Developer
Vicious Cycle

Released: September 23, 2002
Genre: Action
Players: 2
ESRB: Teen

7
9
7
8
8.7

Supported Features:

Before E3 I had not even heard that a Robotech game was in the works, but all it took was one look at the gorgeous high resolution, cell-shaded graphics, killer robot designs, and literally hundreds of ships and rocket trails painting the skies to instantly fall in love with this title. After all, what could be cooler than piloting a giant robot? Oh yeah, piloting a giant robot that can turn into a fighter plane, or a plane/robot hybrid.

Battlecry puts you in the shoes of pilot Jack Archer, and in the cockpit of a unique mecha called the Veritech fighter for some insane and intense combat action. Never before have I seen so much action, destruction, and general mayhem in a game. Even better is that I am responsible for most of it.

Battlecry Features:

• Fast-paced action that pits the player against large groups of enemies simultaneously.
• Introduces changeable vehicles that can switch from a ground based, 40-foot tall humanoid robot into a high-flying jet fighter craft.
• Three transformation modes that offer different movement options, special abilities and weapons.
• A variety of environments including rolling hills, treacherous canyons, an urban setting, the sky and even outer space.
• A death match mode where players can battle each other.

The campaign is broken up into several chapters with each chapter having several primary missions as well as secondary missions that can be unlocked by completing the primary ones. There are also a host of other features that are locked down in the beginning, but can be unlocked by earning medals for outstanding performance.

The nice thing about the medal system is that you can view each medal and find out what it takes to earn it rather than going online or purchasing an expensive strategy guide. After all, the game is hard enough. Trying to figure out what to do should never be a factor of the game’s difficulty.

Yes, Robotech is hard…very hard…insanely hard on some missions. Sometimes finishing a mission is all about selecting the proper robot mode and mashing the fire buttons furiously. Other times you will need to develop some complex strategies that include protecting ships, buildings, targeting gun emplacements on capital ships, switching between fighter modes at the right time, sniping distant targets, intercept incoming missile fire, and countless other tactics.

The boss encounters are difficult enough by themselves, but when you are forced to face them after fighting off the multiple waves of ships leading up to their encounter and defeat them with whatever armor and health you have remaining, it become more of a game of dodge ball as you learn their patterns and use them to your advantage.

Your total freedom to explore your own solutions and tactics is the true beauty of this game and the main reason that Battlecry doesn’t get as frustrating as other games that have you repeating the same mission over up to a dozen times. Even if your skills allow you to complete missions on your first try you will still be going back to replay many of them again to earn those coveted medals.

Perhaps the biggest contribution to the varied gameplay is the multi-function robot you are controlling. In Battloid mode you are basically a giant walking robot, even though you do have jump jets that can get you off the ground and actually give you limited flight. Once you let off the boosters you drop like the proverbial rock. The Battloid features a sniper scope for delivering death from a distance.

The Fighter mode is basically a jet that streaks through the skies at Mach 2 unleashing cannon and missiles fire. You can do evasive barrel rolls, 180 and 360 vertical loops, plus drop chaff to distract incoming enemy fire from yourself and those you are protecting. The fighter is the fastest of the modes and is able to evade a lot of incoming fire.

The Guardian is the final mode and is basically a hybrid of the other two. You have the legs of your Battloid combined with the wings of your Fighter. Your robot hovers and can strafe right and left and unleash powerful volleys of rockets. You also have the ability to target and destroy incoming swarms of missiles as well as perform pick-up and drop-off missions. The Guardian is probably the best overall robot form to use for its sheer firepower and maneuverability.

One of the things that really sells this game is the physics. The first time I started walking in Battloid mode I was amazed at how real it seemed. It takes forever to get this hulking mass of metal up to speed, and once you are moving it’s like trying to stop a freight train. If you are using your jump jets and only let off for a second you will drop like…well, a giant robot.

The only criticism I can possibly muster for this review is that the overall gameplay doesn’t offer enough variety. There are five chapters with up to a dozen or more missions in each, and there are static comic book-like cutscenes between them to tell the epic sage of a future Earth being invaded by aliens. But after a few mission you have send and done just about everything this game has to offer. Sure, the scenery might change, but an escort or protect mission is just the same in space as it is downtown or out in the desert canyons. Even so, the game is just so much fun that you will play it all, over and over again.

Robotech uses cell shading in a way that is so perfect and natural that it actually makes Jet Grind Radio look like the out-of-place knockoff. I’m sure the main reason this visual style was chosen was to make the game look as close as possible to the original animated series, but in the process the programmers are able to put obscene amounts of ships and missiles, complete with lingering smoke trails all over the screen. Even better is that you get all of this carnage at blistering frame rates with nary a flicker. It’s all silky smooth; a feat that would never be possible with conventional textured-mapped graphics and volumetric smoke trails.

One of the more subtle effects is the actual transition between the various combat modes. This animation is so smooth and seamless it almost looks like some advanced morphing technology is being used. If you study the transition you can actually see flaps and pieces and parts shifting around to form the new shape.

Special effects are as gorgeous as they are plentiful. There is more smoke and explosions in Robotech than any two other combat games combined. One of the earlier missions puts you in space squaring off against five million ships. Thankfully you only have to destroy about 50 before you face the first boss, but seeing the vastness of space populated with ships numbering almost more than the stars was a sight to behold and dwarfs the final space battle of Return of the Jedi.

The camera system presents a few minor problems when you are trying to maneuver around the clutters skies or void of space. The camera is a bit slow on the swing-around when you loop your fighter and enemy craft have an annoying tendency to position themselves in places you can’t see them. You’ll often find yourself spinning around in circles chasing down the current target, which almost always seems to be off-camera. These camera problems are multiplied even further when you attempt to play the two-player versus mode in the confined view port of a split-screen.

The menus and interface are exceptional. The chapter screen shows all of the available missions and as new missions open up you are given thumbnails of those that you can cycle through. The Robotech emblem is superimposed on completed missions, so it is easy to see where you have been and where you need to go. The awards screen is very informative and tells you what you have won and what tasks are required to win any remaining medals.

My only criticism in the visuals would be the lack of animated cutscenes. Instead we are given static pictures with a voice overlay. The camera may zoom or pan around these images but there are no characters or animated interaction. I guess it fits the comic book style of the game, but modern gamers have come to expect some fancy movies as rewards for the gameplay.

The sound effects are excellent with cannon fire, rockets swooshing through the air, and decent explosions. The game suffers from the lack of a true surround sound mix, and the explosions would have sounded so much better if my sub-woofer had been directly supported. As it is, the 4-channel mix is adequate and probably a result of simultaneously programming across three formats.

The music is inspiring with plenty of military style themes. Considering the music is lifted directly from the animated series, this is no surprise, and it actually enhanced the overall game experience providing all sorts of emotional backing to the onscreen action.

The two-player mode is a nice inclusion, but the poor camera control hampers the split-screen gameplay to the point where you will probably just want to take turns passing the controlling and tag teaming the campaign mode. This is a shame because many of the locked levels are actually for the multiplayer mode.

There is also a lot of DVD bonus materials you can watch, much of which must be unlocked through exceptional gameplay. These are excellent quality and quite informative and included interviews with the voice actors and other people that help to bring you this game.

Those of you who own multiple game systems don’t even have to worry about one version surpassing the other. I’ve played all three and they are all totally and completely identical, both in gameplay, graphics, and sound quality. The only thing you need to consider is what controller is the most comfortable in your hands for extended periods of time. This is one game that will keep you glued to your TV for weeks, maybe even months to come.