So I hired it out on Playstation 2.
It was awful. Bad graphics, bad control (I don't think any FPS belongs on a console, the controls are just too fiddly. Only Halo has ever got past this problem). But I saw something in the game. I saw beyond the graphics, beyond the awful controls. I saw what this could possibly be on the true platform for the FPS.
So, taking advantage of Game's, 10 day no fuss return policy, I bought the PC version, knowing if it was crap, I could get my money back. I kept the game.
The graphics are still pretty bad by today's standards, but the controls are now standard FPS. And being a Dredd fan, I'm very impressed with the game. The attention to detail is very nice, and you can really tell the games designers are fans of the comic. It's as authentic as it gets, even down to the correct SJS uniforms.
I can understand why some people don't like it. As FPS go, it's decidedly average. To Dredd fans though, it's what we've been waiting for. There's nothing quite like dispensing justice Dredd style. It's quite hard at first to get successful arrests, but pretty soon you get good enough to shoot the guns out of the perps hands, and send them to the cubes instead of Resyk. And the Dark Judges are handled really well.
Overall, as I said, I recommend this game to Dredd fans. It really does capture the feel of the comics. But as a stand alone FPS, it just doesn't stand up to others available out there. This is by fans, for fans.
So, if the only things the name Dredd conjures up for you are Sylvester Stallone, stay away from this game. If you think of Fatties and Bellywheels, Block Wars, Anderson, Kneepads, Dark Judges, Smokatoriums, H-Wagons, and you don't mind First Person Shooters, then give this game a try. But only on PC. Don't bother with any console versions.
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