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Watchmen is a universe that is new to me, though naturally after viewing the movie trailers and having seen the film for myself, I am aware that it is a 'rather' popular graphic novel. I appreciate violence in both games and film, and I also have a fondness for the typical superheroes and villains. It is with great interest then that Watchmen immediately came to my attention, even more so after I heard that the guy behind the phenomenal '300' film was behind it. Naturally I expected plenty of violence within the Watchmen film itself, and it delivered. Though I'm not here to go into detail about the film.
Watchmen: The End is Nigh is the name of the game, a rather hefty price-tagged download-only game at that. Does the game deliver on all fronts, in its features, gameplay, and more importantly does it translate into something that is worthy of your 1600 MS Points?
Gameplay:
The game features two-playable characters in both Rorschach and Nite Owl, and as is the premise with a lot of games more recently, whilst playing as one character the other will be A.I. controlled. The game does feature co-op play, but many gamers will certainly be disappointed in the fact that it only offers up split-screen play, there is no online co-op mode on offer – which certainly is a wasted opportunity.
The game is essentially your typical action title, where you progress through a level and eliminate a dozen enemies, ranging from typical thugs, to thugs carrying weapons and some rather large 'tubby' enemies that will require some more attention. Playing as Rorschach or Nite Owl offers up some unique abilities between the two, but the combat for the most part is the same. The combat consists of light and heavy attacks, as well as being able to string them together for a devastating combo, you also have the option to throw enemies into each other, or naturally off the top of buildings or something as sinister.
Something you will have to learn the timing of rather quickly in Watchmen is countering. Counters are done with RB+X, and once you've got the timing down and can quickly spot the animation of an enemy that's about to attack, you will quickly become a lethal force when surrounded by multiple enemies. When countering enemies that are armed with weapons, Rorschach proves even more lethal as not only does he disarm them like Nite Owl can do, but unlike Nite Owl, Rorschach can proceed to use his new toy, whether it be crow bar, knife, baseball bat, and simply proceed to pummel through enemies with greater ease. Your characters health is not something that is to be too concerned about as it slowly auto-regenerates if you've not taken damage for several seconds, alternatively if its very low and blinking, then unlike the Watchmen, you have the option to run and hide while your health builds back up, then come back running round the corner 10 seconds later to kick some bad-guy booty.
If you like the violence and the slight gore that the game offers, then you should be playing as Rorschach. As mentioned, both characters have some unique abilities and perform fairly similar in general combat with the usual combinations of moves that you can string or button-mash together. It is Rorschach's more deadly finishing moves that will delight over the rather tame (but fitting) Nite Owl finishing moves. Finishing moves can be performed by either character and first require you to soften the enemy up with some blows or combinations, at which point an icon will appear above the battered enemy giving you a few seconds to press the single-button and unleash your finishing move. The finishers are at random and each character has a handful of varying finishers that will be unleashed. Rorschach can finish enemies off with whatever weapon he may be holding or do some more devastatingly and slightly disturbing finishers, disturbing at least compared to Nite Owl's, where he will dish out a few punches and kicks and give the enemy a pat on the stomach to make sure he is knocked out before proceeding.
Both Nite Owl and Rorschach's main abilities differ, for instance Rorschach has a RAGE meter you can build up by performing counters and finishers, and once filled you can hit LT, at which point Rorschach, as mental as he already is, goes even more nuts, and can run around performing even more damage to enemies whilst the RAGE meter is in the process of depleting. Using RT Rorschach will use up a section of his RAGE meter as he can sprint into and simply run through an enemy, thus putting the enemy to the ground in a more vulnerable position – i.e. a fundamental boot up the backside should finish off the bad-guy.
Nite Owl has a meter of his own to build up called CHARGE, and this builds up in a similar fashion to Rorschach, but the abilities here certainly differ. Nite Owl may be considered the less 'exciting' character to unleash the pain with in the game, but his abilities get the job done in a timely fashion. LT for Nite Owl will unleash an electric charge from his suit, with essentially lighting bolts emitting from the suit into all enemies that surround him, knocking everyone to the ground. This will also see his CHARGE deplete, although during that depleting time Nite Owl's suit appears to be somewhat electrified and seemingly he can unleash more punishment and dispose of enemies in just a few hits in a similar vein to Rorschach's RAGE ability.
The levels pacing is pretty much consistent throughout, proceed through area, defeat bad guys, defeat some more bad guys, turn a valve or Nite Owl lifts a gate for Rorschach to proceed, while Nite Owl uses his grappling hook to cover higher ground, both eliminating more waves of enemies before regrouping and the process pretty much remains the same all through the game. It surely sounds repetitive, and it is, but it just so happens that the combat is satisfying enough. If anything, I would have liked to have seen some more variety in the finishing moves, as they're clearly the main attraction, with the camera quickly zooming in on the brief moment of madness. It won't take too long before you feel you've seen the best that the game has to offer.
There are however some collectible items for both characters in the game, some will require some rather out of place lock-picking scenarios for Rorschach, who could simply just kick down the door if he wanted to anyway. Meanwhile, Nite Owl can make use of his grappling hook and search higher, usually darker environments, at which point his trusty night-vision goggles will automatically switch on emitting a bright green glow over his surroundings. It's in these places that you will likely find hidden items that will extend your health or ability meter, as well as finding items which unlock new combos to perform, though sadly there's no new devastating finishing moves to be unlocked.
Graphics:
It might only be available as a downloadable Arcade title, but it certainly doesn't resemble, at least visually, many of the Arcade titles you're likely to find on Xbox Live. If anything, Watchmen: The End is Nigh is more on par with a full retail game, but just with a rather short campaign. The detail certainly stands out, from the flawless animation in the combat to the deadly finishing moves, to things such as lighting and the rather morbid environments and damp weather effects that match the tone of the film all too well.
The cinematics have a comic-book style to them whilst delivering part of the story, the gameplay itself though is more visually reminiscent of the film with chatter between Rorscach and Nite Owl continuing the plot during gameplay, whilst away from the comic-book style cutscenes.
Sound:
The combat features the necessary sound-effects, and more importantly the trusty dialogue and in-game voice-overs delivered by Rorschach and Nite Owl. The film itself has a tendency to go for some traditional music soundtrack in its action scenes, the game does not feature anything such as this. The gameplay might have that film vibe to it, the soundtrack that kicks in during the game's combat is typically generic gaming audio, and pays no compliment to the likeness of the look of the game in action and its connection to the style of the film itself. The background music during combat has its uses though, I particularly like how it kicks-in when you stumble upon the next wave of enemies, and once that last deadly blow is delivered to the final enemy, the music just abruptly cuts off, letting you know that the battle is over, at least momentarily.
Longevity:
The game offers up a fairly short campaign which can be completed in about 2-3 hours of typical play-time. The achievements offer some re-play incentive, one of the achievements is for completing the game in less than 80-minutes, which should be a testament to just how brief the game actually is. There's also achievements for completing the game as either character, so achievement junkies will get at least two play sessions out of it, there's also one for completing the game in the split-screen co-operative mode.
Achievement's aside, Watchmen: The End is Nigh is a pretty entertaining game. There's nothing ground-breaking to it, the lack of online co-op certainly hurts, especially considering the price tag, but it is entertaining to simply jump in, with or without a buddy, and simply beat-up and throw some enemies round. The End is Nigh has a rather old-school arcade feel to it, where you can simply button-bash your way through and still feel like you're doing it right, as well as finding unlockables, which gain you a greater combo move set to dish out even more punishment.
Overall:
The End is Nigh, while on the short side, is a good game, it's easy to pick up and master, and is satisfying to dish out some punishment. For me personally the fact that co-op is actually included is as good as an insult for not including 'online' co-op play, after all, who would not want to jump online with a buddy and beat some bad guys up?
The lack of online functionality is certainly a drawback on an otherwise fine action-romp. The free downloadable trial gives a good taster for how the full game plays, if you're happy with more of the same and want to lose yourself for a couple of hours and beat some baddies up, then it'll be worth your time. For fans of Watchmen though, whether that be comic or movie fans, it's difficult to recommend the game, but the combat alone makes Watchmen a game that is worthy of a few hours of your gaming time.
| Review By: Wayne Julian - Overall Rating 7 (out of 10) |
| Gameplay: |
8 |
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| Graphics: |
8 |
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| Sound: |
7 |
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| Longevity: |
6.5 |
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| Overall: |
7 |
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