Apocalypse

"Bruce Willis takes revenge on the world."

Bruce Willis has sold his soul when he gave his voice acting to Apocalypse, just because of the name, not how the game is. You would not want your voice to be known as the guy who saved the world from Apocalypse.... Wait that is a pretty sweet deal Bruce made. He gets money, uses a large amount of weapons, and saves the world. However, this game deals with things that are just plain bizarre. How is Bruce a scientist, when he is just so good at jumping, shooting, etc.? How does a prison have bottomless pits? Why are the 4 horsemen some how related to him? This I shall not tell you, but I shall say this: the only way that you could get any lasting gameplay elements of Apocalypse is if you are not able to beat it. EVER. This game was made for renting. You can beat this game in a few hours at least. However, when you play it, you see that this game has an okay story, and great gameplay, but it lacking in two other things.

You are a scientist, played by Bruce Willis, who is in prison. Someone evil cooked up a plan to make the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and it is up to Bruce to destroy them and kill their maker. Along the way you will have an array of weapons to help you, like your infinite ammo machine gun, flame-thrower, Rocket Launchers, Pulse Guns, and Lasers to destroy police, guards, the undead, and anything else that stands in your way.

Graphics: 8
The graphics are OK, but they could have had a bit more razzle dazzle to them. They are dark, dank, and evil looking, so they fit the game name. But they don’t have any flash. No gimmicks in this game, just plain, easy to see guns, fire, and Bruce Willis. You also have a musical video on a screen, which is like in the THPS series, but this came out before that. The enemies look like headless dwarfs, and I’m not joking, unless you fight police. The VMU look great, exactly what you would picture in your head. Bruce the character looks like Bruce in real life, so it could seem like a real action movie. All and all, ok graphics.

Gameplay: 7
You are on a shooting rampage, shooting anything that moves, and if it doesn’t you shoot it anyway. You don’t know if some enemies could be hiding under it. With your barrage of metal or electrical goodness, you must keep yourself alive by jumping, somersaulting, shooting, and kicking your way threw doors, platforms, enemies, puddles of poison goo, and anything that is out for your blood. Nothing can stop you unless they kill you, and that might be a while. This is the type of gameplay that leave people wanting to play more and more. However, this game does not pull this off flawlessly as hoped. After a few levels, you will be wondering if you want to play this game at all. But the feeling passes after you beat the first Horseman, and you want to beat them all. You will only want to play this game possibly a few times after you beat it, so very little replay value. If you would like to play this game more than once, it will get easier and easier until you just can’t stand the easiness in it.

Sound: 7
With real audio clips of Bruce Willis telling people to “suck on this” and “this people need a little bit more lead in their diet” how could you not turn the volume up! This game spills out more cheesy catch phrases then all the Arnold Schwarzenegger movies combined, along with Bruce’s own movies. Though, the sound effects don’t live up to the voice acting. Just a bunch of explosions, which could have been made from firecrackers, guns, and the live electrical wire is about it. There is no in game music to be heard in this game. When you want sound, you can give more effects to everything in options mode, but nothing you can do besides some headphones can cure in game music.

Fun Factor: 7
This is just a little game to play, not to buy, but renting would give you a good time. This game could not be part of a gaming entrée, but just a nice appetizer or a side dish to what you would want to keep. If you want some good shooting game, get a space shooter, not this. But it would keep you entertained for a little while. If you want something like this to burn off some steam, Apocalypse is the right game for you.

Buy or Rent?
I would get you to rent this game, though I did buy it myself. It would be nice to hear Bruce Willis talk catchy one-liners.

Graphics: 8
Gameplay: 7
Sound: 7
Fun Factor: 7

Reviewer’s Score: 7/10

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 05/26/02, Updated 05/26/02