Metal Arms: Glitch in the System

"I don't see how you can't like this game"

If you are looking for a long action game for the gamecube, this is one to check out. With 42 levels of varying length and plenty of secret chips to find, this game is one that you won't be finishing in a couple hours.

Story

Not the best video game story ever, but not the worst. You play as Glitch, a droid found in the scrap heap and fixed up by Krunk, the potty mouthed mechanic. A droid scientist, Dr. Excavolt, has created a highly intelligent bot who goes by the name General Corrosive. Corrosive has destroyed his creator and created a "race" of military bots called mils. Your mission is to destroy the mils and free Iron Star from Corrosive's clutches.

Gameplay

The real meat and potatoes of any game, the gameplay is what really matters, and this game is all about action. It is extremely fun to blast the mils to bits with anything from a weak little laser to a powerful rocket launcher. There are over 17 weapons to choose from, and they all have their own unique names. Have you heard of weapon names like SPEW, Toaster, Scatter Blaster, or Ripper anywhere else? I didn't think so. You can even hack into enemy bots using the control tether. The enemies are not stupid, as in some games. When you hack into an enemy mil with the control tether, it doesn't take much to tip yourself off, so be careful.

You don't just control Glitch in your quest, either. You control other characters you meet along the way, like a huge bot named Mozer, or a bot named Slosh, and even Krunk. There are also levels where you drive a RAT, a 6 wheeled vehicle, trying to run down an enemy. The developers didn't just throw the same thing at you every level.

This game is very hard. Even on the Easiest setting, you WILL die. You just will. On the second level, before you have any real powerful weapons or multiple batteries, you are faced with many enemies that you must get rid of. The game is not potty mouth hard, though, as some games are. Even though you will end up replaying a level multiple times, you won't get too frustrated.(although predators and troopers can get annoying)

Graphics

The graphics are pretty good, they are not the best on the system, but they certainly aren't the worst. Every now and then when the action gets intense, the framerate will drop, but that doesn't happen a lot. One of my only problems is that the lighting is bad in some levels, but adjusting the brightness on your TV should help.

Sound

This game has good sound. You can hear what the mil bots say without problem, from "Not me, shoot the Droid!" to the odd fart. When the action gets going, the music kicks in, and usually fits right in with the situation. The dialogue in the cutscenes is often side splitting, and you may play the levels over just to see them again. There is swearing(thanks to Krunk), but it is censored out. The odd bleep in the dialogue adds to the humor.

Replayability

After you've finished the game on one difficulty level, you will most likely want to do it again on Nuts of Steel, the games hardest difficulty level. There are plenty of secret chips to collect, and as I said before, you might do if just for the cutscenes.

Final Recommendation

Buy it. It cost me $20, and it was well worth it. I would have paid $50 for it. If you are unsure, rent it, but it is worth the $10-$20 you can probably find it for. If you like Third Person Shooters, or you just like action games, you will like this.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/29/06