At last, it arrived; I played it, like it, hated it, liked it again, told it I'd continue to play it if promised to being weird and make an address to a haggis... I'm talking of course about Vanquish. A game that felt like a combination of playing Gears of War as Dante, in a suit designed by Tony Stark, in a battle against Mass Effect's Geth in the Apple store. All taking place in a world where Big Mama (MGS4) is president of the USA... So yeah it was quite a good game, in case you didn't quite gather that from the description.
First, I'll talk a bit about the gameplay. After you get through the initial tutorial, opening cinematic and an entire mission which consisted of running down a corridor dramatically (I'd like to say I'm exaggerating here, except I'm not...) the gameplay begins. Everywhere. Somewhere, I'm not sure it all happens so fast, 50 shots a second are fired at me, 50 shots at the source of the original 50 shots are fired at someone else, and I'm still trying to figure out what all the little dots on the radar mean. This is more or less a lot of the game, except gets a little easier when you suss the radar. Not really a game for the uncoordinated, unless like me your too proud to play `casual' easy modes and you want to feel manly in front of your girlfriend. So I played on normal (I said manly, not suicidal), which provided enough challenge yet still being completable.
It plays out very fast, the best thing to do is to hide behind cover and wait for an opportune moment to stick your head out and shoot 10 enemies at once who are all shooting back with better aim, which is made easier thanks to the slow mo mechanic, the ARS. Another approach is to boost around back and forth and shoot with the ARS on. Depends which kind of player you are, or how many holes you like to have in your thorax. Still, it plays well; levels are very linear with clear objectives, controls are easy to handle and the weapons are fun.
Trying to keep track of health though is annoying. The indicator for your health is either the small slits on the back of your ribs or when the screen starts going red and heartbeaty... I think that's a word? Anyhow, with all that's going on, going on, it makes it hard to keep an eye on your health unless you get hit and it goes to red where you'll find your precious ARS will activate to save you and won't switch off until it runs dead. Which can bugger you a bit if you were planning on saving it for to be used within the next minute. Petty as it sounds can make a world of difference when anything worse than a dirty look can bring you to the brink of death.
Another problem with overheating is that melee attacks run off the same meter, as does the boost system. I can understand not wanting the game too unbalanced but when one melee attack overheats the suit it leaves to wonder why it was included. The only real use I was able to gain from it was against the Romanov mechs and that was really to save ammo. Even then at the rate ammo can be found it didn't feel like I'd miss it, but that's not to say it wasn't fun watching Sam send the Romanov airborne with a boost kick to the ball bearings.
Now, the weapons. Not much to say on them. I have to say, I enjoyed all of them (bar the grenades, but who cares about them?). All of them felt easy to use and proved useful in different situations. The assult rifle for general all rounder, heavy machine gun for a little more bite, and if you want to knock a Romanov out before you deliver a quick kick to his screws the shotgun is always good.
Aside from the classics of course there's a few different weapons such as the laser array, which shoots 4 to 8 lasers into the air that home in on targets, the LFE gun, shoots a large boom of slow moving energy that travels through things and the disc gun, which fires discs...what more do you want? As with every game there's also a rocket lancher and a sniper rifle, but there's really not much can be said about them.
As with any good game, the weapons can be upgraded, in Vanquish it can be done by either finding scarce upgrade packs or by collecting the same weapon 3 times with max ammo; the latter of the two being the more used. In some areas, where stopping for so much as to check the time leaves you a small smouldering pile of nicotine addicted ash, you can upgrade weapons quickly, and even with the penalty of losing upgrade status is small compared to how fast you can re-grade it. Even weapons used solemnly by yourself can be upgraded quickly so long as you don't mind a high death count. However on the subject of upgrading, the armour itself could use with a bit of improvement. Like I said before, when the time it takes from being at full health to being killed can be as quick as an initial controversy claim at a Rockstar announcement regarding GTA, being able to upgrade the armour to be a little sturdier than glass door in the wind wouldn't go a miss. On the same note, so could the ARS's overheat system. I'd enjoy being able to make more than one melee attack in succession.
Now, a few words about the enemies. For the most part, you face the same grunt robot in various colours with slight variation on weapons. The Romanovs, with varying weapons, attack patterns and a big gaping weak spot, as standard on the majority of oversized enemies, on the back. These two enemies will come across for the most part so I'd get used to seeing and find a decent was to take out a Romanov quickly before the entire opposing force fills you with more holes than the plot of Mel Gibson's Signs. However as well as these there's a few more like a hockey playing cougar from the Transformers, Iceman and a Robo Tortoise named Buzzard?
The bosses consist of three, technically four fights repeated at different stages. The Argus, a giant spider mech which turns into a bipedal mech, Bogey, a flying twat, that's as easy to hit as a fly with travel leaflet, and the unknown, a junk constructed mech that will have you snapping your controller as he snaps you so bloody often that I can't even make a joke, it pissed me off that much. I have no problem in particular with how the bosses play out, besides the fact they can play a bit repetitive, but I am a bit disappointed by the lack of variety in bosses. The first fight with the Argus set my expectations high with the thoughts that the boss fights would be these huge conflicts with huge mechs. The reality though was just the same fights with the same two forms. The upside being that the boss fights are not hugely difficult but at the same time are provide a challenge. They're also fun enough to make up for them being a little repetitive.
The story, being linear makes it quite short. Which is fine if because it doesn't commit you to long missions, and the ranking system, however much it emasculates me, provides replay value to each mission. An added bonus being that it soley uses a score rather than embarassing you a with a giant letter 'E'! Alternatively, if you would like to leap straight into the action and ignore the objective BS, there's a timed challenge mode where waves of enemies in an enclosed area of the game swarm you, begging for a case of bullet face. The story is easy to follow, but doesn't make a great deal of sense. Then again it doesn't need to. All that's really asked of it is enough justification to blow stuff up and possibly leave enough loose ends for a sequel, which I hope a few complaints are addressed. Incidentally, a game like this is how I imagine a really good Ironman game would play out. On the same note, aren't Sega(the ones who made Vanquish) usually involved with Ironman games. Just a thought...
To finish up, it's defiantly worth a buy. Especially for £30, which I've seen it go for. I was lucky enough to find one for 30 with Bayonetta. With a lenticular sleeve that makes it difficult for my to open the damn case without getting mystified. Very pretty. So if you haven't already, go pick up a copy.
pressxreviews.blogspot.com
First, I'll talk a bit about the gameplay. After you get through the initial tutorial, opening cinematic and an entire mission which consisted of running down a corridor dramatically (I'd like to say I'm exaggerating here, except I'm not...) the gameplay begins. Everywhere. Somewhere, I'm not sure it all happens so fast, 50 shots a second are fired at me, 50 shots at the source of the original 50 shots are fired at someone else, and I'm still trying to figure out what all the little dots on the radar mean. This is more or less a lot of the game, except gets a little easier when you suss the radar. Not really a game for the uncoordinated, unless like me your too proud to play `casual' easy modes and you want to feel manly in front of your girlfriend. So I played on normal (I said manly, not suicidal), which provided enough challenge yet still being completable.
It plays out very fast, the best thing to do is to hide behind cover and wait for an opportune moment to stick your head out and shoot 10 enemies at once who are all shooting back with better aim, which is made easier thanks to the slow mo mechanic, the ARS. Another approach is to boost around back and forth and shoot with the ARS on. Depends which kind of player you are, or how many holes you like to have in your thorax. Still, it plays well; levels are very linear with clear objectives, controls are easy to handle and the weapons are fun.
Trying to keep track of health though is annoying. The indicator for your health is either the small slits on the back of your ribs or when the screen starts going red and heartbeaty... I think that's a word? Anyhow, with all that's going on, going on, it makes it hard to keep an eye on your health unless you get hit and it goes to red where you'll find your precious ARS will activate to save you and won't switch off until it runs dead. Which can bugger you a bit if you were planning on saving it for to be used within the next minute. Petty as it sounds can make a world of difference when anything worse than a dirty look can bring you to the brink of death.
Another problem with overheating is that melee attacks run off the same meter, as does the boost system. I can understand not wanting the game too unbalanced but when one melee attack overheats the suit it leaves to wonder why it was included. The only real use I was able to gain from it was against the Romanov mechs and that was really to save ammo. Even then at the rate ammo can be found it didn't feel like I'd miss it, but that's not to say it wasn't fun watching Sam send the Romanov airborne with a boost kick to the ball bearings.
Now, the weapons. Not much to say on them. I have to say, I enjoyed all of them (bar the grenades, but who cares about them?). All of them felt easy to use and proved useful in different situations. The assult rifle for general all rounder, heavy machine gun for a little more bite, and if you want to knock a Romanov out before you deliver a quick kick to his screws the shotgun is always good.
Aside from the classics of course there's a few different weapons such as the laser array, which shoots 4 to 8 lasers into the air that home in on targets, the LFE gun, shoots a large boom of slow moving energy that travels through things and the disc gun, which fires discs...what more do you want? As with every game there's also a rocket lancher and a sniper rifle, but there's really not much can be said about them.
As with any good game, the weapons can be upgraded, in Vanquish it can be done by either finding scarce upgrade packs or by collecting the same weapon 3 times with max ammo; the latter of the two being the more used. In some areas, where stopping for so much as to check the time leaves you a small smouldering pile of nicotine addicted ash, you can upgrade weapons quickly, and even with the penalty of losing upgrade status is small compared to how fast you can re-grade it. Even weapons used solemnly by yourself can be upgraded quickly so long as you don't mind a high death count. However on the subject of upgrading, the armour itself could use with a bit of improvement. Like I said before, when the time it takes from being at full health to being killed can be as quick as an initial controversy claim at a Rockstar announcement regarding GTA, being able to upgrade the armour to be a little sturdier than glass door in the wind wouldn't go a miss. On the same note, so could the ARS's overheat system. I'd enjoy being able to make more than one melee attack in succession.
Now, a few words about the enemies. For the most part, you face the same grunt robot in various colours with slight variation on weapons. The Romanovs, with varying weapons, attack patterns and a big gaping weak spot, as standard on the majority of oversized enemies, on the back. These two enemies will come across for the most part so I'd get used to seeing and find a decent was to take out a Romanov quickly before the entire opposing force fills you with more holes than the plot of Mel Gibson's Signs. However as well as these there's a few more like a hockey playing cougar from the Transformers, Iceman and a Robo Tortoise named Buzzard?
The bosses consist of three, technically four fights repeated at different stages. The Argus, a giant spider mech which turns into a bipedal mech, Bogey, a flying twat, that's as easy to hit as a fly with travel leaflet, and the unknown, a junk constructed mech that will have you snapping your controller as he snaps you so bloody often that I can't even make a joke, it pissed me off that much. I have no problem in particular with how the bosses play out, besides the fact they can play a bit repetitive, but I am a bit disappointed by the lack of variety in bosses. The first fight with the Argus set my expectations high with the thoughts that the boss fights would be these huge conflicts with huge mechs. The reality though was just the same fights with the same two forms. The upside being that the boss fights are not hugely difficult but at the same time are provide a challenge. They're also fun enough to make up for them being a little repetitive.
The story, being linear makes it quite short. Which is fine if because it doesn't commit you to long missions, and the ranking system, however much it emasculates me, provides replay value to each mission. An added bonus being that it soley uses a score rather than embarassing you a with a giant letter 'E'! Alternatively, if you would like to leap straight into the action and ignore the objective BS, there's a timed challenge mode where waves of enemies in an enclosed area of the game swarm you, begging for a case of bullet face. The story is easy to follow, but doesn't make a great deal of sense. Then again it doesn't need to. All that's really asked of it is enough justification to blow stuff up and possibly leave enough loose ends for a sequel, which I hope a few complaints are addressed. Incidentally, a game like this is how I imagine a really good Ironman game would play out. On the same note, aren't Sega(the ones who made Vanquish) usually involved with Ironman games. Just a thought...
To finish up, it's defiantly worth a buy. Especially for £30, which I've seen it go for. I was lucky enough to find one for 30 with Bayonetta. With a lenticular sleeve that makes it difficult for my to open the damn case without getting mystified. Very pretty. So if you haven't already, go pick up a copy.
pressxreviews.blogspot.com
