The Wii is not all that familiar with violent games. Sure it has some, like Resident Evil 4 and No More Heroes, but it's still lacking them. Luckily for Wii owners, Platinum Games; the studio founded by former Clover members which was the studio that created Okami and Viewtiful Joe, is here to bring the violence to Nintendo's little white box with MadWorld, a black and white, stylized, over-the-top action game. Can the Wii stand the sight of blood? Or should Platinum Games pack up and run home before they hurt themselves?
The premise behind MadWorld is a pretty serious one; an unknown group has taken over Jefferson Island and blown out all the bridges, trapping whoever was in the city and keeping everyone else out. They have set up defenses should the authorities try to invade the island and they are forcing the people on the island to participate in a bloody little game called Deathwatch. The main protagonist, Jack Cayman, has infiltrated the island and is tasked with taking Deathwatch down from the inside, thus he needs to participate in the games himself.
The story is actually interesting and pretty serious. Jack is a great main character and he doesn't let anything bother him, making the player feel pretty tough as well. Not all of the cutscenes are actually proper cinematics, instead playing out in a motion comic style. Overall, it's a pretty good story coming from an action game.
The gameplay is where MadWorld is both great and the worst. It plays similar to a beat'em up, where you just progress through the stages by beating everyone in your path. The only difference is that you are timed and the levels are open. These open levels are littered with traps, obstacles and other death dealing instruments used to end your enemies' lives. As you kill enemies you earn points that are needed to make your way to the stage's boss battle, the most brutal your kill the higher your point value. The game encourages you to mess around, throwing never ending waves of enemies your way, and discourages repetition in kills.
This way of scoring is all well and good, but it can't shake the repetition the basic gameplay has. All the basic enemies in the game behave the same way and are basically brain dead and let you murder them without much resistance. The boss battles and mini-bosses are a totally different story however. Most stages have randomly occurring mini-bosses that will aggressively ravage you and provide some entertaining battles as do the fantastic bosses. Each boss ends with a cool finisher making them that much better.
The thing that ruins gameplay is the lack of any real combo system. You only have one combo while unarmed and each weapon only has one combo which makes the basic combat a bore. What's not boring are the finishers which is where the Wii's motion controls come into play. These motion controls, like No More Heroes, don't feel intrusive at all and are how motion controls in action games SHOULD be done. After an enemy is weakened, you'll see an icon saying "Finish" and you hold B. You will then be told to do something with the Wiimote which will result in an over the top, violent act which is just as satisfying as No More Heroes' finishers.
Other than punch, you'll be throwing your enemies. By throwing them, you can throw them onto hooks, into spikes, into barrels, etc. This is the main way you will be earning your points and they remain entertaining the whole way through. As you earn points in a stage, you will unlock the Bloodbath Challenges which are violent mini-games that will award you with even more points. These are a fun diversion, but they tend to overstay their welcome as some are used multiple times throughout the game. The game isn't very long, but it ends just as you are tiring of the whole thing which is perfect. Overall, it's fun and amusing, but very repetitive.
The audio is great here, the voices are all very well done, with Steve Blum as Jack being the easiest to recognize and enjoy, and the music is very fitting. I am not a fan of rap, but I can't help but say that it works extremely well here. The sound effects are done well and the grunts are screams never get old. Of course, the best thing about the audio is the two Deathwatch announcers. They are hilarious and make just listening to the game a joy, they comment on the things you are doing and make bad jokes and by the end of the first stage you love them. MadWorld is not bad on the ears.
The visuals are another thing that make the game unique. As mentioned and as you can see while watching this video, the visuals are completely black and white, with the exception of the red blood. It's actually pretty stunning to see in motion and it never gets old. It also never gets in the way and never makes anything hard to see or make out which is very impressive. The character models all look great, as does the violence. The environments are pretty simple but they are full of detail and objects you can interact with. It's a great looking game all around and it would look great on any platform, which doesn't happen much with Wii games. It's one of the best looking third-party releases on the Wii.
PROs
- Over-the-top and stylish
- Entertaining kill combos
- Finishers are satisfying
- Boss battles are great
- Story is dark and serious
- Deathwatch is a great concept for a game
- Announcers are the greatest
- Fitting music and great voice work
- Just long enough
- Impressive visuals
- Good Motion controls
CONs
- Repetitive gameplay and enemies
- AI is a little weak
- Bloodbath challenges sometimes repeat
- Environments are kind of plain
- Not a fan of rap
Overall, if you own a Wii and are looking for a violent action game, then look no further. If your bloodlust wasn't satisfied by No More Heroes, let MadWorld into your life. It's a fun, amusing, great looking and great playing game. The repetition tends to set in quickly during extended periods of play but in short bursts, it's an amazing game with and amazing visual style. Join the games and get your death on.
Story: 8.5/10
Gameplay: 8.0/10
Audio: 8.0/10
Presentation: 9.5/10
Total: 8.5/10