Crash Commando Hands-On

Proving that not every 2D sidescroller released via digital distribution needs to be a retro port, Sony will soon be bringing Crash Commando to the PlayStation Network. This original shooter plays a bit like a mash-up between Warhawk and Bionic Commando, pitting up to 12 players in regular and team deathmatch scenarios on a 2D plane, with ample amounts of weapons, vehicles, and exaggerated gore. We had our first look at Crash Commando during this year's PAX, but we recently spent some time with an updated build to get a more extended look.

The Bionic Commando comparison is most immediately apparent in the way Crash Commando controls. You move your character with the left stick, and the right stick controls the trajectory of your gun for all 360 degrees around you. L1 activates a temporary rocket boost, allowing you to float in the air for short periods of time (making the game feel a bit like the free 2002 PC title, Soldat). You can also jump into jeeps and tanks, which are able to drive along set tracks that are occasionally magnetized to give you the ability to drive up a sheer vertical surface. When not adhered to the track, vehicles can also boost in the air with the help of temporary rocket boosts. That combination of footsoliders and vehicles flying all about is what makes the game feel a bit like Warhawk.

You can select your loadout before joining a game. In keeping with the game's simple controls and visuals, you're given slots for primary, sidearm, and explosive weapons. Primary weapon options include standard fair like an assault rifle, shotgun, and rocket launcher. The only real novel gun is the CAB, which will kill enemies and heal your teammates with the same mysterious ray of energy. Sidearms include a handgun and knife, while explosives include grenades, mines, and C4. A number of mounted turrets exist throughout each level as well as on each vehicle. Of course, you can also use vehicles as a blunt instrument of death by simply running people over in an explosion of blood and gooey bits. Our favorite, though, is probably the RC-controlled rocket station that shoots a slow-moving missile which you can guide right into an unsuspecting victim at hilariously glacial speeds.

These battles play out on maps that use 3D graphics on a 2D plane. There are two categories: those scaled for 6-player matches, and those for 12 players. The maps are vaguely futuristic, somewhat industrial looking areas that seem like they might be plucked from the set of a Bond movie. What makes these maps interesting is that there are two planes of action. Certain doors allow you to go from the foreground to the background, which unlike a game along the lines of Little Big Planet, is pretty far off in the distance. You can see the other side, but can't shoot them unless you find yourself on a specialized turret gun that faces directly toward the other plane. It's a bit confusing at first, but adds a neat little bit of strategy to the game.

Crash Commando offers both single- and multiplayer modes, but only real difference is the presence of bots. A single-player campaign allows you to progress through the maps against AI opponents, with the criteria for advancement requiring you to kill a set number of bad guys. The weapons, maps and vehicles are the same as multiplayer, it's just a way to learn the ropes of the game. In multiplayer, you can go online with matches of 12 people, letting bots fill in for empty spaces wherever necessary.

So far, Crash Commando looks like a pretty neat little downloadable shooter that blends a few interesting gameplay mechanics on a small but frantic scale. No release date has been announced yet, but we'll keep you posted.