Game Description

Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrial life? Is the government conspiring to cover up evidence? The truth is out there, but you'll have to go looking for it when you take on the role of Craig Willmore, an FBI field agent assigned to search for missing agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully in Fox Interactive's The X-Files.

Previously a hit PC title, this interactive movie-adventure will take your PlayStation console into the realm of the popular X-Files science fiction drama series, as you assist the stars in their latest investigation into paranormal activity cases.

Designed from a story written by Chris Carter, The X-Files features many of the main cast members from the show including Assistant Director Walter Skinner, as well as new characters tailored specifically for this game. You'll be interviewing witnesses and suspects with the aid of special FBI equipment, weapons, and tools. Use them wisely to pick up clues throughout your case and follow-up on crime scenes at the crime lab. Discover a plot that thickens as you progress.

The game is viewed from a first-person perspective and features looped video footage when you're at a distance from other characters or environments. When you move in any direction (by clicking on the pointing hand icons), you'll pass through predetermined, fixed frames of digitized scenery. By enabling the Navigating Transitions option, you'll experience more realism when turning left or right, thanks to a motion-blur effect.

With the VirtualCinema game engine, the four-disc set breaks new ground standards for PlayStation video technology (FPQ 24-bit), enabling greater compression at the highest quality for video playback. The original footage was shot live, entirely on location in the Pacific Northwest. As you come upon something of importance, such as an FBI agent, a witness or even new items, a video clip starts to play.

You'll be making some critical, multiple-choice decisions. The game consists of multiple plot lines and at times, three icons will appear at the bottom of the screen indicating which attitude you want to take towards a certain person. This will affect the next outcome of game flow - be careful what you wish for!

Some of the tools you'll be using are a PDA (or Personal Digital Assistant), a cellular phone, your badge, a gun and handcuffs, an evidence kit and lock pick, a digital camera, a flashlight, a pair of binoculars, and night vision goggles. Your PDA is one of your best friends because it allows you to take notes, e-mail reports to your superiors, and utilize the internal map to locate specific areas.

Another mission-critical item you'll be using is your very own desktop workstation, which features the ING (Intelligence Network Gateway). With this tool you'll have access to background checks, vehicle license plate numbers, phone number tracing, a database with a full search engine, a Photo Viewer for your camera, e-mail, and important messages and All Points Bulletins. ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

Review: Enjoyment

The story keeps you thinking and the paranoia will keep you moving! The interface is simple yet practical. ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

Production Credits

FOX INTERACTIVE

Senior Producer: Gary Sheinwald

Associate Producers: Luke Letizia, Erik Larson

Assistant to the Producer: Denise Pater

Quality Assurance Managers: Tim Hall, Mike Schneider, David Ortiz

Lead Testers: Michael Dunn, Harish Rao

Testers: Aron Ahles, Ken Anderson, Sweet Billy, Ben Borth, Francis Choi, Ryan Dowling, Judd Hollander, Igor Krinitskiy, Cris Lee, Paul Pawlicki, Don Sexton, Jeff Tatman, Tim Tran, Daan Wisehart, Brian Zenns

Marketing Manager: Stephanie Yoshimoto

PLAYSTATION DEVELOPMENT TEAM

Executive Producer: Halle Eavelyn

Produer: Jason VandenBerghe

Software Engineers: Nathan Dwyer, Oscar Levi, Melanie McClaire, Alex Smits, Jason VandenBerghe, Andrew Wilson

Lead Graphic Artist: Cassandria Blackmore

Assistant Graphic Artist: Guy Paquin

Lead Video Editor: Derek Dexheimer

Audio Engineer: Paul Hiaumet

FPQ Video Technology: Nick Pelling

Console Engine Project Management Consulting: Pterodactyl Software, Ltd.

CAST (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE)

Dana Scully: Gillian Anderson

Fox Mulder: David Duchovny

Craig Willmore: Jordan Lee Williams

Mark Cook: James Lynch

Walter Skinner: Mitch Pileggi

Armistead Shanks: Sean Griffin

Mother: Suzanne McGaffey

Child: Zoe Warner

Motel Clerk: Lisa Estridge Gray

James Wong: Robert Lee

NSA #1: Nick Eldridge

NSA #2: Richard W. Daley

John Amis: Reginald A. Jackson

Pendrell: Brendan Beiser

Mendoza: Nick Granado

Stearns: Chuck McQuary

Arley: Mark Farrell

Mary Astadourian: Paige Witte

Harbor Master: John Gilbert

Joan Truitt: Lauren Tewes

Crew-Cut Man: Eli Lockwood

Dr. Rauch: Randy Hoffmeyer

Cigarette Smoking Man: William B. Davis

Smolnikoff: Ted D'Arms

X: Steven Williams

Dr. McIntyre: Jimmi Parker

Homeless Man: Clifford Paul Fetters

Frohike: Tom Braidwood

Byers: Bruce Harwood

Langly: Dean Haglund

Colonel Wallace: Wally Dalton

Key Guard: Harris Smith

NSA Men: Brad Curtis, Steve Keller, Brian Kilcup, Whitey Shapiro, Joe Willis, Jr.

Pretty Woman: Laurel McConnell

Black Ops Guards: Alvin Castle, Ron Garner, David Oppenheim, Raymond J. Reehill

PRODUCTION

Executive Producer: Halle Eavelyn

Producer: Phil Peters

Director/Designer: Greg Roach

Story Concept: Chris Carter

Story Editor: Frank Spotnitz, Dan Crow, Catherine Kent, Rebecca Roch, David Shadle

On Set Dresser: Rachel M. Thomson

Script Supervisor: Rebecca DeGeorge, Tina Frolund, Jennifer Hinkey

Costume Designer: Lisa Kohl

Wardrobe Supervisor: Sarah Isakson

Wardrobe Assistant: Julie Puterman, Kari Rittenour, Sally Roberts

Property Master: Kathleen Kasinger

Assistant Prop Master: Robert Leisle

Prop Assistants: Jennifer Hunt, Joyce McAndrews, Gretchen Warthen

Location Manager: Peter Allen

Assistant Locations Manager: Maggie Bassetti

Locations Assistants: Annette Hawley, Leanna Alicee Redmond: Brook Simmons, Somsy Vejsiri, Sarah Wright

Key Hair and Make-Up: Omi

Assistant Hair and Make-Up: Shelley Clark, Robin I. Knutson, Carolynn Weast

Hair for Mr. Duchovny and Ms. Anderson: Laverne Basham

Make-Up for Mr. Duchovny and Ms. Anderson: Angeline Bemben

Special Effects Make-Up: Michael Christ

Camera Operator: Mark L. Anderson

First Assistant Camera: Ross Howsmon

Second Assistant: Marne Cohen

Camera: Mami Morisaki

Camera Assistans: Derek Hay, Mike McIntyre

Gaffer: Giovani Lampassi

Best Boy Electric: Eric "Pine Mountain" Moore

Electricians: Mochael Baird, Mark Canniff, Steve Colgrove, Cole Drumb, Scott Harbine, Chad Harrison, Michael LePard, Kevin T. O'Connell, Myron Partman, Laura Chanel Reynolds, Mark Simon, Scott Todd, Matrijn Veltman, Charlie Waldron

Key Grip: Jon LaFollette

Best Boy Grip: Lance "Brazil" Robinson

Grips: Craig Bilodeau, Jeff Carpenter, Tony Ghiglione, Petey Johnson, Kirk Miller, Caleb R. Nelson, Jimmie Owens

Rigging Gaffer: Jamed O. Rosel

RIgging Key Grip: David C. Darrow

Rigging Crew: Keith Bronsdon, Kathryn Burbank, Lisa Gates, George Hicks, Chris Kovalski, Erik Loysen, Robert Platt, Daniel Reyes

Special Effects Coordinator: Michael Christ

Pyrotechnician: Mark McDaniel

Special Effects Assistants: James Etue, Tony Guaranscio, Brian Puterman

Stunt Coordinator: David Boushey

Stunt Performers: Ian Boushey, Steve Curran, Ron Garner, Jolene Hjerleid, Eric Michael Johnson, Robert McDougal, Bill Shaw, Kerry Skalsky, Bill Whittaker

Casting Director: Halle Eavelyn

Casting Assistant: Darin Mercado

Stand-Ins: Graig Gatch, Eero Johnson, Jennifer O'Shields, Robert Shane Srogi, Jason Webber

Construction Coordination: Kenneth J. Berg

Construction Foreman: James Foley

Lead Scenic Artist: Lisa Bellero

Scenic Artists: Dean Hitchcock, Michael Stencil, Catherine Trzybinski, Nick Worsfold

Carpenters: Robin Cady, John Wayne Cyra, Alex Danilchik, Wayne Foster, Catherine Kent, Jeffery Kohl, Norm Spencer, Martin Thrussell

Audio Engineer: Paul Hiaumet

Boom Operator: Mickey McMullan

Audio Assistants: Terri Eberlein, Candace Schecter

Audio Intern: Morgan Kohler

Transportation Coordinator: Dan Fisher

Transportation Captian: Jon R. McCarthy

Drivers: Virgil Dosher, Keith Dosher, David Guppy, Ron King, Sharon McCarthy, Sherri McCarthy, Joel McCarthy, William R. Powell, Joe Soleberg, Bob Sullivan, John Wolfe

Medics: Douglas Dahl, Fred Jaross, Peter Knudson, Todd Q. Smith

Security: Future Security Services

Catering: Premiere Catering

Craft Services: Sandra MacLean

SECOND UNIT

Director of Photography: Theodor Angell

Assistant Director: Sandra Hunter

Script Supervisor: Cedric A. Prim, Natalie Beauchene

Props: Shawn Connaway

Locations Manager: Maggie Bassetti

Locations Assistant: Leanna Alicee Redmond

Camera Assistant: Pauls Zommers

Gaffers: Bjorn Boisen, Krist Hagar, David K. Potter

Best Boy Electric: Matthew Quinn

Grip/Electric: Matt Baker, Keith Brondson

Catering: Christines Catering

Craft Services: Helen Morgan

VANCOUVER CREW

Gaffer: Paul Slatter

Best Boy Electric: Jeff O'Brien

Key Grip: Ryan Monro

Best Boy Grip: Herb DeWaal

EDITING

Lead Editor: Greg Roach

Editing Coordinator/Editor: Kara Costa

Technical Editor: Jeni Sadler

Assistant Editors: Eric Anderson, Laura Clemons, Derek Dexheimer, Scott Harbine, Katy O'Kelley Joyner, Matthew Lease, Brandon McWhorter, Mark O'Connell, Jason VandenBerghe

Editing Interns: John Joseph Kniffen III, Frazier Mills, Misumi Tanaka

SOFTWARE ENGINEERING

Lead Engineers: Pete Isensee, Melanie McClaire

Software Engineers: Derek Rhys Creech, Matthew Lease, Alex Smits, Patricia Snow, Jason VandenBerghe

Asset Wrangler: Joseph Kim

Assistant Asset Wrangler: Virginia "Ginny" Apicella

Optimization Programming: Geoffrey P. Coco

User Testing: Paul W, Taylor

Quality Assurance: Kalindi Adler, Dane Doerflinger

VirtualCinema Concept and Design: Greg Roach

VirtualCinema 3.0 Architecture: Pete Isensee, Melanie McClaire

Network Manager: Joseph Kim

Closed-Captioning: Carl Mollnow II, Christa Wells

Honorary Programmer: Aaron Halon

GRAPHICS

Lead Graphics Artist: Cassandria Blackmore

Best Boy Graphic Artist: Aaron Halon

Assistant Graphic Artists: Elaine Mattson, Aaron McQ, Sun Kim, Christine Lee, Cynthia Sowder

Storyboard Artist: Aaron Halon

Graphic Interns: Raif Copeland, Robert Corbett, Jarret Katter, Anton Korshunov, Robert Shane Srogi

ACCOUNTING

Production Accountant: Deborah L. Rathbone

Accounting Assistant: Helen Dusek

Staff Accountants: Suzan Kearns, Carmen Swannack ~ Joe Lamb, All Game Guide

Review: Overall

If you've missed the mysterious character named "X," then get ready to deal with him one more time in this mystery adventure from Fox Interactive. The X-Files game does not take place at the FBI headquarters. Instead it is centered in a field office located in Seattle. At first, some may be disappointed that they play as an unknown, recently transferred agent named Craig Willmore instead of Mulder or Scully.

It won't matter though, after the excitement of a short introductory video clip of the two stars entering a warehouse where Scully is abducted by a bright, flashing white light, setting off the tone for a well-written plot. What comes next is the actual television theme introduction, which is a nice and obvious choice. This isn't just an FMV (Full Motion Video) game, however. It's detailed in nature and keeps a good track of inventory and time.

It is April 2nd, 1996, at 9:14 A.M. You enter the FBI field office building and run into another agent named Mark Cook, who turns out to be a waste of time. Or is he? As with all things X-Files-related, whom can you really trust? This is what makes up the core theme of the X-Files, and this game does the television series justice. Players may actually become a little paranoid as the game progresses.!

All the major actors from the hit show play their character counterparts, such as Assistant Director Walter Skinner, who helps you along the way. Again, the paranoia comes, later in the game when he doesn't follow through. Soon, Cook wants you to inform him on everything that's happening, yet he is acting quite peculiarly. You begin not to trust anyone at all, making perhaps rash judgments and choices based on speculation. This is what keeps the story interesting and compelling as it moves forward.

The developers went to excruciating lengths to capture video of every possible occurrence. For example, if you're showing an item to Skinner and he tells you it's not important, you'll witness him saying this in whatever area you're in and it will be different each time. Most of the time when you speak to characters, they look you in the eye; sometimes they don't. Whatever the case, it attempts to bring you in to the story and interaction as if you were there.

Unfortunately in this PlayStation version of the game, e-mail forwarding is not possible. Perhaps this is due to the lack of a keyboard option. As well, the time is cut a little short, as you're not required to enter a password into your own workstation every time you want to log on. Also, the Photo Viewer is limited, as you must delete pictures in order to add more.

Navigation is pretty simple, though the option to use a mouse would've been helpful. Also, the vibration function could have been dropped, since it's not implemented well or often enough. Targeting your gun is a bit of a problem too, since your target is moving around due to the camera shifting. However, it would be too easy if the target just stood there. Overall, The X-Files interactive game isn't for everyone, but definitely for X-Files fans and those who enjoy FMV games. In fact, it's among the best available. ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

Review: Graphics

The video quality is top notch, probably the best seen in a PlayStation title. The frame rate is good except when it pauses once in a while. The other graphics are very good as well. ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

Review: Sound

The sounds are of movie quality, of course. The music is composed with X-Files themes and is very dramatic, dark and moody. ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

Review: Replay Value

There's not much more you can do in an interactive movie game. However, since there's a lot of multiple choice in the game, you can go back and answer or question characters differently and see some new reactions! ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

Review: Documentation

The 35-page instruction booklet contains all the necessary information you'll need to play the game. It could have been a little more detailed, however. ~ Cal Nguyen, All Game Guide

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