If we wanted to get from one end of a corridor that was blocked by some shelves, a box, two gas canisters and a can of petrol, our fi rst instinct would be to push the obstacles out of our path, taking extra care with the fuel containers, of course. Maybe we’re just being boring, or stupid, or unimaginative here but it would never, ever have occurred to us that the solution to this little predicament would be to go and fi nd an exploding baby then throw it at the obstacle from a safeish distance. Even if we knew where to fi nd an exploding baby, we’d probably still opt for the relatively straightforward option of moving the shelves, boxes and containers by hand. Hell, we might even climb over them. Incidentally, if anyone reading this does know where to get an exploding baby... letters to the usual address.

As you might have already guessed, we haven’t just conjured this scenario up out of thin air, we’re making specifi c reference to something that happens in Condemned 2 – although we ought to point out that the explosive in question is a doll, and not an actual baby – it is just about as stupid as it sounds. We don’t so much mind encountering problems that only have one preset solution, it’s just that it’s very diffi cult to forgive when the solution is clearly so daft, and jars so awkwardly against the dark, sombre tone we were expecting from this game. And it’s not the only example of such silliness and frivolity we came across either.

Let’s just have a quick recap for those, presumably many, among Play’s readership who aren’t familiar with the fi rst part of the Condemned series (released on PC and 360 only): Criminal Origins. It was a fi rst-person, survival-horror adventure in which you played a CSI-type agent who becomes embroiled in some very sinister, slightly supernatural goings-on. It was atmospheric, genuinely terrifying and featured a unique, visceral meleecombat system. For the most part it was very good, but it did lose the plot towards the end, becoming too light on scares and too heavy on repetitive combat and unconvincing monsters. That it has spawned a sequel is good news, as is the fact that it’s made it to the PS3. Not so good is that Condemned 2 picks up where Condemned left off, largely foregoing atmosphere and mind games in favour of action and fantasy-land nastiness for the hell of it. This is a problem because in order to be frightened by something, you have to believe in it, and Condemned 2, unlike its forebear, simply doesn’t take the time to make you believe. Condemned’s brilliance was in how frequently it managed to make you forget you were playing a game. Condemned 2 almost seems to go out of its way to keep reminding you.

For a start, there’s way too much going on in the HUD. When there’s nothing happening at all, the HUD disappears altogether, which suggests that Monolith is well aware of how obtrusive it can be, so you’d think that the number of things popping into the periphery, and sometimes even the very centre, of your view would be kept to a minimum. Not so. Any excuse whatsoever, and something will pop up and break your suspension of disbelief. For example, there’s one really tense bit where you’re exploring a recently evacuated offi ce alone. It’s good, but it would be even better if it weren’t for the fact that an icon keeps popping up to tell you that you have a set time in which to press the X button. And what does pressing X do under these particular circumstances? It makes you ask if there’s anybody there. What? Why? It’s just really pointless and really self-defeating.

But there’s never more on-screen clutter than during combat, which, in the process of improving on Criminal Origins’ effective, but arguably too simple ‘block-strike-withdraw-blockstrike- withdraw’ system, has picked up all manner of icons and button prompts. They’re supposed to be there to help you, but they just make it less like fi ghting and more like playing.

So, for whatever reason, Condemned 2 tries rather too hard to be vicious and in your face, and not hard enough to build tension and orchestrate fear, which is a little bit disappointing really. However, there is still a lot to like about it. The violence, while not as believable or immersive as it is in Criminal Origins, still carries an air of real danger, desperation and actual bodily harm, the like of which you won’t experience in any other PlayStation title.

And there are sections here and there that do recall the edgy discomfort and fragile state of mind we experienced while playing the fi rst game. But overall there’s a sense that Condemned has perhaps unwisely turned its back on the excellent psychological horror of its origins in pursuit of an audience that is currently holding out for Manhunt 2 and waiting for something really nasty to do while they’re waiting.

Gavin Mackenzie