Reviewed: February 3, 2004
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Publisher
Eidos Interactive
Developer
Crystal Dynamics
Released: November 18, 2003
Genre: Action
Players: 1
ESRB: Teen
8
8
8
7
8.2
Supported Features
There seems to be a new trend in gaming these days. Starting with Voodoo Vince then moving on to Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy we’ve only scratched the surface of self-inflicted pain and suffering. These games rewarded our sadistic (or masochistic depending on your point of view) behavior by allowing us to defeat enemies and solve devious puzzles. Now Crystal Dynamics brings us the next evolution of painful gameplay with their psychotic platform action title, Whiplash.
Whiplash combines solid action gameplay with charming characters and loads of comedic violence and witty dialogue. The premise is simple; you play as the hyperactive duo, Spanx and Redmond, recent escapees of the local animal experimentation lab at Genron. Spanx is a loveable and rather thoughtless weasel (think Scratch from Ice Age) who is bent on escaping Genron at any cost, even the personal safety of his handcuffed comrade, Redmond.
Redmond is the even-more-loveable white rabbit with the dry wit and cynical humor that reminded me of Max from the crime-fighting duo, Sam and Max. Throughout the entire game Redmond is subjected to abuse after abuse, as he become the multipurpose weapon of Spanx. Whether you are lighting him on fire, charging him with electricity, pumping him full of helium, or just using him as a fluffy ball and chain, the visual pain and resulting destruction are nearly as funny as Redmond’s one-liners.
Whiplash is designed entirely around humor from the opening movie to the classic deep-voiced announcer (hey…it’s the movie trailer voice guy) who turns into the disembodied conscious of Spanx, urging him to complete his mission and bring Genron down. There are plenty of funny commercials advertising products that are tested on helpless animals that you will eventually rescue and even some funny movies that go behind the scenes of Genron and make fun of the industry itself.
Whiplash is hysterically funny, both in a demented and truly charming way. Even when you come across labs of tortured animals the tortures are presented in a way that you can’t help but laugh then feel ashamed afterwards. Watching a group of scientists fire hamsters at a Velcro wall then hold up score cards based on how well they stick had me laughing out loud. Chimps are subjected to a variety of tortures but once rescued will come to your aid and pummel their previous captors.
You overall mission is to do six million dollars worth of damage to Genron. This figure is constantly counting down at the bottom of your screen as you smash every beaker, test tube, window, machine, sign, display case, and anything else that can be broken. I was impressed at the amount of detail that went into making up these levels. Nearly everything on the screen can be destroyed and has a dollar value associated with it.
Our heroes are the true stars of this show. Spanx is the strong silent type that thinks nothing of swinging Redmond around beating up scientists and security guards or destroying computers or anything else of value. Spanx never speaks but his expressions are worth a thousand words. Redmond, on the other hand is very vocal. He is constantly making wisecracks and complaining about his mistreatment. Spanx will light Redmond on fire and swing around the flaming bunny while Redmond cries “Stop, drop and roll…stop, drop and roll.” He has equally funny quips when he’s charge with electricity, filled with helium, dunked in toxic waste, or any of other countless tortures.
Not only is Redmond immune to damage, the more pain he takes the higher his Hyper meter climbs until he turns into a whirling white tornado of fluffy destruction. At this point he will bounce around the levels destroying everything in sight taking Spanx on one wild ride. In addition to the Hyper meter you can also find and eat HyperSnax that will gradually increase both characters’ abilities. Spanx, who can take damage, gets more health, and Redmond starts doing more damage with each attack as well as earning new more powerful abilities.
Puzzles are fairly intuitive and integrated into the environments. They normally rely on using one or more skills or any of several devices to “charge” Redmond with one of many powers. Some of the abilities are inherent like being able to run along narrow rails. Spanx can also use Redmond to grapple from floating orbs or slide down wires. Other times you will need to fill Redmond with helium and float to new locations.
Genron is massive, a fact you don’t realize until after the first cutscene when you actually see a map of the entire complex. The game is rather linear even though you are free to explore a lot of these larger levels at your leisure. If you deviate from the mission objectives you can easily get lost and waste a lot of time. Your goals, other than racking up the six million in damages, are usually clear and most of the game is merely a matter of rescuing animals and solving navigation puzzles through devious sections of Genron.
Whiplash is a feast for the eyes with a colorful palette and a warped visual style that matches the quirky sense of humor in the game’s design. Spanx and Redmond are delightfully rendered and animated with humorous details. Even when you leave them alone their idle animations will kick in and have you laughing hysterically.
The rest of the characters like the overweight guards, lanky scientists, and exaggerated animals like chimps, gators, hamsters, and chickens are all very creative and exhibit a charm that Crystal Dynamics has been known for since the days of Gex.
The interface is simple and the HUD is non-invasive, appearing only when you need to see it. You are given intuitive prompts that graphically show the buttons that need to be pressed when they need to be pressed. It makes the game easy to figure how while keeping it challenging to play.
Whiplash features a typical cartoon soundtrack that is fun and light. Even when something serious or ominous is going on the music is so over-the-top that it remains fun. This is the same wacky themes you would likely hear on any of the classic WB toons from the 60’s and 70’s.
Sound effects are a perfect match for the music. You won’t find anything missing from the comedic mix of wacky toon-effects. Some of the more subtle and powerful effects like glass breaking or computer monitors exploding all sound very nice and quite realistic.
Of course the voices steal the show starting with the deep-voiced announcer/narrator that rivals Gary Owens performance from Space Quest IV. The rest of the cast offers a reasonable performance that fits the theme and quality of the game, but Redmond is the real scene-stealer. His lines had me laughing over and over for the first several hours of the game. Unfortunately the game lasts about three times longer than Redmond’s library of quips and it won’t be long before they start repeating and not much longer after that before they become predictably annoying.
Genron is a large facility and Whiplash is a lengthy game clocking in at just under 20 hours for this reviewer. There were a few times where I got distracted and even mislead and had to backtrack and repeat a few lengthy sections.
Once finished you aren’t likely to return for a second trip through the lab. Much like a comedy show, once you have heard all the punch lines the jokes aren’t as funny the second or third time. It’s a definite rental and even a worthy purchase with only a $30 price tag.
Whiplash is rather deceiving. I was totally captivated for the first three or four hours of the game. The characters were charming and the humor was fresh and original but about five hours in the game started to lose steam. The jokes and one-liners started repeating and the “smash everything on the screen” gameplay got tiresome. It’s almost as if the designers had twice as much space and not enough stuff to fit into it.
Even though the game becomes a bit of a chore to muddle through near the end I can’t help but recommend Whiplash for its delightful design and truly funny characters. It’s classic platform action with an ingenious twist that really doesn’t revolutionize the genre, but it’s one wacky ride.