Rez

"Visual Insanity Welcomes You. Will You Accept?"

So I goto my local swapmeet to visit my video game dealer with only as much as a twenty dollar bill on me not expecting to buy anything. So while I'm there he tells me he has a great selection of games under twenty bucks and I think to myself...great he's going to show me games that have probably been tossed out in the back of a Best Buy. So as he shows me the games one game caught my eye...it had a Sega logo on it...and I couldn't miss it...it was in big letters...REZ...from that day forward I have yet to play any game that is as visually exciting as this...so on with the review...

Graphics: 10/10
The graphics are mostly just wireframes and you might not think that's impressive at all, but the moment you start playing it and seeing it in action you'll just be completely hypnotized by all the visuals going on. There isn't a single moment where the visuals don't change...it's constant. That means the action in the game never ends even if you aren't playing. There isn't any slowdown either, but I wasn't expecting it seeing as how it doesn't really get that intense. The graphics may not seem like PS2 quality, but with what Sega does with them it doesn't really matter since it's just mostly wireframe designs for just about everything.

Controls: 9/10
The controls are great and respond well and are easy to pick up and learn. The X button is to shoot and the longer you hold it the more you fire. The O button is your overdrive. That's simply your bomb that destroys everything on the screen. It's pretty much pick up and play, but one minor complaint about the controls that keeps me from giving it a ten is the fact that I can't change the sensitivity of how fast the cursor moves. That usually results in me missing one enemy which keeps me from getting a 100% score. It might not be a big deal for me, but it's just something I wish I could customize like the rest of the controls such as invert or normal cursor control.

Sound: 10/10
This is where it's hit or miss...you're either going to love the music or hate it...I for one love it...the music consists of trance and hard house music that goes along with the game. Every time you shoot you actually add to the rhythm of the background music. Not everyone is into trance so this might be the biggest reason why they won't like the game...let then wallow in their ignorance as their missing out in this. The more you also evolve in character aspects the more different your beats sound which is also awesome. I felt as if I was making my own music while I was playing which what I was really loving about this game. One thing that could bother you is how constant the vibrating is because for every single beat the controller vibrates and that is most of the time non stop. Good thing you have an option to turn it off.

Gameplay: 10/10
As you know like in every game...this is what makes or breaks a game. In this case it completely imortalizes it in a good way. The game is five levels deep...that might not seem a lot, but trust me...you'll be playing them over and over and with all the bonuses you unlock, which are over twenty by the way, and once you get them you'll be replaying them over and over just for completion. What basically goes on in each of the levels is 10 stages within it. You start off in the basic part of the level at ten percent. As you dive deeper into the levels by shooting out these special boxes that transport you, the visuals just get even more intense and the combat gets extremely hectic. The objective is to reach the 100% point where a boss awaits you. The difficulty of the boss depends on how many enemies you've managed to destroy. Destroying over 98% of the enemies in the stage gives you a tough boss while below that gives you a pathetic one. Don't get me wrong here. You don't fight a different boss depending on how many enemies you desotroy...you get a different difficulty setting for the boss. Once you beat a level you carry over everything you aquired from the previous and continue on from there... There are other modes of play other than the story mode such as travel mode where you can never die and of course the ever popular tutorial...don't worry though those aren't the only options available I just don't want to spoil it for you and there are a ton of them. The story may not be deep, but this game will have you playing it for hours until you have complete mastery of it.

All in all this game deserves a 9 out of 10 and I recommend anyone to buy this game. The reason for the 9 is because of a minor controller problem I have, but I can simply overlook it. It may not have the deep storyline or the crystal clear graphics and details you're used to in this day in age but it does bring a new innovation and it's definitely worth checking out. I know this game won't get any crowning achievement award or anything, but buy this game because very few ever venture far with innovation and this is just one of the very few that step out of lines and bring some fresh innovation to something old. This is another one of those underrated games that only a few will ever be fortunate enough to own let alone enjoy.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/22/03