So the first game on my holiday wish list is released today and I’m considering actually buying it later on in an incidental trip to the city. The demo was tossed to us silver-membership peasants a few weeks ago and I have to admit I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face from start to finish. Wet is shameless, whizz-bang shooty fun, beautifully stylised and appeals to my belief that realism is boring and best enjoyed by boring people. I will say it has probably shown off all the tricks in its hat, which is only a worry because the demo's maybe ten to fifteen minutes long.
Aforementioned shooty fun is intensely satisfying and intuitively controlled. Seems every third person game nowadays needs a slow-motion mechanic but Wet handles it quite well. There’s no limit and it turns off when not used. Remember games like Max Payne or Enter the Matrix when you’d find yourself starting a dramatic slow-mo dive before figuring out that was probably a bit of overkill, but you’d still have to watch yourself complete the motion all the while your focus or whatever metre is running dry? Wet doesn’t have that problem, if you’re not shooting things it returns to normal speed to wonder why you aren’t shooting things.
I have a strong suspicion (now confirmed by reading reviews) that the full version is going to include an upgrade system. Doesn’t really make sense to me, I mean are we playing a hardcore gun-fighter who knows all the tricks or some rookie who’s figuring it out as she goes along? Oh well, I suppose that makes the combo system relevant beyond ego satisfaction.
The camera is a bit too busy giving you a grind house filter to actually be useful, but smart enough to give the player control via the right analogue stick. It’ll still freak out when you try to backtrack quickly, which can make the acrobatic sections frustrating.
The game play mixes up here and there. There's vehicle section which makes Newton’s laws of motion cry. It’s also loaded with quick-time events although it makes them a core part of game-play so it’s hard to complain. They’re relative to the action that’s actually on screens, so if you think Rubi aught to jump chances are you press the jump button unless she thinks her sword is a better idea. Incidentally there’s a mash the button to open locked doors element, but nobody complained when Arkham Asylum did this. Other sections like the arena battle seem like the game’s staying “No. This isn’t realistic. You’re playing a game, remember?” but the absolute standout section is the Bloodlust/Berzerk/Rage (yeah I’m not sure what it’s called) section in which everything turns stock black, white and red. Your pistols magically transform into uzis but what the fuck right? It looks and feels so cool that my brain shuts down and becomes incapable of enough intelligent thought to criticise it.
All complaints registered, I guess I’m just one of those wanky gamers who can enjoy a clearly flawed game entirely for its art direction (see also the most recent Prince of Persia and Fable 2). I’ve been looking for a good no brainer, cathartic violence game for a while now, pretty much since God of War got a tad old and retailers are still asking to much for Devil May Cry. So until Shoot Em’ Up is adapted for button mashing, this’ll do. This’ll do nicely.
