E3 2002: Godzilla: Destroy All Monster Melee impressions

Infogrames and developer Pipeworks are heading into the treacherous territory that is the Godzilla license with Godzilla: Destroy All Monster Melee, their upcoming fighter on the GameCube. A fighter for up to four players, the game lets you pick from one of 11 monsters and duke it out in one of eight different arenas spread throughout the world. We had a chance to sit down with the E3 demo of the game and were pleased by what we found. Despite the near-catastrophic run of bad luck that other developers have had with the license over the years, Pipeworks actually looks to be on its way toward avoiding the Godzilla curse and producing a tight little game.

The first things that fans of Toho's classic film series are likely to do is scrutinize the game's roster, which comes close to having something for everyone. You'll find Godzilla, Mecha Godzilla, Gigan, King Ghidora, the '90s Godzilla (from Toho's films, not the stank Emmerich/Devlin mutant), Megalon, Angirius, Mecha King Ghidora, Rodan, and a few other familiar faces in the game's lineup of selectable characters. Each monster will have a base set of standard attacks that can be strung together to create combos. Monsters will also be able to throw their opponent, either to the ground or at other fighters in the arena. Finally, each monster will have an assortment of unique special moves that will be in line with what fans have seen in the films, such as Godzilla's radioactive breath and Ghidorah's electric blasts, to let fans deal out some of their favorite monster's trademark destruction. Anyone planning on camping out in some corner and shooting off Godzilla's atomic breath will be in for a rude surprise, thanks to an energy bar that drains with each use of such attacks. The bar refills fairly quickly but does so slowly enough to prevent cheap moves. By collecting power-ups, you'll also be able to perform devastating rage attacks. The last offensive option open to you is the use of the city environment. As you tromp through the city, you'll find that you'll be able to pick up and throw quite a few buildings at your opponents.

In addition to the roster of selectable monsters, the game will feature appearances by Mothra and the Smog Monster, albeit in unplayable form. In keeping with each character's nature, they'll offer help and hindrance to players in a fight. You'll be able to summon Mothra for a special attack if you collect one of the power-ups that randomly appear onscreen during a fight. Whereas the Smog Monster will randomly appear on certain levels and encircle players in a ring of foul fumes that will lower your monster's health or result in other similarly annoying effects.

The arenas you'll be fighting in will offer eight locations, including Tokyo, Osaka, London, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Monster Island, and an alien mothership, which will feature day and night variations. The levels are roomy, although a bit constrained initially, due to force fields that box you in an area. However, as you go through the game, you'll unlock different parts of the levels and increase the arena size. Eventually, you'll open up the entire level to fight and be able to have your battles rage across an expansive area. While the levels offer plenty to destroy in a fight, they also feature some notable hazards, namely the Japanese army, which is obviously none to pleased with the fact that a crazed pack of giant creatures are flattening the city yet again. In the early levels of the single-player game, the armed forces are little more than a nuisance, offering little real opposition to the combatants. However, as you progress through the game, you'll notice that the resistance to your presence grows as the army brings out some serious firepower, including the Super X, an airborne craft that packs some serious firepower. In the multiplayer game, you'll be able to configure the level of opposition against those fighting and how much firepower they'll use against you and your opponents. While it may be easy to dismiss the armed forces as a useless nuisance during a fight, savvy players will be able to use the army to their advantage on their road to victory. The armed forces target the player who is responsible for the most damage to the city during a multiplayer. The nice part is that the army doesn't distinguish between intentional and accidental damage. A few well-timed throws and shoves that cause your opponent to crush city property will reward you with some tiny allies that will dutifully plug away at your opponent's health.

Graphically, the game looks quite good and is already moving at a very high frame rate--regardless of how hectic the onscreen action gets. The monsters are all rendered and recognizable, thanks to a generous polygon budget and excellent texture work. Animation is good, considering the game's source material is the movement of Japanese stuntmen crammed into enormous rubber suits. Some creative liberty has been taken with some of the monster's idle animation, like the Ghidorah's three animated heads, which adds some personality to the various creatures. The arenas feature areas cluttered with things to destroy, and you'll find that just about everything you see in a level can be knocked over or stomped on, including notable geographical landmarks such as Big Ben and the "Hollywood" sign. Buildings will take damage and deform according to their size and the materials they're constructed out of for a realistic sense of scale and power. For example, huge high rises can take a few hits before they begin to fold, while the smaller houses and structures can be taken out with a tail swipe. Progressive-scan television owners should be pleased to know that the game looks as though it will support that feature when it ships.

In terms of control, the game keeps things short and sweet. You'll find different strengths of attacks assigned to specific buttons, throws to another, one assigned to using a rage attack, one for jumping and hovering (with monsters that can fly, such as Ghidorah and Mecha Godzilla), and one for special attacks. The analog stick will move your monster, while the C stick is used to adjust the camera and also aim your monster's head when it is firing off certain attacks, like Godzilla's breath.

While we weren't able to try them all, the E3 demo showed off the other modes available in the game. You'll be able to play in versus, adventure, survival, melee, team battle, and deathmatch. A gallery option looks as though it will contain extras like concept art--and by playing through the game's single-player adventure mode, players will be able to check them out after they've been unlocked.

So far, Godzilla: Destroy All Monster Melee looks sharp and is extremely playable. The graphics are good, and the sound is spot-on with every roar, chirp, and electric blast, staying true to those heard in the classic Godzilla movies. Due out this fall, the game looks to finally shake off the Godzilla franchise curse and deliver an experience that will please fans.