The film Reign of Fire was, in my not so humble opinion, among the best action movies of the year. On top of holding the distinction of being the only good dragon movie to be seen in, well, ever; it had Matthew McConaughey's battle axe, which has got to be the coolest piece of brutality proppage since The Evil Dead's chainsaw. Sadly, the game version of ROF has neither the killer axe from hell, nor any of the excitement that made the film such a fun experience.
Reign of Fire puts you in the driver's seat of one of many dragon-busting machines, including a tank, and a jeep that controls similarly to Halo's warthog. This is the basis of the control scheme, and anyone who is familiar with Halo's controls should be able to pick this scheme up rather quickly, since they are so similar. Your left stick is the gas and brake, and the right stick aims. Where you aim, the vehicle moves. Simple enough.
Unfortunately, the scheme is rather clunky, and downright unusable when firing anything but lock-on missiles. The crosshair seems to swerve while attempting to drive in one direction and fire in another, which is a very essential maneuver when under attack from swarms of dragons.
Perhaps this wouldn't be so annoying if the developers hadn't apparently been in on the secret: the game hardly ever penalizes you for not hauling ass, thus negating any form of tension that being under attack from fire-breathing beasts should rightfully bring. In one level, I was charged with protecting some farm trucks. I didn't get to the objective for about 5 minutes, and the game still gave me full credit for said objective after I shot down two or three of the tens of dragons flying in the air. I'm not saying that I wanted a miserably strict time limit in the vein of Stuntman, but I do think that a group of colonists would be fried in the span of 5 minutes, especially when translated into game time.
To further complaints of sloppy design, the stat tracking system for the end of the level is severely flawed and inaccurate. It would seem that each kill gives you credit for 5 or 6, as one level, I couldn't have shot down more than 40-50 dragons, yet the game gave me credit for 166. What makes this even more ridiculous is the inclusion of a medal system: I made gold medals oftentimes when I was not even trying. The game attempts to make up for its inadequacies by handing everything to the player on a silver platter, which doesn't bode well for it in my mind.
Ultimately, though the game looks decent, and the premise is a great one that lends itself nicely to a game, the gameplay (or lack thereof,) effectively ruined any fun I hoped to have with Reign of Fire. Apparently the dragon missions are more fun, but these are only unlocked after you trudge through the human campaign. Only die hard fans of the movie need apply, and even they may want to rent first.
-George
Company Line
It is present-day London when a construction crew, led by the mother of young Quinn Abercromby (played by Christian Bale in the film), unwittingly unleashes a dragon that's been hibernating for centuries. Within a quarter of a century, dragons have multiplied and replaced humans as the dominant species on Earth.
The game's story picks back up in Britain, c.2024. Quinn has grown up to be a "resistance fighter" for a small community hiding in an old castle in the burnt-out English countryside. His people have been reduced to living in near-medieval conditions. There's a pair of dragons prowling the vicinity, attacking the few remaining villages, destroying crops, and generally making life hell for the humans. The fire brigades risk their lives to put out the awful firestorms caused by the dragon attacks as they rescue the trapped or wounded survivors.
Play as either a human or a dragon:
As a human, you take the role of a resistance fighter, controlling a variety of well-equipped vehicles. Your purpose is to defend the last remaining humans from attack and eventually to make your way to the site of the sole male dragon – London now lying in ruins. As a dragon, the player will take the role of an infant led by instinct to attack its foe at any opportunity and attempt to eradicate the human race. The plot follows the maturing of the dragon, gradually getting more powerful, as the game progresses.
Missions are linked by a fast-moving plot; based on events in the film.
Key Features
Fight for mankind as one of the many different human forces, with a huge arsenal of high tech weaponry at your disposal.
Take to the skies as a terrifying dragon and reign terror over the world, savaging the earth and destroying everything in your path breathing fireballs and napalm.
Witness 'reactive fire effects' as flames spread and combust everything in their path, in addition to some of the most spectacular explosions ever seen.
Experience numerous action packed missions, including the desecration of central London, military style reconnaissance activities, third person shootouts and heroic fire fighting rescues.
Revel in the cinematic atmosphere created by the film's soundtrack and voice-overs.
Third person shoot-em up action taking place over scorched landscapes, the result of battles between two species competing for survival – human and dragon.
Control various vehicles or dragons in third person mode combat and exploration on and in the air.
Vehicles and dragons will be easy to drive / fly with satisfying physics to learn - making them a challenge to master.
Dragons that not only look fearsome, but behave that way too.
Variety of weapons and vehicles based on the film.
Real time cut scenes and briefings merging into game play sections.
The player can choose whether they play as either a Human or a Dragon following two different routes--In effect two games in one.
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