[REVIEW] Twisted Metal

Damian Turner

(PlayStation 3 [REVIEWED])

Back in the late nineties, I remember rushing home after school as fast as I could. I would drop my school bag at home, then run over to my friend’s house, because he had Twisted Metal 4. We put countless hours into everything, from the story mode to the competitive multiplayer. We could never get enough of Sweet Tooth and company. Then, Twisted Metal: Black came out for the PlayStation 2, but that was a time when car-combat games were taking over the market from the success of Twisted Metal. After that, the series went dark; nothing happened over the years and the same thing happened with my love for the series. It is now 2012, and Twisted Metal is back. The developers, David Jaffe and the team at Eat Sleep Play, promise to give much-needed life to a beloved series.

When I bought this game, my inner child came out; I got all my friends together, each of us grabbed a controller, and it felt like a blast from the past. Everything I remember from the past came back to me and it was bliss. All the things I loved were back, re-defined and perfected. The whole room was having a blast, and from the looks on their faces, I knew we had something special here. Lots of smack-talking and laughs went on. It was Twisted Metal, here for a new generation to love and embrace their Sweet Tooth.

For a game that is heavily focused on the multiplayer, a lot of people are wondering if this game has a story mode and if it is any good. I am here to say that, yes, it does have a story, and yes, it is done well for a vehicular-combat game. The story is this: Calypso has a tournament where the winning contestant will be allowed to fulfill one of their wishes. You span through three characters: Sweet Tooth, leader of clown faction; Doll Face, leader of the dolls faction; and Mr. Grim, leader of the skulls faction. Each one of them has their own motives for entering the competition that’s compelling. You want to keep playing to see what wish they want fulfilled. All the cutscenes are live-action, which holds a unique appeal that you really don’t see these days. The art style is very creative and is a delight to watch every time; they are what really push you to play through the campaign to see every characters’ cutscene. With a game that is called Twisted Metal, you can only expect sick things, and I have to say you haven’t seen messed up shit until you play this game. 

Now onto what made this series famous and its main focus: the multiplayer. You have a choice here: you can go old school with a couple of buddies and play 2-4 player split screen (there’s a trophy for that), or go into an online match of up to 16 players. In both modes you get to play game types like traditional Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch. There is also a last man standing mode that is basically a survival mode that you can play as a team or alone. Another mode is called Team Hunted in which one player on each team is the hunted and the other team must destroy that player while their team is trying to protect the one hunted on their team. This mode can be played solo, in which one person is the hunted and the other players only get points for killing that person. 


The final and most unique mode is called Nuke, which puts two factions against one another in which one team is trying to send a nuke to the opposing team’s statue. The unique thing is that the nukes are filled with live people! Okay, now you’re thinking that’s pretty twisted; basically the attacking team has to get the defending team captain into a nuke so they are able to attack the team’s statue. There are three innings in each game in which each team gets to attack and defend during each inning. 


A bonus to this fine multiplayer is the progression system. You gain experience from every match you play, which ranks you up and unlocks stuff. While playing, you acquire kill streaks, which give you extra XP for kills. I have to say the multiplayer is a blast any way you play it; it has countless hours of replayability, and it keeps you coming back for more.

What I found myself doing, which I rarely do during multiplayer, is listening to the in-game soundtrack. Twisted Metal had me bobbing my head up and down while taking down players left and right online. The soundtrack consisted of artists like Rob Zombie, N.W.A, Judas Priest and Avenged Sevenfold. I haven’t seen a lineup of artists like this in a game since a Guitar Hero or Rock Band. These songs get you pumped up and really make you want to kick some ass. There really wasn’t one song that I thought didn’t belong or didn’t like.  I hope other companies take note on what they did here, because I would love to see other games get a badass soundtrack like Twisted Metal’s.

You can tell that this game is all about fan service and it really shows that the team at Eat Sleep Play had only love for the game. Since this game went into my PlayStation 3 I haven’t been able to put it down; from the wicked story mode, insane multiplayer and rocking soundtrack, there is no room for anything disappointing. Everything you loved about Twisted Metal is back and better than ever. This game is perfect for grabbing a couple of buddies, a pack of beer, and letting the fun roar. I’m happy to say that Twisted Metal is back and ready to show a new generation in what vehicle combat is all about. Embrace your inner demons and show them your Sweet Tooth.

The GameSparked Podcast Feb-21-2012

The GameSparked Team

Get ready to thrust your pelvis like there’s no tomorrow as Mat, Myles, Damian, and Leighton take center stage to kick off this week’s edition of The GameSparked Podcast. They try to figure out how Twisted their Metal is, who should play Sweet Tooth in a movie, what characters are missing from Soulcalibur V, what they love and hate about the Vita, and the absolute best way to thrust one’s pelvis. All this, and more, in The GameSparked Podcast!

Intro/Outro by Cody DeBoer

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