Bionic Commando Rearmed

"Does the hype live up to the release?"

Low and behold, The Commando of Bionics has returned to us with a new suit and tie. A fresh look for an old franchise that deserves revival. I have put about 2 hours into it now. What are we in store for?

Graphics: 2/2

Fantastic! Use of a tile system maintains the look of the artists, while keeping the functionality of the original tile system used on the NES. Brilliantly executed. Great use of color in the environment, as well as lighting. Zone 4's use of the flare added even more to the mood of that stage. That may have been what they were looking for originally...

Sound: 1/2

Meh, and I'll tell you why. The sound effects are great. A little bit of the old, a little bit of the new mixed in. Sets me in the mindset of playing the original. But the remixes need work. They need work because they are different enough to feel too different from the game. This is a military game fighting faux Nazis. Where are the big, loud, and burly themes to make the setting come out. The songs are good and of good quality, they just don't fit with the game, IMHO.

Interface: 1/2

The main start menu and other associated menus are fine, they look great. They animate smoothly and make sense (in their design). Game icons work as well, but I think another direction would have had a better impact. Just having the pick up items in the safe zones, for example, are just icons instead of physical objects. Surely there was enough left in the polygon budget to model communicators, or at least an object to take the comm chips out of.

Control: 2/2

You REALLY have to focus on what you are doing, but that focus pays off in most instances... Bionic Commando with a more realistic physics model works wonders. Swinging is just as instinctive as it has been in the original, but since the environment is in 3D, it does allow for a more precise control of using the hook, gunfire, etc. Characters are responsive and move readily, not bogged down too much by the characters animation.

Gameplay: 2/2

This game is a blast! I was debating whether or not to go into work this morning cause this game is soo much fun. Why get aggravated by old people and their computer issues when you can be swinging like a monkey through oodles of enemy soldiers, guns a blazin'!! Once you play the first stage, any fan of the original game will see all their memories of the game flooding back to assist your playthrough. Until they get to the bosses. You can no longer just blow up the core and skip the 800lb gorilla in the area any more. You have to finish them off to complete stages. Provided you don't look at a walkthrough, discovering things about the boss thru hacking in the stage earlier and trying to apply that knowledge in the fight is very rewarding once you figure out each one. I cant wait to see how the end fights are going to be.


Overview: 8/10

This game is what I was hoping would happen with XBL, PSN, and the others. This game has set a benchmark for remade action titles. Get to steppin' developers. You are going to have tons of game to bury this title. Bionic Commando: Rearmed is not going anywhere soon.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/15/08

Game Release: Bionic Commando Rearmed (US, 08/13/08)