Monday, February 7, 2011

PS3 Demo Weekend: Bulletstorm

0 comments
This weekend I spent some time trying out some demo's from the Playstation Network.  Figuring the a hot topic as of late within the gaming world is Bulletstorm.  Our pals over at Epic have rolled out yet another game featuring over the top violence and overly beefed up characters that have become a trademark characteristic of an Epic character.

With that said, Bulletstorm does deliver.  I was a huge fan of the Gears of War franchise on the 360.  So when I saw the initial trailers for Bulletstorm I was pretty excited.  So, what do we get to experience in the demo?  Only a single level of the 'Echoes' game mode...Kind of disappointing, right?

Absolutely not!  Sure, it's only a single level.  But it is so jam packed of crap to do, it's still fun to play through the dozen or so times I have played through it this weekend.  The graphics are exactly what we have come to expect from the Unreal 3 engine.  It's gorgeous, simple as that.  The audio is great with plenty of gunshots and explosions going on in the background.  Epic has taken some liberties in the voiceover department allowing quite a funny assortment of rather colorful phrases for the characters to say during the game.  A lot of which isn't necessary, but drives the point home that Bulletstorm was intended to be way over the top anyways.

Where this demo shines, is it's gameplay.  Have you ever played a game where you use an electric 'leash' to snatch a baddie from across the room and launch him into the air, where the game then slides into a slow-motion, Matrix style action sequence where you can pick apart this baddie with whatever weapon you like...And still make it feel awesome?  Nope, neither have I.  But that's exactly what you get.  Whether you want to use a charged projectile to launch into a nest of enemies.  Or whether you want to snatch one up and shoot him to pieces only to kick his remains back across the room into a live electrical cable or impale him on shrapnel sticking out of the wall, it's all about options.  And the controls are extremely accessible if you have played any other first person shooter on the PS3.  So no worries about complicated controls to pull of awesome feats.

Of course, you are rewarded for creative ways of dispatching enemies by building up points.  It is immensely fun to snatch up a guy with the leash, shoot him to pieces and kick his remains back to the bad guys.  A little sadistic, sure.  But fun nonetheless.  The demo is single player only, and limits you to the 'Echoes' game mode, where your performance is timed and you build up points for the leaderboards.



In conclusion, Bulletstorm is outlandish, extremely violent and gory, and contains all manners of foul language. Yes, it is that fun.  As always, use common sense.  This game isn't for kids.  But is a blast for the older gamers who hang around your place.  Bulletstorm should hold us over for quite a while (or at least until Duke Nukem Forever is released).  Happy gaming!