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BLACKSITE: AREA 51 XBOX 360 REVIEW |
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Midway
continues to release a steady lineup of
unexpected hits ever since their last pinnacle
success with the Mortal Kombat franchise. It
appears that the company is slowly moving
forward into the right direction and gaining
more household reputation after publishing Blitz
the League and Stranglehold this year. Suffice
it to say, there is one title in particular that
is also getting lots of attention – the highly
anticipated military sci-fi shooter known as
BlackSite: Area 51. We had the chance to storm
through the game’s content, and we were
impressed with a number of features being
offered. Though the game is nowhere near as
technical as Gears of War or Call of Duty 4,
Midway found strength in its use of the “Unreal”
engine, as well as delivering a clean visual
presentation and a solid squad-based experience.
What’s nice about BlackSite: Area 51 is that the
gameplay is remarkably easy to pick up. Most of
your actions such as picking up items are
triggered by the RB button. Midway has the knack
for developing games that revolved around
arcadish gameplay, a trademark they have been
using for years, which has attracted thousands
of casual gamers out there. The emphasis is on
casual gamers because hardcore shooters may not
find this game very challenging. Most of us here
at Hotwire 3D are hardcore players, but
sometimes we just want something straightforward
like Midway’s BlackSite: Area 51. We always tell
our readers if the game is worth it or not, and
BlackSite is an exception to the rule and it’s
just one of those action shooters that is nice
have in the library. The story starts with you
as Aeran Pierce, who is an part of a special
force that carries out the most dangerous work
for the goverment's military. |
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PRODUCT
OVERALL RATING: 8.0 OUT OF 10 |
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As usual,
the government didn’t disclose classified
information as to what you would be facing in
the frontlines. During a mission to Iraq, you
lose one of your men upon discovering alien
fragments within the vicinity. With all the
commotion, you blacked out. The story picks up
again three years later. You have been given an
assignment similar to the one you had in Iraq.
This time you’ll be battling against different
species of aliens and it all takes place in
Nevada where the infamous Area 51 is located.
The single-player campaigns are pretty
entertaining but it would have been better if we
had access to cooperative play. Needless to say,
we manage to forgive the missing tag team option
as we were enjoying ourselves blasting away
hordes of ugly mutants, weird sludgy crawlers,
gigantic bugs, and many more.
One of the nice features of the game is the
inclusion of the morale system. If you perform
well as individual, you’ll boost the crew’s
morale, and they will be more effective and
aggressive in their fight. But the opposite is
true; when you starts to slump in your
performance, it’s hard to get the crew to follow
orders. Not to worry though. The AI intelligence
is forgivable so if you start to slump, you can
still complete the mission. Graphically,
BlackSite: Area 51 is impressive. The designs on
aliens are surprisingly creepy and the game puts
weather and lighting effects to good use that
create an intimidating apocalyptic environment.
One of the higher points of the visual
presentation is how it denotes a shocking
moment. Monsters pour out of hiding and enemies
spring out of nowhere that give you little time
to react. It’s nice to see that certain
structures are destructible such as gasoline
pumps and wooden crates. You need to be careful
though hiding behind these covers, as it can
backfire from the force of stray bullet coming
at you. The shredding of your cover spot will
get your hurt in the process, making yourself
susceptible to further injuries.
In the audio department, the game does a good
job producing realistic sound effects. The
sounds of shotguns, rifles, and other armaments
are faithfully translated. The ambiance for
background has some bone-chilling effects to it.
The musical score is okay for the most part but
some of the dialogues can be cheesy. Overall,
BlackSite: Area 51 is a solid arcade shooter for
casual gamers who are looking into a
straightforward FPS. The gameplay is simple to
pick up and the action is non-stop. The graphics
are excellent and very clean throughout,
allowing you to see clearly what you’re shooting
at. Thanks to the all-in-one action button, you
have more freedom to execute other offensive and
defensive strategies. Squad tactics are
literally at your fingertips! The biggest
downside of the game is that it is missing a
cooperative mode but that’s forgivable since the
single-player campaign gives you plenty of
exhilarating moments. Suffice it to say,
BlackSite is a fun game but this is not
recommended for hardcore shooting fans. If
you’re a casual gamer looking into FPS, however,
this one is for you. |
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