Rocketmen: Axis of Evil
Review
A Rocketman RPG? What will they think of next?
by Vyle
reviewed on X360
Blandness
While the RPG mechanics and character customization are nice touches, the main game sadly lacks in a few areas. The cut scenes, for example, seem to walk on a thin line between knowing humour and blandness.
Told through semi static, comic-panel-like frames, the cut scenes rely more on the dialogue than action. There are a number of witty lines (a highlight being Rocketman referring to a pesky, demanding NPC as “Mr NPC watching from a safe distance,”) the voice acting and pacing rarely elevate the story to anything more than an inconvenience. Similarly, the gameplay flirts with exhilaration, but often falls into dull routine. Rocketman controls smoothly enough, and the twin stick control is comfortingly familiar, but sadly the level design brings everything down.
Mixed bag
The first problem is that it can be very hard to see what is going on. In a game such as this, where hundreds of bullets can be flying in your direction at any moment, it is important to be able to see where you are in relation to the death rays. Unfortunately, the level design can at times be too busy, with transparent floors and mottled textures making such distinctions very difficult.
Another issue is that the HUD is too big, making it all too possible for you to get stuck behind your energy bar surrounded by enemies, and having to blind-fire to escape. At other times, your progress is impeded because the final enemy on the level is hidden behind some screen furniture. In multiplayer mode, this can become an even bigger problem, but more on that later.
Presentation wise, Rocket Man is a real mixed bag. The cell shaded graphics and character designs are solid and charmingly cartoony. Yet with so few enemy types, the designs soon get repetitive. This is compounded by abysmal animation, with Rocketman himself running like a reject from The Six Million Dollar Man.
Turn it down
The game is also guilty of tiresome sound design, with the constant repetition of the gun fire proving almost headache inducing. The bleeping of interactive objects, dreary music, and a strange sound effect that seems to have no purpose, yet plays non-stop, all collide. This game is one to play with the sound turned way down.
The main structure of each level involves trawling its corridors, killing the waves of enemies that attack, until the screen stops scrolling. At these points, enemies will flood in, until they have all been defeated, and you can continue. Items can be collected from various interactive canisters and weapon lockers on the way. Using them briefly renders you defenseless, bringing a little touch of strategy to the proceedings. Occasionally, the paths will branch. At times, I unwittingly chose to go the direction that furthered the overall story. This can be a real pain as it forces you to replay the level to reach missed items. This is especially troublesome when you consider that it is impossible to backtrack.
6.0
fun score
No Pros and Cons at this time
