Twisted Metal: Black
MSRP: $19.99
Number of Players: 1-2
Developer: Incog, Inc.
Publisher: SCEA
Reviewer: Andrew Broas
It seems like it has been a while since we've seen a really good car-combat game.
If you're a fan of the Twisted Metal series, you probably know all about the license switching
hands and what happened to the once-respected franchise as a result. What you want to know
now is whether or not Twisted Metal: Black is a return to
glory, or whether its like the last two installments, right? Well,
it's neither. Twisted Metal: Black is a step in the right direction, but not
quite as good as it could have been.
Twisted Metal: Black is set in an entirely new universe where none of the
past games' storylines are acknowledged. The game
features darker stories and characters, with a decent amount of mayhem in the FMV at the beginning, middle, and end of the main stories. This
all sounds good, but once you play the game, you'll realize that TM:B does not push the censorship envelope like the
ads want you to
believe. This is a darker, more sinister Twisted Metal than ever before, but it is still safely within bounds of a "Mature" rating.
Swearing is censored out, bloody death-scenes are edited, and some of the stories are going to be a hard-sell if they are really expected to
capture adult audiences.
If all that disappoints you, you will at least be happy to hear that the game plays well.
Cars don't behave
realistically so you can soar off of jumps, stop on a dime, turn in mid-air, etc. There is a bit of a problem with collisions, though. The
weapons all have great impact and, in some cases, can knock your car silly, but the car-against-car collisions aren't very convincing. The
semi-truck in the game relies on a special weapon where you ram into opponents at high speeds, but it just doesn't have a whole lot of weight
behind it. The same can be said for all vehicle collisions in the game. That's really too bad since ramming your enemies has always been a
satisfying way to take them out when you've exhausted your weapons.
Still, even with that minor problem, the rest of your arsenal is top-notch. The weapons have more depth
than ever before. In
fact, the best weapons are what will separate the beginners from the more experienced players in multiplayer mode. To the unseasoned player,
a few of the weapons will seem totally useless. That is, until a veteran takes half their life with one well-timed shot. I suspect that
if this game goes online this winter as planned, it will have potential to gain a real online following just because the weapons provide so much
to work with.
Also troublesome for the novice is the overwhelming difficulty of TM:B. The biggest reason for this is that everything in
TM:B moves faster than
ever before. Imagine playing Twisted Metal 2 at three times its normal speed and you'll get the idea. Novice players will struggle the most
simply because its just so damn hard to get a lock on enemies at first. Worse yet is that the CPU cars never seem to kill each other. It is
almost always the player's job to destroy every single other car. This kind of destroys the idea that you are in a real free-for-all, but it
doesn't completely ruin the experience. With practice, most players will get the hang of things and be able to blast their way through the 8
stages of the game's story mode. It will really try your patience at times, but the key to truly enjoying this game is practice.
As a PlayStation 2 title, TM:B delivers excellent graphics. This is easily one of the best looking games on the PS2 right now and will
probably continue to be for a while. Lighting effects were a nice trick on
PSOne games, but here they're just the icing on the cake.
Did you ever play Wipeout XL on PSOne? People who did always remember the first time they saw the earthquake weapon used. It was an
incredible effect at the time and really made players drop their jaws. You can rest assured that
Twisted Metal: Black has a couple of moments
like that where you really become aware of the awesome power that the PS2 has. Without a few displays of power like that,
TM:B probably
wouldn't be the same.
Supporting the graphics is a powerful soundtrack. The score is really very comparable to that of an action movie. Unfortunately for some
fans, the catchy rock tunes from the first two games are gone, but when you consider that this was meant to be a darker game than its
predecessors, the gloomy classical soundtrack seems a bit more welcome. Of course, good music is only half the battle, right? Thankfully, the
sound effects are better than ever. You can actually hear the hiss of a missile gaining on you as you try to outrun it. Screams, thunderous
explosions, and grinding metal are just a small example of what you can hear in the average deathmatch. Not to mention that the voice-acting in the
cut scenes is pretty decent for once.
Overall, Twisted Metal: Black seems a bit rushed. The secret characters don't have complete stories, or in some cases, any story at all. What
little story is there for them isn't really developed. Had Incog, Inc. taken the time to create full stories for all the
characters, it would have rewarded the player a bit more for playing through the game for the umpteenth time. Also, the secret levels that
you unlock are pretty lame. You work through story mode unlocking what you can, only to find out that all you did was make the story mode levels
available in multiplayer. Shouldn't they be there to begin with? Players want fresh, exciting new levels to explore after spending days
hunting down all the hidden items. Despite those complaints, the rest of the game can be a real blast and is still enough to overpower the
shortcomings. Most players will have a great time with Twisted Metal: Black before tiring of it in a month or two.
Graphics
9.0
You'd be hard-pressed to find anything to complain about in this area of the game.
It's beautiful.
Sound & Music
8.0
Not a bad effort at all. Very good sound effects supported by a pulse-pounding soundtrack.
Control
9.0
If you play multiplayer mode and your friend complains that his car keeps doing things it shouldn't, you can feel free to mock him
mercilessly. The control is very responsive and suits every vehicle exactly as it should.
Replay Value
7.5
Most players will want to unlock all the hidden characters. Without help, you may never unlock them all. Otherwise, expect to play this
alone for about a month. With friends, you could play this game for several months.
Fun Factor
7.0
Once you get a little practice, it's not a bad way to kill a few hours. Most people will get a lot of satisfaction just watching everything in
sight get laid to waste.
Overall
7.5
It is not perfect, but Twisted Metal: Black has a lot to offer and should be picked up by anyone who liked previous
TM games or likes
action in general.
It seems like it has been a while since we've seen a really good car-combat game.
If you're a fan of the Twisted Metal series, you probably know all about the license switching
hands and what happened to the once-respected franchise as a result. What you want to know
now is whether or not Twisted Metal: Black is a return to
glory, or whether its like the last two installments, right? Well,
it's neither. Twisted Metal: Black is a step in the right direction, but not
quite as good as it could have been. 
Still, even with that minor problem, the rest of your arsenal is top-notch. The weapons have more depth
than ever before. In
fact, the best weapons are what will separate the beginners from the more experienced players in multiplayer mode. To the unseasoned player,
a few of the weapons will seem totally useless. That is, until a veteran takes half their life with one well-timed shot. I suspect that
if this game goes online this winter as planned, it will have potential to gain a real online following just because the weapons provide so much
to work with.
Supporting the graphics is a powerful soundtrack. The score is really very comparable to that of an action movie. Unfortunately for some
fans, the catchy rock tunes from the first two games are gone, but when you consider that this was meant to be a darker game than its
predecessors, the gloomy classical soundtrack seems a bit more welcome. Of course, good music is only half the battle, right? Thankfully, the
sound effects are better than ever. You can actually hear the hiss of a missile gaining on you as you try to outrun it. Screams, thunderous
explosions, and grinding metal are just a small example of what you can hear in the average deathmatch. Not to mention that the voice-acting in the
cut scenes is pretty decent for once.