Rez

"One of a Kind"

I was tempted to think up some cheesy tagline involving the title (T-Rez-Mendous!!!) but I held myself back. In any case, this is a great game, and there are currently none like it. I don't think it likely that there ever will be any like it, but there may be some that are similar on one level or another.

Story: 3/10
I never could find the actual story in the game. Some people seem to have found a story somewhere, but I simply gathered what I know from the instructions booklet. You are the representation of a hacker in a corrupted system, and you are battling viruses and access issues all the way to the core of the computer, where you are trying to save someone? I can't comment much on the story, because the game has very little semblance of one. But similar to Star Fox or Tony Hawk, this game isn't about story, it's about experiencing the marvelous game.

Gameplay: 9/10
The gameplay is very simplified, which some people like, and some people detest. Basically it's simplified to the point that anyone can pick it up and be pretty good at it right off the bat. It heavily resembles minigames from other games like Final Fantasy 7. You control one thing, which is what your figure aims at. You move the crosshair, and fire at enemies. You can hold down the button, and then it can lock onto several enemies at once a la ZOE 2 or Omega Boost. The best part of all this is the results. You are zooming through this colorful trance like level, and you're shooting things, and when they explode you get a synth sound for each one, and the sounds are cumulative, so if you locked onto 8 (the max) enemies before letting off your volley of missiles, you get 8 sounds (usually starting with a climactic sound, and proceeding on to fade out, as each sound is less explosive and loud, hence locking onto one enemy makes a little sound, while two will make a slightly louder sound, then the little sound, and 8 will make a giant sound followed by 7 smaller and smaller noises. Now imagine locking onto 8 targets consistently and you have some crazy noises running around, as you are firing off volleys before the previous is done, and you get overlayed sounds and some intriguing stuff. Besides enemies, there are a few upgrades you can shoot to gain bonuses, such as parts towards a level up for your character (similar to Maximo, each level represents one hit, so if you get hit, you loose a level, and it will take a while to build up to that level again). Also you can pick up Overdrives, which are screen clearing bombs for when you can't take the heat. What's cool and different about these bombs (because come on, how many 2d shooters don't feature some sort of Omega weapon?) is that rather than a giant explosion, it just auto fires your lasers for you at superfast speeds, and hits everything on the screen, making for a visual and audio spectacle. You travel through levels, and each level has 10 layer levels (besides the final level) which are accessed via gates in the level. After that you face a boss, and exit the level. I should note that for some of the hard core gamers out there who look with a critical eye upon the time it takes to beat a game, this game can easily take you an hour or less to beat. Once you have beaten the game, there is very little to do except go back and beat it again. But as I hinted at towards the beginning, this is less of a game and more of an experience, similar to Ico.

Graphics: 9/10
I can't give these graphics a 10, because they don't display anything revolutionary like Final Fantasy X did; however for the setting and feel of the game, they are perfect. Most of the levels are drawn out in wires, making the emergence of anything solid that much more exciting. You're meant to be inside a computer, so much like Tron or some sections of the movie 'Hackers,' you are running around virtual universes, which are conveyed by the wire outlines of most levels. However, far from being just cubes all the time, these levels offer a lot of diversity from wire temples to caves, to terrain. And the last level; well I won't ruin it for you but the last level really blew my mind when I first played it. The visuals are stunning. Now if you are looking for superb renderings and realistic real time areas, this isn't the game for you. It's very far off from reality, and doesn't try in the slightest to resemble it. The graphics are original and fit well in the setting (especially because each levels wireframe setting bounces in time with the music)!

Sound:
BGM: 10/10
Very few games have music that I'd rate 10/10, but this one pulls it off. Rather than standing somewhere in the middle of the circle, in order to make everyone happy, like Dance Dance Revolution or Frequency (other music games) do, Rez makes it very clear from the beginning that its focus is trance, so it's trance or bust. For aficionados such as myself, this is perfect. Though not featuring the best trance I've ever heard, it is certainly the best trance I've heard out of a video game. Some people will say that the game has only 5-10 songs in it. I think it's closer to 5, but they'd be correct. Why so few you ask? Well, again it's an experience, not a long game. But these songs are progressive trance, and if you've any knowledge of such material you'll know that Dj's often go on for an hour or more with a single track. Now Rez doesn't offer us that luxury (I doubt if it would fit on the CD) but it does feature five levels each with a progressive trance track that evolves 11 times (recall the ten layer levels? Each level is a different progression in the track, as well as the boss having his own progression).
SFX: 10/10
The sound effects are perfect for the game as well. As I listed in gameplay, shooting large numbers of things yields different sounds, and shooting off an Overdrive really makes things hectic. Combine this with the already pulsing music and it's quite an experience.

Replay Value: 7/10
I'd like to note the types of replay value, and which of them this game features. For fans of Resident Evil, or Devil May Cry, who beat the game, turn around, and start a new game five minutes later, this is not that sort of game. Yes, you can play it over and over, and the first few times you'll enjoy it, but similar to listening to the same tune at work everyday, doing anything over and over gets repetitive. This game will change very marginally if you beat it again (there are a few bonus modes that change the entire color scheme). However, if you take it out once a week to chill and play, or bring it to a friends place to have them try, then the game can have endless replay value. The game is not long, so it's not as if you have to devote an entire weekend to beating it again like most RPGs. You can replay it now and then to relive the experience, which is fun with most any enjoyable game, but becomes a hassle when reminiscing about your favorite RPG ends up taking three days to complete. The game has replay value, but not in the sense that it will evolve or change every time you play it. As I said, it is an experience. I would better compare replaying the game to watching a movie you've already seen, rather than replaying a game. If you liked the movie the first time, odds are you'll like it again.

Overall: 8/10 (not an average)
I'd like to note again that my review is biased by me being a trance fan, and also that I enjoy experiences just as much as I enjoy games. This is not a game that will occupy your time and keep you entertained for hours on end. For what it is, a work of art, it is very good. But to people not into that sort of thing, just steer clear and all will be well. Because the game does not cater to all people, I rate it an 8. For the people it does cater to, it's most definitely a 10.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/04/03