This is not a review. I'm writing here about the last 2 of my 79 hours of gameplay- specifically, the time in which I discovered the 1st person camera. Well, the illegitimate 1st person camera. Technically, it's not a 1st person camera. It's not a camera mode you just be magicked in and out of at the press of a key. Rather, it is a somewhat clever but more accurately obvious way of upping the game's immersion levels through the roof and into Yves Guillemot's office to show him the finger, and it involves the camera that the game's protagonist, Marcus, physically has.
It is a mechanic of the game that, at any time, you can open up Marcus' Apple-bashing smartphone and select the camera to open up an in-game camera tool; alternatively, you can use the hotkey 9 to bypass the phone home screen. Once open, the game camera will move to appear to be embedded in the chap's phone facing his gorgeous mug; by default, you can take landscape, portrait and macro selfies with a range of filters to spice up the end results, and if you feel a little more creative, you can make Marcus do certain gestures, such as the "richer than you" distanced fist-bump, and the "would you like a hair flower for the hippy parade tonight?" awkward smile. What occurred to me at the aforementioned time was a creative use of the 'remove HUD' and 'rear camera' options. Selecting the latter switches the camera to the one embedded in the other side of the camera, hiding Marcus from view and essentially placing the camera right where his eyes would be. The former option hides the UI, thus removing the appearance of a phone camera: my 1st person camera was born.
My favourite thing to do in any open-world game, be it Grand Theft Auto, Fallout or even Gravity Rush, is virtually tour. Often used when describing the other Ubisoft frontline franchise, Assassin's Creed, virtual tourism is the exploration of an open-world without objective- simply appreciating the map for what it is. With my new, more immersing eye-level camera set up, I proceeded to take a stroll through the city, starting near the Tenderloin district. I don't necessarily like First-Person Shooters, simply because the majority of them are military shooters with little to no substance, as COD: Infinite Warfare so unhelpfully proved last year. I do, however, adore first-person in open-world games, because it can make a world feel that bit more there. It helps you to see the finer details of the world, as my first-person tour through San Francisco subsequently proved.
I started off my journey by Torque Rat in West SF, just west of the famous Lombard Street (the one that's a winding red-brick road up the steepest hill in the city). To begin with, I was exploring the photogenic qualities of the areas I passed, and took some shots I deemed 'cool' (I'm particularly happy with the one in the middle):
God, I love San Francisco. Refusing to brave the nauseatingly twisty road down to the bottom, I bade my wall-bound fellow farewell and proceeded down the salaciously coloured red-and-black normal road to the shore, where I embarked on a little (read: long) trek to the world landmark that is Golden Gate Bridge, to bask in the waves of symbolism, art deco grandeur, and the sea right in front of me. Like the hacktivist, new-age hoodlum I am, I popped out my hi-vis drone to capture as good shots as I could get:
As I walked, people randomly striking a pose for me while some violently assaulted me for photographing their phone conversations (I'm looking at you, bald-headed Caucasian in a black-and-white checker shirt), the old SF tram, as seen in Monsters Vs. Aliens, appeared, and I just wanted to show my appreciation for it:
Oh, and I thought this guy's car looked cool:
Ploughing further into the city, I came upon a large, grey, obviously-government building, and my pursuit of the documentation of the hidden intricacies of the game's civilian AI heated up when I passed, at this building, a wedding photographer taking the wedding pics of a newlywed couple:
This exemplifies what I like about first-person in open-world games; when the camera's up high, it's all too easy to not see these little moments that just make a game.
Once I was done 'awwww'ing, I continued my journey (a sluggish one at the game's half-a-mile-an-hour camera speed) and, almost immediately after, I passed an Asian tourist taking selfies on a junction, and at that point, I was seriously questioning how many different scenarios the game had hidden at eye-level:
Crossing the arbitrary, though highly visible, boundary into the Tenderloin, I passed a number of interesting folks, including a guy in a delightfully green sweatshirt/sweatpants combo handing out flyers for something (I don't know what because he wouldn't stop moving his hands long enough for me to read them) and two buoyant grandpappy-types.
I know the conditions (just generally) are poor here in the rear end of California-central, but you have to admit, that's one helluva view:
I was also reminded of Italy as I passed a romantically tight and narrow side-street. What a cosy atmosphere!
The AI threw another curveball at me with this guy- a regular backpacker by the looks of him, just browsing the wares of a small shop in a big city...
I'm sure there are puns to be made with that name, but I'm more interested in its location. Look at its proximity to the Transamerica Pyramid! Look at the fresco! It's so cool!
At this point, after around 30 minutes (real time) walking, I came to Chinatown, America's biggest. Obviously, for the sake of it being a game, it's only a street here, but it's still pretty cool. Right? I mean, just look at all those Chinese lanterns!
My gentle stroll continued still, and in time I passed more tourists and locals, including a guy with a huge camera somehow entertained by my photography, and someone with a friend doing something highly dubious...
Coming to the southernmost fringes of the district, I came across this adorable fresco and just had to take a picture. How could I not? It's so pretty- in fact, I'm having it as my wallpaper.
My journey now having taken me into the beating heart of the city, I passed yet more posers and had a jolly old time with group of lightly-dressed guys having a bit of a chin-wag of their own. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I witnessed another dude walking his dog, which was so cute, especially as the dog occasionally stopped and shook itself off, that it made me go 'awwwww' yet again.
The tram (remember, from the start of this photographic voyage?) reappeared, prompting me to capture it one last time in all its glory. Seconds later, I turned around, saw the drop-dead gorgeous lighting- the darkness of night, with the rain falling in the most Hollywood-friendly fashion imaginable- and thought "I have to get this with a car", because car headlights look absolutely stunning in torrential rain.
As night quickly turned to day, I was accosted by a very strange man, sporting the most luminescent clothing I have ever seen, with extra-baggage harem pants and a tie-dye vortex into the hippy realm for a shirt. To my shock, as I was trying to capture the hauntingly beautiful lighting of the following street, this man then brutally murdered an innocent civilian, before subsequently standing over the corpse and laughing like a madman (says the person holding a camera as this happens). It was only when I was embroiled in a hacking invasion seconds later that I realised his unfortunate get-up meant he was actually another player. They do say everyone's a Trevor. But I did manage to get what I was after (eventually).
At this point, I died. The end. Except...
Reborn on the streets near city hall, I decided to continue my journey, and passed yet more interesting civilians, such as a couple discussing directions (at least, I'm pretty sure that's what it is) and several people having a seemingly-strenuous yoga session.
I wanted to continue, but by this time, I had been walking for nearly 2 hours, and so I brought it to an end. I had seen the world from a new perspective, met interesting people and seen stories unfold. Let me tell you, a walk in the park can tell you a million things. It's just better when you're the one seeing them. Now I have a spicy chicken fajita to cook, and it's going to be delicious.
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