Roadkill
Grand Theft Twisted Carmeggedon?
Tags: Roadkill Categories: PS2 Reviews, Reviews
Posted by Andrew on Nov 10th, 2003
| Title | Players | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Roadkill (title page) | |||
| Developer | Publisher | Genre | Online |
| Action | No | ||
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Yes, this game does rip off a lot from other games like Grand theft Auto, Twisted Metal Black, Carmeggedon and any car driving massive post apocalyptic game. Yes, it does come from Midway and does feature completely adult themes, language, graphics, cut scenes and overall feel. So what we have here is a old idea, being redesigned and put out by a company with no track record with these types of games. So how did Midway do? Not too bad.
The game puts the player in a post apocalyptic world were a disease has wiped out most of humanity, any semblance of government and very little law enforcement. You play a loner who goes on a journey through three cities, making deals and working for various gangs where you build up cash and a reputation which you use to your advantage.
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The gameplay is a lot like a Twisted Metal Black, but because the cities are much bigger and there are missions like a Grand Theft Auto, the gameplay is a little slower and the game is not plagued by the same weird physics and bugs. Between missions, you can drive around, collect powerups or plans for new cars, buy upgrades, or do various side missions which offer completely massive slaughter or races, much like the side missions in the GTA series.
There are over 40 different cars available in RoadKill, and each looks and handles like it should. The gameplay is straight car to car fighting, with little sniping or mounted gun fighting offered just to break up any monotony. Each car has a mounted gun on the back which is controlled by AI and each is upgradeable for different weapons or nitro or whatever you need. You collect money by completing each mission or by collecting the bits of scrap metal left from each of the victims of your blood rage.
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The cities are large, colorful and definitely interesting. Each offers different routes, either obvious or insanely hard to go between points, and the feel of each city adds to the gameplay. Throughout each city you will find different gangs which will be fighting you, each other, or anything that moves depending on their mood. Other pedestrians which you locate are usually good for splattering your screen with blood and being dragged around on your front grill so that you can show their various limbs off to others as a warning not to come out in the street. The cities also change with a accelerated time clock for day and night, ala GTA.
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The feel of the game is definitely something which is unexpected from Midway (though with The Suffering coming out, maybe they are trying to change their image). The storyline is driven through cut scenes as you start each mission which are both graphically well done while at the same time sometimes topping the cut scenes in Twisted Metal Black. The various prostitutes, gang members, graffiti and other assorted vices found throughout the cities all add to the overall apocalyptic feel of the game.
Overall, the gameplay had enough of the elements of the past hits to keep me interested. It took what I loved the most from Twisted Metal Black, added a little of GTA, and definitely reminded me of some past greats as well. There really isn’t a single thing in this game which is different or original, but the way they are put together and their overall presentation are great enough to warrant attention.
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The explosions and overall graphics are good for the PS2, but not enough to stand out. The sounds, which feature a 80’s style rock theme and plenty of explosions and screams, are good but not great. The lack of online play, and the inability to get out of the car and run around limit the game a bit, but not enough.
This is a game that I would suggest that most people at least rent, for some it is the next evolution in a genre they love, and for others it is nothing more then blatant ripoff other games which they have already played to death.
| What Works | Score |
|---|---|
|
+ Dark feel of the game + Flow/speed of game |
7.3 |
| What Doesn't | |
|
- Mediocre graphics - Lack of ability to get out of car |
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| Under the Shrink-wrap | |
| I guess trying to get a killer ice cream truck that turns into a robot is asking too much for an obvious hidden secret in the game? | |
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Tags: Roadkill
Posted by Andrew on Nov 10th, 2003 and is filed under PS2 Reviews, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can post a comment, or trackback from your own site.
