Aside from the Contra series, the last great shoot-em-up game that did not let you control a vehicle of some sort was Apocalypse. The game was shown in a 3D world and you were able to shoot in any direction while moving in any direction. Strafing was easy and it was just more exciting. Despite the lousy jumping portions, this was the game that brought back fond memories of Smash TV, both in terms of carnage count and control. Expendable comes to the Dreamcast trying to bring back the Smash TV/Apocalypse feeling to the 128-bit system. They got the carnage down pat but a terrible control system shoots this game into oblivion.
Graphics - The first thing you'll notice is that the colors are dark. They are murky and create a look of desolence. This is a good thing, since it creates the appropriate mood for the game world. However, what isn't good is the size of the characters. Everyone, from the heroes to the enemies, are tiny. Granted, the small size makes more room available for more explosions and enemies but the small size also makes it harder for you to find yourself in a large group of chaos. Despite the small size, the programmers have to be applauded to creating plenty of detail in the miniscule world. Everything looks realistic and beautiful. If only things were bigger so we could appreciate that detail.
Sound - If anything, the sounds here is the winner of the game. The hard rock soundtrack provides perfect mood music for laying down the law and blasting everything in sight. It's not something you'll remember but it's very good for what it is. The sound here is also top notch. Every shot is crystal clear and every explosion is deafening. This is one game that you definitly want to play on your stereo system.
Gameplay - The two good things here are that this is a two player game, like almost all shooters back in the day were, and this game features plenty of levels to fire on. However, the real dissapointment is the control scheme. A shooter of this variety should have a Smash TV/Apocalypse control style where each button is assigned to be a shooting direction. It makes the game more fun. However, Expendable uses a system where you face one direction, shoot, and lock in that direction till you change what direction you want to fire from next. It's not unplayable this way but definitly mind bogling as to why this was chosen and definitly lowers the fun factor of the game to several degrees.
Bottom line: The concept is fine. In fact, we need more shooters like this now more than ever. However, the controls are bad enough to keep people away from this game. A definite rental but hardly a purchase.
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