Twisted Metal: Black will go down as the first game I've ever pre-ordered in my life. I not only pre-ordered the game but I paid for the entire thing two weeks in advance. I had unbelievably high expectations for this game. Imagine going back to the world of Twisted Metal before 989 Studios got their hands on it, and back to the world of Sweet Tooth, Road Dog, and Axel rather than Rob Zombie, an alien, and the infamous family in a station wagon. Not only that, but the game was said to be darker and more controversial than any other of the series' offerings. I figured there was no way Incognito could mess this up, and luckily, they didn't fail me.
The characters in TM:B are actually kind of frightening, and the freaky storylines actually enhance the creepiness. Even the levels the battles take place in are dark and kind of strange. On one map there is a Satanist church that even has an altar resembling the devil at the front. It does add to the game to make it more interesting, but sometimes you have to ask yourself if they went to far. Whether the answer is yes or no, I suspect we'll be hearing a lot from over-protective parents in the next few weeks.
Twisted Metal: Black continues the story of the series as if the third and fourth installments never occurred. That's definitely for the better. The game once again tells the story of the participants of Calypso's tournament. Calypso grants the winner of the tournament a wish, and the losers get nothing. Black portrays the game's characters as if they have been locked up in an asylum for years, each of them with their own problems, and Calypso waltzes in asking them to enjoy his tournament. The combatants each have their own interesting storylines to follow from here, which are told through a series of movies for each character. The movies are wonderfully done and luckily can be watched over and over in the movie sub-screen.
Once you enter the battlefield, the game becomes complete madness. Imagine this: seven cars firing their missiles at you from every direction while a Ferris wheel rolls down a hill and lightning continually striking you while your trying to regain health as a semi-truck rams you every which way; it's pretty intense and madness could possibly be the right word for it.
Controlling your car is pretty simple as the controls are the same as the previous Twisted Metal incarnations. Square still accelerates, L1 and R1 still switch between weapons, and the L2 and R2 buttons still fire your weapons.
The characters are some of the strongest, well-developed, and balanced creations for any car-combat game. Some of the characters' special weapons are just plain cool. Sweet Tooth's allows his ice cream truck to transform into a giant mech-like robot, and seconds later proceeds to releases a volley of twenty missiles. The Preacher's special involves him releasing a body in the air to a car in front of him where it yells "repent" only seconds before it blows up. Too cool.
The layouts of the levels themselves are well thought out. Items are conveniently placed in suitable spots, secrets are well hidden, and the occasional surprise environmental attack can catch you off guard when you least expect it. Environmental attacks are pretty interesting, according to which level you are battling it out on. They're each different since they involve something in the level attacking the cars directly, hence the name environmental attack. One level's environmental attack even calls in a chopper to follow you overhead and fend off your enemies.
Speaking of weapons and attacks, the weapons in the game are fun and zany and pretty much the same as in Twisted Metal 2. Not that that's a bad thing. Power missiles still do lots of damage, homing missiles are there, and the machine gun still couldn't kill a frog. It feels perfect.
The difficulty in Twisted Metal: Black is suprisingly high. Even on easy your opponents will keep coming at you over and over and sometimes it appears that they're using some kind of cheat code. If you want a challenge than this is the game for you. Even Twisted Metal veterans will have more than a few problems.
Multi-Player is a bit lacking. The three and four player modes include smaller versions of the one and two player levels and there is no ability to add bots when you are playing with two or three friends. Thankfully, two player co-op has returned and is more fun than ever. Two players can play in story mode together and it's every bit as enjoyable as the one player story mode and then some.
The graphics are beautiful. The textures are amazingly pleasing to the eye, and the particle effects are some of the best I've seen on the Playstation 2. Twisted Metal: Black does have its fair share of jaggies, but it's nothing that detracts from the gameplay.
The aural experience is also very appealing. The explosions sound nice and loud, the wheels screech when you turn, and Minion's flamethrower is "firey" and raspy. The theme song of the game is "Paint It Black" by the Rolling Stones which plays during the credits. The song fits the game perfectly and has always been one of my all time favorites.
All together, Twisted Metal: Black is a great re-entry into the video game world for the original Twisted Metal team. The mood is dark and disturbing, the combat is basic and simple but at the same time is deep and engrossing, and the characters are twisted (no pun intended) and over the top. Twisted Metal: Black is a game not to be missed. Even if you're only a minor fan of the whole car-combat genre, pick this one up. Now I gotta go pre-order Twisted Metal: Online.
-Sam
Company Line
They say the mind bends and twists to deal with the horrors of life...sometimes the mind bends so much it snaps in two.
Prepare for the next chapter in car combat! Designed and developed by the original makers of Twisted Metal and Twisted Metal 2 - the team often credited with creating the 3D car combat genre - Twisted Metal: Black catapults you on a deranged journey through a world rife with horror and desolation.
The infamous Calypso returns to host the ultimate contest of wreckage and devastation. Calypso has plucked a motley crew of contestants straight from the lunatic asylum, promising these otherwise doomed souls a chance to have one wish granted, should they emerge victorious in a deadly battle of twisted metal. As the carnage unfolds, so does the horrifying tale behind each of these tortured souls. Discover why these maniac motorists were locked up behind the walls of insanity. Slip into their minds, take a walk around their mental anguish and come out screaming for more!
Features
Tons of weapons and combo attacks make for more creative kills.
Enhanced player environments with moving traffic, changing weather, living pedestrians, and interactive objects make for a highly charged, living world of destruction.
Improved vehicle physics deliver dramatic jumps and landings, more exaggerated powerslides, and more responsive turn rates.
Torture and humiliate your friends in 20 death-match battlegrounds.
9 vicious battlegrounds in single player mode to tear up.
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