Saw (video game)

For the online browser game based on the same series, see [[:Saw Das Spiel (Online Game)]].

For the film series this game is based upon, see [[:Saw (franchise)]].

Saw
official North American box art
Developer(s)	Zombie Studios
Publisher(s)	Konami
Designer(s)	David Cohen (Producer)
Writer(s)	James Wan Leigh Whannell David Cohen
Series	Saw
Engine	Unreal Engine 3
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Genre(s)	Third person action, Survival horror
Mode(s)	Single-player, Multi-player

Saw is a survival horror video game with action elements. It is currently in development by Zombie Studios and is being published by Konami. The game is set to launch on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, with a downloadable version being made for the Microsoft Windows platform. It is an adaption of the Saw film series, and has a tentative release date of October 6 2009 in North America, and October in Australia. The game is set to release around the same time as Saw VI, although they have entirely separate story lines.

The game was originally being published by Brash Entertainment, who later ceased all operations due to financial troubles. This allowed Konami to pick up the publishing rights for the game only a few weeks later. The game, now under control of Konami, is being designed to be a spiritual successor to Konami's other survival horror franchise, Silent Hill. Konami plans to make Saw its next big next survival horror franchise, although no plans for a sequel have been discussed.

Gameplay

Saw is primarily a third-person survival horror game with action elements. The player controls David Tapp, a former detective trapped in the Jigsaw killers asylum filled with traps. The primary goal of the game is to traverse the asylum and solve traps and defeat hostile prisoners in order to escape alive. Tapp will have several abilities in the game to fulfill his objectives such as searching things like toilets, dead bodies, nurse's carts, and nightstands to find things like weapons, health, clues, or others. There are also various things hidden around the asylum that can be found to provide background on why Tapp is there and other information on Jigsaw and others. Many of these come in the form of "Jigsaw Notes" left behind or cassette tapes found laying around, similar to the "Holotapes" and notes found in Fallout 3.

File:Saw Videogame Screen 3.jpg

The player being prompted to control the in-game character. A close-up camera angle is used to aid the player in completing a task.

---

The above file's purpose is being discussed and/or is being considered for deletion. See files for discussion to help reach a consensus on what to do.

The game's combat system allows the character to block, counter-attack, and perform weak and strong attacks to fend off enemies in the asylum. Tapp will have a variety of weapons and resources available to him such as lead pipes, scalpels, crutches, or just bare fists. Certain weapons may also be used for other purposes such as cutting open a body to search it or breaking down a molding wall to reveal hidden paths. Similar to the Condemned series, weapons in the game deplete over time in real time until they are rendered unusable. Tapp's health bar, once depleted, can only be restored by hypos which can be stored in an inventory.

Dread central reveals that Saw will in fact have an online multiplayer component because, "working together will help you survive The Game." The extent of the multiplayer has yet to be revealed except that it will be online through Xbox Live and Playstation Network. At certain points in the game, the player will be joined by AI teammates that will help Tapp in certain tests or areas. At many points in the story, there are multiple paths that can be taken to avoid certain areas or uncover hidden items. The game can be played at two difficulty settings; normal and hard.

A few minigames have been incorporated into the game. These include a searching minigame in which an X-ray view is given to avoid dangers like razors or syringes and grabbing a key before a "Pain meter" fills and wounds Tapp. There is also a lockpicking minigame in which he must turn the dials of a lock so that they all match to successfully unlock the door. Finally, there are doors rigged with shotguns attached to pulleys littered all around the asylum. As soon as opening such a door, the player must engage in a randomly assigned button before the pulley falls too far to avoid the gun discharging. There are also puzzles called "environmental traps", in which Tapp must use different elements in the environment or go to certain locations to accomplish a task.

Synopsis

Setting

File:Saw Videogame Screen 2.jpg

An exterior view of the dilapidated asylum

---

The above file's purpose is being discussed and/or is being considered for deletion. See files for discussion to help reach a consensus on what to do.

Saw takes place between the first and second Saw films, shortly after Dr. Lawrence Gordon and Adam Faulkner's trap concludes at the end of the first film. David Tapp, a cop who was shot in the chest, was healed and brought to an abandoned insane asylum. The building contains many traps and victims left in place by the Jigsaw Killer to test Tapp and his "survival instinct". The asylum itself has many sections. There is a morgue, cold storage, security wing, washrooms, offices, and other areas. A large part of the asylum are cells that held the criminally insane before it was condemned and abandoned.

Characters

Further information: List of Saw characters

• Detective David Tapp (unannounced voice actor): A veteran policeman, Tapp has been on the Jigsaw case since the beginning. After being shot by Zep Hindle in the first Saw film, Tapp was brought to an asylum by Jigsaw, who got someone to heal his gunshot wound and also place a key inside his chest. When Tapp awakens in the asylum with the Jaw Splitter trap on his head, he quickly escapes and begins to unravel the clues left behind by Jigsaw. It was revealed that Tapp will not be voiced by Danny Glover, the actor who portrayed him in the films.

• John Kramer, "Jigsaw" (voiced by Tobin Bell): The antagonist of Saw, Jigsaw is a serial killer who captures victims and puts them into traps to test their survival and teach them lessons to correct their past errors. Jigsaw has captured Tapp and put him into the abandoned asylum that the game takes place in. A persuasive being, Jigsaw has minions stalking Tapp placed all around the area. It was officially announced on June 4 that Tobin Bell would reprise his role as Jigsaw.

• Billy the Puppet (voiced by Tobin Bell): Jigsaw's puppet that is used to deliver clues and information to his victims. While usually through video messages, Billy also appears in person riding a tricycle to congratulate surviving test subjects. Jigsaw will assist Tapp through Billy to help him navigate the asylum. Billy is described as a "very ominous figure. When you see him, you know you’re screwed."

• Amanda Young (unannounced voice actor): One of Jigsaw's first victims, Amanda survived her first test and was rehabilitated by Jigsaw. Seeing him as a savior, she has become his protege upon his request. She has been posing as a recaptured and trapped victim in the asylum to keep watch over Tapp and his game. For unknown reasons, she is being stalked by the mysterious Pigmask Stalker. Tapp must find and save Amanda and discover what information she has about the asylum and Jigsaw himself.

• Unnamed ally (unannounced voice actor): A man who is saved early in the game from a room filled with nail bombs, he assists Tapp in moving through the asylum and fending off enemies. The man soon betrays Tapp as part of his own game. When attempting to go free after completing his test, he is killed by a shotgun trap.

• Pigmask Stalker: Recent trailers for the game detail a person dressed in Jigsaw's robes and his signature Pig Mask stalking people in the asylum. It is unannounced who the person is in the robes.

Screenshots released by Konami also reveal two other unnamed characters present in the game. One is a male who is in a large steel box trap covering his entire head. The second is a dead male who is left wrapped in razor wires after bleeding to death. In addition to these characters, there are also several other attackers spread around the asylum with orders to kill Tapp in order to get the key inside him and free themselves. Some of these attackers have the "Reverse Bear Trap" on them, some with the "Venus Fly Trap", and others with no traps on them at all. Recent interviews have confirmed that the game will have elaborate on the fates of characters from the first film.

Plot

The story centers on Detective David Tapp's kidnapping by his alleged suspect, The Jigsaw Killer. During the first Saw film, Tapp witnesses his long-time friend and partner, Detective Steven Sing, fall victim to one of Jigsaw's traps. This left Tapp mentally unstable and he was soon discharged from the police force. Later, Tapp was shot in the chest by Zep Hindle after chasing him in pursuit of Jigsaw.

Jigsaw then gets someone to heal Tapp and put a key in his chest. Later, Tapp is placed in an abandoned asylum. Other victims in the building are instructed to kill Tapp and retrieve the key inside him in order to escape their own tests. Upon awakening in a bathroom with the Reverse Bear Trap on him, Tapp quickly pulls it off and ventures into the rest of the asylum. Tapp saves and then cooperates with another test subject to proceed through the asylum to a medical wing. There, the unnamed man betrays Tapp because it was part of his game, and is quickly killed by a shotgun hanging from atop a door. Next, Tapp moves through the asylum's medical wing to find and save Amanda Young, a survivor of Jigsaw's tests, who has information that could help him escape alive. Unbeknown to Tapp, Amanda has become Jigsaw's protege and is sent into the asylum by him to make sure Tapp follows the rules of the game. From there, he is forced to work through several more of Jigsaw's traps containing people with dark connections to Tapp and fight to escape alive. Recent trailers also show a person dressed in Jigsaw's robes and the signature Pig Mask stalking Tapp and others throughout the asylum.

IGN states that the game will have moral choices to be made that can result in multiple different endings. In an interview, the game's producer David Cohen stated that the game will "combine action, puzzles, mystery, and terror" and that "it has always been a priority to make sure the Saw video game feels like it is as important part of the puzzle as each film".

Development

Brash Entertainment was the original publisher of Saw. The game was first presented at a press event on January 22, 2008 where a teaser trailer was played. The trailer showed franchise staple Billy the Puppet preaching to reporters about their wasted lives. The trailer also briefly showed some gameplay elements from one of the traps featured in the game.

On November 14 2008, it was reported that Brash Entertainment would be ceasing operations due to financial difficulties. It was further reported that since Brash Entertainment was publishing the game with Twisted Pictures, the game itself may have been left in a "possible state of limbo". After some time, with the state of the game unknown, Konami picked the game up for distribution/development on February 6, 2009, after almost four months of uncertainty regarding the game's fate.

File:Saw Videogame Screen 18.jpeg

Konami's Saw booth at the 2009 E3 Electronic Expo

On April 14, 2009, Konami held a Gamers Night Press Event which allowed a more general public to demo the game. While it was only in "Alpha stage", the demo allowed the play-through of a Jaw-Splitter trap, some interactions in the asylum, and other things. The demo was well-received by many people who had tested it.

The game was demonstrated by Konami executives at the E3 Electronic Expo 2009 on June 1. More plot details were revealed, along with some gameplay footage. Another trailer was shown shortly after the demo. The trailer showed Detective Tapp in the Jaw Splitter trap, glimpses of the asylum, and other features.

At the San Diego Comic Con 2009, more of Saw was demoed and two more trailers were released. The game's combat system, which was initially a topic of complaint amongst critics, was reworked to incorporate more life-like character motions and collisions. On July 31, the game was rated 18+ by the BBFC for strong bloody violence.

To advertise the game, Konami has released a series of screenshots and viral videos. The screenshots depict different areas of the asylum and victims in their traps. The videos demonstrate the first hour or so of the game and gameplay. While a few of the videos have contradicted themselves due to Zombie making dramatic changes to the environment and gameplay, they still have maintained the general roots of the game and it's story revealed thus far.

On August 8, the Konami website had lost the entire section on Saw, including screenshots and information. The reason for this is unknown, but it is speculated that this is due to the Konami website being under construction. The site was soon restored within a few days with updated information, including the official ESRB rating of Mature 17+ for blood and gore, drug reference, intense violence, and strong language.

External links

• Official website
• Fan website
• 'Saw' teaser trailer
• 'Saw' "Combat" gameplay video
• 'Saw' "Sacrifice" gameplay video
• "Survival" gameplay video
• 'Saw' "Kindest Cut" gameplay video
• Saw at IMDb

See also

• Saw series
• Saw
• Saw II
• Tobin Bell
• Lions Gate Entertainment
• Twisted Pictures
• Zombie Studios
• Konami