“Stop or I’ll shoot!” cries out the
pursuing police officer
The suspect turns, a young man, hand
outstretched and holding a gun. “Don’t make me shoot you, man! I’ll do it!”
“Drop the gun! Put it down!” pleads
the police officer.
Shots ring out and the suspect drops
down dead. But that was in the past, albeit a troubled and haunting past for the
police officer known as Mitchell. Move forward, and a special ops team en route
to a tenement where drug suspects are. The commander of the unit gives the
orders crisply:
“Open fire to neutralize perceived
threats, not before!”
But what begins as a coordinated
drug bust soon devolves into a lusty shoot-em up throughout the compound. And
this was only the beginning.
SCEA and Team Soho have conspired
for The Getaway: Black Monday, a PlayStation2 release that combines shooter
action from the third-person perspective as well as some vehicular timed
missions through London’s streets. The game begins with promise but after
playing for a while, it becomes apparent that this game is more of a typical
shooter game.
Back in the 1970s the British film
entity known as Pinewood Studios had a certain flair, or signature if you will,
that was stamped on the majority of their motion pictures. That same feel is
endemic to The Getaway: Black Monday in the way the game initially unfolds.
Taut, gritty, robust with atmosphere and language (ok, they are cops that are
wound a little tight and toss around four-letter epithets with abandon), the
game sets a great tone from the beginning, but fails to maintain it as the story
unravels.
The story centers on gang violence
in London and during the course of the game, players will be able to take on the
person of different characters, each with a different story. It begins with
Mitchell and a shoot-out in the tenement complex, then moves to a boxer and then
a female character. There are stealth missions and also timed driving missions.
The latter can be frustrating, and quite a harrowing ride for those in the car.
This game borrows absolutely nothing from driving games, and the car controls
leave much to be desired.
Actually, while the game tries to
give you a sense of not being an arcade title, with a lack of maps and health
bars, the game still comes across somewhat like that – but that is mainly due to
the linear nature of the game (more about that in a moment). The control
elements, overall, can be a bit of a pain, and really don’t follow the format of
tried-and-true shooter games. Aiming takes practice, though the game does allow
you to fire off either a single shot or a burst at the bad guys.
Graphically the game is solid, with
three-dimensional models and environments, working through each level, which is,
more or less, a maze. Elements will block access to different areas so the
environments are not thoroughly open. You will be tasked to weave your way
around to certain areas, and sluggish camera controls can make this less
reflexive than intended
The game’s sound keeps the mood of
the game. The music is well done and the voice acting powers the game’s angst
rather graphically at times. It would seem that most of the people in this game
don’t like one another, even though they are compelled to work together.
The game is somewhat linear in
design. If you fail a scenario, it plays out – more or less – exactly like it
did the last time you attempted it. You can achieve different results, though,
either but solving the problem in a variety of ways – all seemingly with little
consequence. For example, Mitchell can walk through the mission, busting all the
bad guys he gets close enough to, or he can shoot up everything that moves. The
radio chatter will grouse at him, but you can ignore that and simply play it
out.
The Getaway: Black Monday has
several faults, which stop it from achieving anything other than an average
gaming experience, if that. The game tries to do too much and as a result
doesn’t really do a lot well. Eliminated some of the less refined elements (like
the car sequences) would help, especially if that effort went into making the
interface tighter and more accessible. The Getaway: Black Monday is certainly
not a bad title – it just is a little too clumsy.
|
Review |
Gameplay: 6.0
The controls are clumsy and during reflexive elements of the game, like the
shooter aspects, this translates into less reflexive gameplay moments. And the
driving elements are just not that good.
Graphics: 7.5
There are some minor movement problems, but overall the game looks good.
Environmental elements are sometimes a little silly – serving as immovable
barriers or blowing away like paper.
Sound: 7.8
The sound of this game really does a good job to capture the mood and overall
tone of the story.
Difficulty: Medium
There are no difficulty settings, per se, and some of the AI is a little weak –
like bad guys, with handguns, standing five feet from an officer with a
submachine gun and trying to have a shootout.
Concept: 6.0
It seems like the developers tried to pack multiple elements into this game and
didn’t really give them all a thorough treatment. Black Monday has a strong
story, but aspects like the timed driving missions could have easily been left
out, and the game would have been stronger for it.
Overall: 6.7
There are too many stumbling blocks for this game to rate a higher score. The
intent for a compelling game was certainly there, but sluggish controls in
reflexive situations make for less than satisfactory results.
