  'What was that I just blew up?'
'Beats me'
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Bang bang bang boom! Cue massive chain of explosions, several terrorist bodies, a rain of falling debris, and then repeat. Essentially, this is what playing Black, the new first-person shooter by Criterion Games, is like. Based on such a description, it may sound a little single minded and repetitive - but that doesn't mean it isn't a hell of a lot of fun.
In Black you take the shoes (or in this case the trigger finger), of Keller, a US soldier specializing in covert, "black" operations (hence the name). Your mission is initially to engage and gather information about a secretive terrorist organization called 7th Wave. But later, as told through live action video segments, the plot becomes somewhat more convoluted and complex as our protagonist is interrogated before the beginning of each mission. Really though, the plot is not particularly important (although Criterion wins points for trying). Its only real purpose is to provide a backdrop for the real focus of the game- shooting. And blowing stuff up. And then some more shooting, because really you are going to do quite a lot of both of these activities and that's about it. Other first-person shooter games (FPS) often try to enhance the gaming experience by adding cinematic plot elements, characterization, vehicles to operate, teammates to strategically control, etc. Not Black. It has essentially distilled the FPS genre to its core elements of shooting lots of bad guys and blowing the crap out of everything and has run with it. But in the end this works for Black, as every element of this focused mayhem has been polished and refined to create some very intense and thrilling gameplay.
The game takes place on a mission-by-mission basis with a distinct beginning and end. These missions typically start in a calm, quiet manner, perhaps even encouraging a little bit of stealth tactics. But as soon as the first few shots are fired, all hell breaks loose and it's a full-on firefight until the end of the current level with only a small number of breaks in between. Now while the levels are not designed as open free-roaming environments and instead force the player along a predetermined path, this is usually done subtly and with a good flow, allowing the player to focus on the task at hand, which is generally looking for the next thing to shoot. Yet it isn't always a terrorist opponent that will be the unlucky recipient of your well-placed bullet. For as you progress though the game, it quickly becomes apparent that it is more often objects within the environment that prove to be the real and more effective targets. Every encounter with the enemy almost always involves a number of well placed barrels, vehicles and crates that when shot will blow up and take out numerous enemies much more quickly (and dramatically) than if you just shot them. It even gets to the point where you start to shoot at anything coloured red, as more often then not this is a good indication that it will explode with satisfying results. On a related note is the fact that many non-explosive parts of the environment can be destroyed as well, thus presenting some interesting strategies. For instance, if a particularly tough opponent is refusing to poke his head out so you can put a bullet in it- just blast away the pillar/tree/crate or whatever he's hiding behind and then shoot him. But keep in mind that the same lack of environmental invulnerability applies to you as well, thus making "cover" a relative term (note: do not hide behind fuel tanks). Lastly it is interesting that with all of the killing and destruction, there isn't a single drop of blood or gore to be found in the entire game. Instead, enemies lose their helmets or parts of their body armor when shot, and in a well thought out move, also provide the muted sound of impact when your bullet hits it's target, which is somehow even more satisfying than the typical spray of blood that one comes to expect from this genre.
The graphics in Black are some of the best to be seen on the PS2, period. It's amazing at what the developers have managed to coax from the aging PS2 hardware, resulting in some fantastic environments, lighting effects, character and object models. Speaking of models, it's obvious that there is a certain love affair with guns by the game designers as not only are there some truly sexy pre-rendered animations of guns firing in every menu screen, but every time you reload in the game, one is presented with a momentary "money shot" of the gleaming, highly detailed gun you are currently using. Perhaps the only other element treated with such care and devotion in the game are the explosions, because when things blow up (and they do quite often), they blow up with style- blooming into fiery red and orange plumes, complete with smoking debris flying off in all directions.
Audio in Black is also handled very well and is a worthy counterpart to the excellent graphics. Sound effects are clear, the orchestral background music is appropriate and enhances the experience without being overused, and of course the explosions are loud and dynamic.
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But for all that Black does right in its single-minded quest for gunfire supremacy, there are still a number of issues and problems with the game. The most glaring of which is the fact that you cannot save your game within a mission- only at the end of one. If you die, there are of course checkpoints to restart from throughout each level so that you don't have to redo the entire level. But these are not located frequently and if you just want to save your progress and do something else (like say go to sleep maybe) you cannot do so without finishing the level, or you will indeed have to start from the beginning (unless of course you just leave your console on, but that isn't a good idea). Suffice to say, this is very annoying. To make matters worse, if you do decide to stop playing and then start again at a later time, you will have to re-watch the introductory live action sequence before each mission as there is no way to skip this. Again- very annoying since the segments can be several minutes in length. Lastly, Black is rather short at only around 6 hours and doesn't have any multiplayer mode whatsoever (It would have been so good!), making for very little replay value.
If what you're looking for is an all-out, insanely destructive shooting game with a multitude of things to blow the %&$# out of, then Black is the title for you. Complete with amazing graphics and sound, violently focused gameplay and a love of all things explosive, it offers a thrilling experience for first person shooter fans and even just those with a bent for action. There are of course some issues with how saving one's progress is handled, plus the short length of the game coupled with an absence of multiplayer are almost a sin, but overall Black is fun and a “blast” to play.
WHAM! Rating: |
8.2 out of 10 |
ESRB Rating: |
M (Mature) |
Official Web Site: |
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