The Great Escape (2003 video game)

The Great Escape
Developer(s)	Pivotal Games
Publisher(s)	NA: Gotham Games EU: SCi Games JP: Marvelous Entertainment
Distributor(s)	MGM Interactive
Platform(s)	PlayStation 2, Xbox, Microsoft Windows
Release date(s)	NA: 23 July 2003 EU: 29 August 2003 EU: 12 September 2003 (PC) JP: 14 October 2004 (PS2)
Genre(s)	Action-adventure, stealth
Mode(s)	Single-player

The Great Escape is an action-adventure stealth video game based on the 1963 movie of the same name. It was developed by UK-based developer Pivotal Games. The game was released on PlayStation 2, Xbox and Microsoft Windows. GameCube and Gizmondo versions of the game were planned but were eventually cancelled.

Gameplay

There are four playable characters in the game each with a special ability. They include MacDonald, who can speak German to pass himself off as a guard; Hendley, who can pick pockets to get papers, keys, etc.; Hilts, who can pick locks to get into buildings; and Sedgwick, who can fix mechanical devices. Captain "Virgil" Hilts is American with an attitude. Hendley is an American who joined the RAF Eagle Squadron before the US joined the war. The other characters are citizens of Great Britain or the British Empire: MacDonald is Scottish and Sedgwick is Australian. There are 18 levels in the game, most of which have fictional tasks and attacks, most of which did not happen in the movie. The plot-line follows that of the film of the same name, except there are also levels featuring some of the characters first captures and early escape attempts, as well as a changed ending where all four playable characters escape in the end, whereas in the film, only Sedgwick escapes, Hendley and Hilts are recaptured, and MacDonald is executed. Also, despite the cover showing Hilts with a gun hiding from a guard in the camp, this never occurs in the game or film.

Cast Information

Sound bites of Steve McQueen as Hilts were taken from the film and used in the game, famous lines such as "250", "Walking down the road" and "20 feet short" were used to recreate iconic scenes from the film. Two sounds bites of McQueen replying "Yeah" were also used to respond in the affirmative when talking to other characters.

Reception

Reception

Review scores Publication Score PC PS2 Xbox Edge N/A N/A 4/10[1] EGM N/A 5/10[2] 5/10[2] Eurogamer N/A 4/10[3] N/A Game Informer N/A 6.5/10[4] 7/10[5] GamePro N/A N/A [6] Game Revolution N/A N/A D[7] GameSpot 6.1/10[8] 6.1/10[9] 6.1/10[9] GameZone 6.3/10[10] 5.8/10[11] 6.2/10[12] IGN 5/10[13] 5/10[14] 5/10[15] OPM (US) N/A [16] N/A OXM (US) N/A N/A 5.5/10[17] PC Gamer (US) 62%[18] N/A N/A Maxim N/A 6/10[19] 6/10[19] Playboy N/A 63%[20] 63%[20] Aggregate score Metacritic 54/100[21] 57/100[22] 55/100[23]

The Great Escape received "mixed" reviews on all platforms according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.^[22][23][21]

References

1. Edge staff (September 2003). "The Great Escape (Xbox)". Edge (127). Archived from the original on 23 October 2003. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
2. EGM staff (October 2003). "The Great Escape (PS2, Xbox)". Electronic Gaming Monthly (171): 142. Archived from the original on 1 April 2004. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
3. Jennings, Ronan (18 September 2003). "The Great Escape (PS2)". Eurogamer. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
4. Mason, Lisa (September 2003). "[The] Great Escape (PS2)". Game Informer (125): 109. Archived from the original on 22 November 2008. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
5. Helgeson, Matt (September 2003). "[The] Great Escape (Xbox)". Game Informer (125): 120. Archived from the original on 17 March 2005. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
6. Pong Sifu (21 July 2003). "The Great Escape Review for Xbox on GamePro.com". GamePro. Archived from the original on 7 February 2005. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
7. Silverman, Ben (August 2003). "The Great Escape Review (Xbox)". Game Revolution. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
8. Shoemaker, Brad (31 July 2003). "The Great Escape Review (PC)". GameSpot. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
9. Shoemaker, Brad (28 July 2003). "The Great Escape Review (PS2, Xbox)". GameSpot. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
10. Hopper, Steven (7 August 2003). "The Great Escape Review - PC". GameZone. Archived from the original on 17 January 2008. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
11. Watkins, Rob (6 August 2003). "The Great Escape Review - PlayStation 2". GameZone. Archived from the original on 5 February 2008. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
12. Romano, Natalie (4 August 2003). "The Great Escape Review - Xbox". GameZone. Archived from the original on 18 March 2007. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
13. Hwang, Kaiser (4 August 2003). "The Great Escape Review (PC)". IGN. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
14. Hwang, Kaiser (24 July 2003). "The Great Escape (PS2)". IGN. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
15. Hwang, Kaiser (25 July 2003). "The Great Escape (Xbox)". IGN. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
16. Sewart, Greg (September 2003). "The Great Escape". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine: 93. Archived from the original on 30 March 2004. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
17. "The Great Escape". Official Xbox Magazine: 84. October 2003.
18. Chandra, Omeed (November 2003). "The Great Escape". PC Gamer: 116. Archived from the original on 15 March 2006. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
19. Steinberg, Scott (23 July 2003). "The Great Escape (PS2, Xbox)". Maxim. Archived from the original on 10 October 2003. Retrieved 2 December 2015.
20. "The Great Escape (PS2, Xbox)". Playboy: 32. August 2003.
21. "The Great Escape for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
22. "The Great Escape for PlayStation 2 Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 October 2013.
23. "The Great Escape for Xbox Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 14 October 2013.

External links

• The Great Escape (2003) at MobyGames