Coming up to launch the hype machine is up and running with more and more information being released steadily, we haven’t been told everything but our appetites are wet. Ubisoft is running full steam ahead with their biggest game Red Steel. The launch title was the first Wii title to be shown despite the fact that it is third party. It has amassed lots of interest for being the first game in the public eye but mainly for the game itself, as well as showing off of the Wii experience
The game has been in constant development since it was unveiled at E3 and every time it is played by a journalist it appears to have been updated. The biggest concern was always the aiming, especially the sensitivity of it. You will be pleased to hear that Ubisoft have now pretty much perfected the system so it is fun to play, albeit with the occasional quirk as all games do.
The Story has you travelling from Los Angeles where guns are the fashionable weapon, to Tokyo in mist of the Japanese mafia, where the sword is the preferred killing tool. Red Steel is not a classic FPS (First Person Shooter) it’s a FPSS; with the additional ‘S’ meaning Slasher. Red Steel combines the guns seem in most games, with a shiny katana for you to play with. It hosts a large arsenal of pistols, machine guns, rifles, shotguns and explosives that you will first use, then learning the sword skill later in the game, all in a bid to rescue your kidnapped girlfriend.
The sword is not all about chopping your foe to bits (since there is no blood or gory effects this is impossible anyway). You have to play conservatively to gain honour by sparing your enemies; one way shown in the trailer is by holding cold steel to their neck. To be a real warrior you have to abide by the Bushido way, so the action will be varied.
The sword fighting will not be completely realistic which will disappoint aspiring samurai and everyone hoping for true control. The wii-mote still directs the blade but is limited to certain moves; there is no real time move for move control. For example if you perform an overhead move it will be performed but it will not mirror your movements if you add an angle or height to it. Apparently the developers played around with this idea but it reportedly felt awkward and would alienate people who hardly know which end to hold.
There have been recent reports of Red Steel containing dual wield sword fighting but these have been misinterpretations of the second blocking sword or “Tantō” which is controlled by the nunchucku. As well as controlling the characters movement the nunchucku also can be used to block sword attacks, open doors and other such things. These actions are done by twisting the control and shaking it among other behaviour.
If the action all gets too much there is a time freezing ability, that unlike bullet-time actually makes time stop still so you can select where to shoot your enemies, when real-time is continued these shots will take place. This is useful for disabling enemies so you can show mercy and gain honour, or for simply getting out of a tight situation. This technique however does not make it easy, as the time period is extremely limited forcing you to aim and target limbs quickly and with accuracy or it will be wasted.
The multiplayer not does feature the freeze ability but does allow you to momentarily stun your opponents. When you get close to an opponent a sword image will come on screen and you can press a button to charge and hit them, then use your gun to damage them while they are stunned. This however is all the sword features in multiplayer. In all modes the sword is absent with guns (and bombs) being the only usable weapons. Technically speaking the stun move is done by the sword but since the blade does not come in to play it does not count as sword play. It does makes sense for not having gun versus blade battles but a sword versus sword mode would have been a great addition.
Multiplayer has been commented to resemble Goldeneye; the famous and arguably king to the throne of best console first-person-shooter. Both games having a four player split screen and being played on a console are the biggest basis for this. The design of the maps does contribute too. Red Steel has arenas that have tight corners with plenty of objects that can be used for hiding, they also feature open levels which can be used for vantage points however. It remains to be seen if this newcomer can claim the title.
All the aspects of multiplayer have now been fully explained and we know now that it will contain three game modes. It has the standard deathmatch and team deathmatch modes but last and perhaps the most interesting is ‘Killer’; which is the most unique game mode to come in a long time. The latter mode starts oddly enough with a phone call; using the speaker in the wii-mote it gives each player a secret message. These messages inform you of your mission during the round, this could be to kill a certain player while evading the rest, or it could even be to protect a player. The other players will have different messages that are bound to clash, so you must keep your wits about you. Imagine protecting someone who is trying to kill you, or trying to flee from all three other opponents; this mode promises great fun among friends.
The graphics are smooth and better than you would expect on a good looking Gamecube title. It of course does not stand alongside the PS3 and Xbox 360 but it is very appealing to the eyes, especially with the swish cover art to go with it. The game is about being in thick of combat as you go alone against multiple enemies aiming or swinging your hands at them, the graphics do not restrict this at all. All the character models and textures have been updated since the original screenshots and perhaps made even sharper since the newest ones. The only comment to be made is the lack of blood, which some gamers are disappointed by. The exclusion though means that the game can be targeted to wider audiences and since it does not interfere with the gameplay it is not a big loss.
Red Steel is making use of the Wii’s revolutionary technology while also taking new approaches at established game formulas. The motion sensing aiming controls are the focal point of this title. It also utilises the wii-mote speaker not in only providing added effects to the game in terms of sound, but also the Killer game mode centres around it. The game is a great starting point to show what the Wii can do, it will only help developers to use the Wii to push boundaries. While trying new things it is still tied to the current games in the genre; so will not be foreign to old or new gamers.
