Reviewed: March 13, 2006
Reviewed by: Brendon Hivner
Publisher
EA Games
Developer
Criterion Games
Released: February 28, 2006
Genre: FPS
Players: 1
ESRB: Mature
8
10
9
7
8.8
Supported Features:
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
During this generation, the first-person shooter genre has exploded, (part technology advancement, part Halo). And when you have games that take the shooter to new levels other than just shooting, you come to find that merely blasting things don’t cut it anymore: unless you’re playing Black.
Make no mistake, Black is what it is, and it doesn’t apologize for it. Yeah, this first-person shooter has a story, but the center stage has already been taken by lots of destruction. Black couldn’t be anymore straightforward if it wanted to, and though it’s not the be-all end-all of shooters, it’s a hell of a good time.
And yet, veterans of the genre will wonder what’s so special about Black? What’s the gimmick? Black doesn’t break any genre traditions. It doesn’t even expand on any of them. Hell, some of them aren’t even there! But a few minutes of play makes it all clear. It doesn’t have to be groundbreaking to kick ass.
The point of Black is to shoot things. There really isn’t much more of an explanation and yet, when you play the game, you realize there’s various ways to pull off your success. There are plenty of intense action sequences. In fact, intense action takes up the lion’s share of the game. There are some stealthy moments too, but it’s not what you might think. Normally, inserting stealth sequences into an all-out action fest can be a pretty clunky and unmemorable experience, but in Black this isn’t the case. Not only are they fun, but they’re paced well too, being placed in the game at points that don’t ruin the adrenaline rush of the action.
While only eight levels long, each one is memorable, well designed, and take a good chunk of time to play through. A couple of the levels clock in at just under an hour to navigate, and each has a ton of destructible objects littered throughout. In fact, the destructible environments are Black’s main gameplay element. Most of each level’s makeup can be blown up, thereby blowing something else up, often chaining explosions together to take out entire buildings, not just a sniper tower.
The possibilities are overwhelming at first, because you can actually blow apart things in the game that other games in the past has taught us we can’t. And while some of these objects are colored red (like every other game ever made with destructible objects), many aren’t, and the carnage that ensues seems almost too good to be true. But it happens. The huge building in front of you can be blown to smithereens with a well-placed RPG shot, not just the phone booth sitting in front of it.
Black does take pride in its guns, and while they definitely feel like they pack the punch you’d hope for, the selection isn’t anything to write home about. The usual FPS staples -- shotgun, pistol, RPG, sniper rifle, assault rifles, and grenades -- are all present and accounted for. And while they play and control solid enough, the guns themselves aren’t particularly as noteworthy as the game wants you to think they are. But since the game is about causing as much death and destruction as possible, they serve their purpose well.
It might be more accurate to say that the guns definitely supply a means to an end. Since so much in Black can be blown to oblivion, a few well-placed shots to an object in the environment can cause complete and utter chaos rarely seen in other shooters. To the point that the destruction you cause from the mammoth explosions are more than enough to make up for the lack of original weaponry.
But even obscene chaos can wear thin if you cause it enough, and Black has its moments of boredom. It’s not in any one particular place, but there are hordes of enemies to plow through, and some battles in select places take a lot of shoot, reload, and repeat. It doesn’t happen often, but there will be times when you really just want to move on to the next part of the level, but the enemy resistance just keeps on coming.
The AI is somewhat noteworthy, as the enemies you’ll encounter make some really smart moves while trying to take you down. They’ll look for cover, and they rarely stay in one spot for too long. They shoot well too. While most infantry don’t hit with every bullet, you’ll take a lot of hits, and sharpshooters in particular know what they’re doing. But just as you think an enemy is brilliant, he’ll do something incredibly stupid. He’ll run away from you in the middle of a firefight, or he’ll make sure his head is visible when ducking behind a car.
Criterion knows the PS2, and it shows in Black. Without a doubt it’s the PS2’s best-looking shooter, from the environments to the effects, Black, despite its grittiness, dazzles. While guns look good but not fantastic, the explosions are massive, the textures are clean and crisp, and thanks to some well done locales, the overall settings are pure eye candy.
You range in locales from a junkyard, to a cemetery, asylum, war-torn city streets, a shipping dock, and more. These levels are packed with places to hide, snipe and to have some urban warfare. Bloom lighting and other light and shadow effects are also done better here than in most PS2 games. Oddly enough, for all the spectacular effects and explosions, there’s no blood.
Noteworthy on their own are the animations, which top any other shooter out there and it’s all done without the copout of rag doll physics. Enemies will fly over rails and sometimes catch themselves for a last second save (don’t worry, you can’t shoot them right off the rail) and even fire their guns erratically after taking the fatal lead to the chest. It’s rare, if at all, that an animation doesn’t look right.
When the action heats up, the PS2 holds its own, keeping a nice brisk framerate throughout, though there are instances of slowdown to be found at particularly intense points. It happened only a scant few times throughout the course of the game, and they weren’t detrimental, but were noticeable.
Michael Giacchino’s brilliant score is another highlight of Black, and is most certainly succeeds at being the big bang Hollywood-style production. The music is mostly orchestrated, though it doesn’t show up throughout every minute of the game. It plays a major role in helping to set the scene though, with the help of the aforementioned graphics.
A really nice touch is in the sound effects though. The bullet sounds when they hit something -- being asphalt, wood, granite, or flesh – all sound authentic, and add a lot to the ambience.
The eight hours it takes to finish Black will likely satisfy your craving, though there are higher difficulty settings that you can unlock. There is no form of multiplayer, and the silver versions of all your weapons (with unlimited ammo) aren’t nearly as enticing as they could be. Those looking for seriously significant replay value will be sorely disappointed.
Black doesn’t break any new ground, and is even missing some old ground. Being only eight hours in length, the lack of multiplayer is all the more conspicuous, and what replay value is there is a bit pointless.
Black is unapologetic and uncompromising. And it’s hard to argue when it kills and blows things up so well. Black is a memorable, beautiful shooter that has some snags. There is definitely potential for much more, but what’s on offer is more than worthy. It’s fun and intense all the way through. And on PS2, no shooter can graphically compare. Black is the satisfying equivalent of randomly breaking something that belongs to someone else. You’ll love it.