Battleship
Reviewed By Tristan Tancredi
Activision have released Battleship on entertainment systems globally to coincide with the release of the blockbuster film of the same name. Not even Liam Neeson could save the movie from average reviews, so let's hope the developers at Double Helix Games have a few surprises in store.
Gamers assume the role of Cole Mathis, a man we know very little about (and that's after completing the game). He is a demolitions expert of sorts and is the main man to put a stop to an alien invasion. I'll admit, regardless of how good Liam Neeson is, I still haven't seen Battleship, the film. Maybe I should have, as it would have helped me understand the game a little bit (between you and I, there isn't a hell of alot of explaining going on).
We pretty much summed Battleship up into two segments. Firstly, is the traditional First-Person Shooter missions and secondly is the more strategic-based (battleship boardgame-esque) missions.
To begin, let's get cracking on our dalliance with the FPS because, let's be honest, FPS is a bucket-load more fun then strategic placements of ships. But we'll get to that portion of the game in a jiffy.
The FPS is simple and basic, very basic in fact. There is nothing fancy about how this game plays out, it's find a weapon, shoot the aliens and blow up any extra-terrestial building in sight. Full Stop.
In saying that, it's still holds a relatively steady level of enjoyment. The fact that it doesn't involve too much brain activity on the gamers part makes for an enjoyable game to kick back to for a few hours of stress-free gaming. Don't get me wrong, it's not unique at all and has not one iota of artistic inspiration.
A host of weapons are at the gamers disposal. The typical Piston, Shotgun and friends make an appearance, but no gun is as fun as the Railgun. That bad boy can clear out a convoy of Aliens with one shot. Nice.
The gameplay is basic and unfortunately, so is the look of the game. The Aliens look cheap and messy, the biggest problem we found with the Aliens is that the don't have a distingushable look about them. Hell, writing this right now and I can't remember what they look like.
The environments are the same. They look messy and rushed and clearly not up to the standard of fellow 2012 FPS releases. Which is a real shame and had us questioning: How quickly did they rush this game out to capitilise on the release of the movie?
Now, let's move onto the "strategic placement of ships" aspect of the game (Which is what Battleship fans would want the most).
As Elite Demolitions Expert, you are also in control of a fleet of battleships and submarines lining the islands of Hawaii. The goal is to defeat the Alien ships whilst aligning your ships to positions whereby they can offer protection to you on land, delivering missiles on request.
Positioning the ships strategically on a handheld device, that Mathis owns, the gamer must strategically place ships in positions of power to cater for the oncoming onslaught of the non-human variety. Despite fighting amongst themselves when you are in FPS mode, the gamer can also assist and control ships at will (Or when suitable Wildcards are attained).
Wildcards are attained when disposing of enemies in FPS mode, these range from a 20% increase in missile power, to restoring heath for the ships or our personal favourite wildcard, assuming total control of a ship during battle. This enables twice as much damage to be inflicted on those poor little aliens. Say hello to the oceans floor for me.
Battleship is enjoyable in parts, yet ultimately we are left with a stale taste of the game being purely a commercial objective. A game that was thrown together to capitalise on the success (if it had any) of the movie.
Rating: 65%
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Game: Battleship
System: Playstation 3
Developer/Co-Developer: Double Helix Games
Publisher: Activision
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