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The Warriors Review
Chris Leyton
22/10/2005
TVG comes out to play with those Coney Island boppers in Rockstar Toronto's adaptation of the 1979 cult movie...
'Warriors! Come out and play!' shouts the leader of New York gang The Rogues during the conclusion of the 1979 movie The Warriors, and twenty-six years after those words were first spoken, Rockstar Toronto's debut title under the Rockstar name is finally released this week on Xbox and PlayStation2. Amazingly the licence to develop a game based on the cult film was first acquired by Rockstar in 1998, only a year after the establishment of the company and it's taken seven years for a final game to be released. The brawling genre has been a comatose duck since the jump from 2D to 3D gaming ten years ago; gone are the classic titles such as Double Dragon and Streets of Rage, confined now to chapters in history. Titles such as Capcom's Beatdown: Fists of Vengeance have largely tried and failed to progress the genre from days of old, so can Rockstar buck the trend?
Following an intro that closely mimics the movie, players are introduced to the overview of The Warriors: a truce is called amongst the gangs of New York by Cyrus, the leader of the cityâs biggest gang who calls a meeting of all the gangs to discuss the idea of uniting and taking over the Big Apple in it's entirety. Sadly Cyrus never gets to see this happen as he's shot and killed during his speech to a crowd of thousands. With the Coney Island gang, The Warriors blamed for Cyrus' death, the group of nine has to make it back to their turf all the way from the Bronx with all of New York's gangs hunting them down.
The Warriors videogame follows the events leading up to that fateful meet, with the initiation of 'Writer' (read graffiti artist), Rembrandt, and beyond that death of Cyrus. These early stages of the game, which can be played with either one or two players, act as tutorials with the introduction of the combat systems and other gameplay elements including smash 'n' grab raid, stealing car stereos, tagging The Warriors name on the walls of Coney, mugging pedestrians, and if theyâre really unlucky resisting arrest from the NYPD. The Story Mode is made up of twenty-three chapters, some of which are broken down into sub-chapters, and see various members of The Warriors build up the reputation of the gang by first off gaining supremacy over all of Coney before getting their name around the city as a whole. Being a gang they have their own base of operations in the west side of Coney Island, and itâs from there that player can access the trademark Rockstar wealth of options from story progressive missions, Flashback Missions that chart the origins of the âBoppers from the C.I.â, access the Rumble Missions (which weâll go through later), and further pump the gang up with San Andreas style exercises.
With digital reproductions of two Coney landmarks, the Cyclone roller coaster and the Wonder Wheel, and a cast of character models that closely resembles (in some cases eerily so) the original group of actors, The Warriors videogame is a visual treat for fans of the 1979 film. Teaser trailers for the game have already done much to show off Rockstar Torontoâs hard work in digitally reproducing key sections of the film into the videogame, including Cyrusâ famous â“ and last â“ âCan you dig it!â speech. A dark and impoverished atmosphere is created throughout the game, something which isnât helped by some of the deeds committed by the player as they make progress back to Coney Island. Smashed glass, battered cars, and the sight of graffiti-laden walls all help to create an almost tangible world for the player, especially when they are the perpetrators!
At its core, The Warriors is of course a brawler and as such a strong and fluid combat system is of the utmost importance; as well as the standard fare of kicks, punches, and combos, members of the gang can throw their opponents around be that through the air, trash or head first into a solid wall. Ouch. All of these moves can be accomplished fairly easily thanks to the control system, which for the most part is solid and responsive though there was the odd occasion when the characters would lock onto a target and hesitate to drop their attention from that particular enemy. Teaming up with the other members of the gang are also possible by grabbing an enemy and hold them in place so a fellow âsoldierâ could head butt, elbow punch or just generally beat the victim to the ground. Just to emphasize the brutality of certain moves there are occasions where the camera changes to a more suitable angle and slows the action down; did we happen to mention that The Warriors (like the movie) is only suitable for those 18 years and above and certified by the British Board of Film Classification?
Having such an appetite for destruction builds up a Rage Meter that when filled can allow that Warrior to unleash a tirade of blows against an unfortunate victim with more power than before, temporarily at least. If however hand-to-hand combat isnât quite a playerâs style then there are plenty of glass bottles, bricks, Molotov cocktails and other melee weapons to make use of around the streets.
As weâve already mentioned, The Warriors is also a little more than just a straightforward brawler; Rockstar Toronto have added more than a few mini-games that offer greater variety in gameplay from the âunscrewingâ of car-radios by madly revolving analogue sticks, getting to the finer points of mugging people by trying to get the controller to vibrate, or even trying to escape from certain gangs during the latter sections of the game by timing the characterâs jumps and charges as they run. In short, the action never really stops, not even when a little stealth creeps into the gameplay. Thatâs right, The Warriors also has stealth tactics built into the gameplay, but before you roll your eyes and tut on how only Sam Fisher can get away such strategies, letâs explain one or two things: stealth in The Warriors really works, itâs integral to the gameplay, and furthers the sense of immersion for the player. A command system is also integrated into the game, which enables gamers to issue their fellow gang members with a series of orders from âWreck-em-Allâ (attack everyone) to âLetâs Go!â (follow.) Such decisions are followed closely by the others, and by issuing them by clicking the analogue sticks, they can even be ordered when the playerâs character is on the run.
In the alleyways and side-streets of underworld NYC, or any other city for that matter, shadows are prevalent, and The Warriors must use them to their advantage throughout the game but even more so after Cyrusâ death. Learning how to effectively escape from the police or other gangs is vital to progress successfully through the game, and itâs always worth paying attention for some dark corners to hide in until the heat goes away. Such sections are often quite tense, and feel like a game of cat and mouse, which is only further enhanced when played co-operatively with another player. In cases where players find themselves running from their enemies theyâll often be up against several opponents, which can get too much for a lone Warrior. Badly beaten, players can replenish lost health with the help of âFlashâ, the native drug in the game that they can find during smash ânâ grabs at Pharmacies, in hidden areas of the gameworld, or from dealers that sell it for twenty bucks a pop â“ expensive if there are no radios to steal or stores to raid.
Like every brawler title in the history of videogame, The Warriors is much more fun to play with a second player, and like several elements in the game there are definite links to the golden age of the genre. Staying in close proximity with each other the screen remains whole, but when the two players move farther apart a vertical line breaks the screen enabling gamers control over their own cameras, removing the distance limits integrated into other brawlers. The level of tension in the game is also increased when played with a second player, especially when one has been arrested and the pressure is on the other to escape the police and then free their companion.
Extending the longevity of the title beyond that of the Story and Flashback Modes, The Warriors also has a collection of mini-games as a Rumble Mode that offer single-player, versus and co-operative options. Whilst a majority of them deal with brawling right from 1-on-1 through to 9-on-9 gang wars, a certain few of them enjoy a level of dark humour such as the Wheelchair Races or The Warriors take on popular Multiplayer gametype, King of the Hill. Such a varied list of gametypes look set to prove a popular pick-up-and-play feature of the game, especially since the Rumble Mode is integrated into the Single-Player game (available from the Hangout) as well as from the main menu.
Lil Scar
Date Added:Sun 4th Mar 2007 01:21
Anonymous
Date Added:Thu 21st Dec 2006 04:48