REVIEW: Transformers: Devastation

Nostalgia is a powerful force. The desire to keep the past alive can inspire the most incredible and most terrible things. Most of the time though, whether it be Victorian architecture, 60s retro-chic clothing, or 80s kids’ cartoons, it’s just force for fun. Thankfully, Platinum Games understands all about fun.

Transformers Devastation is an all-out-action, hack and slash brawler from the studio behind Madworld, Bayonetta, Metal Gear Rising, Vanquish and the Xbox One’s upcoming exclusive, Scalebound. It features responsive, 60fps gameplay and beautiful cel-shaded graphics in the style of the 80s cartoon. On the surface at least, it ticks a number of boxes for nostalgic fans.

Most of the time, with licensed IP, that’s where the praise ends. These kinds of games are usually cheaply made and horrible to play. Thankfully Platinum have bucked that trend, delivering a game that’s not quite AAA quality, but much more than most people would expect.

The graphics are the main draw here, not necessarily for the cutting edge technology, but for the fantastic (and frustratingly rare) recreation of the first-gen Transformers designs. Not only do they look iconic, but the bright colours and bold shapes look fantastic in HD, much more so than the indistinguishable, desaturated mess of modern versions.

All the characters are instantly identifiable and appealing, with equally unique matching animations and transformations. The faithfulness to the original incarnation goes beyond looks too, with classic weapons, environments, sounds (yes, including the original transforming sound you have on your phone) and voice-acting.

Peter Cullen returns once again as Optimus Prime, opposite Frank Welker as Megatron and Soundwave. They’re also joined by the returning Dan Gilvezan as Bumblebee and Gregg Berger as Grimlock, as well as several other original cast members as their respective characters. Of course, the late Chris Collins aka Chris Latta sadly could not reprise his legendary role as Starscream, but unlike most other modern versions, his replacement does a passable impression of his high-pitched tones.

The dialogue itself, along with the overall plot, is also deeply reminiscent of the old show. The script is filled with classic quips from the more jovial Autobots and wittier Decepticons, along with plenty of moral speeches from Optimus and dastardly threats from Megatron. Several lines sound right out of the show or the 86 movie, such as vowing to stop Megatron “no matter the cost”.

The plot too is familiar too; written by Andy Schmidt, former editor of the Transformers comic. Without spoiling too much, it’s a typical Megatron plot to conquer Earth, in a fashion similar to stories like the Key to Vector Sigma, although there are no Aerialbots this time.

It’s not all that clever, but that’s not the point. It’s masterfully crafted to be as fun as possible, while having a few simple (and awesome delivered) morals along the way. It achieves all that spectacularly, making it classic Transformers material.

The game is divided into seven chapters, with each one featuring a semi-linear level, where there’s a set sequence of events but multiple paths and hidden areas. Each of these levels has at least one major boss fight against a major character, with several smaller set-pieces involving minor characters.

There’s no generic baddies here. Everyone is a recognisable character, with the only disposable opponents being Insecticons and a couple of snipers trying to shoot you down. All the boss battles (and even the set-pieces) are unique, with each one requiring different strategies to beat most efficiently. There are even battles against huge combiner robots, that can stomp good guys right into the ground.

Several of the Decepticons, like Starscream, can transform into jets and fly around. These require a good mixture of dodging and ranged attacks to take down, then fast flurries of punches or sword strikes to beat into submission.

Making the battles even more unique, is the ability to play as any one of five Autobots: Optimus, Bumblebee, Grimlock, Sideswipe and Wheeljack. Each of these have unique fighting styles, weapons, abilities and vehicle forms. Grimlock is the most unique of the five, as he’s able to turn into a dinosaur rather than a car or a truck.

On top of that, there’s also a decent selection of weapons that can be unlocked through the story and by finding hidden caches. These weapons can upgraded and combined to make more powerful versions. There are also power-ups and items that can be found or created, such as those which give bonuses to attack or restore health.

The gameplay itself is spectacular. It’s everything Platinum is known for, with lightning-fast responsiveness and tight fighting mechanics, all delivered through flawless animations. It’s not a style that everyone loves, but it’s just done so well that most Transformers fans who usually ignore these kinds of games will find a lot to like. It’s intoxicatingly satisfying to play, even for someone that usually sticks to slower, more cerebral games.

Stringing together combos, even when button mashing, is pure adrenaline-pumping awesomeness. Seeing Prime beat the hell out of Starscream while dual-wielding Energon swords is just ridiculously cool. So too is skilfully shooting down jets with a sniper rifle or just blowing them out the sky with six-shooter missile launcher.

The variety of attacks is truly wonderful. All the characters have unique fighting styles, including special and ultimate attacks. Most of the fighting is done through melee attacks, but there’s plenty of uses for guns too.

There’s tons of weapons for both these styles, ranging from swords and hammers to lasers and rockets. All of these have unique traits, like speed of the swing or fire-rate. These also have elemental effects; like fire, freezing or electrocution. Enemies use these too, requiring a quick wiggle of the stick to shake off the effects. It’s not a fully realised system, but it’s a really neat addition.

Even vehicle modes are used regularly, with the speed they offer proving to be great for both avoiding attacks and starting them. Some enemies use shields that can only be broken by a charged attack in vehicle mode, which sounds dumb but is actually really fun.

The vehicle mechanics aren’t very convincing or interesting, but they’re designed to be fast and easy to control rather than realistic or anything, so it doesn’t matter in this kind of game.

While the fighting is fun, most of the other activities are not. The levels are not that cool to look at or easy to navigate. There are a number of contrived environmental puzzles of sorts, like a street being blocked by a wind turbine that forces the use of vehicle mode to push through. The hidden caches are a pain too, with many requiring a special move or weapon type to open.

There are also some really weird gameplay moments that are totally at odds with the rest of the game. One such moment is a bizarre top-down segment that makes absolutely no sense and is simply awful to play through. Mercifully it doesn’t last long at all.

Another weird moment is a side-on racing battle that’s like some sort of third-rate arcade game. Again, it’s short and very easy to beat, but really strange nonetheless.

These kind of moments bring the experience back down to reality, reminding everyone that this is still a low budget licensed game, albeit one that’s done really damn well. But the facts can’t be escaped, so once the nostalgia and adrenaline give way, the becomes clear that it’s not quite everything that Transformers fans deserve.

The problem with this game is not that anything it does is bad, but simply that it doesn’t do anything special with the license that elevates it beyond the low expectations of fans. The game seems much better than it really is just because of the relief that it isn’t terrible.

But despite the lack of ambition (or more likely the lack of budget) and the fact that it’s not as great as it seems during moments of peak nostalgia, the game itself is still good. It has a heart that even bigger games lack and a respect for its source material that more acclaimed Transformers games didn’t.

Summary

Transformers Devastation is a wonderful love letter to fans of the 80s cartoon, with a faithful cast, art style and plot. Platinum brings the kind of brilliant action gameplay that only it could, making one of the best Transformers-branded gameplay experiences seen yet. It’s not everything that people could want, but it’s more than meets the eye. Yeah, you knew that was coming.