Game Discussion of the Week: Alice + Alice: Madness Returns

I missed many of the games from this generation, since I wasn't playing the first 5 years or so, I actually think I got my PS3 around the time this game came out. I didn't see it then, but it called my attention when it was on sale around 2014 / 2015, but I never end up getting it.

From Y2K, onwards for a few years, many novel games came out. This was one of them.

This is an unofficial sequel to the original story you would've been taught in primary school. As a child, Alice actually visited Wonderland, but after a house fire killed her family, she was left with PTSD and survivor's guilt.

As a result, Wonderland, which is linked to her mind, has become infested with demons and the Queen of Hearts has been allowed to take over. So she is summoned back by a nude and tattooed Cheshire Cat and the White Rabbit. All but a few of the original cast in a rebel alliance against the Queen of Hearts. Alice's mission is to take back Wonderland...and her future.

American McGee once worked with Doom and Quake, and the influence shows in the weapons and the levels. It even has its own Quad Damage/Beserk, in the form of the Rage Box.

That Time Of Month, now in a spray bottle

Your weapons are toys, most with a secondary fire mode. Starting from the Vorpal Blade (slash/throw) from the Jabberwock poem (who uses Alice's survivor guilt against her), to the Blunderbuss (BFG 9000, fantasy version), with many in between but not all of them practical. They all use the same ammo, which is thankfully replenished every time you pick up health from a dead enemy.

And you'll need that extra health too, because it's hard to dodge, which is even more painful when you're at risk of being launched over a pit by a simple swipe. But the platforming's good. Just beware of the flying, screaming demons that will throw you off.

Environments range from gloomy villages and forests, surreal pocket dimensions, to something quite "id Software": lava and fleshy environments.

I haven't played Alice: Madness Returns, but I heard it's a little more "God of War" and that the best version is the 360, lucky for me. And the tone gets darker, as 19th century London is her hub world. More if I can find a copy, which actually entitles you to a free copy of the first game as an expansion. And Wonderland's enemies becoming more disturbing.

Edit: I forgot about the soundtrack. It's a creepy, Santa's toyshop album.