|
|
|
|
 
|
|
Previous Page
Best viewed in 1280x1024 with Internet Explorer 7.x
|
'no more trial'
 Developer: Third World Games
Publisher: Ubisoft
Price: 800 MS Points
Category: Arcade Mech shooter
Multiplayer: 1-8 Xbox Live
Official Site
Platform: X-Box 360 (Live Arcade)
Might look like: Alien Hominid
Date posted: 19 November 2008
Written By: Mark
Finally
Gamers world wide have had to wait for what seemed like forever for the release of the highly anticipated Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) title "War World". After some very impressive teasers have appeared for the past year over the internet there has been a massive amount of hype regarding this third person shooter which sees players controlling various mech robots that bear a similarity to Transformers.
Finally the game has recently been released but thanks to a controversially short trial there has been an awful lot of negative comments. In in this review I will take a look at what the full game has to offer and see if the game is better than what the very poor trial has to offer.
Trial & error?
Aside from the graphical delights of the game the first thing that struck players was the woefully short trial of the game giving a maximum of fifty seconds of gameplay. In this time you really don’t get a feel of what the game has to offer and in this day and age thanks to the global credit crunch gamers expect to be able to get a good look at what they will be spending their hard earned cash on.
On the Playdevil site there is an interview with War World art director Johnni Christensen (full interview can be read here) who himself recognises that a mistake was done with the trial but as Johnni says the game should be give a fair chance and not judged on this alone.
The trial however has sadly led to a massive amount of potential players from downloading what is overall a quite enjoyable game (although admittedly in short bursts) and some very harsh and somewhat over critical reviews.
Gameplay
Upon loading the full game you are presented with an option of choosing to play either a single player or multi-player game each offering different modes of play. The single player games comprise of Arcade which sees you battling against various computer controlled mechs over an impressive one hundred levels. Sadly it has to be said that the gameplay rarely changes throughout each level and does become somewhat repetitive once you have done battle in each of the available arenas.
Next up are the tried and tested Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch modes which follow a similar pattern as most other shooters except with more mechs on screen at any one time than in the arcade mode meaning these modes have more longevity if playing a single player match.
More impressive are the multi-player modes which enable up to eight players to do battle online at any one time throughout the slightly different game modes, 'Deathmatch', 'Team death match', 'Capture the flag' and 'Bomb Assault' with the latter offering a new twist on online shooters as this mode sees the teams competing to be the first team to plant a bomb and blow up an enemy’s target.
  
It has to be said that the multi-player should be the big selling point of this title however it remains to be seen how long the game will remain popular amongst players as XBLA titles (with the exception a very few) have proven notorious as having short shelf lives when it comes to their multi-player offerings.
Use of the mechs themselves is a bit trial and error as there are are several to choose from each having their own strengths and weaknesses although special attacks are not made clear when choosing at the opening screen meaning that until you have used all mechs on offer you won’t actually identify which are the best to use, especially in multi-player battles.
It also has to be noted that once a mech is chosen the player has to stick with this one throughout each battle and cannot be changed upon re-spawning so it is advisably that before a multi-player game is attempted it is worth playing through the single player offerings to identify which is the best mech for you.
The maps are also graphically impressive if somewhat on the small side and this makes for some frantic action especially in death match games. This might appeal to fans of this genre of games but newcomers may struggle with this and find themselves facing too many deaths for my liking.
Look’s are not everything
The first thing you notice about War World is how graphically impressive it is for an 800 ms point title. This however is somewhat over shadowed by some ropey gameplay and graphical glitches such as several instances of screen tearing and jerkiness especially when the action is getting frantic.
The music and sound effects fit in well with the pace of the game and certainly add a sense of atmosphere and excitement to each battle and would not feel out of place in a full retail priced offering. This certainly adds something to the overall package and stops the game from feeling somewhat stale and does make the aforementioned graphical glitches seem not as bad as they actually are.
  
Achieving the impossible
Although the game is clearly engineered to appeal to fans of multi-player shooters the achievements in the game are certainly strange. By this I refer to the fact that achievements are solely awarded for playing single player matches and by reaching set level targets in single player arcade games and by completing these on the various difficulty settings.
This means that only the most hardcore fans of the game are likely to gain all 200 achievement points as not many players will stick at the game long enough to complete all one hundred levels on one difficulty setting let alone the harder settings.
Conclusion
"War World" is certainly a nice game to look at and offers impressive sound and effects but is let down somewhat by the inconsistent gameplay.
For 800 ms points there are far worse games available for a similar price on the Xbox Live Arcade and not many that look as good as War World despite it’s graphical glitches.
At the moment it is fairly easy to find a multi-player game online, although it will be interesting to see if the developers offer further maps and game modes as future downloads to prolong the lifespan of the game to avoid this becoming another XBLA title that is quickly forgotten about.
Overall, despite being somewhat of a mixed bag and suffering from one of the worst trials in XBLA history, 'War World' is worthy of a download as it does offer a solid multi-player experience although the single player modes are best played in very short blasts.
-Mark
Pros:
+ Fantastic graphics and sound for an XBLA title
+ Good multi-player
+ Good amount of game modes for 800 ms points
+ Options of future downloads
Cons:
- Graphical glitches let the game down
- Single player game is repetetive
- Achievements difficult to gain
 
 
Up
Previous Page
If you want to review your favorite game, or if you work with a computer game company and want your products reviewed, mail info@playdevil.com.
All contributions are welcome.
Join Video Game Network Exchange
Any problems and/or suggestions are always appreciated on
webmaster@playdevil.com
Nothing of this entire Site, animation & logo's included, may be reproduced, stored, saved, transmitted, in any form or means, electronic, written or otherwise without the prior permission of PlayDevil.
Other Logos & Names are Copyrighted Material of its respectful owners.
All Rights Reserved.
PlayDevil Productions © 199/8-199/9-200/0-200/1-200/2-200/3-200/4-200/5-200/6-200/7-200/8
"rip your own stuff"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
)
)
)
)
)
)
)