Bionic Commando

"Swing clean over the learning curve for an epic adventure - A RooCH review"

Once in a while, a game comes along that hits you with something new. Whether it be a tremendous storyline, or a new gun, or even a new graphical spin that amazes you. But the one thing I always love to see, is a game that adds an all new gameplay mechanic. In Timeshift, it was the ability to pause, slow or rewind time during live play. In Fracture, it was the ability to raise or lower the ground dynamically during live play. In Bionic commando, it isn't so much brand new, as a 3D reimagining of a classic. The Bionic Commando arm.

You are Nate Spencer, a man with dreadlocks, and a penchant for wise cracking. A former Bionic, your arm is removed, and you sit on deathrow awaiting your fate, when you are mysteriously removed from your cell. You are informed that an army of bionic sympathisers have nuked a city, and you are the only hope to stop them. Of course, you're more than a little apprehensive helping out the people who have sworn to kill you, but you are offered a morsel of information that you want, and with that, it's off to work...

Graphics
The graphics in this title are on the one hand impressive, on the other flawed. It looks sharp, vibrant and colourful. The weapon effects look great, the explosions look nice, and my word if the bionic arm doesn't rock the socks. But a recurring problem throughout the game is shearing. As you play, and swing freely from point to point, the screen often shears in half and moves slightly one way or the other. It in no way detracts from the experience, as this is a very graphically immersive title, however it certainly does detract from the visual beauty of an otherwise stunning game.

Gameplay
The key to this game, without question, is the arm. Imagine you are Spiderman, only rather than having your swinging done for you, by way of auto assigned shots of web, you have to choose your spots. That is to say, you have to select where your arm grabs, and when to let go for the optimum swing. Now, this sounds too much like hard work, but trust me when I say it is excellent fun. The arm reticle is free roaming, and as you swing around, it is constantly affixed to the nearest anchor point available. Not only that, but in a definite stroke of genius, if you are falling from a high height, and have the grab trigger held down, any holdable surface you cross will automatically be caught, and swung from. This can lead to some epic drop and swings, all with a highly satisfying scream to boot. There is perhaps only one part of the swing mechanic that is an absolute chore, and that is the radiation. Someone needs to tell Capcom & Grin that if they are to employ an "If you go here, you'll die of radiation" mechanic, don't have your character have a mechanic that relies on an apex. In layman's terms, there are parts of every level that if you cross into, you begin to accrue damage at a vast rate. The problem is, if you are swinging, you have to swing INTO the area, get to the apex of the swing, and swing out again to survive. This is a severe problem because most times, you won't survive entering, hitting the apex, and getting out again. Worse still if you are fighting an agile enemy and enter it trying to avoid fire. This is a real issue, but one you simply learn to be more forgiving of once the fun really kicks in.

On top of this, you have the gunplay. The guns are varied, and fun to use, however the ammo tends to be sparing. Your pistol, which you have with you always, is generally fine for ammo. It is the extra guns that you almost never have enough for. Whether it's the grenade launcher, the sniper rifle, the massive shotgun, you just always seem to have a paultry amount of ammo. It isn't too bad because they are ultra powerful, but it makes fulfilling challenges a real trial.

Challenges are where this game truly is fleshed out. Every so often, particularly at a gun or power unlock, you are challenged to do a certain action involving this gun/power. For instance, kill 4 people with one grenade, kill 2 people with the grenade launcher whilst swinging, kill a biomech in hand to hand combat. There are many challenges to do, and lots of power ups to get, from faster reloads of weapons, to armour. It's great to get a new challenge, because the real difficulty is getting what the challenge wants you to do, to fit in with where you are. By no means easy, but certainly satisfying.

The only other gameplay feature to touch upon is the character upgrades. This is an area of joy, and utter futility in my opinion. Right at the beginning of the game, you receive a training simulator. In it, you are shown not just the swing mechanic, but 5 or 6 specialised power moves. The "rip" (pull an item off it's moorings), the punch and smash (where you hit items into the air, and volley them down at your enemies, the kite and throw (where you grab, lift and throw objects) and a couple of others I'll leave as a surprise. But as you begin the game, you are stripped of ALL of them! Meaning you are literally down to punches and gunplay for the first few areas. You slowly "remember" these skills, but ultimately it means the learning curve is pretty huge, and most people would lose patience.

Sound
The sounds in this game is great. The voice acting is brilliant, the sound effects from the arm grabbing items, to the swinging and shooting are all very well done. You can hear item drops rocket from the sky, and if an enemy has a rocket function, you can hear them fire, and as a result, **** yourself trying to escape. The sound effects truly immerse you in this world.

Multiplayer
The multiplayer is fun, but I won't lie, it feels tacked on. There are no achievements, there ranked matches, it is just a fun little aside to pass the time and add some longevity to the title. That said, all the key elements are there. All the weapons are there, the powers for the arm are slightly stripped down, but one thing that really impressed me was the net coding. For a game that isn't exactly huge, the lag was absolutely non existent. I thought before playing that the sniper rifle would be utterly pointless, what with everyone swinging around on cables, but I stand corrected. I was able to pick people off (with a little skill too mind) and enjoyed every minute of it. So, whilst not exactly a genre defining piece of gaming, it definitely is a fun distraction, and I encourage you to try it before you finish the single player. It's definitely worth it.

Overview
Overall, this title exceeds my expectations. It graphically performs at a high level, if somewhat annoying with the tears. The gameplay is fast, dynamic and highly addictive once you surpass the learning curve. The guns are varied and fun, as are the enemies which come in all shapes and sizes. I cannot say there is any one thing that actually fails to impress, but there certainly are some small details that could have been ironed out. Still, a highly recommended title, and a definite buy.

RooCH

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 06/08/09, Updated 06/09/09

Game Release: Bionic Commando (EU, 05/22/09)