Customer Reviews

Bionic Commando

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This game has received the most polar opposite opinions from all the games I have played with my friends.

Pros:
+Swinging with the grapple hook is freaking awesome.
+Multiplayer is a blast to play at a LAN party or some local event.
+Very unique gameplay.
+focuses more on the grapple hook than the guns.
+Graphics are nice and pretty.
+Level design is simple yet a great fit for the unique gameplay
+moderately interesting story.

Cons:
-Over simplified combat.
-Only supports 8 people per match.
-Single player can be very frustrating with level limitations through radiation.
-Ending sucked.
-Learning curve: it takes an hour or so to figure out the swing mechanisms (some people claimed to be longer)
-Terrible port job. It took me 20 minutes to figure out what button combination to use on the final boss.

I have not played online, but I have had an absolute blast playing with my friends at their houses or at LAN parties that I have hosted. I wouldn't buy this game for the single player, which was fun, but I would sure as heck buy it for the multiplayer. Be warned, some people just flat out hate the gameplay claiming it is full of bunny-hoppers. The best short description I heard was "it's spiderman with a few guns." Overall just plain, simple, unique fun.

I will get this over with and say DO NOT GET THE PC VERSION. Its simply a port of the 360 version, and a very bad one at that. There now you don't need to read anymore. However if you want one of those stupid "explanations" then well keep on reading.


I'm quite surprised actually, this came out more than a month later than the PS3/360 versions and yet as a PC version it really really sucks. The first problem with this that i found is the lack of graphical options. All you get is resolution, aspect ratio, and gamma. So you're probably gonna wanna have a fairly good computer to start with. Even so this is the real kicker, in the beginning you go through the tutorial and they tell you how to do everything but NOT IN PC CONTROLS!!! They use the 360 controls! Now that is truly pathetic. You will probably want to have a 360 gamepad anyway. Controlling the camera with the mouse is a real hassle, it starts at the most sensitive and even when you bring it down to its minimum it is still quite hard.

Other than that the game is ok. A lot of annoying loading times, but the graphics are actually fairly good (if you have a good PC that is). It uses Nvidia's Physx's features so it has that going for it. Fairly open worlds and plenty of cool stuff you can do with your arm.

Overall though its a decent game, not a good PC game though. I recommend Bionic Commando Rearmed over this.

Playing (and eventually beating) BC on the NES ranks among the top gaming experienes I've ever had. I was stoked for (and loved) BC Rearmed. This game? Meh.

Earlier reviewer aptly summed up the porting issues. Only thing I'd add is that it does support 1920x1200. Guess that was the only PC-feature the developer (Grin) could add before going kaput.

Gameplay is fun, provided you like swinging with a bionic arm and listening to a BC soundtrack. The soundtrack is one of many ways the game pays tribute to its forebearer. The story? Not so much. Actually, the phrase, "bunch of jerks" sums up the cast. But whatever.

The game has plenty of well documented flaws, but one really stands out: pointless blue radiation clouds. Like many games, BC is a linear game set in a quasi-open world setting. In these games, the terrain ususally leads you on your way. Buildings you can't scale, piles of debris and rubble, bodies of water, surfaces you can't grapple, etc. Indeed, this game has all of these things. For some reason, it also has blue clouds of death as an extra barrier. Swing too high? Dead. Hunting for collectibles? Dead. Can I make this jump? Guess not. In short, the clouds discourage ... (sigh) ... swinging. With exploring discouraged, finding the game's collectibles is as exciting as solving Blue's Clues.

I did enjoy the game and, aside from the ... (sigh) ... blue clouds, the graphics are pretty good.

The final development by Sweden's Grin Studio, Bionic Commando is the sequel to 1988's NES version of Bionic Commando. In this most recent version you play again as Nathan Spencer, a bionic operative betrayed by his own government, wrongfully accused of treason and falsely imprisoned. When a terrorist organization detonates an experimental weapon in a major city, Spencer is forced into government servitude as a soldier once again. Devastated by an earthquake and filled with radioactive fallout, Spencer (along with his bionic arm) is sent to Ascension City where the terrorists are threatening invasion. During his journey Spencer comes across old friends and foes alike as he makes his through the post-apocalyptic city in attempts to thwart the terrorists invasion plans. Here are my thoughts on Bionic Commando;


Pros

+ Nice graphics.

+ Bionic arm-swinging is fun and never gets old. "Navigate the Fissure" level was a blast.

+ A few fun boss fights.

+ Respectable voice acting (Nathan Spencer was voiced by Mike Patton, lead singer of the 90's rock band "Faith No More."

+ Commendable original score by Jamie Christopherson (Lost Planet, Battle For Middle Earth, Golden Compass, Onimusha, Bladestorm etc.)


Cons

- Linear gameplay.

- Sparse enemies.

- Radiation/Blue Haze areas completely discouraged exploration and free roaming.

- Ridiculously lazy port from the X-Box. Tutorial/hints continuously told you to hit the Y, B etc. buttons on the controller. I had to write a cheat sheet translating all of the buttons to correspond with what I was supposed to hit on the keyboard. Very frustrating.

- Rather limited amounts of ammunition. I guess this was to match the limited amount of enemies.

- No real point in gaining all of the collectibles. Many of the times you die trying and have to start the entire level over, losing any collectables you had already gained on that level.

- Checkpoint save system.

- Transparent and forgettable story.

- Weak ending.

- Too short. I finished the game over a weekend.


While I wouldn't discourage anyone from playing Bionic Commando I would urge a bit of caution as it's not the best game you're ever going to play. Nothing about the game will blow you away in any way, however there were some unique elements to it. The arm swinging was a lot like any Spiderman game you can play but still slightly different. The story will probably only be memorable to diehard Bionic Commando fans. I would have been severely disappointed had I purchased this game upon release, but given its price now it's easily worth a purchase and play through. While there's really not much replayability to the game I had a good time playing through it once. Easily worth the $10-$15 it's selling for on Amazon.

I personally have a soft spot for GRiN's final release. With that in mind, Bionic Commando (2009) is a game that was not completed entirely, resulting in a lack of polish and unimplemented ideas. This was due to a mix of arrogance as well as resources being spread far too thin throughout the development studio. Since GRiN was so convinced people would buy the game regardless of its final shape, the developers felt confident that it was acceptable to leave many things, such as a cliffhanger ending and completely unexplained characters and motives, in Bionic Commando without embarrassment. Despite all these issues, the game still manages to be entertaining.

Throwing the presentation (Including Mike Patton's over-exaggerated line deliveries.) aside, the gameplay itself has an addicting nature; It's fun to swing around and shoot bad guys. Having played the Xbox 360 version first, I can say that the game's main source of frustration is loading screens. I purchased the PC version for the express purpose of eliminating that issue, and I can report that, with a decent build, loading screens are nearly painless. After a brief 4-hour run with Bionic Commando's story mode on the PC, I can say that this version, ironically enough, may be the best release.

Bionic Commando on the PC has some issues, such as a lack of DirectX10 support (Unlike popular releases, like Devil May Cry 4 and Resident Evil 5.) and slight environmental draw-in, but it seems to detract little from the game compared to the positive points. At the game's highest settings, Bionic Commando is the version GRiN should have made for consoles. (As a side note, the 360 controller's buttons are the only ones displayed on-screen, so those insisting upon a Keyboard/Mouse setup should read and memorize the equivalent mappings. Otherwise, the ergonomic 360 controller is definitely the best option for functionality and style.)

My personal recommendation is to give the game a try, preferably through Valve's "Steam" service. (This digital distribution method avoids the DVD-checking DRM.) Bionic Commando is worth the 4- or 5-hour run to experience an amusing, fun, and addicting game. Bionic Commando's [and GRiN's] history might be sad and self-imposed, but this game is certainly not an awful experience.