Gun Porn and a Fetish for Reagan Era Destruction

by TWODOGSz

© 2008 Aaron Bertinetti

“`Back in 2006 on the eve of the original Xbox’s demise, renowned developer Criterion of Burnout fame released a naked, high energy homage to the FPS genre. It was a slickly produced Eastern Bloc romp, juiced up on steroids and widespread collateral damage that became as guilty a pleasure as any action movie from the 1980’s. Courtesy of Microsoft’s Xbox Originals this game has now been re-released as a 1200MP download.

“`So is it worth the price of admission to the latest Rambo flick? Well if first impressions counted for everything, the answer is a resounding yes, but that’s not the case and so for Black the answer is not so straightforward.

What’s Black about and should I care?

Black’s story is pure popcorn cliché. You’re the leader of a completely deniable US black-ops outfit whose directive will be familiar to any Hollywood action fan. Americans are the good guys and anybody between you and your target is a terrorist. Shoot first, ask questions never.

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Problem is things didn’t go as planned and you’re locked up and being interrogated about the preceding four day’s events. The story unfolds through slick sepia- toned cinematics, full of edgy quick cuts and B grade actors. As your B grade avatar is interrogated he has flashbacks of the events that have transpired and these events form the game’s levels. And that’s about all you’ll ever need to know regarding the story it merely gives context to the ensuing carnage, without ever overstaying its welcome.

The most beautiful blonde you’ll ever see…

Criterion has a justified reputation for technical prowess thanks to the incomparably fast Burnout franchise. Now Burnout 3 was about as pretty an Xbox title I’d ever seen, until I saw Black. Burnout 3 was pretty, Black is damn sexy!

Click any image for Full View: – This-Gen destruction on Last-Gen hardware

From the very moment the game loads and you’re confronted by rolling credits accompanied by the Hollywood Studios Symphony Orchestra, you know this game’s production values will leave even many next-gen titles for dead. The minimalist menus complete with gold plated AK-47s firing in the background tell you immediately what this game is about. Welcome to the Church of Guns. Beautiful, glistening, deafening, guns. It’s almost as if the developers happened upon a firing range in Vegas and ended up swinging by the drive by church with their favourite guns to get hitched on the way home.

The extravagantly modelled guns are truly a sight to behold. Thankfully this extends to the lovingly detailed open environments full of impressive lighting, architecture and variety. But stopping there would be like going to New Year’s Eve on Sydney Harbour and leaving before the fireworks! If this game isn’t about guns, it’s all about the fireworks.

It’s an overwhelming assault of explosions, destruction, bloom lighting, particle effects, exaggerated physics and ragdolls, all accompanied by ear bleeding surround sound. What’s astonishing is that it runs almost flawlessly with very rare slowdown. But the real kicker is that Black could fool a lot of people that it’s actually a Xbox360 launch title and not an Xbox Original.

The full directional audio begs for surround sound with a collage of ricochets, echoes, near misses and impacts. The boom-stick base is enough reason alone to turn it up to eleven and scare the hell out of the neighbours. But the orchestral score is perhaps a highlight. Of all the original Xbox titles, Halo is perhaps the only title that exceeds what Black achieves here. The score is used cleverly to define the action and is occasionally silenced into a sparse sound-scape that only further heightens the game’s intensity.

The Full Monty.

There is no doubt about how pretty Black looks, how good it sounds or how dumb its story is. But the way the game plays when compared to the glut of AAA shooters on the Xbox360 will very much be a matter of personal opinion.

Black is literally the FPS genre stripped bare. There’s no duck and running, no HUD, no gadgets, no night vision, and no real tactics other than to keep your finger firmly on the trigger and trying not to get shot in the process. You carry two guns out of a lineup of the usual suspects (along with the requisite grenades) and then endeavour to travel from point A to point B, set piece to set piece, in a highly combustible environment.

Your occasional team-mates mix things up a bit but are really best served as invincible human shields. In fact even the enemies, with mostly average AI, have a remarkable resilience to bullets, often taking a pound of lead for every pound of flesh before they crash and burn. You could use headshots but that’s not really in keeping with Black’s tone and it’s why there is never nothing short of an ample supply of guns and ammunition for your firing pleasure. In fact the inclusion of silencers and very occasional stealth elements seems laughable when the game is really all about making as much noise as possible.

This-Gen destruction on Last-Gen hardware

But it’s the environmental destruction that truly remains the star of the show throughout, and not just because it’s pretty, but because it significantly changes the way you play an FPS. In fact I often found myself stuck in fire fights looking for explosives first and enemies second. Perhaps the best parallel in terms of gameplay that I can draw is the Crash Mode from Criterion’s groundbreaking Burnout series. You need to move through each level, using the environment to cause as much damage as possible along the way. And it’s stunning, until you inevitably reach a point where it gets old and repetitive.

Style over substance.

The problem with Black is that at some point during the campaign you’ll realise that the game is a one-trick pony. This wouldn’t be so much of a problem if the pacing of the game was more dynamic. Perhaps I’ve been spoilt by exemplary shooters such as Call of Duty 4 that master the art of pacing and as such their set pieces seem to have so much more punch.

Where Call of Duty 4 is a rollercoaster, Black is a train ride along slowly undulating hills, it may be a bullet train (sorry), but a train nonetheless. It starts at such a cracking pace that even impressive set pieces inspired by the likes of The Matrix, The Rock and Behind Enemy Lines become ordinary and just more of the same. I can’t help but think if Criterion had varied the rhythm of gameplay the experience would be all the more memorable.

But then again, there are no doubt people who’ll disagree with me, because they simply love to blow shit up! If that’s the case you’ll have a fantastic time and I highly recommend it. But just be aware that the campaign is lucky to last 8 hours and whilst you can go hunting for hidden objects and try harder difficulty levels, including the hard as nails “Black Ops” setting, there’s nothing that truly adds any replay value. And for a shooter made in a post-Halo world to not have any multiplayer features whatsoever, is simply unacceptable.

Is it worth 1200MP?

My feelings about Black are mixed. On the one hand it’s a stunning technical accomplishment for a title made on the original Xbox. It’s a lot of fun blowing stuff up and is a largely enjoyable romp whilst it lasts. But a lot has changed since 2006, the Xbox360 is the leading platform for the FPS genre and that means it’s very hard to recommend this over some other titles. At the end of the day the decision should be based on a very simple personal question. If you had $15, would you go to the movies and watch a better than average action flick or would you prefer to play one?

I personally prefer to play one, but only just.

“7.5/10

© 2008 Aaron Bertinetti