| |
|
I don't know how many people the above offer really applies to, but even if you're not in Japan or on a modded PS2, Rez is totally worth seeking out. I found it at Circuit City a couple years ago, but from what I'm told it's kind of rare. Still, if you stumble across a used (or new) copy somewhere, get it!
The storyline is pretty simple - you're a computer haxx0r trying to debug a highly advanced AI, so you must travel past its security systems to reach the programming core. The gameplay is a sort of 3rd person scrolling shooter, with your avatar floating stationary at the bottom of the screen. You control a targeting reticule, which you can use to pick off enemies one-by-one or hold down the fire button to lock-on up to 8 targets, which will be destroyed in sequence when you let go.
If you wipe out an entire sequence of enemies, you can collect an overdrive powerup which will wipe out all enemies on the screen. You can also find health bonus which make your avatar evolve into different forms, allowing you to take more hits (and changing the style of your attacks). My favorite form is the guy who sits serenely in the lotus position while all kinds of crazy shit goes flying all around him.
What really makes Rez stand out is the insane combination of graphics and soundtrack. Each level has a different techo/trance track, and every time you blow up a bad guy they make a different noise depending on their type and how many you kill in sequence. The music is very catchy, in fact I've had the song from the first level on the top of my default iPod playlist for quite a while now.
It's hard to tell how cool the graphics are from a static screenshot. They're mostly based on wireframe and angular polygons, but there are some parts that are more detailed. The gameplay in the final stage is interspersed with the strange philosophical ruminations about life and humanity that you often see in Japanese games, but the transitions between areas are suddenly done in a new animation style, which switches to the normal wireframe model once you're back in control.
The overall experience is totally hypnotic, and unlike most games my thumbs tend to get sore before I get bored with playing. It's even fun to just watch someone else play. There are also a whole bunch of unlockable modes with different levels, color schemes, characters, etc, so the replayability is good as well.
My only complaint about this game is that it won't play on my PS2 anymore! However, a lot of my other old games don't either, so I think the problem is on my end. Guess I need to be more careful with fragile electronics next time we move. |
|
|
