IguanaDon? Posted August 28, 2006 Share Posted August 28, 2006 "Call of Juarez, a western-themed first-person shooter from Ubisoft and Techland, promises to bring you all the excitement of being a cowboy without having to suffer the saddle sores. Beyond the western theme, there are some interesting gameplay mechanics in Call of Juarez that should set it apart from the glut of other shooters on the market. We visited the Ubisoft booth at the 2006 Games Convention in Leipzig, Germany for a lengthy demo showcasing a few levels from the game. The structure of the story is interesting in Call of Juarez, because you play not one but two characters. That's nothing new, but the interesting part is that the two characters you play are at odds with one another. Ray is an older man who gave up his guns to be a reverend, and Billy is Ray's nephew, a wild young runaway accused of murdering his family. After learning of the death of his family, Ray picks up his guns once again and starts looking for Billy, who meanwhile is running for his life. This structure gives you two unique perspectives on the same story. You might end up playing through one level as Billy, and then playing the same level as Ray, giving you a completely different perspective on the settings, events, and characters you encounter in that level. This alternating narrative seems like it could work well, and we're especially interested to see how the conflict between the two playable characters is resolved. Of course, the developers wouldn't share that information with us, so we'll just have to wait for the game to be released. Since Call of Juarez is a shooter, there aren't any tremendous surprises in how it plays. For the most part you shoot one bad guy after another as you work your way through each level. However, there are some variants to make it a little more interesting. For instance, each of the characters has unique weapons and special abilities, which require you to change up the way you play from level to level. Ray is a gunslinger, so his primary weapons are his pistols. Since he is a man of the faith, he also carries around a bible. You can approach enemies and quote scripture to befuddle them and buy yourself a moment to draw your guns. Ray also has a special ability that allows him to slow down time. When activated, Ray draws both pistols and the world around him moves in super slow motion. Two targeting reticules appear--one for each gun--and using these you can easily take out half a dozen enemies or more before they even get a chance to draw their weapons. The slow motion effect only last a couple seconds, but it seems like that's all you'll ever need. Billy is a young boy on his own, running for his life. Billy doesn't use guns, but instead relies on his trusty whip. Using the whip Billy can swing from tree limbs, attack enemies, and so on. Since Billy isn't quite equipped for direct confrontation, he has to rely more on his agility, stealth, and ingenuity to surmount the challenges faced in each level. Beyond the unique abilities of each character, there are plenty of small details that taken collectively have a substantial effect on the gameplay. For example, the development team put a lot of work into the fire effects in the game. More than a mere visual effect, the fire in the game behaves as it would in the real world. When you shoot a lantern and it shatters, catching a barrel on fire, the fire won't just go out after a few seconds. Instead it will spread to all the surrounding flammable items, and if left unchecked could present major problems for everyone in the area. There are other ways to interact with the environment as well. You can pick up items such as boxes and move them around to clear a path or provide a step up to an elevated area. We also saw Billy knock over a tree and then use it as a bridge between two ledges. Visually Call of Juarez meets the standards of first-person shooters on the PC, though it isn't especially impressive. However, it did run smoothly throughout the entire lengthy demo we saw, even when the action was at its most intense. The levels that we saw were large and expansive, with sprawling outdoor areas as well as dark mining tunnels and dingy saloon interiors. Call of Juarez definitely has the dirty, gritty feel of old Western movies, which goes a long way in establishing the tone of the game. " I dunno about you folks, but I'm getting this mother fucker on launch day. Release Date: Sep 15, 2006 I think it's only available for PC at the moment. I'm currently downloading the demo and I can't fucking wait to play it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted August 28, 2006 Author Share Posted August 28, 2006 If anyone's interested in how it plays : http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/action/thelawman...icwkzv85bsNvTPf He reads from the bible before he kills someone I thought that was cool as fuck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishopcruz Posted August 28, 2006 Share Posted August 28, 2006 This game had fallen off the radar for a while, tell me how it is, it looks like it will be pretty sweet. Anyone have the specs for the game? Looks like it'll need a hell of a PC to run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Bob Posted August 28, 2006 Share Posted August 28, 2006 I don't see how those could possibly be unaltered screenshots from the game unless this: Visually Call of Juarez meets the standards of first-person shooters on the PC, though it isn't especially impressive is coming from an extremely jaded reviewer. Either way, I'll probably give this one a shot if my PC can handle it, just because I love Western videogames and I'll give any of 'em a chance if they just keep making them, whether they're ok (Red Dead Revolver), good (Gun), or great (well...there hasn't been a great one yet). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted August 28, 2006 Author Share Posted August 28, 2006 watch the video, although you can't see it aswell you get a pretty good idea of how it looks. The graphics are very nice looking, but these reviewers have seen WAY better these days. I'll give my review after I play the demo anyway. It's on 56 percent at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted September 13, 2006 Author Share Posted September 13, 2006 The multiplayer demo is now out... I just had a great time playing it. I'm pretty pleased with my score! If anyone's interested in downloading it you can get it here http://www.gamershell.com/download_15252.shtml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The NZA Posted September 13, 2006 Share Posted September 13, 2006 this game needs a console port. dammit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted September 13, 2006 Author Share Posted September 13, 2006 It's out on 360..... But I'm guessing you mean traditional ps2/xbox/gamecube. Seriously, you need this game. It's receiving bad reviews at the moment, fuck knows why. I've been having wayyyy too much fun on this game. The multiplayer is hot. Single player is hot. The entire game is hot. Looks nice, feels GOOD! And firing akimbo single action armies is just beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bishopcruz Posted September 13, 2006 Share Posted September 13, 2006 Call of Juarez on 360, hadn't heard that and I tend to follow 360 news like a hawk, where di you hear it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IguanaDon? Posted September 13, 2006 Author Share Posted September 13, 2006 Shit, sorry..... it's actually out on XBOX, the original. http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox/action/thelawm...creenindex.html Any western fan with an XBOX should own this game.... Or a PC that can handle it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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