Bodycount Review | VideoGameWriters - Video Game Writers

Written by Jason Evangelho | Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Platforms:Xbox 360, Playstation 3
Publisher(s):Codemasters
Developer(s):Codemasters
Genre(s):First Person Shooter
Release Date:August 30, 2011
ESRB Rating:M
Buy It/Rent It/Skip It?:Skip It

Bodycount?is a frustrating game. The spiritual sequel to?Black?(a 2006 shooter by Criterion Games) tries to recapture that exhilarating feeling of shooting powerful guns at hordes of enemies ? right down to highlighting a single assault rifle on its box art, as Black did before it ? and in several ways it succeeds. The frustration stems from seeing so much potential for a memorable game, and watching that potential dissolve under the weight of a half-baked experience.

0 Review: Bodycount

By their very nature, games tend to be repetitive affairs, which is why a compelling narrative can be vital to our enjoyment of them. If story is absent, alternate incentives takes its place; whether it?s decimating a previous personal high score in Geometry Wars, or competing online in Call of Duty, something must motivate us to continue forward.

What?s My Motivation?

Current generation shooters have strived to offer a variety of gameplay beyond mere running and gunning (even if it is stale turret sequences and misplaced platforming), as well as spin a tale that keeps us interested in travelling from point A to point B, continuously blasting bad guys in the face. Bodycount insists on feeling like a minimalist, throwback shooter, carried by its gameplay mechanics and an orgy of explosions that would give Michael Bay an inferiority complex. Sadly, the game is polluted with a lazy, non-existent story, a confusing cover system, and some criminal omissions to the overall gunplay and the weapons themselves.

The motivation for players to push forward in Bodycount certainly doesn?t come from character development. Your faceless, silent hero is an operative of ?The Network,? tasked with infiltrating and destroying the underground lair of ?The Target.? This isn?t lazy paraphrasing ? the plot doesn?t get much deeper. It?s as if the developers shoehorned in the story at the last second to justify the level design (which is inspired by equal parts Brink and Tron: Evolution). The in-game radio chatter between you and your command center only serves to give generic back-story, and general guidance to reach your next objective.

BODYCOUNT Screenshot 02 17071 570x320 Review: Bodycount

...and Michael Bay wept...

What Bodycount must thrive on, then, is its action. Lest you think I?m being too negative, there are some intensely satisfying moments during the roughly 10 hour playthrough. Paramount among these are the explosions; around every corner is something red and flammable to shoot, obliterating nearby enemies and justifying that 5.1 surround system purchase. You can frequently trigger chain reactions, which topple entire buildings and result in gratified smirks. The destructible environments also lend to tense moments as enemies chip away at your cover; walls and fences chip realistically and allow for alternate paths. Credit deservedly goes to Codemasters for implementing this when other high-profile shooters like Modern Warfare 3 still can?t be bothered to.

Another feather in Bodycount?s cap: The weapons Bodycount?offers all feel fantastic to fire, with realistic recoil and action, particularly the Super90 shotgun which sends nearby enemies reeling backward. The silenced P226 hand gun nearly transported me back to Goldeneye 007 on the N64; it is insanely satisfying to pull off headshots with. Toward the endgame you?ll receive two high-tech weapons like the Kaluka, an assault rifle with the firing rate of an SMG. Suffice to say, it will clear a room with ease.

Hope you?re a no-scope pro?

Bodycount ships with an armament of only 9 guns (as well as generic grenades and mines). However, it isn?t the included arsenal that ruins the experience; rather it?s the noticeable lack of staple weapons like sniper rifles and rocket launchers. It is the baffling omission of scopes, and the inability to earn or equip any weapon upgrades or accessories that sours the entire experience. You may be a killing machine, but when snipers are picking you off from 150 yards away and you can barely make out their figure, things turn from frustrating to seriously flawed. When shooting guns is the primary strength of your game, you must deliver a large assortment of weapons that are fun to use and cater to different play styles; and at this stage there is no excuse for the lack of upgrades and customization.

Sequence 02 175271 570x320 Review: Bodycount

Codemasters' EGO engine makes explosions - and resulting carnage - satisfying

Controls are equally confusing. As is the standard, you pull the left trigger to look down your sight while aiming, but doing so renders your character immobile. To walk while looking down the sights, you have to squeeze the trigger only halfway. Maintaining that position during intense firefights borders on impossible. In every way, the developers are screaming ?in Bodycount, you run up to people and shoot them point-blank. That?s how you play our game or GTFO.? Supplementing this argument is a poorly conceived cover system that utilizes the left analog stick to duck and lean, and suicidal enemies who insist on standing out in the open (and conveniently next to explosive barrels), or running up to you in true bullet-sponge fashion.

Bodycount does offer a temporary diversion in the form of multiplayer deathmatches, but the online mode offers no leveling system, and recycles the exact same maps from the campaign. And again, there are expansive areas ideal for scoped weapons ? but since there are none, it devolves into close-quarters bloodbaths. It?s uninteresting and uninspired, and does nothing to justify a $60 price tag.

?Bodycount Mode? delivers the most fun, wherein you and a buddy team up to beat back an onslaught of enemies. Like Horde Mode in Gears of War 2, the challenge of fighting against increasingly difficult odds with a friend is satisfying. Unlike Horde Mode, its welcome is worn out all too quickly.

BODYCOUNT Screenshot 02 367931 570x320 Review: Bodycount

Every screenshot given to press has explosions. This is not coincidence.

The Bottom Line

Thus, the enjoyment present in Bodycount is found primarily in the realistic feel of the small assortment of guns, and the wild explosions and destruction around every corner. Unfortunately, it?s not enough to recommend Bodycount for anything more than a weekend rental ? and only if you?ve become bored with Crysis 2, Black Ops, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, Homefront, Brink, Bulletstorm, or any of the vastly more memorable and diverse shooters on the market.

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About the Author

Jason Evangelho is VGW's founder and Big Boss. Jason is a longtime 'professional hobbyist,' indie music junkie, recovering catholic and video game enthusiast. His singular mission is to develop VideoGameWriters into a gaming site known for its intelligence, timeliness, originality and integrity. You can find his VGW blog at http://blogs.videogamewriters.com/jasonevangelho

Source: http://videogamewriters.com/review-bodycount-22653

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