Black review

The easiest way to describe Black is to imagine, just for the briefest of moments, that the game isn’t a bunch of code forced onto a DVD disc, but is instead a hyperactive child at a birthday party that’s haemorrhaging Smarties at a rapid rate. It may be fast, exciting and unpredictable, but it’s also slightly confused about where it’s going, and the comedown when it’s finished is slightly disappointing. But, while it’s in full flow, it’s one of the most action-packed experiences the PS2 has seen for quite some time.

The plot? Well, there is one, but it bears little relation to the game itself. A man is being interrogated in a cell and, to defend his corner, he explains certain scenarios that are then played out by your good self. There’s lots of talk of terrorists, explosions, betrayal and feverish gunfire, but if you’re anything like me, you’ll be stabbing at the X key to try and skip it.

Black is Criterion’s antidote to the reams of technically impressive but gameplay-lite first-person shooters which have been dominating the games industry since Wolfenstein 3D. Taking more than a few leaves out of Doom’s book, Black forgoes detailed missions and plot threads and, instead, concentrates on the task in hand – which is killing anyone stupid enough to get in your way with a terrifying range of heavy armament.

Back in Black

Trying to do for the FPS what Burnout did for the driving game, there’s no denying that Black is a thrill from start to finish. On one hand, just being able to concentrate on the action is a liberating experience, meaning that you’re not forced to desperately wander through a series of identical locations looking for a hidden key to get you through to the next part of the mission. On the other though, the straightforward gameplay is unlikely to appeal to everyone and, just because you’re a fan of first-person shooters, it doesn’t mean you’ll fall in love with Black.

There are a couple of niggles that need mentioning. Firstly, although Black could be called entertaining, you certainly couldn’t call it long. The game’s divided up into eight missions and each one shouldn’t take you much longer than an hour – and, as there’s an abundance of ammo and health wherever you go, the chances are that you’ll breeze through most of them on your first attempt.

More irritatingly though, Black comes without an online multiplayer option – which, for a first-person shooter, is bordering on the unforgivable. I’m sure that Criterion has a very good excuse for not including one, but to be honest, I don’t want to hear it. First-person shooters are all about the multiplayer. Very few have a single-player game that matches the thrills and spills of an online deathmatch, so leaving one out is hugely disappointing.

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Of course, if you blindly run through each location firing wildly and doing your best ‘crazed war veteran’ impression, then you won’t last long, but if you mix firepower with stealth elements, then you’ll spot the guards and the gun emplacements before they spot you. And, of course, this being a first-person shooter, you can always hide away to take a breather. Can’t you?

Oh no, not exactly. The unique selling point of Black is that almost everything that you see can be destroyed. Where you previously might have been able to hide out in a deserted house in SOCOM, now you’ll find that it soon gets ripped apart under a hail of bullets, grenades and rockets. And it’s impressive stuff.

In one of my favourite missions, I managed to limp into a derelict house after coming under heavy fire. Wounded and desperately in need of a health pack, I headed up the stairs for a moments peace and to catch our breath. Only it didn’t happen. Instead, windows erupted as I limped past them and walls disintegrated under heavy fire. Then I spotted a health pack under a window on the other side of the room. Could I reach it? I had to try. Standing up, I broke into a run… only to be blown apart by a cunning gun emplacement who’d been watching me closely since we entered the building.

And the intelligence levels of the computer-controlled characters is well above average, too. Watch the way they move and they’ll slowly advance on your position, moving swiftly between cover until they can get a better shot at you. Casually toss a grenade in their direction and they’ll panic and dive for cover or ambush a group and they’ll split neatly to target you from different directions.

The Bottom Line

Black is a difficult game to review, because after five minutes of play you immediately want to slap a 9 or 10 on it and proclaim it as the best shooter ever. That mood doesn’t change much over the next couple of hours, either. It’s only when you’re fighting through the sixth or seventh mission and nearing the end of the game that you realise that, while Black is certainly a very good game indeed, ironically it lacks the depth to make it a classic.

Burnout, Criterion’s other gem, is an adrenaline-fuelled assault on the senses and the Jackson Pollock of the gaming world, but it also has more than enough depth, options and modes to keep the interest up and the gameplay fresh and exciting. The fact that you can complete Black in a couple of days’ play and there are no real unlockable features worthy of mentioning means that you’ll probably feel like you haven’t quite got your money’s worth.

To end on a positive though, it has to be said that the eight or nine hours it will take you to complete the game are hugely enjoyable. Graphically it’s well above average and there’s only the slightest hint of slowdown when the action hots up. A few more missions, an online mode and some decent unlockables would’ve easily added another point to the overall score.