|
Rage
By Tristan Tancredi
Rage, a Post Apocalyptic first person shooter is
all about Carnage, Destruction and Survival.
After
an asteroid (The Apophis) strikes the earth, civilisation as we know
it, is destroyed and survivors are forced to rebuild society in small
towns and settlements spread across the landscape.
Mutants roam
freely across the desolate world reaping havok and destruction, whilst
the Authority controls the land with an iron fist.
So basically, it's not a nice era to be living in.
Enter Ark Survivor and hero of the year: 2029.
The
gamer takes control of an Ark Survivor, a person buried in a capsule
beneath the earth in preperation of a disaster. There to preserve
knowledge, genetic samples and other items essential for human life as
part of the Eden project.
After exiting the "Ark" as its only
survivor the gamer enters the world of 2029 amidst a mountain of chaos;
destined to save the world.
From here the journey begins through the
Post-Apocolyptic, barren and rough futuristic world.
The
main objective of the game; to lead the resistance against the
authority, to wipe out as many mutants as possible and to restore order
for humankind.
Rage, as its name suggests, involves plenty of
action and plenty of carnage. Assisting with the carnage are a number
of weapons:
The
Settler Pistol, The Combat Shotgun, the Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle,
Crossbow, Machine Gun, Rocket Launcher and my personal favourite, the
Pulse Cannon.
It's great fun shooting your way through the many
great locations of Rage, from Gearhead valley to Prime Capital.
With
gaming mechanics and AI being first rate, shooting mutants was a
bliss. The only issue we had was with close hand-to-hand
combat,
more often than not we were swinging at air.
Weapon upgrades can
be purchased from various stores. Laser Lights, Shotgun extenders and
Stabilizers are all available, as are Quick Use Weapons, such as
Wingsticks, Grenades, RC Bomb Cars, Sentry Turrets and Sentry Bots.
Travelling
from different locations is achieved by driving Dune Buggy-like cars
packed to the rafters with Rockets, Pulse Ammo, Escort bombs and
Aftershockers. Beware, there are heaps of enemies patrolling the barren
wastelands so pick your routes carefully.
The driving aspect of
the game was quite dissapointing. The turning was stiff and jagged and
the braking was majorly askew. Thankfully, driving makes up only a
fraction of Rage. (Racing objective will arise, however these are quite
easy to complete).
In between knocking a mutants head off with a
fatboy, letting some homing rockets loose in your Cuprino or setting up
your own Sentry Turret, a number of interesting and colourful
characters are met.
- The Hagar and Outrigger Clans
- Major Clayton and Sheriff Black - Residents of
Wellspring
- Dr. Kvasir - A weird hermit/scientist on the
outskirts of Wellspring
- Captain Marshall & Elizabeth Cadence -
The Resistance Fighters
- Major Redstone - Subway Town who rocks a killer
tattoo.
Wellspring
and Subway Town are the two main civilisations in the Post-Apocalyptic
world. Littered with survivors there are numerous objectives that can
be completed for these people.
Item management and
customisation are unique and important aspects to Rage. Collecting
enough equipment to make a lock bomb, or an RC Bomb is vital.
A
number of different Bandit Clans and Authority Guards are encountered
and destroyed throughout the game, all involving challenging tasks and
difficult enemies.
An entertaining, yet somewhat "cheesy" level
involves completing a set of stages for a local TV show, Mutant TV.
Despite the "cheesiness" to it, we still had a great time.
This
level is also available online as a Wasteland Legends Mission, along
with variety of other maps, including; Life in Prison, Water Service,
Trophy Hunting, Rust's Resupply, Unwanted Guests, Extermination, Grab
and Go and A New Toy.
The online Wasteland Legends co-op missions
are great fun as they tell the story of Campaign Legends, yet once
completed don't have a great lasting appeal.
Road Rage is another
Multiplayer Game Mode for up to four gamers. Taking place across a
variety of maps, gamers complete different objectives including
Carnage, Chain Rally, Meteor Rally & Triad Rally.
A fun, challenging FPS, Rage is highly
recommended.
Game: Rage
System: Playstation 3, XBox 360
Developer/Co-Developer: id Software
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
Rating: 85%
(Ratings
Key/Explanation)
|
