By Predat0r + Wrecker
Have you ever found yourself wondering what it might be like to watch Arnold Schwarzenegger’s ‘The Running Man’ while reading Frank Miller’s ‘Sin City’ at a WWE wrestling match? If you have, (and don’t tell me you haven’t), then wonder no longer because MadWorld has finally hit the Wii - with a bloodied chainsaw.
This highly anticipated title from Platinum Games, (and published by Sega), was in fact lucky to be released in Australia as it was embroiled in a storm of controversy over it’s incredible ‘over the top’ violence and profanity. But Sega has not backed down and before the ‘blood had dried’ on ‘The House Of The Dead: Overkill’, MadWorld was making its way to our shelves. Hardcore Wii gamers can breathe another sigh of relief – not only are they no longer an oxymoron, they have another impressive game worthy of a frown from the resident mother, wife or girlfriend.
MadWorld takes place in Varrigan City, where a group of terrorists have cut off the city from the rest of the world and released a deadly virus. The terrorists, (suspiciously known as ‘The Organisers’), have informed the population that a vaccine is available, but only to those who kill another person. Unsurprisingly the city quickly descends into a bloodthirsty anarchy and gives rise to the ‘Death Watch’ gameshow which televises the violence and offers cash prizes to the top ranked fighter.
Players of MadWorld will follow ‘Jack Cayman’, an up and coming Death Watch fighter with a run of the mill retractable chainsaw attached to his arm. As Jack climbs the Death Watch ranks, ‘The Organisers’ start to realize Jack might have other motives besides winning the cash and you don’t have to be the sharpest nail on the baseball bat to deduce that this means killing all the baddies, rescuing a girl and saving the city.
The gameplay of MadWorld is a re-imagining of the early ‘beat-em-up’s’ of the late 80’s and early 90’s such as Double Dragon, Golden Axe and Final Fight. Jack Cayman takes to the streets of Varrigan City in the third person perspective and takes to some punks with some tapping of the ‘A’ button for basic punches and an upward swing of the wii remote for an upper cut. The control style gets more creative as Jack learns from his elusive Death Watch sponsor ‘Agent XIII’ that holding the ‘B’ button and swinging the wii mote will, (for a limited time), activate his chainsaw to cut up baddies, (lengthwise or widthwise), while that holding ‘A’ will grab an enemy who then can be thrown onto an array of spikes, saws and fans that are conveniently lying around. Players earn points for each kill (and more for brutality) and must ‘rack up’ a certain amount in order to unlock extra weapons, the end of level bosses and ‘bloodbath challenges’, (minigames such as the Turbinator, which of course means throwing enemies into a jet engine before the clock runs out). There is also a ‘Road Rash’ style motorbike level which while quite good, does get a little repetitive and falls out of line with the general direction of the game.
The game is simple to pick up and it won’t be long before players learn how to ring an enemy with a tire, run them through with a signpost (for good measure) and hurl them onto a wall of spikes. The motion controls in the game can be a little ‘out of synch’ when grabbing enemies or performing brutal finishing moves and the camera/targeting system is a bit ‘clunky’, but generally the controls are quite well thought out for a game of this genre.
One of the most striking and unique features of MadWorld is the graphics. Anyone who has seen Frank Miller’s graphics novels, (and movies based on them such as Sin City), will see that the game’s visuals are almost certainly inspired by the artist’s work and pay a notable homage. The game is almost exclusively in black and white, with an occasional touch of yellow, (for in-game information or for a comic THUD! or KABOOM!), and a gratuitous splattering of bright red for blood, (and lots of it). While the game itself is in 3D, the cel-shaded animation provides an almost 2D effect making the game look very much like a comic book. Although the black and white comic style is certainly impressive, it often means that the screen gets very cluttered and ‘busy’ making it hard to distinguish where to go, or where an item of interest may be located, (such as a health pill or onion). The onscreen instructions from ‘Agent XIII’ are often easy to miss and could have benefited from a voice over. On the other hand this black and white ‘toon shader’ style provides a welcome side effect; the animations are fluid and deliver quite a smooth framerate which often makes MadWorld feel like it is in fact being played on a more powerful console.
The striking graphics are also accompanied by a slew of bone-crushing, back-breaking and flesh-tearing sound effects which adds to the mayhem of the game. There are often amusing (and offensive) taunts and quips from Jack and his enemies alike, and even the often ‘tinny’ wii remote speaker is actually put to good use as a gritty chainsaw effect. The music in the game consists of original tracks from largely unknown artists and is a dynamic fusion of rap, hip hop and metal which works really well with the game and provides a good soundtrack to the aggressive streets of Varrigan City. As the Death Watch TV show is an integral part of the game, the bloodbath challenges and boss fights are punctuated by a running commentary by announcer Howard “Buckshot” Holmes and Kreese Kreeley, (a retired Death Watch fighter). Although this commentary is very amusing and is actually performed by voice acting legends John DiMaggio, (Bender from Futurama), and Greg Proops, (Whose Line Is It Anyway?), it sometimes doesn’t quite fit in with the other sound effects and occasionally carries on long after all other sound has ceased. There also seems to be a focus on the battle and killing sound effects and we feel the game could have had more ambient sound and background noise to help to make the city a bit more alive.
MadWorld is without a doubt one of the better games released on the Wii. Although it is incredibly obscene and violent, there is a very cheeky note employed and it is often too amusing to take offence, (the ridiculous finishing move on Jude the Dude for example). The game is however quite short and the gameplay does border slightly on the repetitive side. The limited multiplayer, (featuring two player split-screen bloodbath challenges), and lack of online play also means that there may be a diminishing long-term appeal. Having said this, the graphics are excellent and the unique style will breathe new life, (and many brutal slow motion deaths), to any Wii. Although designer Shigeunori Nishikawa seems to have borrowed elements from various sources including older games, (such as Smash TV and Final Fight), improved on more recent games, (such as No More Heroes), and used story elements from the movies ‘The Running Man’ and ‘Escape From New York’, all of this has been smashed together very well, (with a generous dose of disturbing creativity). While many people would have like to have seen their mate’s Mii’s included in the game and being impaled bottom first on a spike, let’s not be too greedy – MadWorld is a great game that looks fantastic and delivers some well earned mindless violence to further prove the Wii isn’t just for kids and nursing homes.
Gameplay: 8.5
A bloody beat 'em up with some brutally insane finishing moves. Includes just as if not more so brutal in-game mini challenges and boss battles. Good controls. Fighting may feel a little repetitive.
Graphics: 8.5
Excellent black and white (and red all over) comic book style presentation. Smooth animations. Occasionally gets a bit cluttered.
Sound: 7.5
Very good hip-hop inspired soundtrack. Nice bone-crunching sound effects. Commentary is ok, if a little annoying. Lacks background ambient sounds.
Difficulty: 5.5
Quite easy to begin with but as you'd expect gets tougher as you progress. Dying during a boss battle means replaying entire level again.
Value: 8.0
Definitely a unique experience although relatively short. Contains multiplayer minigames, no online. Has appeal to play again.
Overall: 8.1
A very good title with great presentation, a nice soundtrack and some solid gameplay. Decent storyline and intuitive controls. Over the top blood and gore means adults only (sorry kids). Comic book fans will love and should appeal to most gamers.
About MadWorld
MadWorld is a third person game where you play as Jack, a hulking brute with a chainsaw for an arm where you compete in a violent TV show.
Using the Nunchuk to move Jack, by gesturing the Wii Remote, players perform brutal melee attacks on enemies. Also Jack can use objects around the environment, such as impaling an enemy's head with a sign post saying "Caution Sign", in an ironic way.
The game features extreme, over-the-top violence but its designer, Shigenori Nishikawa, intends it to be seen in a comical light.
MadWorld is now available around Australia for a RRP. of $79.95.