Even in the world of law enforcement, there's always room for improvement. But is the same true of film conversions? Gary Whitta goes on the beat with Special FX's RoboSequel.
Despite the addition of one mean metal mutha to the police force, and the subsequent 'removal' of one of the city's most vicious crime lords, the situationin the Detroit of the future is no better, In fact, it's a damn sight worse.
It's all down to Nuke, a deadly and instantly addictive new drug that's flooding the streets courtesy of Cain, the city's new crime kingpin. With the cops still on strike over pay, Cain and his drug-crazed gang has had a free run of the city. Until now.
RoboCop is back on the case, with a shiny new two-tone suit to mark the occasion. Determined to put a stop to Nuke and the scum who sell it our Robo's not taking any bull from the spaced-out hoodlums who stand in his way. But then the greatest danger may come from within.
Amiga
Isn't life a wild and crazy thing, eh? While Robocop 2: The Movie is nowhere good as its predecessor, Robocop 2: The Game is a massive improvement over its predecessor! This isn't anything to do with the film being any more suited to conversion (both movies have equal quantities of violent action) but Special FX's classy execution of the same predictable design.
Like the original, there's nothing startlingly new about the gameplay, but the platform-based action that forms the main bulk of Robocop 2 is a considerable improvement over that of its forerunner. For a start there's plenty of OTT bloodshed, with a never-ending army of scum to blow away, and the layout of the three main levels is impressively sprawling and maze-like. There's a lot more emphasis on the platform idea this time, with Robo often having to execute Miner Willy style jumps across chasms and conveyor belts in order to progress. The two inter-level bonus sections earn their keep admirably.
Both are entertaining diversions from the 'norm', with the added bonus of playing apart in the overall objective (unlike the shooting range and photo-fit sections from the original RoboCop, where points were the only incentive to do well). The colourful and very stylish visuals add polish, along with some astounding sound in the form of a neat stereo remix of the film score and a plethora of atmospheric sampled effects.
All this adds up to one slick adaptation that might have benefited from a some more thought at the design stage (some of the movie's more notable sequences have been ignored, such as Robo's bike chase with Cain), but remains top-notch entertainment nonetheless. Well worth a flutter, and destined to sell by the truckload.
ST
Special FX is having this one produced out of house, and so there are definitely going to be some noticeable differences on the graphic and sound fronts. Gameplay, however, should remain almost unaltered.
There are no plans as yet for a PC version of Robocop 2. However, Ocean hasn't ruled
out the idea completely, so we may well see something later next year.