Loaded, the Playstation's first (and most solid ) ultra-violent shooter, has finally come to the Saturn in all its gory glory. This is an enjoyable, smooth translation and should please the screaming hoards of Saturn fans who've been impatiently waiting their turn. So, check your brain at the door and saddle up for a solid, mindless shooting fest that dispenses with any pretense of strategy.
Loaded's designers clearly knew their audience, and built their game accordingly. This title doesn't offer any deep-thinking strategy or level design; instead, it delivers tons of "Asplat" violence - the goal being to make your enemies go "Asplat!" in a bloody mess. Excessive carnage aside, as you start really searching for the key cards, which allow deeper access the levels, the game becomes somewhat challenging and interesting, despite the fact there's little strategy or story. You'll be able to get through the entire game if you play on an easy difficulty setting. But because success is just a matter of shooting like mad before you're killed, your longevity depends on your enemies, not you. This means the harder difficult settings are close to impossible to finish.
The graphics in Loaded are good, given the restrictive overhead angle, and the sound effects for the weapons are truly fearsome (the designers knew what was important). Each character has his own special weapons and abilities, and it makes for a good selection of heroes. Refreshingly enough, the game plays like a souped up version of Gauntlet with far more action (although its lacking a Valkyrie character and voice-overs that say, "Warrior needs food…badly").
Going for the sheer violence factor, the game's much more enjoyable when played with a friend (vs. solo action). And there's undeniably something exhilarating about maiming, annihilating, and exploding everything in your path. Loaded is not the best overall game, but for a shooter it has what it needs in all the right places.
