 Sam and Max: The Devil's Playhouse: Episode 4 - Beyond the Alley of the Dolls Review
(PC, Playstation 3)
Thousands of half-naked Sam clones (aka 'Dogglegangers') are rampaging through the city!
By LaughingMan
When last we left off, the brain of the evil child Pharaoh Sammun-Mak acquired Max's body and, using Max's psychic powers combined with his own, Sammun-Mak created an alternate universe where sand got stuck in your camel's toes and he rules all. With the exception of Max's brain, all of the other main characters were under the illusion that they serve Sammun-Mak, and the evil Pharaoh's reign of odd temper tantrum-based terror only ended after the disembodied brain of Max telepathically controlled the body of Sam to lobotomize Pharaoh Sammun-Mak with an ancient and holy, anti-psychic corkscrew.
Yeah, you missed a lot if you haven't actually played the games...
However, the disembodied voice of a Dr. Norrington, who aided Max in his plot to overthrow Sammun-Mak, restore reality and regain Max's body. But who is Dr. Norrington?
But there's no time to ponder as Sam and Max stumble into an enormous subterranean cloning facility that is cranking out Sams faster than his own bitch mother. In an almost tributary nod to Dawn of the Dead, Sam, Max, and General Skun-ka'pe race into Stinky's diner as the brainless Sam clones (or 'Dogglegangers') approach, arms stretched out and moaning "...toys... toooys..." You find yourself trapped in Stinky's diner as Doggleganger clones reach through the boarded windows; Grandpa Stinky is armed with a shotgun, exclaiming he hasn't had this much fun in years; Max pulls a pistol from... somewhere that isn't our damn business..., gleefully shooting clones of his partner while telling an increasingly nervous Sam, "I made your head explode!". Girl Stinky, Grandpa Stinky's conspiring daughter, sits in the middle of the room texting, while General Skun-ka'pe is cowering behind the counter, traumatized by the legions of Sams.
From here you must escape the diner, discover the identity of Dr. Norrington, and then find the culprit who has unleashed the army of Sam clones ('Dogglegangers') upon the city. During the adventure, things begin coming full-circle and several plot points are brought to closure such as Girl Stinky's mysterious boyfriend. You also discover that perhaps Paiperwaite, the villain of The Tomb of Sammun-Mak, might not be such a bad guy after all.
In terms of gameplay, it is, once again, standard point and click adventuring, collecting items and using them under the right circumstances to progress in the game. You do get to make use of the Charlie Hotep Toy of Power to throw your voice and manipulate some of the Sam clones, so that is a plus. However, Episode 4: Beyond the Alley of the Dolls does not deviate from the formula as earlier episodes did, and if it weren't for a decent story and the humor, this game is just another brick in the wall. While Sam and Max purists may be right at home with Beyond the Alley of the Dolls being the only 'traditional' Sam and Max game since Episode 1: The Penal Zone, those of us who enjoyed the clever gameplay twists of The Tomb of Sammun-Mak and They Stole Max's Brain, four feels trite and unmemorable.
That is, until the climactic showdown at the end of the game against this episode's antagonist at the top of the Statue of Liberty. Sam is under control by the story's shocking antagonist, and is forced to play a song of doom on a piano as his Dogglegangers scale the Statue of Liberty and sacrifice themselves for Junior, the awakening Elder God. Meanwhile, Max must ascend the Statue of Liberty where he has a final psychic showdown against the mystery antagonist by mixing and matching the psychic abilities granted to him by his use of the Toys of Power.
There isn't much to say about the graphics in Beyond the Alley of the Dolls except that during the first third of the game where they reenact Night of the Living Dead, the screen has a grain-filter, much like that in the Silent Hill series of games. It's a very meager twist in comparison to the visual style of the first third of Episode 3: They Stole Max's Brain!
However, in Beyond the Alley of the Dolls, the sound quality takes a noticeable nosedive. The sound effects are not awful, they're almost nonexistent. For instance, in Stinky's Diner, both Max and Grandpa Stinky are blasting away Sam clones, but the sound effects of their guns are either incredibly muted, or COMPLETELY MUTED. The shooting would have been more believable if Max and Grandpa Stinky held out their fingers like Kindergartners and shouted 'POW POW!'. Perhaps the other Sam and Max games suffer from the lack of adequate sound effects, but in Beyond the Alley of the Dolls, it's so completely unmissable. The only saving grace for the sound department is a musical finale atop the Statue of Liberty.
There's no boom in my boomstick!!
AGAIN, there is little replay value unless you are whoring trophies.
...I'm beginning to think that reviewing episodic content is a bad idea because if one episode is lacking in anything, then the entire series is likely lacking and I find myself repeating the same thing 5 times running.
Overall, Beyond the Alley of the Dolls has its moments of comedy and I particularly liked the Night of the Living Dead scenario, but the Doggleganger gag felt a great deal 'out of left field' to have adequately fit that comfortably into the overall scheme of the entire series so far. Sure, the Dogglegangers are a catalyst to bring the Elder God, Junior, to earth, but it could have been anything else, really. Some of the revelations that I can't go into detail on were interesting, and I enjoyed a lot of the H.P. Lovecraft nods, but Episode 4: Beyond the Alley of the Dolls left me feeling pretty empty in comparison to earlier episodes.
Check back in a few weeks when I cover the fifth and final episode of The Devil's Playhouse: The City That Dares Not Sleep!
Graphics |
8.0 |
The graphics are still as good as a cartoony game can get, but there's nothing to give Episode 4 an extra boost. |
Sound |
5.0 |
The sound effects are either mute or nonexistent. Earlier episodes may have sound issues, but they stick out too much in Episode 4. |
Gameplay |
7.0 |
Until the great climactic showdown with the antagonist, the gameplay felt tiresome and 'done before'. Props for a good finale though. |
Story |
7.5 |
Mixed feelings on the story because some aspects involving several character interactions are good, but the whole Doggleganger plot felt tacked on. |
Replay Value |
1.0 |
Unless you are a trophy whore or you just like hearing the same jokes over and over again, there's little reason to ever replay this game. |
OVERALL |
7.5 |
Outside of some story elements, Episode 4 feels like it offers nothing fresh to the previous three games. |
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