It is disappointing in sense it could of used a bit more polish but by no means is it unplayable (long review).
STORY
Well my best guess is that little positive thought about the game in the back of your head is there because you are in fact a Godzilla fan, why else would one look into this game in the first place, right? Because of that you'll know what to expect and, thank God, won't be disappointed. The plot is brief and thin, paper thin, but due to the nature of Godzilla and the game's genre it doesn't really matter. In between fights throughout Story Mode, a bunch of forgettable characters in drawn comic-esc slideshows with subtitles, dubbed with voice acting right out from the bottom of the barrel auditions that explain what you already know; there are crystals and the Vortaak are back… again. Its better than the last two Godzilla games but unlike Unleashed they weren't criticised as much for it, contradictory eh? The plot is unimportant back to be simple I wouldn't care if it had a good one because all I want to do it duke it out with a massive cast of kaiju (that's monsters, and get used to the term for I shall use it a lot in the rest of this review).
SOUND
I know what you're thinking, "Does it have the classic soundtrack?" Well sadly no, instead we get a fast paced riff of metal. It sounds all right but why didn't they play the original? Well its simple… With much of the game besides sounds, its clear that the game focuses more of the Millennium series, even if it is host to some obviously older kaiju. In doing so, Unleashed centres on the 2000 edition of Godzilla and as we all know his roar doesn't hold a candle to his predecessors. But have no fear because you can (eventually) unlock the 1954 and 90s versions that delivers the classic monster noise the world over recognises. With that so do many others; Gigan, King Ghidorah, Anguirus and many more, included unfamiliar but still old roars. It terms of in gameplay, sounds are limited. No matter where you trudge, be it soil, grass, ice or even water, its still pretty much the same echoed thump with each foot step. That much of an issue but vary it a little will ya? Anyway, buildings still collapse with the typical crash and bang explosions and the splashes of water will make you want to pee. But then again you would of hoped for somewhat more notable editions like weather, different degrees of explosion and even sounds of bodily harm like bone breaking or flesh ripping… but then again it is Godzilla after all and its not like they had all that in the movies.
GRAPHICS
GameSpot oddly enough liked them and I do to. Firstly lets shake off the obvious: IT'S A WII GAME SO DON'T EXPECT 360 MATERIAL! The graphics as they are, are fine and by no means horrendous like some reviews bluntly put. The strange thing however is that they improve and fall short of previous Godzilla brawls in differing areas. For example the character models, water and effects are better, yet the levels themselves are emptier and very bland in texture and colour, more so than the last. Its disappointing due to the Wii's upgrades over the last generation but the fact the character models look good enough to relive some classic Godzilla moments and with enough going on the fill in the blanks. Many complained that Super Smash Bros. Brawl looked a lot like Melee so its not that much of an issue. Graphically Unleash is acceptable, it's just no Galaxy.
GAMEPLAY
The most emphasis on Wii games in reviews is directed at its controls and as you probably know, Unleashed's controls were slammed big time. Bad controls = bad unplayable game and because of this prime issue, controls will have their own section of this so for now I'm going to continue with the game as a fighter that plays fine alright? Again, as you probably know the line up of kaiju is a step forward over the previous Godzilla games. It includes all the monsters from those (while one or two look somewhat different) and some new additions including two completely new Godzilla creatures entirely. The fact you can play as Biollante for example is a great bonus, along with tree types of Godzilla so you won't be disappointed if one version isn't to your liking in comparison to another. Each are categorised in four factions (Earth Defenders, Global Defence Force, Aliens and Mutants) to make AI more unique and believe me it is noticeable. Mutants constantly go for the crystals while Earth Defenders loathe players who use them. The military will also attack those who appear to be leaning towards total destruction of cities. While they don't really sway victory one way or the other it adds to the mood of giant monsters fighter at the edge of doomsday… although that description is abit of a stretch. There is no shortage of modes so if you enjoy the basics you'll get your money's worth, more so if you play with others, not to mention the non-linear aspect of the main story mode. However since like many games of its kind, most of the content has to be unlocked, which to be honest is a slog due to the massive amount of credits each requires to be bought and that's AFTER you've unlocked them for the shop itself. It does add longevity but most of your way through when you've got about 1 or 2 kaiju left to unlocked, you might as well type in the cheat code. I did anyway due to the fact that I was close to unlocking Space Godzilla and my Wii turned itself off. Ok I thought, glitch there so I'll restart… happened again at the same time. Ok, I'll play a few more until then. Didn't stop until I went back to the same part. So maybe that's why the cheats are there, because it appears you can't unlock Space Godzilla but never had that issue on my Wii before, let alone when playing the rest of the game. Shame on you developers (among other things I've covered and will cover).
CONTROLS
Well this is where it really stinks in terms of bad press. Now I should mention I'm playing the PAL version and so it was released long after the North American debut. Either the developers tweaked it or many critics played follow the leader from the first bad review, I don't know. But what I do know is while the controls are dodgy and disappointing given the game was supposedly built for the Wii from day one (the PS2 version is the port, not the other way around… maybe that could explain the bad press?) there not completely broken, better yet they actually just requiring a more steep learning curve. Move with the nun-chuck analogue, mash buttons for attack etc etc. The real motion aspect of this game is the grappling and jump moves. You see jump is an upward movement of the Wiimote whereas grapple move is a forward movement of both the nun-chuck and Wiimote. The main problem here is that forward and up can be the same thing given how most people hold the controls and sit down. Since jumping is mostly pointless due to it lack any decent attacks or range of movement you mostly use grab, thus will accidentally jump. In my experience this happened 1 or 2 out of 10 tries. No I don't know about the negative mainstream press but does that really render them broken to the point it ruins the game? BUT I can't leave it there as there are also ranged attacks and while most use guides rockets and blasts of such and such, some IE Godzilla use a long ranged radioactive breath and well you should only use it when next to you're opponent, thus defeating the its "ranged' purpose. Big shame as its Godzilla who is the most frustrating to play as because of this where as the mecha kaiju just lock on and fire away. So all in all the controls are broken to an extent. If I had to provoke an image then I would call the controls a sheet of glass cracked in one quarter of its total surface area, holds together still but we'd rather do without the notable cracks. The beauty part is you can play enough to notice these minor problems in advance which can mean using a little strategy, which God forbid Wii players use once in awhile in the sea of dressed up button-mashers…
So in short Godzilla Unleashed is a disappointment in the sense a few more months of polishing and it could have been one of the best fighters for the system. But it's far from unplayable and a lot of fun if you give it a chance. Of course this is for Godzilla fans mostly and due to the massive amount of content and possible play time (better with friends of course) I can't understand the overall bitterness this game had received. Needs polish but its still not a sh*t stain. Rent first basically if you're confused...
Pros:
- Massive Kaiju selection
- Variety in single and multiplayer modes
- Nicely structured story mode
- Decent enough graphics
- Plenty to unlock
Cons:
- Some control issues
- 100% unlocked a bit of a slog
- Why no classic soundtrack?
- WHY NO CLASSIC SOUNDTRACK!!!???