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Transformers: Fall of Cybertron

Transformers: Fall of Cybertron

Cybertron is on the brink. Eons of civil war between Autobots and Decepticons have marred the planet irrevocably and the celestial home can no longer produce the life sustaining Energon.

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The noble Autobots' last best hope is the spaceship Ark and to escape in order to find a new home beyond the stars. The Decepticons have other plans and, even in the mist of all the despair, war rages on more fiercely than ever.

Transformers: Fall of Cybertron picks on exactly where High Moon Studios' previous and acclaimed War for Cybertron left it. After that title Transformers games had entered another sad chapter in licence game history, so when this sequel was announced, hope for a proper Transformers game was rekindled. And the spark of hope was not in vain. Fall of Cybertron may very well be the best that the franchise has ever produced.

High Moon Studios was not lying when they promised the game would have a lot of variety. Every one of the game's thirteen chapters stars a new Transformer, each of which with their own set of unique skills and abilities. Therefore every level feels nice and fresh and there is never time for boredom to set in.

Transformers: Fall of Cybertron
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Optimus Prime can for instance order in artillery ordnance, Cliffjumper relies on stealth and Dinobot Grimlock takes the fight to close quarters with sword and shield before transforming into a hulking tyrannosaur form. Of course players also get to kick some puny Autobot ass with the Decepticons like head honcho Megatron and cool Combaticons who combine to form the mighty destructor Bruticus.

On the downside the single player campaign isn't exceedingly long and the game can be easily beaten in 7-8 hours. There is enough challenge, but numerous sudden deaths and bottomless pits do cause some irritation. And players will soon to learn (the hard way) not to let any enemies with shotguns to get anywhere near close to their character. As a small nice surprise, the player does have regenerative shield, but underneath also a good ol' health meter that requires energon to refill.

Fittingly, the robots feel very heavy when controlling them, but they're surprisingly precise. While vehicle transformations offer more durability and extra firepower, you need to adjust to the controls. Four wheelers especially don't behave realistically in any way and instead slightly hover and can even strafe.

Transformers: Fall of Cybertron
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Transformers: Fall of Cybertron provides five multiplayer game modes to balance the short single player. This time there is no co-op in the story mode, but instead the game features a new mode called Escalation, which resembles - you guessed it - Gears of War's Horde mode.

The competitive multiplayer consists of four of your typical game modes, but definitely the biggest new feature is the possibility to choose one out of four character classes and build a robot to your own liking from a plethora of body parts. Unfortunately all the parts need to be unlocked by playing the MP, so you can't start straight away with your dream bot.

High Moon has obviously taken lessons from several successful titles and you can find many of the current staples of modern online gaming like levels, perks and unlockables in the game. It's an impressive build, but the foundations aren't solid - as if construction was rushed due to time or money constraints, which is a massive shame.

Transformers: Fall of Cybertron

Visually Transformers: Fall of Cybertron is nice piece of video game entertainment and the slightly more darker and serious tone to the narrative fits it perfectly. The soundtrack is simply awesome and makes sure player is pumped up as the screen explodes with action. A special tip of the hat has to go to the dynamic environments. Even though the levels are not really destructible there is so many breakable and explosive objects that the illusion of a machine planet works like charm.

In all, it's the game that fans have been waiting on. It tops the previous game in every way and with a style that makes my inner 10-year-old jump with joy. Yet it's not without faults and for those who are not interested in online game play can take grievance of the short campaign.

Multiplayer on the other hand tries too hard just to emulate other successful franchises and doesn't do enough of it's own and lack a much-needed final polish. There's plenty of exciting moments to be had throughout the game - but it lacks that extra attention to make it an amazing game for all, not just an amazing game for Transformers fans.

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08 Gamereactor UK
8 / 10
+
+ Excellent variety in gameplay and characters. + Epic storyline and soundtrack.
-
- Short Campaign - No co-op. - Dodgy vehicle controls - MP needs more polish.
overall score
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