Post by The Chupster on Nov 3, 2010 23:42:56 GMT -5
Okay, this little gem hasn't been reviewed anywhere, and hell, I didn't even know it existed until 2 days ago. So here's some knowledge fo' yo' ass!
Genre: Objective-Based Vehicular Combat with Zombies
Think: Twisted Metal & Vigilante 8 2nd Offense have a child and send it off to play with Dead Rising.
Poppin' Her In:
Okay peeps, right off the bat, I had no expectations for this thing. As it loaded, I got a pretty pissy attitude, because #1, it's an Activision game- and they usually pimp every game they release like crazy, so this must suck, right? And #2, the load times are ATROCIOUS. I'm talking about full minutes here. Seriously.
That aside, once I got into the gameplay, I realized that there's something pretty fucking outrageously special here.
Installing to the hard drive both takes very little time and seems to cut load times by about half- still long, but bearable now.
The Premise:
The opening movie throws you right into the universe with no real explanation, and that's a good thing. You're part of a Twisted Metal-style competition set on levels where zombies are fucking EVERYWHERE. It apes Twisted Metal in all kinds of ways- each vehicle has a specific fucked-up driver, each vehicle has a special "Rage" power, and the car physics are what Twisted Metal's later entries should've had- like a modded version of Twisted Metal 2. It's pimp as hell.
Single Player:
Basically, you have options for exhibition matches and the tournaments. The tournaments are the story mode, more or less, so there you go.
There is also the Challenge mode, which sets you with a short time limit and a specific goal- again, from the same pool as "kill the most zombies" or "hit the most checkpoints"- with the caveat that if you hit a certain amount, you'll unlock a new level for Single Event mode- basically, exhibition match mode- but Single Event mode doesn't start with any levels, so you basically have to complete a challenge to unlock Single Event mode.
In Tournament mode, you pick a character and their respective vehicle and the first event loads. Each tournament has a set number of events, each with a different objective- kill the most zombies, destroy the most character vehicles, hit the most checkpoints. After a time limit, the results are tallied and you move on. Simple, easy, cool.
Additionally, once you pick your character, you are "randomly" assigned a rival. (I say "randomly" because in the 5 times I've been assigned one, it's always been Natalya, who drives the biggest, toughest vehicle in the game.) Killing your rival gets you extra rage and a match point where applicable, and finishing higher than your rival gets you extra tourney points. All characters are on all levels, so it's not just a one-on-one- it's full-on mayhem, with all the characters hanging it out there. You are also assigned a Bonus Zombie, a specific zombie that, when hit, will get you more points, I guess- I actually haven't managed to hit one yet. (I has a sad.) At the open, you pick a loadout- basically a combo of three power-ups for your vehicle, like double ammo, a random weapon, maximum rage/durability/impact, etc.- and the game begins!
Gameplay:
The physics take a bit of getting used to, but they're pretty sweet. This is what I wanted in Twisted Metal: Black, not to mention every Twisted Metal since the pinnacle of the series, TM2. Each vehicle controls significantly differently, and there's a variety here: trucks, vans, racers and go-karts, all apocalyptic and pimped out, ready to roll and destroy stuff.
You can only hold one weapon at a time, so one button controls your Rage weapon (which powers up as you kick ass), one controls whatever weapon pick-up you happen to have, and one controls Boost, which is also a pick-up.
The Rage meter builds as you run over zombies, so naturally that's key, though the Rage powers aren't quite as varied and powerful as I personally would have liked, but some are still really fun to use.
The loadout you choose can affect this- any loadout with "Full Boost" and/or "Full Rage" will start you with that/those respective meter(s) full, giving you the advantage with 5 nitro-style Boosts or 3 Rage attacks.
The weapons are pretty much your standard mix- machine gun, missile, the awesome rail gun, saw blades, all sorts of stuff. There is VERY little in the way of an auto-aim- most weapons fire in a set pattern or just straight ahead, and trial and error, and your reflexes, will determine what (if anything) you hit. Each vehicle has a different Favorite Weapon, which is the weapon that you'll start with, unless you pick a loadout that has "Random Weapon" in it.
Also, according to the loading screen info tidbits, playing through the final championship will earn you a character's ending movie, so the characters- although not quite as cool as the Twisted Metal crew- DO have some story to them!
Sound and Music:
Pretty much what you should be expecting if you pick the game up. Engines grumble loudly, zombies moan, and the soundtrack is pretty much a hardcore kickass instrumental mosh. The best part is when you pause the game, and it starts playing this light, airy acoustic guitar elevator music at you. Extremely fucked.
And the announcer voice is the same guy that does the Agency voice in Crackdown 1 & 2! SHWEET.
Multiplayer:
Can't really tell right now, sorry. Looks like pretty much the single-player game with more people. As I can't currently connect to Live, I'll just have to let you figure that out on your own, but really, how bad can Twisted Metal with zombies online be? Though I would imagine that the servers are pretty bare, since there was absolutely no fanfare or advertisement for this cool-ass title.
My only gripe about Multiplayer (since I haven't played it) is that there isn't any local options. No system link, no splitscreen, nothing. Sadly enough, I have three gripes about the game- the load times, the occasional framerate dip, and this- and this is the worst bit of the bunch.
More Shit:
After the long load for the menu screen and the longer load to actually start the game, it had me hooked. Zombies will swarm your car and attempt to do damage, and slow you down from just taking off into combat. They will also climb onto your vehicle and attempt to hang on when you take off, trying to get them off.
Running through/over/etc. them is just fucking fun. Much like blowing through a crowd of mutants at night in Crackdown 2, it's just FUN- more fun, actually, since blood flies and splatters, zombies try to hang on with humorous results, and it's just a frickin' mess. Level design seems pretty smart, with ramps and the like to launch through.
The game also isn't without its flaws, having issues with the load times, and there are occasional dips in the frame rate, usually when there's just a shitload going on. Hell, there's always a shitload going on, but you know what I mean. Cuz the game is badass.
Chupa's Summary Thing:
Admittedly, I'm not far into this game, and I'm doing exceedingly bad so far; the game's definitely no pushover- again, like the old-school Twisted Metal games- but it's fun as hell to play, and at the end of the day, ain't that what matters? And on top of it all, it's cheaper than your standard new games at a price of $50. Well, well worth the investment price, it's a sharply put-together title, and I really have no idea how this one flew so far under the radar. It's the kind of game I've been looking for since Twisted Metal 2; they took my favorite PS1 game and they added better physics, explosions, dope levels and ZOMBIES. LOTS AND LOTS OF ZOMBIES.
It's hard to find something better than that. Maybe if there were hooker power-ups. Either way, if you like the vehicular combat and a little bit of actual fucking difficulty with your gameage, hit up your Gamefly account for this bad boy, or ask to see it at your local game store, or better yet- take a leap of faith and buy this awesome little game that could. It's the only current gen game like it, and it is SWEET.
Genre: Objective-Based Vehicular Combat with Zombies
Think: Twisted Metal & Vigilante 8 2nd Offense have a child and send it off to play with Dead Rising.
Poppin' Her In:
Okay peeps, right off the bat, I had no expectations for this thing. As it loaded, I got a pretty pissy attitude, because #1, it's an Activision game- and they usually pimp every game they release like crazy, so this must suck, right? And #2, the load times are ATROCIOUS. I'm talking about full minutes here. Seriously.
That aside, once I got into the gameplay, I realized that there's something pretty fucking outrageously special here.
Installing to the hard drive both takes very little time and seems to cut load times by about half- still long, but bearable now.
The Premise:
The opening movie throws you right into the universe with no real explanation, and that's a good thing. You're part of a Twisted Metal-style competition set on levels where zombies are fucking EVERYWHERE. It apes Twisted Metal in all kinds of ways- each vehicle has a specific fucked-up driver, each vehicle has a special "Rage" power, and the car physics are what Twisted Metal's later entries should've had- like a modded version of Twisted Metal 2. It's pimp as hell.
Single Player:
Basically, you have options for exhibition matches and the tournaments. The tournaments are the story mode, more or less, so there you go.
There is also the Challenge mode, which sets you with a short time limit and a specific goal- again, from the same pool as "kill the most zombies" or "hit the most checkpoints"- with the caveat that if you hit a certain amount, you'll unlock a new level for Single Event mode- basically, exhibition match mode- but Single Event mode doesn't start with any levels, so you basically have to complete a challenge to unlock Single Event mode.
In Tournament mode, you pick a character and their respective vehicle and the first event loads. Each tournament has a set number of events, each with a different objective- kill the most zombies, destroy the most character vehicles, hit the most checkpoints. After a time limit, the results are tallied and you move on. Simple, easy, cool.
Additionally, once you pick your character, you are "randomly" assigned a rival. (I say "randomly" because in the 5 times I've been assigned one, it's always been Natalya, who drives the biggest, toughest vehicle in the game.) Killing your rival gets you extra rage and a match point where applicable, and finishing higher than your rival gets you extra tourney points. All characters are on all levels, so it's not just a one-on-one- it's full-on mayhem, with all the characters hanging it out there. You are also assigned a Bonus Zombie, a specific zombie that, when hit, will get you more points, I guess- I actually haven't managed to hit one yet. (I has a sad.) At the open, you pick a loadout- basically a combo of three power-ups for your vehicle, like double ammo, a random weapon, maximum rage/durability/impact, etc.- and the game begins!
Gameplay:
The physics take a bit of getting used to, but they're pretty sweet. This is what I wanted in Twisted Metal: Black, not to mention every Twisted Metal since the pinnacle of the series, TM2. Each vehicle controls significantly differently, and there's a variety here: trucks, vans, racers and go-karts, all apocalyptic and pimped out, ready to roll and destroy stuff.
You can only hold one weapon at a time, so one button controls your Rage weapon (which powers up as you kick ass), one controls whatever weapon pick-up you happen to have, and one controls Boost, which is also a pick-up.
The Rage meter builds as you run over zombies, so naturally that's key, though the Rage powers aren't quite as varied and powerful as I personally would have liked, but some are still really fun to use.
The loadout you choose can affect this- any loadout with "Full Boost" and/or "Full Rage" will start you with that/those respective meter(s) full, giving you the advantage with 5 nitro-style Boosts or 3 Rage attacks.
The weapons are pretty much your standard mix- machine gun, missile, the awesome rail gun, saw blades, all sorts of stuff. There is VERY little in the way of an auto-aim- most weapons fire in a set pattern or just straight ahead, and trial and error, and your reflexes, will determine what (if anything) you hit. Each vehicle has a different Favorite Weapon, which is the weapon that you'll start with, unless you pick a loadout that has "Random Weapon" in it.
Also, according to the loading screen info tidbits, playing through the final championship will earn you a character's ending movie, so the characters- although not quite as cool as the Twisted Metal crew- DO have some story to them!
Sound and Music:
Pretty much what you should be expecting if you pick the game up. Engines grumble loudly, zombies moan, and the soundtrack is pretty much a hardcore kickass instrumental mosh. The best part is when you pause the game, and it starts playing this light, airy acoustic guitar elevator music at you. Extremely fucked.
And the announcer voice is the same guy that does the Agency voice in Crackdown 1 & 2! SHWEET.
Multiplayer:
Can't really tell right now, sorry. Looks like pretty much the single-player game with more people. As I can't currently connect to Live, I'll just have to let you figure that out on your own, but really, how bad can Twisted Metal with zombies online be? Though I would imagine that the servers are pretty bare, since there was absolutely no fanfare or advertisement for this cool-ass title.
My only gripe about Multiplayer (since I haven't played it) is that there isn't any local options. No system link, no splitscreen, nothing. Sadly enough, I have three gripes about the game- the load times, the occasional framerate dip, and this- and this is the worst bit of the bunch.
More Shit:
After the long load for the menu screen and the longer load to actually start the game, it had me hooked. Zombies will swarm your car and attempt to do damage, and slow you down from just taking off into combat. They will also climb onto your vehicle and attempt to hang on when you take off, trying to get them off.
Running through/over/etc. them is just fucking fun. Much like blowing through a crowd of mutants at night in Crackdown 2, it's just FUN- more fun, actually, since blood flies and splatters, zombies try to hang on with humorous results, and it's just a frickin' mess. Level design seems pretty smart, with ramps and the like to launch through.
The game also isn't without its flaws, having issues with the load times, and there are occasional dips in the frame rate, usually when there's just a shitload going on. Hell, there's always a shitload going on, but you know what I mean. Cuz the game is badass.
Chupa's Summary Thing:
Admittedly, I'm not far into this game, and I'm doing exceedingly bad so far; the game's definitely no pushover- again, like the old-school Twisted Metal games- but it's fun as hell to play, and at the end of the day, ain't that what matters? And on top of it all, it's cheaper than your standard new games at a price of $50. Well, well worth the investment price, it's a sharply put-together title, and I really have no idea how this one flew so far under the radar. It's the kind of game I've been looking for since Twisted Metal 2; they took my favorite PS1 game and they added better physics, explosions, dope levels and ZOMBIES. LOTS AND LOTS OF ZOMBIES.
It's hard to find something better than that. Maybe if there were hooker power-ups. Either way, if you like the vehicular combat and a little bit of actual fucking difficulty with your gameage, hit up your Gamefly account for this bad boy, or ask to see it at your local game store, or better yet- take a leap of faith and buy this awesome little game that could. It's the only current gen game like it, and it is SWEET.
