Metal Arms: Glitch in the System

"Soldier of Fortune..."

I was looking for a good shooting game for the Gamecube a few weeks ago. When I asked around, everyone mentioned Metal Arms: Glitch in the System. So I checked by my local Gamestop to see if they had a copy. Now, I came in there, ready to spend fifty bucks. This game is wildly popular, so I figured that the price would still be as high as possible. But lo and behold, I saw the last remaining copy of the game on the used rack for fifteen dollars. Hoping that I wasn't getting cheated, I bought the game. Luckily for me, Metal Arms did not disappoint.

Metal Arm's gimmick is that all the characters are robots. This sounds dull doesn't it? Robots don't have any real personality, just some questionable artificial intelligence. But this game takes the robot theme and twists it into something completely fresh and entertaining. Instead of a dull, emotionless cast, we are presented with vibrant and often comical characters. At what first seems like a science fiction spoof, we are introduced to a small group of robots called “Droids.” These Droids are searching the ruins of an old city on the planet of Iron Star. Suddenly, the team comes across a strange Droid with unknown markings and an unusual body design. The only thing that the hapless group could uncover was the Droid's name: Glitch. Glitch is taken back to the Droid's military base to be brought back online. Once he is back to his normal self, Glitch is thrust into the middle of a planet-wide war. The evil General Corrosive has staged an epic rebellion that has caused the planet to fall into turmoil. Glitch knows nothing about himself, his goals, wants, and needs. All he knows is that General Corrosive must be stopped with whatever means necessary. And so, Glitch enlists in the Droid army to wipe out the enemy with extreme prejudice.

What makes this game great is how it portrays the chaos of a battlefield. The battles in this game are quick and brutal. Glitch is only one robot, but he's often faced down with entire squads of enemies. Often times you'll be surrounded by robots that are sporting semiautomatic lasers and other high caliber weapons. So what's going to save our hero from being blasted into scrap metal? You need to be able to make sense of the carnage that surrounds you. The only thing that will ensure your progress is your ability to think quickly and be able to use your surroundings to your advantage. If you're being rushed by a huge group of enemies, you're not going to want to stand right out there in the open and get plastered. You'll want to dive behind the nearest barricade. If you can't find a way to unlock a door or over a chasm, you need to look around your environment and see if there's anything you can use to your advantage. With such importance placed in your surroundings, it's a safe bet that no battle will happen the same way twice.

But it's not just the environment you have to think about. The enemies here are smart. They're not the best enemy AI I've seen, but they can be brutal in large numbers. Sure, most of them will charge at you headlong at first. But once they've established reinforced positions around the battlefield, it can be really hard to stay alive. These robots can run, jump, slide, and do just about anything to get out of your line of fire. I can admire the effort put into the enemy's strategy intelligence, but the agility that some of these robots possess can be downright irritating. It can be especially bad when the game suffers the occasional graphic slowdown. If there's too much going on at once, the graphics become choppy. Also, the controls take some time to get used to. There may come a time when you're trying to blast an enemy, but accidentally turn the C-Stick the wrong way or push the wrong button at a critical moment. And while you're struggling to correct your mistake, the enemies will gladly open fire on you. Thus this game can have quite a learning curve if you're not used to fast and furious combat.

Luckily, Glitch does have a few tricks up his metal sleeves. You can find a wide assortment of upgradeable weapons around the levels. Glitch can also recruit other Droids to be part of his private squad. Occasionally you'll come across a lone computer terminal. Using the terminal, you can ‘hack” into enemy robots and control their movements. You have to use these enemies to complete certain objectives, like shut down an enemy source or get by a heavy enemy presence. Also, there are various pickups that can be used to your advantage. When you destroy an enemy, they leave behind the metal washers that hold them together. You can use these washers to trade for ammunition and supplies. While the core of this game is essentially shooting everything that moves, you still need to keep a lookout for other in-game features to ensure your survival.

But what I appreciate the most about this game is that its design stays true to the overall theme. You're in the middle of a heated battle…with kooky little robots. Your archenemy is named General Corrosive. It sounds so tacky, but it's still funny at the same time. And the characters stay true to their designs. All of them have wonderful digital voices that mesh well with the characters persona. They even talk with street slang that rivals to that of the average person. Even your commanding officer will say a bleeped curse word every few seconds. The soldiers all sound friendly and trustworthy. When you blast an enemy, their digital screams sound realistic. Even the characters are designed to interact with the battle. If you shoot an enemy in the arm, the joints will break and the arm will hang limp, but the robot will keep fighting. If your shoot the arm while a gun is being fired, the arm will start waving around wildly because the robot can't turn off the gun. And of course, all the enemies blow up into chucks of metal when they die. The strict adherence to the robot theme makes for a fun and entertaining game.

So, where does this leave this epic story of a robotic war hero? This game isn't for those that despise fast-paced games or in-your-face combat. But this game is something for FPS fans to consider. Metal Arms features remarkable real time gameplay. It has detailed characters and locales that create an excellent presentation. It suffers from a little lack of control and the occasional slowdown. But if you want something that's fun, challenging, and highly entertaining, find a copy of this game and become the next Glitch in the System.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/10/04