Review
Release Date: 08.28.2007
Platform:
PlayStation 3Developer:
Incog Inc. EntertainmentPublisher:
Sony Computer Entertainment AmericaReviewed by
Mikey Dowling on 9.26.2007
| Review Rating: 8/10 | User Rating: 9/10 |
Warhawk has come pretty far from its first appearance during the launch window of the original PlayStation. Instead of doing a whole franchise relaunch in the vein of
Twisted Metal: Black,
Incog. Inc has decided to drop the originally planned single-player game and focus on an all-out multiplayer title. Not too bad of an idea in the online-focused console gaming community (and they used to say it would never work, pft).
First and foremost, Warhawk is a gorgeous game. Even in standard-def, the landscapes, the lighting, the water, and the draw distances are all incredible. The real achievement comes when multiple players are on the map (the maps can support up to 32 combatants), and slowdown is nowhere to be seen. It is truly a wondrous thing. The Warhawks themselves are some of the most detailed aircrafts in recent video game memory with gears and blades that you can see moving while flying around (if you're not already immersed in the fight or fail battles).
On the subject of flying, the Warhawk is also one of the most responsive vehicles ever. Pulling off aerial maneuvers is a cinch with the analog sticks and switching from hover to flight mode can be done at the hit of a button. If you are daring enough to go to motion control, your diligence in learning how to control the Warhawk with the Sixaxis will pay off, as it does offer more precise aiming. The draw back is that it will also switch the other two vehicles (a jeep and a tank respectively) to motion controls, and they just aren’t cut out for that. Switching back calls for you to go into the options screen while playing, and when you’re in a heated battle, doing so doesn’t come highly recommended. Hopefully Incog. Inc. will change this in a patch.
When you're on foot, in a jeep, or in a tank, things controls how you would imagine them to; nothing too dynamic was put in to separate this from any other online game you may have played. Since this game is called Warhawk, commence sense dictates that it is the Warhawk that naturally received the special treatment.
Although the game only offers five maps (at launch anyway, there is no telling the amount of add-ons this game could end up receiving) that vary from moderate sized to friggin’ huge, it is the different mode types that will change how the game is played on each of those maps. Of course, there is the standard deathmatch and team deathmatch, but it is this game's unique take on capture the flag and a mode called Zones that will help to make Warcraft the must-have in PS3 owners' multiplayer gaming collections.
The idea of Zones isn’t a new concept, but the way it is played out in Warhawk gives the game that addictive hit to keep players coming back. Basically you have to secure a point on the map and make it your own. It requires a great deal of teamwork and communication with your team (which makes the bluetooth headset that's packaged with the retail version of the game come in real handy). The team with the most zones at the end of the match is the winner.
Capture the flag is also great because of the amount of teamwork that has to be put into it. You can fly to an enemy base in a Warhawk, but you can’t carry the flag and be in a Warhawk at the same time. So you need to be able to get into a jeep and have someone drive you back to your base, or haul ass on foot. But the maps for CTF are usually so big that hoofing it is never really an option. So you really need to have your team working with you to provide cover while you try to score the point. The skirmishes that happen in CTF games are always entertaining.
While Warhawk is a fun multiplayer game, gamers may turn away after reading that they are only getting five maps and four gameplay modes for the $40 PlayStation Network download price or the $60 retail price (with the aforementioned bluetooth headset included). Especially when the lack of any type of single player game is taken into account. But for those who are willing to take the plunge, they will find a pleasing entry into the multiplayer gaming realm. It isn’t the greatest multiplayer game ever made, but it is enjoyable. There is something oddly relaxing about just flying the Warhawks around the levels. Even when absolute mayhem is happening around you.
