Gameplay: 8
Sound: 9
Value: 7
Reviewer�s Tilt: 7
Overall: 7.5
Review by Chris
The bad: The story is a spawn of Satan; frustrating controls; confusing level design; AI isn�t so hot; not enough multiplayer maps
Verdict: While it isn�t nearly as good its predecessor, Perfect Dark Zero should satisfy that trigger-pulling itch for a little while
Rare�s latest game is certainly a love-hate experience.
Sometimes, this game plays like a million bucks. Certainly, it�s nothing innovative, or exactly original, but this game completely nails the �shooter� aspect of a first person shooter. Other times, the game feels dull and unfinished. A few more months of development may have solved the problem, but then again, maybe not. Rare has had years to work on this game. Despite its strengths, Perfect Dark Zero is not the sequel that fans have been waiting for but is still satisfying for anyone looking for a different FPS experience.
You may find yourself thrilled with Perfect Dark Zero�s first few levels. Certainly, the eye-catching visuals really do show all the attention and care that went into crafting them. It�s definitely nothing that could have been possible on previous systems. After spending a considerable amount of time with this title, you may find yourself frustrated by the game�s flaws and you may question why Rare wasn�t more concerned with putting resources into the things that mattered. All the parallax mapping and detailed textures in the world can�t make up for what could very well be the worst story in any game, ever.
The story starts out poor, and then it plunges into previously untapped depths of suck. Something about Joanna Dark and her father, who happens to be a complete moron. In this game�s awful cutscenes, he spends most of the time making ridiculous faces and taking bullets. It�s hard to imagine why anyone would possibly care about him or any other character in this god-awful story, but there you have it. The story takes you around the world in different locations that hardly ever have any true meaning to the story; rather these locations give you some new scenery to munch on.
Of course, there are the usual gaming clich�s, such as a betrayal that defies all logic and does literally nothing for the story. It doesn�t help that the game�s cutscenes cannot be skipped unless you�ve seen it at least once. You are forced to sit through awful voice acting, badly drawn characters that look like they came from Fear Effect, and an absolutely atrocious script. Really, I can�t stress enough how bad the story is.
To be fair, Rare has pooled their efforts into creating a shooting experience, and that is what counts. After all, this is a first person shooter, and shooting is what PDZ does best. It�s unlikely that you�ll find many other games where pulling a trigger feels so unique. Every gun in the game is rendered with breathtaking precision; you�ll be amazed when light shimmers off the barrel of your gun, or how shooting someone always results in a spray of blood or body armor ripping into shreds. Every gun is useful in nearly every situation, and fans of the original game will be pleased to know that many of that game�s weapons make a return. Favorites like the CMP-150, the RCP90, and the Laptop gun make a comeback and function better than ever. Did I mention that every weapon has a secondary function; many even have a tertiary? This game truly has a stunning arsenal.
The game�s single player is quite fun despite the abysmal story. You will venture all around the globe engaging in a terrific blend of stealth and run-and-gun shooting. Objectives change with each difficulty setting and you may find yourself taking paths that you didn�t know were there in easier difficulty settings. Replaying the game in harder difficulty settings is a good way to get the most out of your buck with PDZ, and the addition of co-op makes it all the more enjoyable.
The biggest problem with the campaign is the level design, which is confusing at times. The developers knew this was a problem, but instead of fixing it, they bandaged it by throwing down blue arrows on the ground, which show you which way to go. Waypoints certainly make it easier, until they suddenly stop showing up for whatever reason. I frequently found that the arrows were nowhere to be seen when I needed them the most. This is very frustrating and should have been addressed.
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