Anachronox is truly revolutionary game, and is one of the most memorable and best games of all time.
Anachronox is an adventure/RPG game using the Quake II engine, which was already four years old when the game was released in 2001. However, it's different from Quake II, SiN, Kingpin, or any other FPS based on the Quake II engine. First of all, your see your character from a third person view. Anachronox then uses the engine to create an immersive and interactive world. There are objects you can pick up and interact with, people to talk to, and places to visit. It feels like a traditional adventure game, meaning you need to accomplish goals by talking to people, getting items, and solving puzzles before you can proceed. But there are also RPG elements, such as leveling up and fighting, which is turn based, but with time meters. It's amazing how the Quake II engine can be used to drive an adventure/RPG, but that's what ION Storm has done.
Anachronox takes place in a dark, futuristic world, where space travel is possible. The world that the game creates is breathtaking and totally immersive. The protagonist is Sly Boots, a down on his luck detective, but you'll run into other characters that will join your party, including your trusty robot pal, PAL-18. Sly is accompanied by a his digitalized secretary called Fatima, which takes the form of an arrow, and serves as the pointer that you use to interact with the world. All kinds of characters can be found in the environments. You can talk to just about every character, whether or not they are important to the plot. There is plenty of dialogue in the game, most of it in text, although the cutscenes have voice acting, which is well done, and make the fantastic story come alive. The areas in the game are underscored with background music, which is top notch as well.
The story is perhaps the strongest part of Anachronox. There is humor, suspense, everything you'd want in a great story. In a really hilarious part, Sly has to get past a science bouncer, who asks an esoteric science question before letting you pass. The gibberish that Sly responds with is utterly funny. Then there is an eight minute heart pounding sequence you go through before a planet blows up. The cutscene after that is funny as well.
The goals in the game are clearly identified, and you can bring up a list of current goals by pressing F1. The puzzles are of the adventure game variety, such as finding a size 5 helmet, or finding a way to turn off a laser gate. And occasionally, there is more than one solution to a puzzle. For example, in Sender Station, you need to get two tickets to Sunder. The way I did this was to do get the rose in the hotel, and take it to the woman who's watching the clown. The other one I got from a guy in the sewers. However, you can also yammer at a scientist staying in the cheap hotel, who will give up his ticket.
What I like about Anachronox is that it doesn't focus too much on combat, unlike other RPGs, instead giving more weight to the story. Moreover, there are no random enemy encounters, as you'll always be able to see your enemies before you begin battle. In battles, you have access to ranged and melee weapons, but each character also has unique battle skills, and when some of them are executed, are pure eye candy. Sly's third level battle skill is a sight to behold, and Stiletto's Pain Pirouette really looks painful.
There are plenty of minigames and arcade sequences scattered through the game. One level is essentially a shooter, as you pilot your ship through tunnels while shooting at enemies. Another sequence has you dodging meteors in your ship. Each character has a unique skill that when used, will let you play a minigame. These range from Sly's guessing number lock picking game to PAL-18's routing circuit game to Grumpos' lung filling minigame. Other games are incorporated into the settings, such as a strip club dancing minigame, and playable arcade games.
One thing I should say, the game is quite long. Expect to spend 30 hours finishing it. And once you've finished it the first time, you'll want to go back and play the alternate adventures you get with other characters. Specifically, you choose which character to take with with to Limbus, and depending on this choice, you will get a different adventure with that character once you're on the surface of Democratus.
Who would have thought the Quake II engine could be used in an adventure/RPG game? Anachronox is truly revolutionary, as the 3D engine allows you more freedom of movement and exploration than any other adventure game before it. The story, the characters, the music, and the environment combine to make to make this one of the best and most memorable games of all time.