MadWorld: The Wii's Biggest Bloodbath
- May 19, 2008 16:07 PM PST
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Gears of War meets No More Heroes in the Wii's bloodiest game yet!
While the Wii has been extremely successful since its release, it has been lacking in an area that more graphically-intensive consoles have been plentiful--ultraviolent action. Sure, there's been No More Heroes and a handful of other M-rated Wii fare, but the Wii rarely has the Devil May Cry/Ninja Gaiden/God of War-esque brand of stylish bloodletting that makes gamers feel alive. Platinum Games, a new development company comprised of many former Capcom employees, is working on a game that could jumpstart M-rated action on the Wii.
MadWorld wears its influences on its blood-encrusted sleeves. It's got the up-close action and chainsaw-friendly combat of Gears of War (not to mention the fact that its title is the same as the song that accompanied Gears' most popular trailer). It's got the black and white (with splashes of red) comic book style of Sin City. Then there's the mix of irreverent humor and ultraviolence that was so prevalent (and welcome) in No More Heroes. All of these influences are great, but it means little if the game lacks a personality all its own or a decent gameplay system. Luckily I got to observe a gameplay demo that addressed those issues.
Prediction: "M" Rating
The demo was short and focused, only taking place in two areas, but I was able to get a handle on the breadth of the action in the game. Like No More Heroes, the majority of actions are mapped to buttons, with some finishing moves dictated with Wii Remote swipes. These moves, by the way, are deliciously brutal--over the course of five minutes I observed the following:
-- Tossing an enemy full force into dumpster.
-- Eviscerating an enemy with a Evil Dead-esque hand-mounted chainsaw.
-- Punching into the chest of an enemy and removing his heart, a la Mortal Kombat.
-- Tossing an enemy onto a wall of spikes.
-- Impaling an enemy with a street sign through the head.
I don't know his name, but I'm already afraid of him.
I can't even begin to imagine what other ways the final version of the game will allow you to maim and kill your enemies. It seems as though there might be a multitude of minigames centered around crazy deaths, as I observed a game of "Man Darts" in which the game's hero must knock enemies full-force so that they stick onto a gigantic dart board. It was probably the most entertaining part of the demo since it seemed to be the most original.
At this early state, the game looks gorgeous, and the controls looked user-friendly, but I'll withhold further judgement until I get to do the impaling. From a purely observational standpoint, the only problem I can forsee is the game lacking a sense of originality. It may seem weird to say that about a Mature-rated Wii game, but the fact is that the game seems to be a mixture of several great ideas from many action games with little to show for itself at this point. Right now it seems like the Saint's Row to No More Heroes' Grand Theft Auto. That's not the worst thing in the world, mind you, but hopefully the game will come into its own in the next few months.
Comments [38]
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- May 19 2008 at 04:02:13:PM PST
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Ya this game is gonna be awesome, I love how you can jusat grab random items and tear people to shreds
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i hope this doesnt turn out like the manhunt games, with such great violence, but nothing else. (sorry to rain on your parade :p )
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I hope the minigames aren't as boring or unavoidable as they were in No More Heroes - if they simply removed those, the game would've been a lot better.
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kind of looks like one of those games you can download from game tap. surprised to see its a SEGA game. but looks kind of fun. to bad i don't have or want to buy a Wii. atleast not yet.
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As the Wii continues to outsell MS and Sony, you will see more and more game developers jumping on board with all types of games. Even the M rated games.
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am i the only one who thinks the main character looks a hell of a lot like hellboy?
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