Amazon’s “Secret Level” is surrounded by a series of big phrases: “a love letter to iconic games,” “Prime Video’s most-watched animated series, which has been renewed for a second season in absentia.” It’s from Tim Miller and the studio that brought us Love. Death. Robots. But what it actually is isn’t entirely clear, which is why we’re here. Let’s figure out together what this bonus level is and whether it’s worth your attention. 4i2b4t
The future has arrived 6872
The animated anthology Secret Level was announced as a “love letter” to iconic franchises, from Pac-Man to Warhammer 40,000. The project was taken on by Tim Miller’s Blur Studio, known for their work on Love. Death. Robots, but their main activity is creating trailers for games. This was already causing doubts, which were reinforced after the list of episodes was announced.
Among them are PlayStation franchises, including the then-unreleased Concord, the Korean shooter Crossfire, and the mobile MOBA Honor of Kings. Even then, I suspected that we were in for the first time in history when a subscription-based streaming service would have an ad-only product, sending us to an episode of another famous anthology, Black Mirror, where viewers have to pay to watch the ad.
And you know what? These fears were confirmed. But not everything is so bad – there were also some sound “grains”. What is Secret Level really? Let’s figure it out.
My initial plan was simple: watch the series and give a brief overview of each episode. However, it soon became apparent that only a few episodes could be called full-fledged stories, while the rest were more like commercials. So I decided to focus on the potentially interesting episodes, while briefly reviewing the rest. But first, let’s take a look at the full list of episodes featured in the Secret Level animation anthology:
- Dungeons & Dragons – The Queen’s Cradle
- Sifu — It Takes a Life
- New World – The Once and Future King
- Unreal Tournament — Xan
- Warhammer 40,000 – And They Shall Know
- PAC-MAN — Circle
- Crossfire — Good Conflict
- Armored Core – Asset Management
- The Outer Worlds – The Company We Keep
- Mega Man – Start
- Exodus – Odyssey
- Spelunky — Tally
- Concord – Tale of the Implacable
- Honor of Kings – The Way of All Things
- Sony – Playtime Fulfilment
Each episode lasts from 5 to 17 minutes, not counting the credits — and this is the main drawback of the project. Such timing simply does not allow the viewer to deeply immerse themselves in the context of a particular game universe. Yes, in “Love. Death. Robots” the episodes have a similar duration, but the main difference is that those stories were created from scratch, with an initially laid down concept and an understanding of all the limitations of short films.
Here, too, we are often given a piece of history – an exposition or backstory reminiscent of an introductory video for a game, as in the Mega Man or Dungeons & Dragons episodes, or a cutscene that plunges us into the very center of the conflict, as if foreshadowing the next game mission, as in the Warhammer 40,000 episode, or a banal ment, as in the case of the Sony franchise episode.
Blur Studio’s Love. Death. Robots episodes often ended with unexpected twists — or rather, “reversals,” because they forced the viewer to rethink everything that had just happened. These revelations worked as simple but effective manipulations that fit perfectly into the short film format.
However, don’t expect deep character development, elaborate universes, unexpected twists or fully-fledged stories from Secret Level – only a few episodes hint at this. Let’s talk about the most memorable ones.
Sifu — It Takes a Life 3b2c4x
What we have here is essentially a miniature game: a set of stylish, colorful battle scenes in which the hero repeatedly suffers defeat and ages while moving toward his goal. The final scene ends with a question that leaves an aftertaste of light sadness and prompts not only the hero but also the viewer to think: what are we wasting our lives on? Isn’t it wasted in pursuit of unnecessary aspirations? This is one of the truest interpretations of the games presented in the show.
New World – The Once and Future King 6o1ki
The third episode, dedicated to New World, tells the story of the narcissistic and incredibly self-confident Gigachad King Elstrom, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger (though it hardly matters if you watch it dubbed). Having found himself on a strange island where no one can die, he sincerely believes that everyone is obligated to bow down to him and immediately make him their new king.
The episode is a series of funny and not so funny incidents in which Elstrom tries his best to prove his status as an “alpha male,” but fails time and time again. These trials eventually lead to his internal transformation. It’s a surprisingly cohesive story that thankfully doesn’t try to sell you an Amazon MMORPG and includes some fun references to the legacy of “Iron Arnie.”
Unreal Tournament — Xan 2y6p6
The episode dedicated to Unreal Tournament is, in my opinion, one of the best in the series. Here you will find dynamic action, many references, including the iconic map, the familiar voice of the tournament commentator (by the way, he is voiced by the same original commentator from the game) and a whole arsenal of recognizable guns that will definitely bring the “old school” fans of the franchise together. And the casual viewer will see a futuristic version of Ridley Scott’s Gladiator, where even the robots are sympathetic.
Warhammer 40,000 – And They Shall Know 1ol37
The Warhammer 40,000 episode can be called an interesting attempt to look into Titus’ inner world and convey the atmosphere for which this universe is valued. However, it, alas, does not justify the loud title of “a continuation of Space Marine 2”. In fact, this is an epic montage of battle scenes, where the insides of genestealers with enviable regularity turn into a bloody mess under a chainsword – dark, bloody and spectacular!
As much as I love Warhammer, it’s hard to recommend this episode to anyone who doesn’t share that ion. If Saber Interactive’s trailers for the game failed to pique your interest in the universe, this episode probably won’t either.
PAC-MAN — Circle 3813x
It was pretty unclear what to expect from the PAC-MAN episode until the trailer for the new game in the series’ universe, Shadow Labyrinth, was shown at The Game Awards 2024. This game tells the story of swordsman #8, who is awakened by a mysterious sphere called Pac.
The episode is valuable not so much for its story, but for the new look at the franchise that it offers. The dark, cruel universe, where you either become a predator or someone’s prey – successfully complements the trailer, allowing you to look at the locations and enemies of the game from a different angle, and at the same time reveals a dark secret that has been hidden from us for more than 40 years by that same yellow round thing, methodically eating ghosts in the labyrinth.
Armored Core – Asset Management 2u436d
The episode introduces us to the latest model of an “old school” augmented human who has been unable to find his place in a changed world. From Software’s aesthetics and atmosphere are conveyed here with eerie accuracy, and Keanu Reeves, who just happened to be in the role, is the perfect complement to the dark look of the universe.
One of the most unusual images in Reeves’ career, along with Johnny Silverhand from Cyberpunk 2077 – such images suit the mature Keanu perfectly. All this is ed by quality action, references to Blade Runner and Michelangelo’s The Creation of Adam, leading to a creepy, goosebumps finale. I demand a full-length film!
The Outer Worlds – The Company We Keep 45582c
This episode could easily have become part of Love. Death. Robots, if the writers had dared to make bolder plot moves. A hopelessly in love and clearly not distinguished by intelligence boy decides to become a “lab mouse” in order to get closer to the object of his adoration. It is a sad, but overly straightforward and at the same time somewhat unnatural satirical story, which in its mood perfectly fits into the aesthetics of the world created by Obsidian Entertainment.
Exodus – Odyssey 1j1vw
The episode dedicated to Exodus, like PAC-MAN, is interesting first and foremost as a look at the game universe that we are yet to dive into. The hopes for a “new Mass Effect” from Drew Karpyshyn are high, and I want to believe that they will come true. Otherwise, we have before us a fairly standard science fiction that does not delve into the details of the world, offering rather a small sketch on the theme of the relationship between a father and daughter, framed by space travel.
The episode gets extra points for offering at least the semblance of a complete story with a touch of Interstellar. It’s especially noteworthy that the idea of space travel, where characters age at different rates, is supposed to be reflected in the game itself, if the developers are to believe their statements.
Honor of Kings – The Way of All Things 195k6z
The Honor of Kings episode brings up an interesting concept of determinism, immediately bringing to mind Robert Sapolsky’s book “It’s Decided: Life Without Free Will,” which explores the issues of predetermination and free will. The thoughts about how humans are just flesh-and-blood machines are interesting in isolation from the episode’s context. But the writers tried to cram too much into a limited amount of time: philosophical reflections, drama, and a stunning visualization of the game of Go.
This is a rare case when an episode offers something truly unusual and unexpected, especially for a project based on a mobile game. Moreover, after watching it, there is a desire to plunge into this techno-fantasy world. It is a pity that what was shown is not connected in any way to the actual gameplay of Honor of Kings.
About the rest – briefly 562fg
The Dungeons & Dragons – themed opening episode is a tribute to the iconic franchise, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It’s got all the right stuff: dungeons, dragons, and a group of adventurers caught in yet another conflict. But those characters are quickly forgotten once the credits roll. Why isn’t this episode dedicated to characters from Baldur’s Gate 3? I really don’t get it.
The episode dedicated to the shooter Crossfire is perhaps the weakest and most unnecessary in the collection. A bland, boring and faceless action movie that looks unconvincing even as advertising material. It is as gray as the authors’ attempt to play with “gray morality”.
The episode dedicated to the roguelike Spelunky , like Sifu, explores the concept of death and rebirth. It builds a narrative through a hero for whom death is not an end, but a stage in a journey. However, like the genre itself, the episode treads water, not developing the concept.
The Mega Man episode is the shortest in the anthology and, aside from the sterile but still enjoyable graphics, it offers nothing. It feels like a teaser for a new Disney movie based on the Mega Man franchise, rather than a standalone product.
The episode about the now defunct Concord is a kind of “greetings from the other world”, which looks even more inappropriate after the project’s closure. They said that the episode could be cut, and frankly, this should have been done. In the end, we are reminded that Concord is a failed attempt to create “Guardians of the Galaxy in our home”.
The final episode of the anthology, dedicated to various Sony franchises , is frankly weak as a standalone short. It’s essentially the entire anthology in miniature: characters from PlayStation franchises flicker across the screen, reminding us that they still exist, and nothing more. It feels more like an advert, like the ones Sony sometimes inserts at the beginning of its PlayStation Showcase presentations.
Diverse monotony 3s2bd
From a visual standpoint, Secret Level is noticeably different from Love. Death. Robots. Most of the episodes are made in a similar photorealistic style, probably using Unreal Engine 5 technologies. This approach works well in dark episodes such as Armored Core, Unreal Tournament or Exodus, emphasizing the atmosphere of their worlds.
But there is an exception – the series dedicated to Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2. Despite the verified dark style, it, in my opinion, suffers from a banal lack of colors. I would not say that the episode is too dark, since individual color accents still stand out, but the overall picture looks “dirty”, as if the shortcomings of computer graphics are trying to hide behind the overall inexpressiveness. I would be happy to see the visual style implemented in the game from Saber Interactive, although it lacks that very “gloom”.
The photorealistic style, which works well in darker episodes, sometimes looks unnatural in brighter ones, such as New World, Dungeons & Dragons or Concord. This is especially noticeable in the case of Concord, where the visual style resembles the game itself, the unfortunate style of which was one of the reasons for its failure.
However, there are exceptions. For example, in The Outer Worlds, the bright graphics acquire a bizarre expressiveness, emphasizing the unique atmosphere of the game world. Also worth noting is the Honor of Kings episode with its original architectural solutions, transformations and visual transitions.
Another common feature of all cinematic episodes is the choppy editing typical of cheap projects using computer graphics.
The episodes that really stand out for their visual style are Sifu, Pac-Man and Spelunky. They have a distinctive style that is memorable due to the rough shadows, clear contours and watercolor techniques. These episodes show at least an attempt by the artists to express themselves.
Diagnosis 1kc6p
A series for everyone is a series for no one. That’s how Secret Level can best be described. While Love. Death. Robots was an experimental project with diverse visual styles, narrative techniques, and mostly complete stories, Secret Level struggles to work for both fans and casual viewers. It’s impossible to adequately evaluate it as a complete work – only episodically, through the prism of your interest in a particular game franchise.
The renewal of the project for a second season is clearly not connected with the enthusiastic reception of the audience. Yes, the series has an average rating of 7.8 on IMDb and high popularity ratings, but this is not the point at all. This format, in essence, is a commercial, the production of which is relatively inexpensive and, most importantly, sponsored by the rs themselves, and not by Tim Miller’s studio. For Miller, this is an ideal way to sit on the budgets of a dozen major gaming companies, ensuring a comfortable life for himself. But telling interesting stories for game fans is a secondary matter.
If you are a die-hard video game fan and have been dreaming of seeing familiar universes in a new format, you might find something interesting here. However, most of the episodes leave behind a feeling of incompleteness and hackwork. For the most part, the project resembles a collection of beautiful (and not always) trailers devoid of meaning and depth.
The impression of individual interesting episodes is blurred by the overall dullness of the project, and it is unlikely that the series will be ed as anything more than an experiment by marketers to attract a new audience to their projects.
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All images used in this material are owned by Amazon MGM Studios Cover image source: Vodafone
