Secret Level Review
Video games have had a bumpy ride when it comes to adaptations. There have been some high highs like the beloved ‘Super Mario Bros. Movie’. ‘Arcane’ and ‘Fallout’, to the utter disasters like ‘Borderlands’, ‘Doom’, and ‘Uncharted’’ Amazon’s ‘Secret Level’ certainly skews much closer to the higher end of the spectrum, with many of the episodes producing strong emotions, the ultra-violence of games, or just that sheer coolness. However, there are some that fall lower, struggling to connect emotionally, looking off, and lacking in the cool factor. It’s overall a very enjoyable watch for fans of gaming, especially for those already invested in the respective franchises.
‘Secret Level’ has 15 episodes in total, with each one tackling a different game. They have different animation styles, lengths (though never longer than 20 minutes), and tones, though thankfully for audiences the tones don’t differ too hard as to generate whiplash. The range of games it covers is also appreciated, a spectrum of different genres offering fans of a broad range. A passing knowledge of the majority of the franchises is definitely audiences need to enjoy what’s on offer here though, as due to the short lengths there’s no chance of audiences to be introduced into the world,it’s often straight into the action.
The length of the stories can both be a blessing and a curse. Sometimes, as in the case of the episode based off ‘Dungeons and Dragons’, and on ‘Concord’, it presumes the audience already knows and likes these characters, so any character beats that play out aren’t satisfying, because the audience doesn’t know these people. Others, like in the case of the one based on ‘Mega Man’ feel like they’ve only just got started, and rob the audience of a satisfying conclusion. This isn’t always the case though, as others use their runtime to their advantage, like the ones based off ‘New World’, ‘Unreal Tournament’ and ‘Spleunky’, not only capturing the essence of their respective games quickly but telling a compelling story quickly. It’s no mean feat. Most of the other episodes manage this too.
‘Secret Level’ is a series that wants its viewers to take video games very seriously, with many of the stories depicting either emotional storylines or that are extremely grounded in their respective universes. That’s not to say it’s completely devoid of humour, it’s not, but their overriding goal is to convince the viewer that video games should be considered art. First off, video games are art, but as the series is aimed at video game fans who will know this, it’s preaching to the converted. As for any newcomers, this message comes across as a bit pretentious, and might even put them off. Something that will put both crowds off is any shameless marketing, which only one episode egregiously engages with.
That’s not to say that the serious nature is a complete disservice; there are many episodes that pull it off well. ‘Warhammer 40k’ has a serious, grimdark tone that’s core to the franchise, and ‘Honor of Kings’ and ‘Sifu’ impart key themes through their stories. ‘Exodus’ is one of the more poignant shorts and is all the better for it. There are some episodes that are trying too hard. The ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ short attempts to pull off an emotional message, though does it all by tell and no show, something opposite to that franchise. ‘PAC-MAN’ pulls away from its origins for something completely different though it doesn’t land.
Another way this seriousness is exemplified is through the action. It’s always violent, which is to be expected in franchises like ‘Warhammer 40k’, but can get a bit exhausting after a while. Though it’s generally always cool action, something that’s hard to describe. You know good action when you see it, such as that found in the episodes based on ‘Ureal Tournament’, ‘Warhammer 40k’ and ‘Amored Core’. The way characters are animated, the setpieces, it’s all well-thought out and crafted.
The fifteen shorts each have their own animation styles. This is a brilliant choice, as these games are wildly different in style and look to each other. Some episodes make the mistake of attempting to animate their games as ultra-realistically as possible, like ‘The Outer Worlds’, but it’s an effort that goes nowhere as the humans look uncanny; their proportions nearly right though not enough. It begs the question of why not put these into a live-action format.
‘Secret Level’ is a series for gamers, landing most of its broad spectrum of shorts. This produces a similar spectrum of results, ranging from perfect to shameless marketing. Most episodes manage to use their short runtime to their advantage, adopting a unique style to their animation with sick action. Some fumble their emotional beats though, and adopt a super serious tone to prove to someone not watching that games ARE art. As a series though, this collective group of shorts show that Tim Miller and his team understood what they were doing, even if some shorts got left behind.
