Best of the Xbox: A Retrospective 2001- 2005 - Part 3

Written by Nick Doukas  on October 27, 2005

Specials: Good job team. Report back to base for debriefing and cocktailsЕ

Tweet

Comments

Dead to Rights

DTR was an early action entry for the Xbox, and it turned out to be an incredibly fun little game with excellent combat and play mechanics that evoked every John Woo shootout ever committed to celluloid. Produced by Andre Emerson (who's currently helming the new 50 Cent: Bulletproof) and brought to you by the fine folks at Namco, Dead to Rights put gamers right into the heroic persona of Jack Slate, the proverbial kickass weapons/martial arts expert and tough guy cop out for revenge. Having played the game thoroughly, I can say with all certainty that vengeance was dished out liberally.

Dead to Rights Ц August 21, 2002

Picture a dark, rain-slicked street deep in the heart of Chinatown. Garish neon signs reflect off the wet blacktop and a distant foghorn signals the wee hours of the morning. Jack Slate steps from behind a bus-shelter, hot on the trail of a crucial piece of evidence. Suddenly, a gunshot rings out. Ambush, not good. His back to the wall as the huge hail of bullets commences, Slate steps from cover and blows away a leather-jacketed hood with his dual .45 automatics. Moments later, three more thugs step out from behind two nearby parked cars. Switching to his Spas-12 shotgun, Jack leaps into the air as time slows to a crawl, the whine of ricocheting bullets and the roar of weapons fire becoming muffled and distorted. In rapid succession, Slate dispatches each criminal with grim efficiency, quickly targeting and then exterminating each and every last one. As soon as it's clear, Jack quickly moves on. It's gonna be a long nightЕ.

Dead to Rights is the new Action-Noir title from developer Namco Hometek. Combining shoot-outs that play like the best of Hong Kong action films, with interesting, unusual plot advancing minigames and cinematic martial arts brawls, Dead to Rights grips the gamer from the outset and never lets up. DTR is the story of Jack Slate, a tough-guy loner cop (and all around larger-than-life action hero), and his fight to bring his father's murderers to justice. After a stunning opening cinema, you're treated to an excellent tutorial, which takes place late at night at a construction site, and teaches you the various game mechanics. All the gameplay features of Dead to Rights are designed to allow players to stage their own versions of classic, over the top movie gunfights. The Replacement Killers, The Lobby shoot-out from The Matrix, Face Off, you get the idea.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Tides of War

One of the finest FPS titles to hit the Xbox, Tides of War was an early Live entry that had everyone talking. A great campaign, superb graphics and a deep and varied class-based multiplayer mode made Wolfenstein an instant hit and a worthy upgrade to a seminal FPS.

Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Tides of War Ц May 23, 2003

You'll be taking on all manner of Nazi soldiers and other mercenary forces, as well as dealing with supernatural beasts. Along with legions of the undead, you'll encounter X-Creatures, horrific goons spawned from failed Nazi experiments. In order to properly vanquish any and all threats, the game provides you with some serious weapons to go zombie stomping with. Pistols include a German Luger, and a 45 caliber Colt (which can be wielded in both hands, one piece for each), while heavier automatic weapons like the Thompson M1A1, the MP-40, and the silenced Sten Mark II S shred enemies to ribbons with satisfying realism. You'll also get your hands on a powerful pump-action shotgun, as well as sniper rifles and a Mauser. Grenades and dynamite round out the arsenal, and the ultra-heavy stuff is well represented in the Venom chaingun, which fires 12.7 mm light armor-piercing rounds, and the Panzerfaust, a German anti-tank rocket launcher. Throw in a sweet flamethrower and the Tesla cannon (a weapon based on powerful guided electrical fields) and you're ready to kick some serious Axis ass. All of the weapons are well modeled and fire with gruff authenticity, and cycling through them and reloading is a breeze.

Graphically, Tides Of War looks excellent. Running on the latest version of id Software's Quake engine, and spruced up considerably for its Xbox debut, RTCW shines like a new penny. Sharp textures, creepy and realistic environments that sport fantastic lighting and shadows, and wonderful particle effects create a visual impact that's most impressive, which of course helps immerse you in the adventure considerably. The game runs beautifully in 480p, so HDTV owners will receive the additional benefit of enhanced visuals. The enemies look great, and the character models sport a fair amount of detail. The physics system performs admirably, and enemy death throes are convincing and authentic. Weapons fire looks sweet, and scoring, as well as other environmental damage, adds categorical weight to the scenarios.

Multiplayer RTCW is a true team experience, as evidenced by the 4 different classes players have to choose from. Soldiers are equipped with the uber-heavy weaponry, and are the only ones capable of handling the Panzerfaust rocket launcher. Lieutenants (my personal favorite) in addition to possessing the ability to call in air strikes, also have the responsibility of handing out ammo packs to the team, as no power-ups exist anywhere on the maps. Which brings us to the Medic, who can distribute health to injured team mates, as well as revive them with a syringe once they've gone down (invaluable in an intense battle, as respawning takes valuable time away from the fight). Engineers are equipped with dynamite, used to take out targets, as well as breach areas otherwise inaccessible. They also get pliers, which can be used to disarm enemy dynamite, and repair damaged gun emplacements (which, by the way, you can take control of and blow opponents away with). Players can use the directional pad to call for ammo or health, as well as use the team chat to coordinate attacks and work efficiently to complete the objectives.

With the inclusion of the class system, it's absolutely essential that you work together with the rest of the team, and know your role well. Lieutenants need to remember to equip their squad members (and themselves) with ammo. By the same token, Medics need to be ready to help fallen comrades, and keep as low a profile as possible so that they're actually alive to do their job. Soldiers need to lead the charge and lay down devastating firepower with the heavy weapons, and Engineers need to work quickly and efficiently to plant or defuse explosives.

Alright, there they are Ц 20 Xbox titles that rocked the system. It's been a good run for Microsoft's freshman foray into the console game, and in less than 30 days the newest toy will arrive. Hard to believe the Xbox is entering its second iteration, but here it comes, an 800 lb gorilla of a system. Let's not forget - they said there were no good games, they said MS couldn't possibly produce a successful console and that it would fail right out of the gate. The funny thing is that even after all the great software the Xbox has seen, not to mention pioneering a peerless and innovative online service, they're still saying the same thing about the 360. Only time will truly tell, but it's looking damn good so farЕ