Wiiview: Red Steel

[The NZA]

 

I went from being hyped about this launch title, to not as much - a 63% does that.

it should be noted that my reviews often start with metacritic, since spiffy showed me that site; they average out a score, like rottentomatoes.

 

I rented it recently, and that's definitely the way to go with this title.

 

The concept of using the wiimote as a gun and katana, with a yakuza backdrop, is an awesome one. First and foremost, this game isnt a revolutionary FPS, it isnt crazy innovative, it isnt a number of things. What it is, is like a more old-school shooter with a new spin on the controls.

You know all those arcade shooters where youd tag up the room and move on? Think Time Crisis, Virtua Cop etc. That's a lot more what this is than your standard FPS. You shoot/zoom in with the wiimote, you walk and aim with the nunchuck. The game allows for some crouching and jumping, nothing too fancy. Since your character oddly heals if not shot for a few seconds, mush of the game is shooting, duck & cover to heal & reload, shoot some more and move on. I appreciate a game that respects shotguns, as this does, so im having fun.

 

Less than an hour in, youre introduced to katana combat, and that's the meat of it: learning to parry, throw your opponent off balance, block, get your cuts in, etc is fun. Im all of an hour or two in, so its yet to get repetitive but im sure it can over time, its just fun to be in a shootout, then some badass shows up and its all "guns down" so you can duel.

 

Which brings me to the plot: its a shooter. I dont expect much, so so far, the whole yakuza betrayl thing, which has been done plenty, is more than id ask for anyway.

 

It seems like the biggest complaint overall is the controls. The responsiveness/sensitivity is adjustable, so i cant imagine that's the issue; there are times that walking with one controller and aiming with the other was akward, but im allowing for a learning curve. If youre used to shooting with a mouse and a keyboard, im sure this wont make you any happier than a control pad.

 

Graphic-wise, again its a launch wii title, so im not looking for it to be incredible. It looks good enough to enjoy. The AI seems weak at first, but i like that even early on i got a few enemies who werent content to let me hide and recharge, i hope to see more of that later on.

 

Overall: Im early on, but i dont see why this game is taking so much shit. Its a fun launch title, and sure im going to expect a lot more at this time next year, but a sequel bring greenlit shoudlnt bring all the booing ive seen online & in mags. Im not as good rating things, so here's what it comes down to:

 

WOULD I BUY IT: After having rented it, im inclined to say: id grab a used copy or wait for it to inevitably come to $30 or less.

[Jables]

This was fun. Any haters bitching about the controls probably gave up in the first fifteen minutes 'cause straight outta compton this game will make you feel retarded. You will honestly question your own motor skills playing this until you adjust to the simple schemata that where you point, you will go. After that it's smooth and fast. The sword fights are a little wooden, but definitely more responsive than something like Wii Boxing. I wouldn't say this has a whole lotta longevity though.