Power Up: Madworld's killing ceases to be thrilling
In recent weeks, Madworld, Sega's violent new title for the Nintendo Wii, has generated more attention than it probably deserves. The game's relentless pursuit of gore certainly has a lot to do with its notoriety. The exaggerated level of mayhem, which includes niceties such as dismembering opponents with chainsaws and hurling them into oversized jet turbines, is not something that will appeal to everyone; it's certainly not my cup of blood, er, tea.
In recent weeks, Madworld, Sega's violent new title for the Nintendo Wii, has generated more attention than it probably deserves. The game's relentless pursuit of gore certainly has a lot to do with its notoriety. The exaggerated level of mayhem, which includes niceties such as dismembering opponents with chainsaws and hurling them into oversized jet turbines, is not something that will appeal to everyone; it's certainly not my cup of blood, er, tea.
Although the watchdog group the National Institute on Media and the Family recently suggested that Nintendo had sullied its family-friendly reputation by licensing the game for the Wii console, that ship sailed a while ago. Madworld is certainly not the first ultraviolent game to make an appearance on the Wii. Rockstar's Manhunt 2 preceded it, as did Sega's own House of the Dead: Overkill.
But the extra attention focused on Madworld owes much to the game's unique, comic-book look. Its stylized graphics are boldly rendered in black and white, although blood sprays add frequent touches of carmine. In keeping with comic-book tradition, sound effects are emphasized visually with words like "KRAASH!" appearing onscreen in yellow letters at appropriate points in the action.
The game's plot, such as it is, drops the player into the role of Jack, a contestant on a kill-or-be-killed game show called Deathwatch. A pair of comically profane announcers provide color commentary, while a hip-hop soundtrack adds to the game's overall intensity. In the end, however, Madworld's game play is nothing to write home about - kills and more kills, rendered in increasingly brutal ways. About all that Madworld has to recommend it are its unusual black-and-white graphics. Even those can be an annoyance, however, as combat segments requiring precise movement are hampered by the lack of visual clarity and depth of field that color provides.
More Nintendo news. Nintendo fans were cheered by news coming out of last week's Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Nintendo reported brisk preorders for the DSi, the new iteration of its ultra-popular DS handheld. The DSi, which launches on Sunday, is priced at $169.99 and adds a pair of built-in cameras as well as additional audio and Web-browsing capabilities.
Nintendo also announced that a new Legend of Zelda title, Spirit Tracks, will be coming to the DS by year's end.
For Wii fans, Nintendo announced a system upgrade that allows game content to be downloaded from the Wii Store directly to a high-capacity SD memory card. Up to 240 games could be stored in this fashion, and gamers will see faster load times as well.
Power Up:
Grade: C
Madworld
Sega. Wii. $49.99
Rating: M (17 and older)
On the Web: www.sega.com/madworld