Genre: Stealth	Developed By: Replay Studios
	A stealth assassination game based during WW2. The main character's main utilities are her knife, morphine and extra tight clothing

The majority of the game takes place with Violette unconscious recalling the supposedly key events that led her there. I say supposedly because with the exception of one mission, there are no apparent links with the other flashbacks and the reason for her injury. Furthermore the briefings for each mission are simple narrations without any animation or dramatic effects. This leads to minimal immersion and will lead to players not really caring about any of the mission objectives.

Assassin Limited:

The move set for the character is limited. Violette can either run or sneak around in crouch mode. The primary and most used attack move is to sneak up behind an enemy and perform an animated kill. Violette can also swing her knife around when the enemy is facing her. But this is mostly useless as it takes multiple slow swipes to take down a target with a machine gun/shot gun/ flamethrower at point blank range!

Fortunately the developers do show some mercy by giving limited ammo for pistols and flare guns. But with the clunky controls it is no match for a fire fight against multiple enemies with machine guns, shot guns and/or flamethrowers.

Fortunately there are drugs. Violette can carry one dose of morphine. Using morphine freezes the enemies for a short duration. However killing an enemy will remove the effect. When a single enemy spots you, you can kill him. But if spotted by multiple enemies, the only option is to run away and find cover. It is a questionable game mechanic as it promotes the use of drugs when you find yourself in a bad situation.

The limited moves and clunky aiming controls mean that players will die a lot. Do not take this warning lightly, as a fan of the Splinter Cell and MGS franchise I still ended up dead more than 5 times on only the first level.

Limited by Design:

I have to admit that I did enjoy the game after the initial frustration for the early levels. But that was short lived as repetition kicked in. The levels provide little room for maneuverability. Even the outdoor environments are bounded by obstacles. Obstacles that in reality could be climbed over by a fast food junky, but is a bit much for spy Violette Summer. Unfortunately for the most part it seems that there is only one route to success. That route most often requires the player to patiently observe the patrol route of the enemies. Added to the limited moves, this leads to a formula for absolute frustration.

Another great example of frustration and limited game design is the feature to wear Nazi clothing. You can only switch between regular spy wear and Nazi clothing when inside a toilet or wardrobe. You can not change clothes inside a house where you’ve laid its occupants to a cold and eternal rest. To make matters worse, you can not sneak up behind enemies when wearing the Nazi uniform.

If that’s not enough:

The game has bugs. These are the type of bugs that get saved to a check point and force you to restart the entire mission.

Graphics:

The graphics and sound are decent. The lighting effects stand out. However the visual effects of flamethrowers and machine guns are poor.

Final Word:

The Metal Gear Solid and Splinter Cell franchises have redefined and changed the face of stealth based games. Velvet Assassins a lot of these innovations and is a step backwards for the genre. Add bugs into the mix and you get one very frustrating game.

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