I’d written off the 3D iteration of Ecco, because a. it’s a cool hipster thing to be a fan of only the pre-reboot version of something, and b. with my current setup emulating either Dreamcast or the PS2 port was impossible. When I decided point “a” was stupid and I really wanted to try it, I bought a PS2 in real life, went in with an open mind and ended up really loving DotF.
As a continuity nut I dislike reboots in general, but it gave DotF the opportunity to remake some setpieces from a new perspective while also branching out with the story and doing new, fun things with it. Being a completely different style of game while a whole other dimension (the third) helped make it a break from the existing Ecco series; having said that though, I was surprised how faithfully many mechanics were transitioned to 3D.
Sorry, let me back up. Ecco the Dolphin games are about exploring undersea worlds as a realistic-ish dolphin, fighting sea creatures and navigating challenging environments while ramping up the mystical sci-fi elements. This one’s no different, but this time around humans are an acknowledged part of the world. The story was outsourced to sci-fi novellist David Brin and taking cues from his work is about the harmony between dolphins and humans as we acknowledge each other’s intelligence. It’s told in a slightly scattershot way, mainly through cutscenes narrated by Tom Baker, but I really dug it.
The idea is that Ecco is one of the caretakers of Earth after most dolphins and humans have left to explore the stars, when an alien race, The Foe, attack and shatter the powerful crystalline Guardian that was left to protect the remaining life. After the first set of levels in the peaceful natural waters of this Earth, the aliens travel back in time and you end up in different timelines that result from their meddling. In one, humans have dominated dolphins but since died out, leaving industrial technology and several cults of dolphinkind twisted by their contact with humanity. In another, dolphins became dominant and modified themselves, creating their own very alien structures and devices. This premise lets the game explore ideas of coexistence, as well as different gameplay ideas and settings that keep things interesting as you progress.
Not all of these gameplay ideas are as successful as others. Mazes of identical tunnels, laboriously moving mining machinery, or navigating skybourne water tracks are notoriously frustrating sections to play even though the aesthetics and novelty kept me engaged. The game’s usually pretty fair with its checkpoints, and I always knew there would be something new and creative for me to figure out coming up—interacting with different dolphin clans, activating strange mechanisms, or interfering with an alien hatchery—but a guide or two certainly did not go amiss, especially when searching for the Vitalit collectibles.
I must mention how beautiful this game is; while it’s occasionally let down by technical limitations (certain textures, foggy draw distance issues), and certain levels are very dim and grungy, Ecco’s animations are fluid and there’s some very visually striking material: the early coral reefs, the Hanging Waters, some of the speculative technology… overall, I was impressed. I can’t say the same for the music, which strove for ambience but often ended a bit bland. Unusual for the great Tim Follen, but it seems that he was a last-minute commission for a soundtrack replacement so may have been a little rushed. It also didn’t help that my copy of the disc was scratched up significantly, which not only caused music tracks to skip and loop, but also caused intermittent crashes and softlocks, especially when trying to use the sonar map (I feel this made the game slightly harder for me than it could have been, as I had to avoid using the map feature).
I was sorry to have been dismissive of Defender of the Future in the past, because despite a lack of involvement by Ed Annunziata, the team at Appaloosa (formerly Novotrade) turned out a really unique and engaging game experience. And seeing the beginnings of concepts for the planned sequel makes me all the more wish for a continuation. Ah well, I’ll keep seeking out other Ecco-likes as I showed on my stream once before, there’s plenty to discover!
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