• Overall score 57%
• Fun Factor 5
• Visuals 6
• Story 6
• Sound 7
• Longevity 5
• Originality 5

User score31%

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0100%

• Publisher: South Peak
• Developer: Replay Studios
• Platform: Xbox 360, PC
• Release date: 2009-05-08
• Genre:

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It is always a pleasant surprise when one decides to spend money on a game that is less popular than its hyped upped counterparts, only to find that it is significantly adequate in the fun department. Unfortunately, Velvet Assassin is not one of these games.

From the start of the game (the intro video) there was already a litter of problems. From minor mistakes, such as dull textures and mediocre dialogue, to more prominent flaws such as frame rate issues and color bleeding.

Velvet Assassin has the markings of a game that has been rushed simply to try and make a quick buck. Even the storyline was a twisted piece of plagiarism. The actual events that Velvet Assassin are based on are slightly less awe inspiring than the story that the game follows.

The true story

In World War 2, a British spy by the name of Violette Szabo, parachuted into German-occupied-France.

Once there, she merged with a small marquis (led by Jacques Durfour) to sabotage German communication lines and railway lines. She was rather good at it as well. That was of course, until the Germans caught up with her in Salon-la-Tour, a tiny hair salon in a small French town.

After being captured by the Germans she was tortured and starved for over 2 years. After they were done with her, she was publicly executed along with her 2 fellow female soldiers.

She was 23 years old when she died.

The game version

Naturally the video game story sugar coats the original studio. Players control the character of Violette Summer, a British spy who is bedridden in an empty hospital ward, reliving all her horrors from the war.

Through a series of ‘flashbacks’, players will have the task of guiding her through the shadows and dark alleyways, silently eliminating any threat that crosses their path until eventually overthrowing the German superpowers.

Players will have the opportunity to relieve countless German historical battles and scenarios, such as the blowing up of a fuel depot on the Maginot Line and marking a sub pen for bombers in Hamburg during Operation Gomorrah, all the while pushing deeper into the heart of Nazi occupied France.

Unfortunately, this story (which could have been phenomenal) is riddled with bad structure, flawed plot points and inaccurate history. There is little point in playing through a story which you know is based on a real story, but is not quite accurate.

Apart from the horrible story, dull textures, mediocre sound effects and horrendous controls, the gameplay is extremely agitating. The entire essence of the game focuses around being a stealth assassin, similar to Hitman or Assassin’s Creed. Velvet Assassin is the mediocre younger sister of the two.

Players will need to sneak around levels at all times, literally crouching (which slows down movement to a snail’s pace), simply to try and refrain from being spotted. Then, if they do manage to get close enough to make a kill, there is a short window in which to do so before being discovered and shot.

The game does not offer players an even playing field. The AI characters are superhuman compared to the protagonist, and the weapons at your disposal require constant restraint thanks to the lack of ammo in game. The controls are so simplistic that they give the feeling of being adolescent, but at the same time complicated.

One of the main features of the game is the morphine skill, which allows players to slow down time for a brief moment, in which they are basically invisible. During this period, the protagonist is stripped down to her blood ridden underwear (the same outfit she is hospitalized with) and all her surroundings blur with a bright light.

Although it does allow the player to sneak in for a quick kill or escape when under pressure, it is not as gratifying as one would hope. The entire process feels a bit stop/start, and one usually only uses it when discovered by a guard and they are in need of a quick kill to stay alive.

The Bottom Line

All in all, Velvet Assassin fails miserably as a stealth action game. With a virtual smorgasbord of other titles available today (Metal Gear Solid 4, Assassin’s Creed 2, Uncharted 2) which will allow for adequate sneaking opportunities, while at the same time having a proper balance of action, this is the last title one should spend money on. Rent or borrow if you are truly desperate to try it, otherwise, steer clear at all costs.