Picture your favorite cover-based shooter… go ahead, don’t be shy.
Now take that shooter, add tons of robots and crazy futuristic designs, make it chug down a pint of beer, stab it in the heart with a massive syringe full of adrenaline and then push it down a ski-slope made of missiles with nothing but an iPod and a pack of cigarettes.
Done? Welcome to Vanquish.
Vanquish puts you in the role of a nicotine addict (with great hair) named Sam in a very spiffy battle suit. It takes place in a futuristic sci-fi setting and is a third person over-the-shoulder shooter…
…on crack.
As far as the story goes, all you need to know is that Russians are attacking the United States and you are a part of a team inside a futuristic cylindrical floating space-continent-thing and have to to put an end to all of this madness.
Have you ever played an over-the-shoulder cover-based shooter before? Of course you have, so you assume that you have played something similar to Vanquish before, but you’d be very wrong.
Vanquish separates itself from other games in the genre by offering an incredibly fast-paced shooter experience crafted and delivered in a style made up of elements from various different Japanese styles ranging from Sci-fi to Anime. On a personal note, I have never been taken by Japanese games, something about them just doesn’t click with me. Vanquish on the other hand, is one of the first times where it all felt like it made sense, and made me want more of the style rather than feel alienated because of it.
The suit that’s wrapped around the game’s protagonist is a fantastic piece of technology that you would think was created as a result of a threesome between Guyver, Ironman and Earthworm Jim.
The suit allows you to slide around levels on your knees at high speeds as well as create a bullet-time effect, either by your choice or as a last resort to save your butt and involves a little bit of care when it comes to balancing its abilities over its need to keep cool.
Something that is also just way too much fun to look at, is that you don’t collect guns but rather scan them in with the suit… and then the suit’s weapon can modify and create the weapon out its techno-jiggly bits.
Enemies have also been graced with some incredibly creative technological designs that would make the Transformers blush, and some of them can throw out more firepower than I care to mention. I can truly say that until Vanquish, I had never had a moment where a game threw so much firepower at me that I actually couldn’t see what was happening on screen and made my eyeballs want to explode. Awesome then.
Last Updated: November 5, 2010
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ruslan74
November 5, 2010 at 09:52
Hectic game although a very short SP campaign (3-4 hours) on Casual might deter casual gamers with no MP whatsoever there is a LOT of replayability for the hardcore crowd. Pity the sales have not been as impressive as the critic reviews.
D4RKL1NG
November 5, 2010 at 10:23
Lekker! Will pick this up the weekend! Thanks Nick!
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
November 5, 2010 at 10:33
So… short… :ermm: and no multiplayer?
Hayat3
November 5, 2010 at 10:53
I took 8 hours on my first playthrough on hard mode and then another 5 hours on my second playtrough on Godhard mode.
This game is meant to be played on the hardest difficulty and I guess that casual gamers will be playing it on the lower difficulty settings :devil:
Fox1
November 5, 2010 at 11:08
Played the demo and there’s no experience like Vanquish. Definitely worth it. Even the cheesy one-liners fit in well :devil:
AC!D
November 5, 2010 at 11:56
Let it go just this once. Its Mikami and a good way to keep you entertained till Gears 3 released. I wonder if Gears will feel too slow now after playing this? I guess time will tell.
Nick de Bruyne
November 5, 2010 at 11:59
I don’t think so, they feel so incredibly different
Parker
November 5, 2010 at 12:15
Definitely getting. It isn’t short if you’re going to replay it tons of times. It’s the sort of game you’re gonna want to practice and try new things on.
Sort of like FIFA.
Macethy
November 5, 2010 at 12:15
It’s that short? Guess i will wait a year or so to get it when it’s cheaper. Really enjoyed his previous game, Bayonetta, but was kinda peeved i payed so much for it.
Bobby Kotick for Dummies
November 5, 2010 at 12:20
I played the demo last week, and it does seem like an awesome game, but it’s just too short for me. This is a game I’ll pick it up if it goes platinum or bargain bin.
D--3
November 5, 2010 at 12:22
Hope they port this to PC, it looks good
V@mp
November 5, 2010 at 20:22
Great fun,althouhg some of the bosses get a bit repetitive.
HoodedGrub
November 9, 2010 at 07:56
Bought this game for half price from my mate after he finished it and did not expect it to grab me, but it’s brilliant and I got hooked. Started on Hard and it’s been a ride 🙂 One of those sleeper games for me.