Secret Level Review: A Hollow Anthology of Video Game Scenes

Ever since it was announced, there has been some confusion as to what Secret level actually is. The video game-themed anthology streaming on Prime Video — directed by Love, Death & Robots creator Tim Miller — is a collection of animated shorts, each based on a different game property. So there is one Mega man episode exploring the character’s origins and a Spelunky episode that tries to create a metanarrative around the concept of a roguelike.

It’s an interesting idea let down by a lack of interesting ideas. The 15 shorts are almost universally boring, failing to either make their source material seem compelling or provide new insight to existing fans. The real confusion is who it’s really for.

The main problem is how homogeneous Secret level is. The program works directly with game publishers and draws from a strange but also impressive global list of titles such as Chinese mega-hit Honor of Kings and Korean shooter Crossfire. However, despite featuring a large selection of video games, its episodes all feel very similar. It’s kind of the opposite Love, Death & Robotswhich featured a variety of styles and tones as it explored horror and sci-fi. That’s how we got beautiful episodes like the trippy “The Very Pulse of the Machine.”

Secret levelon the other hand, mostly uses a gritty, hyper-realistic style that makes almost all of its episodes look identical. It’s a bit like watching a continuous barrage of cutscenes at E3 and not being able to tell the games apart.

This works for some stories. The Warhammer 40,000 the episode is suitably grim. But I can’t say I really needed a hyper-violent take on Pac-Man. I’m not kidding: The Pac-Man episode is probably the coolest of the series, turning a classic arcade game into a brutal survival story with plenty of blood and death. (The episode’s big twist is also the dumbest thing I’ve seen all year, and I sat through it all Megalopolis.) There are a handful of deviations that try to add some color and life, but they all end up looking similar Exciting. The worst offender is Mega man episode which tries to fuse a realistic style with an anime aesthetic and just comes off as an awkward, ugly mix of the two.

It’s more than just how Secret level looks though. The series is also terribly boring. Most episodes feel like the opening scene of a much larger story that ends just when things seem to be getting interesting. Ideas repeat themselves a lot. There are no less than three sections — based on Spelunky, New worldand Sifu – that everyone is trying to tell a metastory about the concept of dying in a video game. And when the show takes some creative liberties, like with Pac-Man, it devolves into a bland attempt at edgy violence.

Two of the weirdest episodes are based on games you can’t actually play right now. One takes place in the world of the now infamous multiplayer shooter Concordwhich was the most disastrous launch in PlayStation history, resulting in the abrupt closure of both the game and its development studio. The second episode is based on Exodusan upcoming RPG published by Magic: the Gathering company Wizards of the Coast. In another timeline, these Secret level episodes would be the ideal opportunity to showcase what makes these futuristic worlds unique and worth exploring further in a game. In reality, they do both Concord and Exodus seem like the most generic science fiction stories imaginable. I’m struggling to think of a single thing to say about either.

Really, Secret level is best summed up by its last paragraph. Called “Playtime,” it follows a bicycle courier in a near-future world that looks like an AR-infested hell. She’s very quickly delivered a mysterious package that draws her into what can only be described as a PlayStation commercial. She has been chased by Hell divers soldiers, avoid attacks from Kratos and have a cute moment with Sackboy. There is no story. It’s a collection of Easter eggs tied to a brand, a chance to see things you recognize from playing the games.

Across its 15 episodes, Secret level fail to explain why any of these worlds are worth exploring, while at the same time failing to offer anything new to those who already know it. It sits in an awkward, empty middle ground. After watching it all, I’m somehow more confused than before I started.

Secret level will begin streaming on Prime Video on December 10.