Introduction
Having saved the earth from numerous threats, it’s about time Duke gets treated to an all-expenses paid vacation. EDF, known to cut corners, sends him to the most exotic paradise that $125 can buy. What neither of them realise is the hotel was built on top of a dormant volcano. After only a couple of days drinking himself into a stupor, an earthquake hits jolting him out of bed. Looks like the volcano just woke up…
Review
HH is a linear, scripted adventure released at a time when these types of experiences were still a popular format, much like Jenssen’s other work or similar to levels by Bob Averill and Alejandro Glavic. Taking place within a hotel Duke must now escape the confines of a building breaking down around him. Making progress is as simple as pulling some switches and keeping an eye out for paths that haven’t yet collapsed, sometimes seeking out holes created during the destruction. Some areas are teased just beyond reach to signal your next destination often reached via explosed vents. At times though I’d find there were a few too many invisible walls for my tastes at places you should otherwise have access traversing to under normal circumstances. Combat exists here albeit a muted part of the experience, almost as an afterthought there to spice up your moment to moment tasks. Lava spewing about is another hazard to watch out for, lethal enough just from being too close to the heat and will kill within seconds if not careful. Burgers and alcohol can be consumed for health when in a pinch instead of the usual remedies. During exploration you can come across computers with messages that reveal not only your goal but also contain other miscellaneous notes and fun curiosities to read, like the hotel’s current status or a furious rant, which were all nice additions for extra flavour. EDF’s email for Duke is so hilariously casual about the situation as if this whole mess is a non-issue. I’ve had high initial impression when playing this a long time back, enjoying its focus on being an easy going scripted adventure piece. I’ve come back to revisit this experience many times over the years since and always find myself having different feelings about it and have recently narrowed down why that is.
HH forever remains a classic level in my eyes, but also missed a lot of potential while lacking in other areas. This could be boiled down to having limited time being built for a competition held by Duke Inc, yet even with that in mind an updated release after the fact could have been nice to touch up on some of these blemishes. Consider the earthquake scenario taking place, it’s a shame we don’t actually witness seeing the hotel falling apart as we attempt an escape. Screen shakes are one thing, but the world state has already been predefined upon waking up, therefore the sequence from start to finish is too static and very quiet during most interactions. Doors are missing sounds, there’s no ambient noises going on around you nor does activating important devices let out as much of a groan. During my recent session I couldn’t help but imagine there being frequent visual changes and audible cues as you traverse rather than those be left out of mind. This might have breathed some much needed liveliness into the core concept during moments like; turning on an emergency generator that opens the lift doors as it roars to life, pistons shifting up and down while the machine works its magic; potential consequences could take place if you don’t get moving through certain sections, a narrow escape from a hallway about to crush you as the floor above comes crashing down. Even some flickering lights around damaged sections could have enhanced the atmosphere. It’s also a shame there weren’t a couple more scenarios where lava played a substantial role for navigational challenges due to its lethality, which gets introduced in a safe area outdoors to get a taste of danger and once more in the hotel lobby to be leapt over. Never again is lava to be seen. Had everything been centred around all these hazards with a lot of environmental interactivity, I’m sure enemies wouldn’t have been needed at all to keep this one exciting.
Conclusion
I have no doubts that HH remains a classic even to this day, it looked great for its time and has a neat setup going for it. I also hold a lot of nostalgia for the adventure presented to us even despite the linear nature of progression. Looking beyond that however reveals the level can be too static and quiet during a scenario that requires the opposite effect, where we should have been witnessing ceilings crashing down to block our path and the potential hazards escaping a collapsing building involves. While there was potential lost here, those ideas eventually found their way into future levels by other authors who continue to push the boundaries, such as Shaky Grounds which also dealt with earthquakes as a core concept. I still enjoy HH for what it does offer and for reminding me of simpler times when experiences like this were still a fresh sight to behold.