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Twisted Metal: Black

2004

Even now, I play "Twisted Metal 2" every so often to challenge myself on the hardest car combat level in video game history, Holland on Hard setting.  It's awesome, isn't it?  Trying to take down 10 other cars in a plain open field...that's the good stuff.

With "Twisted Metal: Black", after suffering through the atrocious "TM3" and "TM4", you get a game that is now without peer, taking the mantle of "TM2" and then progressing the genre to another level.  The story of each character in "TM:B", the atmosphere of each level, the lighting, the music, the everything is just pure evil, and I love it.  It helps that the car combat is spectacular, and the game moves so fast that it makes "TM2" cry in shame.  Each vehicle has enough intricacies to make beating the game with each one a ton of fun; with all of the vehicles plus special characters, you've got like 15 cars to choose from, and besides Mr. Grimm (once again the character you use to show off the size of your cojones), all of them always have a good shot of winning the level.

Level design is amazing this time around; I still can't figure out which level is my favorite, but Drive-In Movie is probably close.  Offline multiplayer is quite good, but I never got "TM:B Online" to work correctly, so I don't know how good or bad that add-on really is.  The sound effects are incredible, and being able to watch the movies of each character after you have beaten the game with said characters is cool, too.

You can't go wrong with this game if you love car combat or action games.  Also a member of the Greatest Hits collection, so pick it up if you haven't already. 

Rating:  Opening Weekend

 

Feedback?  Comments?  Hot doughnut tip?  justin@bellviewmovies.com

 

Bellview Rating System:

"Opening Weekend":  Buy this game right away, and don't ask me any questions as to why that's a good move.  A game experience that will almost guarantee repeated controller abuse, lots of ManScreaming and high resale value, you will assuredly play this bad boy for months on end. 

"$40":  Usually after games have been out for a while, they drop in price slightly, or can be bought for slightly cheaper in combination with other new games.  Usually, that's about $40.  You'll feel good getting the game for this price, since it isn't quite run-out-and-get-it-right-now good, but it has enough game in the box for a few weeks' worth of enjoyment.

"eBay":  This game is not too bad, but you'd be better off buying it used from either half.com or eBay.  You also might let a friend buy this game, let s/he beat it, and then try to buy it from them to make them feel better.  Yes, this does tend to feel like "Sloppy Seconds."

"Rental":  Like my cousin Ron, you should always rent games that you aren't sure about first, to make sure that your $50 is going towards something worthwhile.  For games in this category, this is the maximum amount of money ($5) and/or time (3-5 days) you'll need to either gain satisfaction from the game, or beat the game in its entirety.  Rental-rated games are also sometimes perfect for a weekend when you are going to be at home on your ass, with some time to kill.

"Dogshit":  Games like this should have never been released.  If you play this game for any reason, you will regret every second of the experience.  Further, if you can get this game for free, don't do it, because even for FREE, it will still be a negative experience for you!