Perfect Dark Zero

"Decent, but there are better games out there"

Perfect Dark Zero is one of the first shooters made on the Xbox 360. It is supposed to be a sequel to the famous Perfect Dark on the Nintendo 64.

Graphics- 8/10

The graphics of this game are pretty good. All the environments look real enough along with the people. However, other games on the Xbox 360 put this game to shame graphics wise.

Audio- 10/10

The audio on this game is great. This game has lots of good music along with good voice acting. The sound effects are also real enough.

Controls- 5/10

This is one of the main weak points of the game. First off, there is no jumping function. Yes, you heard me correctly; you cannot jump in this game. This was all right in the Nintendo 64 era, but in this era of playing video games, jumping is essential. This game can be a pain sometimes because you cannot jump over small cracks or bumps in the ground and stuff and need to go around. When you need to do this in the middle of a firefight, it can get tricky. Next, the controls are a bit hard to use at times. You are supposed to be able to take cover behind boxes and stuff, but it is hard to do sometimes because you need to do this at the end of the box and it is hard to do sometimes. Also, sometimes when you do get it right (particularly when taking cover behind something small), you end up aiming your gun on the wrong side of the box you hard behind. This can be a pain sometimes. The same thing happens when you need to use a control to open the door or anything else that requires the action button. Other than those problems, the controls are fine, but those things affect the game play a lot.

Game play- 12/20

The game play of this game is decent, but the game itself feels like a generic shooter rather than something unique. In other words, this game is not a classic in my opinion, and is a bit mediocre. A lot of it is just the feel of it. But some of it is other things as well. First off, there is the fact that you need to use gadgets to do certain things in the game such as unlocking doors. Since this game takes place in the future, it sort of feels like a James Bond wannabe. Also, using the gadgets is sort of stupid too. Instead of it just unlocking a door or something, you need to fool around with the gadgets. You need to move your joystick around, solve mini-puzzles, and all. And the worst part of it is that enemies will be attacking you when you do it. For example, in one mission, you need to set off charges on doors to stop enemies from following you. The only problem is that the moment you start wiring your bomb (which is what you do with the demo kit before setting the charge), a bunch of enemies will charge and start shooting you. And you can't put it down. If you do, you need to rewire the bomb and then more enemies will attack. The weapons are also James Bond-ish. But this probably stems from the fact that Rare made both Goldeneye and Perfect Dark. The RCP-90 is back in this game and some other weapons from goldeneye are in this game under different names. For example, the moonraker laser is now fires bullets and is called the MAGSEC4. However, most of this doesn't really matter much because many of those weapons are in every other shooter out there anyway. Some weapons are unique though. For example, one of the pistols shoots darts that makes enemies turn on each other. As for the actual combat in the game, it is good, but nothing special. There are other shooters that accomplish the very same thing.

Fun Factor- 14/20

As I said earlier, this game isn't really special, but it is fun. The missions are fun to play and there are even bots for multiplayer. The only real problems are having to do stuff while being shot at (and taking a heavy beating I might add). Another problem is the stealth factor in some levels in this game. For example, you shoot a guy with a silenced weapon, and the enemies will still go berserk. And it's pretty bad too. Setting off an alarm is pretty much suicide, because it makes waves and more waves of enemies come. On agent mode, this isn't that bad, but on higher difficulties, it can be frustrating. There is also a chance to make the radios useless, but you only have a 1/3 chance of making it work. Also, if you set off enough alarms, you fail the mission. That is, of course, if you survived the waves of guards. These things can lead to some frustration, which takes away the fun of the game. However, these are minor and the game is pretty enjoyable overall.

Game Length/Replay value- 10/20

The game itself is far too short. Most shooters nowadays are around 20 or 30 missions long, but this game only has 13 (14 if you count the practice mission). As for the replay value, it has some. You can always try to beat missions on a higher difficulty. Also, finishing a certain level with a certain weapon can allow you to use that weapon in any mission. Multiplayer is also available for people who don't have live. Playing bots can get boring after a while, but this adds to the replay value.

Difficulty- 9/10

I would say that some of the things are a bit hard and frustrating, but there are multiple difficulty levels available in the game so this game isn't terribly hard. But if you want difficulty, it is there.

Overall- 68/100 = 6.8/10

Overall, this game is decent. If you are looking for a blockbuster, look somewhere else. This game is not a Halo or Gears of War or even as good as the original Perfect Dark. However, if you give it a chance, it is a decent game.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/10/07