Roadkill

Blowing stuff up is fun ' this is a universal fact for just about every male and female currently inhabiting this planet. While this past time is frowned upon in our daily lives, videogames have long been perfecting this craft. It's hard to say where it really started, but games like Twisted Metal and Vigilante 8 have helped to progress its popularity. Roadkill, the latest title to feature cars with guns, aims to take the genre to the next level ' does it succeed or is it just roadkill underneath the tires of other car combat games? Read on to find out.

Like it mentions on the box, Roadkill is a combination of Grand Theft Auto 3 and Twisted Metal Black. Think GTA3 except with weapons of mayhem on the cars and that is Roadkill in a nutshell. There are three cities to drive through, each with destructible environment and unlinear mission progression. The actual missions are very much styled after GTA3 ' i.e. seek and destroy missions, escort missions, racing missions, on-rail shooting missions, and the like. Missions like this would usually get boring real quick, but there's enough variation among them that repetition never sets in. Likewise, combat is fast and fun and driving around and picking fights with other cars is a worthwhile distraction. And yes, for the trigger happy, there's a lot of stuff to blow up.

If you like your games bloody, than you'll be happy to know that Roadkill basks in excess. Needless to say, the violence is extremely graphic ' running down a pedestrian will often result in a splatter of blood that covers your screen. The cut scenes are even worse. The content in Roadkill is dark, and a lot of that transfers over to the humor of the game. Often, it's just lude and crude humor, but it's the subtle things you'll find around town that are really funny.

Much like GTA3, Roadkill sacrifices flashy visuals for a large scope. Many textures just look flat out bad (bordering on PS1 quality) and environments are simplistically rendered. But, when you consider that levels keep a steady framerate, have no loading, and look decent, the lackluster visuals are acceptable.

Roadkill takes a cue from GTA3 with radio stations that you can choose from while in your car (which would be all the time). There's everything from alternative rock to hip-hop to talk radio. My favorite is the classic rock station with bands from the 70's that no one remembers anymore, like Blue Oyster Cult. It is certainly different. Voice acting is great as well, but as a warning, let it be known that Roadkill swears more than a drunken sailor.

Roadkill can be summed up in two words: mindless fun. That's perfectly okay with me, and I'm guessing it is okay with anyone who likes their action fast and fun. Roadkill doesn't do anything new, nor does it match the success of its influences, but it does create a happy medium between the two. Rent first, think later.

Known for some rather graphic games, Midway is once again unleashing its unique talent for destruction. Appropriately rated Mature, Roadkill is set in a post-apocalyptic version of the United States where anarchy rules and violent gangs control the streets. In order to survive, you'll run jobs in your vehicle for these gang leaders ranging from picking up their car to taking out rival gang members. Although basically you're constantly fending off attacks or running over pedestrians, Roadkill has a lot of substance as long as you can stomach it.

The premise behind Roadkill is to complete different missions received from gang leaders using a 'slightly'? modified vehicle. These missions will vary widely and are interesting enough to keep the game from becoming stale. During the missions, upgrade parts can be found to increase firepower or functionality and when other vehicles are destroyed their spare parts can be collected for cash. Helping to keep a fresh look and offering other objectives besides just finishing the missions, these spare parts and cash collected from missions can then be used to purchase additional upgrades for further weapons and vehicle improvements. In addition, the large maps associated with the different missions also keep the game from becoming worn-out allowing for significant exploring when taking a break from a current mission.

Roadkill does live up to its name however and earns is mature rating. Besides the extreme violent nature of the game including pedestrians being impaled and dragged under the vehicles the cut scenes are even more excessive. The language is as bad as you'll find and the violence is graphic.

Visually and audibility, Roadkill is far from spectacular but does well with what it has. The vehicle designs are on the bland side and the quality isn't first class but the large maps help to offset that, offering enough variety in the scenery. The sound effects have a similar situation and can become repetitive but there is a decent song selection on the radio including some raunchy talk shows.

Although definitely appealing more to those who enjoy violent games, Roadkill manages to create a solid performance. The missions are well designed with sub goals available and there is plenty of area to explore. In addition, the multiplayer option is basically car combat so fans of the Twisted Metal series may have another reason to check it out.