Bureau - Shattered Slipper (XBLIG): "Sequel to Twist-Ed Game's Sexy FBI Thriller"

Guy Galer of 'Twist-Ed Games' is one of the more unique indie game developers to grace the XBLIG marketplace. If memory serves me well he has created four beautifully rendered titles including 'Colonies: NeoCiv', and 'Bureau - Agent Kendall'. It was by mere chance that I happened upon a Youtube trailer of Guy's game 'Bureau - Agent Kendall' late last year. My initial thoughts were that the game look interesting, and that there was a sexy quality about it, specifically some semi-nude sequences. It sparked my interest enough to request the game for review. During my playthrough of 'Bureau - Agent Kendall' I found it to be a very involved game. It utilized realistic FBI tactics including suspect interrogations, relationship building with various persons involved in the given cases, and action packed interactive sequences where the Bureau agents involved had to fight for their very survival. The game ultimately ended with a cliffhanger that was reminiscent of the shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho". Months have passed since the first game was released, but finally the sequel is here. I was very anxious to see how/if Agent Kendall got out of her dire situation, and if the gameplay was similar to that of the previous title.

As with any really good sequel "Bureau - Shattered Slipper" begins with a prologue composed of all the cutscenes from the previous game letting the player know exactly what went down the first time around. While there is no audio dialogue, or text about the goings on in "Bureau - Agent Kendall" the prologue still pretty much sums up the game. When we last left Agent Kendall she was taking a rather steamy shower as an intruder made his way into her bathroom. The culprit was the suspect from the first game's plot, and was intent on finishing the job he had started earlier. After shooting Agent Kendall through the shower's glass window the suspect moves in to finish her off. Agent Kendall ends up turning the tables on her would be murderer through some very cunning moves. Without giving the exact details away, Agent Kendall finishes the job she had started in the previous game. She recovers from her bullet wound, and almost immediately begins work on a new case.

In "Bureau - Shattered Slipper" Agent Kendall revisits her old Bureau boss Ramesh, and winds up getting involved in a brief terrorist plot. That part of Agent Kendall's investigation doesn't really go anywhere in this game though, but instead a new case is introduced that thrusts Agent Kyler, Ramesh, and Agent Kendall in yet another life threatening case. As the title of the game suggests this particular case is called "Shattered Slipper". For those of you who haven't played either of the games yet I will stray away from giving away significant details of the plot. All you really need to know is that a highly religious brother ends up getting blamed the murder of his adopted sister, and other suspects eventually get questioned leading up to a plot climax. Through the usual interrogations/fact finding Agent Kendall is able to narrow down the suspects, and eventually catch/face her culprit.

"Bureau - Shattered Slipper" is a very text heavy game, and requires the player to pay close attention to details in the case. As you take on the role of Agent Kendall (A Super Sexy FBI Lady) you will have to manage your time wisely. You are given a list of things to do on your PDA regarding the case that is given. This includes interviewing subjects, and finding facts about the clues that you find. Each task takes up a certain amount of time in your day, and if you don't ask the right questions, make the correct contacts, or search for info in the correct order your schedule will not work in your favor. It will also keep you from solving the case properly.

Added to this game is a new conversation meter that deals with a person's/character's reaction to your various responses. In some instances I found that it was a good thing to get an adverse reaction from the person you were talking with while other times it was deemed more inappropriate. Whenever you say something that causes such a reaction a flaming pie bar will show up displaying just how confused, or upset you made the person in question. It was an interesting feature, and I definitely got a good laugh during one scene in the game as a result. Also added to the core crime solving gameplay was a mini-game feature that requires you to remember events in chronological order. It's a three step process that involves identifying key images that relate to clues you have found, as well as watching a visual playback of reenactments of the crime in as seen through the eyes of the different subjects in order to place what happened, and when.

As with "Bureau - Agent Kendall" this game features a lot of CG cutscenes showing off the action, and sexy time sequences in the game. If you're wondering, I did just say "Sexy Time". As intelligently written as this FBI based game is it still has a lot of sexually oriented features in it. You'll find lots of close ups of Agent Kendall's large breasts/cleavage as well as some near nude depictions of her. Like the first game certain conversations deal with the more sexual overtone of the game, and can trigger some sexy events that lead to some very softcore/erotic/intimate CG scenes. In that sense the game is definitely geared towards the male gamers, and as a male gamer I have to say that I really enjoyed the game. With that being said my interest wasn't purely about the sexual content that the game offered. I also enjoyed the FBI crime solving tactics that were involved. You don't find many good FBI based games out there anymore, so this was something fun and new to experience.

I ended up spending close to two hours playing through "Bureau - Shattered Slipper". It held my attention very well. The CG scenes weren't repetitive like they were in the first game which was definitely a plus. The new interactive CG scenes, and puzzles were all executed quite nicely. They were presented casually into the game not making it seem like a forced in set of features. Most of my time with "Bureau - Shattered Slippers" was spent going through the process of dealing with suspects through text interaction, and clue gathering. It's the way a solid FBI game should be done. While the game did have it's "spicy" moments it kept true to the FBI part of the game. In the end I couldn't find anything I didn't like about the game. I could tell a lot of time, and effort had been put into making this twisted tale, and it really shows. If you haven't got either of the games in this series I would strongly suggest doing so, unless you are offended by Guy Galer's interpretation of what a female Bureau agent should look and act like (I would totally understand). Like I mentioned earlier this game is definitely geared more towards the male gamers out there, so it would be a good thing to keep that in mind when deciding whether or not to buy this game.