Jaws Unleashed

"Great idea, flawed execution"

Gameplay - 4/10
The idea of swimming in the open sea eating any beast or boat that comes your way sounds enticing. For the first hour or so it is. Unfortunately there is only so much you can do in the game, and the missions/side challenges reflect that, consisting mainly of eating something within a certain time limit or tossing barrels at a ship or building. Two of the missions stand out, The Deep and The Facility. The rest are merely fodder to advance a weak plot. The free roaming gets boring as well. There's really nothing in the water that can threaten you, especially once you level up. The excitement of chomping down on helpless swimmers or dolphins wears off quickly. There are various collectibles, but the payoff isn't enough when the gameplay is so repetitive. Camera issues will arise once in awhile, but nothing to serious, and it is controllable. There will be bugs.....oh yes there will be bugs. While the experience surely will vary, you may get stuck with no way of getting out, the framerate may drop when there's too much action, or the game may freeze. All happened to me.

Graphics - 5/10
Jaws and most of the marine life look very nice and they are animated well. The people look like left over extras from GTA. Environments are bland on the surface and not much better underwater. Some nice touches such as people swimming away with only one leg after being attacked. The game suffers from horrible pop-up.

Sound - 5/10
The music is loosely based on the music from the movie and there is plenty of screaming and crying when you attack. But much like the gameplay the sound gets repetitive and you'll quickly forget it.

Story - 3/10
Kind of unfair to score the story, but it is a part of the game. Some pollution occurs, you kill someone's son, that someone seeks revenge, you eat everything and ruin the town's fun. No character development at all......(kidding).

Controls - 8/10
The controls are near perfect, and there's even a tutorial to help you out in the beginning. The controllable camera helps, there will be times you'll need to adjust it.

Overall - 5/10
Jaws is my favorite movie of all time. I've argued its the greatest movie ever made, so it pains me to give this score. This game suffers from repetitive gameplay and music, bugs that should have been noticed with proper testing, a weak story, and possibly the worst final battle ever. There is some enjoyment to be had, if you want to spend 30 minutes biting off people's heads, but the novelty will get old.

Fans of the movie, or sharks in general, will want to check it out, but rent first. Otherwise stay clear of this game.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 06/13/06