« This is Your Life, Superman One! | Main | Justice League Unlimited Flashes Back to TV »
February 9, 2006
BLACK: Criterion's done it again
Official XBox Magazine showed up in my mailbox, with the BLACK demo on the disk. There's a fantastic intro scene of various weapons being fired--very realistic, with recoil and flashes. The game started and I was in a room with a shotgun, some shells, and windows leaking in decayed light. I stood by the windows to look outside. Man, did I get hammered by the enemy fire! I went backward to get out of the way, but I got hammered even more. Fifteen seconds after the game started, I was dead! This is either tells you that I really suck at shooters, or that BLACK has some of the best (and most aggressive) enemy A.I. in any FPS I've ever played. It's a bit of both. It took me a few tries to get used to the enemy. There was a fellow positioned on a catwalk just outside the room I started in. I tried getting him with the shotgun, but it was much better once I got the rifle. I've read in various interviews that you can have a different experience playing the same level in BLACK various times. That was my experience with the demo. I played the level a few different ways and they responded differently. The enemy is very good at hiding, taking cover, and changing tactics. The particle effects are amazing--very Burnout-like. It was fun to stay in that room (after I shot a few guys) and just watch the debris exploding from the wall. The surround sound effects are awesome--my wife is really going to complain.
God, I hope this can run on the 360. My Panasonic plasma only has 2 inputs for composite video: one is taken by the Digital Cable box, the other has to switch between the two XBoxes. But I am going to play the hell out of BLACK. Nuff said.
