There was a time when gaming was thought of as a children’s hobby. If you were an adult who liked games, you were some kind of nerd. These days the definition of nerd has blurred the lines of what’s cool and hip. Being into comic books and videogames is standard practice, but the toys and cartoons adults of today grew up with were revamped into media that at times is almost unrecognizable. The Michael Bay Transformers films are a good example of this. Compare the Generation 1 Transformers to anything from the Michael Bay films and it’s like night and day.
Occasionally the media we grew up with meets the high tech world we currently live in, and the adults get to have a little fun again. Transformers Devastation is one such experience every G1 Transformers fan needs to have. There have been plenty of Transformers games over the last few years, and while not all of them focused on the Michael Bay films, you can’t say any of them catered to the G1 crowd. That all changes with Devastation.
The game looks and feels like a cartoon from the 80s, complete with cell-shaded graphics. Even better, it will soon be available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC. It looks phenomenal,exactly like the old G1 cartoon but in full HD.
While the game looks great, it isn’t just the graphics you should be excited about. Platinum Games developed Transformers Devastation, the same people who brought you the Bayonetta series and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, and the developer currently working on Scalebound for Microsoft. If you’ve played Bayonetta or Metal Gear Rising, you should already have a good idea how Devastation plays, but this one is a bit different from Platinum’s previous titles.
As a Transformers game, it’s not quite as over-the-top as some of Platinum’s previous adventures. Granted, this is still one of the most action-packed Transformers games you’ll ever play, but don’t expect Optimus Prime to go airborne for the better part of a 100-hit combo. Speaking of Prime, there are five playable characters, including Sideswipe, Bumblebee, Wheeljack and Grimlock joining the fearless Autobot leader.
To make this game feel even more nostalgic, Peter Cullen reprised his voice role as Optimus Prime, with Dan Gilvezan portraying Bumblebee, Michael Bell as Sideswipe, Gregg Berger voicing Grimlock and Frank Welker handling Megatron and Soundwave, all from the original G1 cartoon. This is about as close as you’ll get to the perfect G1 Transformers title.
As you might expect from Platinum Games, the combo system in Devastation is fairly robust. Your selected Autobot will transform mid-combo to add a bit of flare to your fighting style. There are also a variety of gameplay types, ranging from traditional melee combat to vehicle levels to shooting stages. The game also gives a few nods to some of the recent Transformers titles, with the ability to switch between four different weapons, collect power-ups, tech and even level up your Autobot and its weapons.
While you can only play as one Autobot at a time, there are instances in which one of the Autobots you’re not playing will join to assist in battle. For example, at one point while playing as Bumblebee, Optimus Prime gave us a helping hand in an effort to bring down Megatron. Speaking of which, while the game is very much Generation 1, Megatron turns into a tank instead of a gun. However, to make up for that, Shockwave still turns into a gun, and when you fight Soundwave you’ll have to deal with both Ravage and Laserbeak simultaneously.
If that weren’t enough, there’s a Challenge Mode that allows you to take the characters from the main story mode and play through a variety of objectives. Any levels you gain while in the Challenge Mode will carry over to the main campaign, where you must stop Megatron from trying to turn the Earth into Cybertron.
Transformers Devastation is due out on October 6, 2015. Be sure to check out our in-depth coverage of the title to get a leg up on the nostalgia and make sure Megatron doesn’t succeed!
