They say that dead genres are finally starting to raise from their graves. While some still hope that disco will once make a come-back,...others feel as if an element has been left-out when playing newly released games.
Sure,...we have lots of RPGs,...tones of Survival Horror games,...and a dominant strand of car games,...but do we really have enough shooters on the market today? For some,...the answer is simply no! As society has advanced,...so have people's gaming desires. The simplicity of DOOM is now over-looked for RAINBOW SIX instead. Most gamers are tired of the simplicity found in older games,...were the main objective is to kill everything in sight,...but shooters have maintained their place on our console systems for a long time.
NEVER SOFT is hoping to change the way we look at shooters with their most recent havoc-filled trigger-happy escapade starring Bruce Willis,...APOCALYPSE! The story-line you say? There isn't much of one,...but it can hold your interest if you understand whats going on within the game!
You assume the role of Trey Kincade (also recognized as Bruce Willis),...a renegade scientist in a futuristic world were human-rights are a fantasy. The whole world has fallen-under the law of The Reverend. Bruce Willis,...I mean,...Trey Kincade knows what the Reverend does in his spare time!
He exhumes the bodies of the dead and reanimates their corpses into his horsemen of the Apocalypse,...and to keep it a secret,...The Reverend has ordered Trey to "Paradise Island" prison,...were he is to suffer the death penalty!
Rebellious Trey,...unwilling to die for being convicted (there are no trials in the future!),...has decided to break-out of the institution,...not only to win his freedom,...but to assassinate the Reverend aswell as his nasty little creations!
Throughout the game,...your ears will fill with Bruce's snippy remarks such as "Kill em' all and let God sort em' out" and "Cant you pull the trigger any faster"!
Many magazines have reviewed APOCALYPSE saying "Bruno's skits are annoying and repetitive!!",...but being an avid Bruce Willis fan,...I simply cant relate! As a change,...APOCALYPSE strays from the tired puzzle-solving found in RESIDENT EVIL 2 and brings back the roots in gaming,...action!
There is one simple mission objective that even an idiot can quickly learn,...kill every living thing that trys to waste you! However,...beating APOCALYPSE is by far no walk in the park!!
Many of the enemies you will be fighting differ. You will definitely have to do battle with the Reverend's horsemen,...but in the mean-time,...you will have to settle with those determined to defend the Reverend and his rules. You will encounter grave robbers,...zombies,...mutants,...and the common "police".
While mainly attacking on foot,...the police will often resort to tanks and choppers in later levels! Of course,...even the White House employees want to take you out! It seem that the senators have barricaded the halls with desks. Rather than using guns,...they jump-up and deploy fast-flamming skulls in your direction! Go figure.
Of course,...what would a Bruce Willis shooter be without gratuitous violence? NEVER SOFT was obviously asking the same question. When you shoot a guy with a rocket,...he goes to pieces. When you shoot a mutant near the head with the machine-gun,...it will come-off and blood will spurt opon the stem. Shoot an officer with a Rip-laser and you have two feet staggering around for a brief period of time without an upper torso.
After 15 minutes of gameplay,...you shortly realize just what your up against,...and begin to determine whether you have enough wit to survive. Itchy trigger-finger required. Over all,...the most mental work you will find in APOCALYPSE involves flipping switches and jumping platforms.
Graphically,...APOCALYPSE excels in most every department,...despite what people will try to tell you! As a matter of fact,...I have to say that APOCALYPSE utilizes one of the most beautifully rendered graphics engines I've ever seen on a 32-bit system!! The light-sourcing is superb,...right-down to the simple discharge of the weapons! Every object and character is highly detailed in a dark-moody environment filled with bright colors and special effects! Simply put. APOCALYPSE is gorgeous!
Unlike most video-games,...the character shadows chorespond to that character's movements. When Bruce runs,...he does so fluidly,...due to his unique skeletal structure. As far as weapons go,...NEVERSOFT really out-did themselves! The weapons in APOCALYPSE are just hard-core nasty! Your arsenal ranges from the flame-thrower,...homing missile launcher,... the Rip-laser, (my personal favorite!) the grenade,...the standard-but-extremely effective missile launcher,...and the machine-gun (with unlimited ammo! Whooo-hooo!!!)! Aside from including a real actor (and a good one at that!),...NEVERSOFT have acquired grinding music done by POE. Of course,...many other bands could have done excellent in APOCALYPSE as well,...but POE fits the game well and runs at the same pace of gameplay!
Lets talk CGs for a moment,...which is one of the most eye-pleasing parts of the game! In between levels,...you're treated to a short clip that advances the plot! The rendered 3D animation is great! Bruce Willis looks exactly like Bruce Willis,...not some blocky head with his face smeared on it. The motion-captures are breath-taking in their realism!
Aside from story-line,...music,...and flawless CGs,...there is another element that makes-up a good shoot-em'-up action game,...good audio. No one wants to shoot a machine-gun that sounds like a tire spinning through a 4-inch puddle of mud,...however,...NEVER SOFT has yet again choose the best in terms of audio. TOMMY TALARICO STUDIOS.
COMPLAIN DEPARTMENT: The only real problem I have encountered when playing APOCALYPSE are the camera angles. APOCALYPSE simply does not let you control your camera views! Instead,...your camera angles depend on what your situations and location. If you are in a spacious area,...you will get a chance to scroll Bruce in an over-the-head view,...as when you are hanging around in an enclosed space,...you may only be able to see Bruce's back and nothing ahead of you! This often results in unseen deaths,...as each death deducts a life-point. A simply rule of first-generation gaming,...if you loose all of your life-points,...game over man!!
Eye-candy and the casual Bruce Willis action we've come to expect. After beginning APOCALYPSE,...I found myself playing for 30 minutes,...and then found myself playing through-out the whole game! It is mis-understood in it's origin. It is a challenging game that all skill leveled players can catch-on to,...but only the strongest will remain the last standing! All-in-all,...APOCALYPSE isn't the best game,...but is worthy of having a place on many gamer's shelves.
By: Liquid Snake
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