Sunset Overdrive has a set up straight out of ’80s arcade gaming. A new energy drink by mega corporation Fizzco has went array, turning the residents into crazed mutants. Fizzco has enclosed the city with a giant wall to keep all the mutants in and attempt to cover up the debacle. At the center, you play an everyday slacker punk who has no priorities. So now that you are up to speed, what is the game like?
The main mode of Sunset Overdrive‘s lightening fast travel is rail grinding straight out of Jet Set Radio. Rail grinding is done like it is in something like Tony Hawk Pro Skater, but without the skateboard. Physics don’t exist in this world, or at least not regular physics, they are more like The Matrix-style physics. That goes hand-in-hand with the theme of the game…style. The more creative you are, the more interesting your kills are, the more style points you get. Equipped with a style gauge, every time you jump a level, your Amps become active. Amps also come from the energy drink, but when distilled, are more of a benefit. The more Amps you collect, the bigger and badder your weapons become. Firing lightening bolts at big baddies is quite rewarding.
This is a world meant to be played in. Everything in this world is ridiculous. From the setting and characters to the weapons that I can’t begin to explain. Let’s put it this way, the combo weapons in this game are a combination of Dead Rising 3 and the movie Shawn of the Dead.
Okay, so what about the mutants? They actually remind me of the demons of Splatterhouse. While they are varying degrees of ugly, your character can be endlessly interesting. Hell, I have made six different characters already. There are so many fun options that it’s like a game all its own.
There has been a lot of talk about the everything but the kitchen sink attitude taken to this game but there is no arguing with the results. The movement is fluid, and addictive. I could spend all day simply grinding around the city and it is in your best interest to do so.
Sunset Overdrive is just plain fun. It’s not for the puzzle solvers, the realists, or the story mongers. It’s for the game player that remembers that games should be a good time. An escape into the imaginary horrors of improbable futures.
