Once
again we find ourselves in the middle of a summer filled with Hollywood
blockbusters and once again there’s a movie tie-in game released as well. While
these games aren’t stellar or particularly good (with the exception of this
year’s decent Wolverine game on Xbox 360 and PS3), they at least give fans of
said summer blockbuster a chance to re-enact the best moments of the movie.
Unfortunately, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen for the PSP offers nothing
worth playing even if you are a fan of the transforming robots.
Revenge
of the Fallen is Michael Bay’s second film in the Transformers series where the
Autobot allies have joined forces with the United State military in wiping out
the remaining Decepticon enemies on Earth. It doesn’t take too long for the
enemy, lead by Starscream, to find a way to resurrect Megatron and carry out the
orders of a Decepticon known only as The Fallen. It seems that The Fallen is
looking to wipe out humanity by triggering an ancient weapon that happens to be
hidden on Earth. It’s up to the Autobots to put a stop to The Fallen’s plans and
crush the Decepticons once and for all … or so the movie and the description of
the story in the game’s manual mentions.
You
see, there’s not much of a story to be found in the PSP version of the game with
the exception of some brief cut scenes in the War Room hub. You start the game
playing as the Autobots led by none other than Optimus Prime. Aiding the Special
Forces division formed to combat the Decepticons, the Autobots head out to
Shanghai when word that Decepticons might be in the area. As Bumblebee, you set
off to destroy the enemy forces in a few stages that will take you through the
west coast, east coast and even as far as Cairo, Egypt.
The
game is played like a classic third-person shooter with a few driving levels to
change things around. The problem with this style, however, is that the gameplay
works against the game thanks – in part – to the lack of a targeting system. To
successfully blast an enemy with your primary or secondary fire, you have to be
facing them. This leads to you shooting up the place wildly in hopes that you’d
hit the enemy. This is the reason I favor melee attacks over your weapons.
One
thing that can also be said about Revenge of the Fallen is that the game follows
a boring linear path with absolutely no room for exploration. Sure, there are
collectibles scattered throughout and you can earn points good towards upgrading
your teammates but there’s really nothing here that keeps the levels fun for
very long. To top it all off, there are also a few glitches in the game that
will not fail to frustrate. In one level, I fought a battle against the
Decepticon boss only to find that if you move back far enough the enemy will
just stand there and take blast after blast without moving for cover. In another
level, I moved too close to a gun turret that it seemed to shoot right through
me and not deal any damage to my Autobot.
As I
mentioned, there are driving levels that have your transformed Autobot or
Decepticon racing in vehicle form. One level in particular has you in pursuit of
a giant Decepticon as you drive and shoot your way in a freeway. It sound fun
but there is very little variety to these missions no matter what side you play.
The Decepticon campaign isn’t any different from the Autobot campaign with the
exception that you will get to play as a few of your favorite Decepticon robots
such as Megatron.
There’s
also the ability to play this game with a friend joining you in co-op. While
it’s sound like a good idea to have a friend aid you in battle, the fact that
you can’t advance without a friend means you both are stuck looking at the same
screen until your friend is ready to move on with you. If you have an impatient
friend then co-op is definitely not a good mode to play.
As far
as the graphics are concerned, Revenge of the Fallen is a complete mess visually
speaking. If this game were on the PSOne it would have passed as acceptable …
just barely. This is mostly due to the flat backgrounds, hideous visual effects
and jerky cut scenes. The sound effects aren’t any better and neither is the
soundtrack that is chopped from the film’s original score.
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen makes for a flawed, unattractive and boring
PSP game that fans of the Transformers should stay away from without question.
If you absolutely want a Transformer game then I suggest picking up the Xbox 360
or PS3 version instead of this very disappointing title.
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Gameplay: 4.5
There’s not much
of a story here despite the fact that there are two campaign modes that tell the
Autobot and Decepticon side. The classic Commando-styled shooting action and
driving action could have been fun but the weak controls and various glitches
just make this game nearly unplayable.
Graphics: 3.5
Visually, this
has got to be the worst looking PSP game you will play this year. Everything
from the backgrounds to the visual effects looks awful. The more familiar
Autobots and Decepticons are recognizable at least.
Sound: 4.0
The soundtrack
repeats itself often throughout the game and the sound effects are not only
minimal but all laser blasts sound alike.
Difficulty: Medium
You will die a
lot in this game but not because the enemy is smart but because the controls are
awful and the shooting action is awkward.
Concept: 4.5
The single-player
campaign mode allows you to play as the Autobots and later as the Decepticons
and that’s not a bad thing at all. Unfortunately, the campaign is actually quite
boring even with cool characters like Optimus Prime. There’s co-op mode that
doesn’t work as good as it should.
Multiplayer: 4.0
A friend can
provide backup in the game’s multiplayer co-op mode via Ad Hoc. The only problem
is that the framerate stutters when explosions start going off and you have
little control over a friend who wants to keep moving.
Overall: 4.5
A considerably
flawed game from start to finish, the PSP version of Transformers: Revenge of
the Fallen just disappoints in every possible way. With little redeemable
qualities, there’s just no reason for Transformer fans or shooter fans to pick
this one up.
