Archimedes's Full Review: Sword of the Berserk : Gut's Rage for Dreamcast
If you've been playing games as long as I have, you've probably noticed that most game storylines are the one thing that generally haven't improved over time. Oh sure, every now and then Squaresoft squeezes out a game with the hero being some troubled loner (Final Fantasy 7 & 8), or a handy mute with talkative friends (Crono Trigger, Legend of Mana.) But for the most part, game companies tend to sacrifice story and depth in favor of making sure the pixellated blood flows out of bullet wounds -just- right. So far the tactic has worked: Take a look at Capcom.
Now why do I bring this up? Simple: Though I won't reveal the plot itself, Sword of the Berserk has, hands down, the absolute best storyline and cinematics of any game out on the Dreamcast at this moment. And it's at least in the top five in that regard when compared with the best offerings on the Playstation and PC this year. If all of the gameplay were thrown out the window and Sword of the Berserk was released simply as a movie, it would probably win an emmy. Not only is the world of SotB well-developed and intriguing, but Eidos didn't even do the usual Industry Mistake (tm) skimp on the dubbing: The voice actors are top quality professionals. The single, tiny downside of this? The main character, a giant-sword-wielding bloodthirsty soldier, is dubbed with the voice of, get this.. Drew Pickles. Yeah, the one from Rugrats. It's hard to pick up on at first, but listen closely and you'll recognize him. Don't worry though, it doesn't degrade how wonderful the (very plentiful) cutscenes in this game are. If anything, you'll watch 'Rugrats' with a whole new perspective now.
But we all know that a game is only as good as it's gameplay, and SotB still delivers in this regard. It takes a few minutes to get a proper feel for the controls, mostly because this third-person game has a habit of switching around camera angles suddenly a la Resident Evil, but the gameplay is fun, and very, very gory. The gameplay is fun even though it's simplistic, and the majority of skill required relates to knowing when to block and when to attack. Two words of warning: The game gets incredibly hard as you progress in the game. At first it seems like a cakewalk, but later on you'll need to have mastered the blocking and striking the get further. Secondly, the gameplay is annoyingly realistic when it comes to the huge sword your character wields: Swinging it in close quarters will nullify the swing as the sword instead bounces off the walls. You'll have to keep in mind just how much swinging-space you have at all times, and this does get annoying in the game's (many) tight areas.
Graphically the game excels as well. Characters are designed beautifully, and monsters range from the grotesque to the truly fear-inspiring. Oh, and like I mentioned earlier, this is a gory game. Blood flows like a fountain, and after a certain amount of kills your character will go berserk, and that's when the blood -really- starts flowing. The environments are also just as impressive as the creatures in SotB, from thick forests to pretty, innocent-seeming villages. While I described the cutscenes as fantastic, I should also note that they all are rendered realtime. It keeps the game flowing smoothly, and shows off just how impressive the Dreamcast can be if used right.
Soundwise? Like I said, the voices in the game are done by professional voice actors. They're crisp, clear, and convincing. The sound effects are high quality as well, particularly the screams of certain monsters in the later acts. There's no glaring fault when it comes to sounds in this game, and it's just another part which impresses.
Finally, the game has some nice replay value going for it, in the form of secrets that can be unlocked for successfully completing the game in certain modes. It starts out with a list of characters/factions in the game and an explanation of their histories and motivations, which helps to flesh out the already impressive story the game has. I should note that, despite all the praise I'm lavishing on this game, it's not for everyone. If you're easily scared or aren't a fan of gore, this game will go above and beyond the call of duty in warding you off. I don't say this lightly: Some of the game's creations border on nightmarish. But, if you enjoy third-person action games or have even the slightest desire to be treated to a fantastic storyline in a game, Sword of the Berserk is what you're after. It's just THAT good.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.