daperlman's Full Review: Twisted Metal: Black for PlayStation 2
The Twisted Metal Series
My love affair with these games began with the very first game. Twisted Metal was the first game that combined shooting, driving, texture mapping, and interacting with the backgrounds. Additionally TM let two players play with or against one another. Simply brilliant and ahead of its time, the fast paced action in Twisted Metal wove all aspects of video games together. The addition of Twisted Metal 2 allowed gamers to choose from more interactive levels (New York has always been a favorite of mine), as well as adding lovable characters, like Mr.Slam (The Bulldozer that picks up enemies and slams them repeatedly against the ground). When Twisted Metal 3 came out I expected big things. Much to my disappointment, 989 had taken over production of the Twisted Metal series and decided to abandon the principles that made the game great, and switch to a 3d environment.
Back to basics
When the PS2 came out, SingleTrac (original developers of TM1) put together this version: Twisted Metal Black. This game would have every bit of the playability of the first two, plus a 3d environment. I was expecting great things and this game is superb.
Some of the things that make Twisted Metal black every bit as good as TM2:
*Flawless Texture mapping - If you were to view a topographical map of a level and roll a marble on it...it would follow the same path as ricochet bomb does (this accuracy, gives the player an advantage for noting the lay of the land)
*Interactive Environments - This kind of thing keeps the game interesting forever. For instance when a player blows up a certain landmark, they may find something new, or cause a larger explosion. Also one of the new weapons is an environmental weapon (attack is customized to environment). Some environmental attacks include lightning and helicopter attack
*Same great characters and more! - all of your favorite characters from previous versions are back, with weapons slightly tweaked. Plus some interesting new characters. This variety of characters to choose from teaches the player to learn different skills. For example, the motorcycle must avoid hitting opponents, while the truck gains ground by running over opponents.
*Special Maneuvers still possible - For instance you can still freeze enemies, use force field, etc.
*Same great weapons and more - All the weapons from the first two are back, plus some neat new ones. Some of the new weapons include a satellite, recticle missile, and a 10 shot blast called a zoomy
Graphics
As to be expected, the move of TM series to the PS2 comes with a vast improvement in the graphics. The cars, buildings, and human beings look more realistic. For some reason the weapons look very basic. They don't look like what they are and many look similar to one another. It is worth mentioning that the stories behind the characters look impressive. As this game is called Twisted Metal Black, many of the background are very dark. In some cases these backgrounds blend together.
Sound
Again when a game moves from PS1 to PS2, the sounds always improves drastically. I tend to forget this, but am constantly reminded every time that I put in a PS1 game. The sound for this game packs a serious punch. As I said it is not Dolby 5.0 surround, but it is encoded in an earlier version of surround. This means you have to tell your receiver that this is surround, rather than auto field detection (works without pressing anything). (To hear the digital sound, you must hook the optical cable from Playstation to your surround rec., furthermore you must unhook composite sound cables.) Nevertheless, you must play this in surround... the Helicopter propeller, the missiles getting closer and closer. It is pretty cool.
What's New
The major difference b/t this version and any other is the charging stations. As with the earlier versions, one can get health rations (the tiny projectiles with the red cross symbols) In addition to that, there are electric chargers that will fully recharge you a few times. This is a huge asset to the Twisted Metal Combatant. But beware as there is only one charging station per level, and enemies are bound to target you while you struggle to lift yourself on to the charging platform correctly. As I stated earlier, there are some new characters. My favorite new character is Preacher's Brimstone. This guy hurls a believer who has draped himself in dynamite on to the hood of opposing vehicles, as the guy jumps out from the car he screams "repent!" Some of the new weapons can be used very effectively if you can keep your enemies in one place for a moment.
Now what are you waiting for? Let the tournament begin!
Best of the twisted metal series created by the original producers great graphics for ps2, Platforms: PlayStation2, ESRB Rating: MatureMore at Amazon Marketplace
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