport transportation, but, once learned, the techniques are deceptively simple. Of course, the gazing, teleporting and energy-sucking happen at once, so there isn't much time to contemplate the perfect move. And make no mistake about it, gamers are rewarded for those perfect moves. Gamers garner advantage from not only defeating the Sentinel, but from how well they do it, progressing further if they excel.
Sentinel Returns supports a multiplayer mode, which is great fun, assuming opponents can be found. The game remains basically the same, but now players are fighting for themselves, and the first to knock off the Sentinel is declared winner.
On the downside, one level is pretty much like the next, and strategists who prefer reality-based titles may have a problem with the abstract concepts in the game. Nevertheless, Sentinel Returns is a good game. It probably won't collect the following of a Final Fantasy VII, but those with a penchant for strategy, the quick wits of real-time games, and a modicum of hand-to-eye coordination will enjoy it.
