We Support an R18+ game Classification

Making the leap from 2-D sidescroller to a completely 3-D environment is no easy task.  Franchises like Mario and Metroid have never looked back, whilst others such as Sonic the Hedgehog never recaptured the magic after crossing over.  The challenge lies in retaining the game's core mechanics which endeared it to the masses in the first place whilst also evolving to utilise the new environment just as effectively as its predecessor.

Capcom's 1988 classic Bionic Commando with its swinging arm feature was a perfect fit for platforming in the horizontal and vertical planes.  Whilst this year's direct sequel bearing the same name does successfully transition to swinging in 3-D delivering an exhilarating experience at times, the majority of the game's remaining elements are uninspired.

You play as Marcus Fenix, imprisoned on death row for alleged war crimes which were actually an act of heroism, oops wrong game.  You play as Nathan "Rad" Spencer imprisoned on death row for...... hey, wait a minute!  Yes the comparisons are that obvious.  Essentially the story is both forgettable and poorly presented, this is only exacerbated by god awful dialogue and voice acting.  As for Spencer himself, he has to be one of the most unlikeable central characters in recent memory.  A bitter and angry man, most of what he says just portrays him as a complete tool.

I was much happier as a ranga.

Suffice to say Bionic Commando's appeal does not lie with its gripping story and thoughtful characterisations.  The single reason to play this game is the bionic arm's swinging mechanic.  There is a healthily steep learning curve attached to this feature which will undoubtedly lead to much frustration in the first half of the campaign, but persistence will result in some very memorable action sequences as the game progresses.  In a fresh take on the obligatory tutorial level,  all of the swinging mechanics and combat moves are shown as a memory flashback to Spencer's original training in a  simulated environment complete with the original red flattop guise now forsaken for gritty brown dredlocks(how does a one armed man forge dredlocks and dye his hair brown in prison?).  Then as each new ability is unlocked a quick playback is shown to jog your memory of the training as it may have been numerous hours since completing the training for that particular power-up.

The single player is essentially a game of two halves, the first will lead to a ridiculous amount of frustration undoubtedly causing some players to question the merits of persevering.  The environments are presented as a destroyed urban sprawl yet are incredibly linear due to ever present invisible walls.  These are in the form of vast masses of water which result in drowning due to the weight of your bionic arm and gravity defying boots.  The other kind are radiated areas which serve to keep you on the straight and narrow but can be incredibly difficult to recognise at times resulting in a quick death and longwinded load screen.  As a result the areas feel totally contrived and fail to deliver any immersion to the experience.  From very early on, one couldn't help but wonder why this game isn't set in an open world sandbox.

Whilst on the subject of contrivances, the location of checkpoints and omnipresent load screens border on 'deal breaker' status as times.  Many sections of gameplay are broken into miniscule areas of traversal and combat then followed by a lenghty load screen, any death will also result in a lengthy load that will surely induce swearing at your display before game's end.  The checkpoint/save process is poorly designed, some difficult combat areas are followed by platforming sequences that result in death with one false move.  It is only after the completion of the entire sequence that a checkpoint will be rewarded.

Gunplay is never as cool as this looks.

For a game that features a 'commando' the gunplay is entirely uninspired.  Clearly it was a design choice to render the weapons underpowered keeping the focus on the bionic arm during combat.  The few weapons that are fun to use are delivered with miniscule amounts of ammunition and the default handgun has to be one of the most impotent offerings seen this generation.   A healthy combination of bionics and gun combat in equal doses would make for an infinitely more enjoyable experience.  The other point of note during combat is the lack of a sprint function forcing the need to swing through unvacated areas, the downside of this is once arriving at the next batch of enemies Spencer can be killed very quickly.  This requires you to run or swing away to lick your wounds and reassess to avoid the dreaded load screen(clearly the game's most powerful enemy), not very commandoish at all.

New abilities, armour and increased ammo capacity for weapons are obtained by completing in game challenges, very similar to Call of Duty 4's multiplayer challenge system.  In another baffling design choice, the completion of these challenges will only be recognised once the next checkpoint is reached without dying in between.  This can result in the bizarre scenario where you may have completed a difficult challenge 3 or 4 times yet it won't be recognised as completed at game's end.

The upside is the second half of the game opens up considerably with diverse interesting enviroments which are markedly more expansive allowing for more creative and exciting combat.  These allow numerous ways to go up, under or around your enemies and deliver huge payoffs for becoming proficient with the arm's combat moves and swinging.  The dynamic soundtrack delivers the iconic theme whilst battling huge scale enemies and appropriately reaches a heroic crescendo at just the right moment giving these showdowns a great '80s action movie feel.

Looks like time for a load screen.

After reading the long list of frustrating design choices you'd be forgiven for dismissing Bionic Commando's mulitplayer as just another tacked on bullet point feature for the back of the box.  But you would be missing out on one of the game's best features, it was surprising how much fun it is despite an anaemic list of modes.  Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Capture The Flag are the only modes but what is there feels fresh and exciting mostly because of the arm mechanic.  There is a distinctive Halo feel to it with the fast paced action and brightly coloured armour, but the ability to traverse the levels at ridiculous speeds thanks to the arm adds a new strategic element to the game.  Ever had that moment in Halo when you've become isolated and see multiple enemies bearing down upon you?  Well the beauty in Bionic Commando is you can actually live to fight another day in this scenario as the arm makes a rapid retreat to a powerful weapon spawn or reinforcements a breeze.  What the multiplayer is lacking though is a serious persistent system or customisation options that has become standard fare in online shooters such as Halo, Call of Duty 4 or Resistance 2.  There are some leaderboards, and a makeshift ranking system but nothing else to keep players coming back which is a shame because it has a lot of potential.

Bionic Commando constantly improves as the game progresses but every high point is equally matched by moments of rage inducing frustration.  The poor design choice of disabling the challenges when levels are replayed is baffling and severely reduces the replayability factor.  Multiplayer is surprisingly good and will be a lot of fun while there are actual players out there but needed more effort and support in this area to foster any sort of a serious community.