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The Warriors - First Look Preview

Chris Leyton

15/07/2005

Rockstar Games presents a first look at its adaptation of the 1979 cult-classic...

It might surprise a few to learn that Rockstar Games have been sitting on the license to Walter Hillâs 1979 cult-classic The Warriors for the past seven years, shortly after the publishing label was first established and signifying the US giantâs first step into the world of movie adaptations. This isnât your typical case of a movie agreement signed, sealed, developed and delivered in less then a year to make a quick return; Rockstar have identified the similarities between the film/novel and carefully decided to take its time with the game.

The game strides a balance between replicating events witnessed from the contemporary Paramount Pictures film during the latter half of the game, while Rockstar Toronto have taken the opportunity to elaborate upon the plot and characters during the early stages of the game.
Those who might have missed out on Paramount Pictures cult adaptation of Sol Yurickâs 1965 novel may be in need of a re-cap. Set on Coney Island during the 70âs, The Warriors are a street gang wrongly accused of killing a rival leader, and must make their way from one end of New York to their turf on the other side of the city. All that stands between them and survival is 20 miles of ground and thousands of gang members out for revenge, so they must fight for their life and learn the meaning of loyalty as danger and uncertainty emerge from the city night.

Essentially a 3D beat-em-up set within an open-ended game world, The Warriors shows every sign of kicking the much-maligned genre into the present day with a layer of depth and variation not commonly associated with games of its ilk. Players take control of each of the nine Warriors throughout the game, with our recent demonstration beginning with Rembrandt before he earns his colours and becomes a member of The Warriors. Designed as a tutorial to ease players into the advanced system featured within the game, even at this stage combat within The Warriors appears to be more refined and fluid than anything thatâs come before.

A huge repertoire of bone-crunching moves are available to the player, ranging from standard light/hard attacks to full-blown reversals and tandem attacks with other Warriors. Thereâs a strong sense of fluidity between the various techniques as the main character links attacks with diving tackles, grabs and dragging opponents to a wall before slamming their face into it; suggesting that the combat system will offer something for everybody, whether youâre a button-bashing loon or a seasoned veteran of the genre. Thankfully it appears that Rockstar Toronto have painstakingly come up with a solution to the genreâs Achilles heel, handling multiple opponents with ease and not resorting to the inconsistent 360° set-up featured in such forgettable titles as Blade 2 and Death by Degrees. Naturally judgement will be reserved until weâve actually gone Hands-On with the game, however from our recent demonstration The Warriors looks likely to present a robust, varied and enjoyable core combat system to players.

In addition to the wide range of techniques across Street Fighting, Brawler and Kung-Fu disciplines, stringing together successful attacks builds up the playerâs Rage bar, which when activated provides the ability to unleash massively powerful moves that capture the brutality of the film. The technique is highlighted to dramatic effect as the sound slows down and an orange haze saturates the screen, while the main character launches into a frenzied flurry of punches, kicks and grabs that leaves little in his wake.

Another aspect that has blighted the genre in recent years is the sheer repetition and lack of sophistication; but once again The Warriors looks to make a number of improvements to whatâs come before. Set in an open-world environment the game looks to be a lot less restrictive and linear then your typical 3D beat-em-up, with stealth and gang elements the game allows players to approach the game whichever way they choose and helping to ensure that the chances of sustaining RSI while button-bashing your way through the game are slim. Itâs never going to be a game to challenge those who prefer their action quota to border on Myst proportions, but it does provide the player with the choice and can be thought of as a more âthought-provokingâ beat-em-up for those that wish to play it in this manner.

The environment in which the game features also doubles up as a weapon to use, whether itâs the aforementioned wall-slamming techniques, or picking up the many objects that litter the land to use as makeshift weapons â“ in true Rockstar fashion weâre talking baseball bats wrapped with barbed-wire, wooden planks with the nails still in to the rather more mundane items such as garbage bags, boxes, pipes and televisions.

A large portion of the demonstration featured the main character alongside a number of other Warriors, which provides the opportunity to issue âWar-Chiefâ commands such as âLetâs Goâ, âHold Upâ and âMayhemâ amongst many others. Although this type of feature can hardly be described as innovative, combined with other aspects of the game and the open-world structure it takes on a vastly different dimension almost bordering on tactical, while letting the Warriors loose in a shop with a Mayhem command is always fun.

Throughout the stage players can break into cars, mug pedestrians and loot stores; all of which are handled via thumbstick mini-games akin to Splinter Cell and provide a little respite amidst the frenzied action and tense stealth sections. Not only do these provide variety to the gameplay but also present the player with cash rewards and the narcotic âFlashâ which is used rather dubiously to replenish health.

A Warriors HQ provides a HUB to the game experience allowing players to choose certain missions and interact with other characters, although representatives from Rockstar seemed uncertain as to how this will shape up for continuityâs sake during the second half of the game when youâre on the run.

Visually the game is impressive sporting a level of detail and variety that surpasses whatâs generally expected from the Playstation2. Those who know the â79 original will appreciate the level at which Rockstar Toronto have replicated the sense of style and atmosphere thatâs prevalent within the game, from the iconic Wonder-Wheel to the highly detailed streets and buildings.