Transformers: War For Cybertron Review: Characters Part 1

After pretty much everything you could think of conspired against me, I finally got through the campaign mode. SE releasing an update wasn't enough of a deterrent for me to avoid playing this game, but...

...my recently repaired 360 going kaput was. It's funny really. I've waited since the announcement of that game late last year for it's release and wouldn't you know the 360 that I hadn't had a single issue with since it's repair decided it didn't want to work anymore.

Eh, probably shouldn't say "didn't want to work anymore." Should probably say "worked when it wanted to." After taking it apart again and redoing the heatsinks. It worked long enough for me to get through a couple chapters of TF:WFC. I stopped afterwards because the game is so heavy that I felt bludgeoned over the head.

(I loved every minute of it btw...)

During the break, I leveled DRG. Next day...360 didn't want to work, so back to leveling I went. Next day (Thurs...), it worked and I got through the rest of the Decepticon campaign. Day after that, didn't work. Fuck it, I'm buying a new 360. Anyway, onto the review. This review will actually be split up into several parts. Tenatively, it will look like this:

Characters Part 1: Autobots
Characters Part 2: Decepticons
Campaign
Multiplayer
Overall/Final Thoughts

High Moon Studios and Activision did their home work. I've always felt if someone was going to pick up the franchise, I didn't particularly care if they were true to the lore and the history, but the characters themselves had to have their unmistakable physical traits somewhere that made you say "That's Starscream!" or "That's Megatron!"

The number of playable characters in this game is a huge selling point. The dedication to making them identifiable is very noticeable. Pretty much anyone who grew up watching the original G1 cartoon will be hard pressed to not squeal with glee when they see a lot of their favorite characters in full 1080p and their personalities permeating in everything they do.

Autobots

Optimus Prime

You can't have a Transformers game without O.P. The game starts before Optimus actually became a Prime though. For you non-lore people out there, "Prime" has taken on the meaning of leader. It's a bit of a far cry from the whole "Orion Pax" story line that was presented in the original G1 cartoon series, but again, revisionist history isn't what's important here. What's important is that they got the character right. They brought in Peter Cullen to do the voice. They gave him his big ass orange axe (even explaining at one point how he's able to use it...). They even went into detail how he became a Prime and how the Matrix of Leadership was created.

Bumblebee

Given his prominence in the movies lately, Bumblebee has almost become another required character for any iteration of a Transformers story. True to form, he works as a scout with a few stealth abilities. His personality is rather bubbly in this game despite a war ravaging around him, but in pretty much any continuity, this was the case. He disappeared after the G1 story lines were done and made his on-screen reappearance nearly 20 years later in the first Bayformers movie. Why this was the case, one can only guess given his prominence in the original series.

Ironhide

Gruff, no-nonsense, old-timing, soldier to the core. Ironhide often times is depicted as the old, cantankerous, grumpy friend of Prime's and/or his second in command. He's also depicted as loving huge guns and spoiling for a fight. Aside from the Transformers: Energon incarnation (or abomination depending on your perspective), Ironhide has always been a fan favorite for his "Asskicking first, questions second" approach. Ironhide's design is probably the closest anyone's seen to his G1 version, but then when you look back at the G1 version, it's no wonder Megatron offed him in one shot in the movie. My only gripe with this version of him is...you guys had Peter Cullen right there! Why did you not let him reprise his role? They went so far as to write Ironhide's personality to be similar to the cowboy-ish phrase spewing G1 incarnation, why not just give him his original voice...

Ratchet

Ratchet's had many diff. personalities in the various continuities he's appeared in. His G1 personality was that of a gruff, slightly cranky, medic. The medic part of his character has been his primary identification with fans. These traits were exasperated in the Transformers: Animated series and seemingly non-existent (medic part aside) in his movie portrayals. Overall, he's the go-to bot for repairs and he's no different in this game.

Jetfire

Yeah, talk about a character portrayed in a wide variety of fashions. His original incarnation was that of a scientist and not the bumbling, senile, old geezer that farts parachutes in Bayformers 2. Jetfire's G1 history is portrayed accurately here as we witness his work with Starscream before he turned to the Decepticons. Generally depicted as a humongous jet (heh...get it..."Jet"fire...) with a huge arsenal, he often times just wants to be left alone to study and not be bothered with all the fight stuff. Immersed in a war with the possibility of massive loss of life, Jetfire takes up the Autobot mantle.

Sideswipe

This character has always been a bit of an enigma to me. In most versions of his fiction, he's generally a bit of a hot-headed soldier with a lot of skill and a love for being fast and sleek. He's also depicted as being rather inseparable from his brother, Sunstreaker (who isn't present in this game). While there's only one mission that you can use him in, he has a few one-liners that got a chuckle out of me.

Warpath

This guy's appearance was a bit of a surprise to me. I could see him in a cameo role, but not as a playable character in the main storyline. Not that it was a bad surprise, it's just that Warpath hasn't had a lot of the spotlight put on him. He's always been a bit of a fan favorite given his penchant for verbally onomatopoeia-izing all of his actions (KERPOW! BLAM! SHAZAM!), but never really had the spotlight on him for any real length of time. Pretty much any version of this guy has him with a huge cannon sticking out of his chest and turning into some form of a tank. Same holds true here. The mission he's on in this game is with Ironhide and the dialogue between the two is rather priceless.

Silverbolt

Leader of the Aerialbots. Afraid of heights. He was a bit of a surprise as well, but not as much as Warpath. In the G1 series, the Aerialbots (all 5 of them) were sent back in time and had a (in)direct hand in the emergence of Optimus Prime (re: Orion Pax storyline...). The fact he's afraid of heights and is a bot that flies is played up in a bit of a humorous conversation he has at one point. He's one of the characters who's name gets used quite a bit and is usually depicted as some sort of a flying...something. He's pretty much been everything from a Concorde to a Stealth Bomber to...a bald eagle. Most fans will identify him as the gestalt body of Superion when he merges with Air Raid, Fireflight, Skydive and Slingshot. Speaking of...

Air Raid

This guy was probably the biggest surprise of them all. His appearance along with Silverbolt made me think that Superion wasn't far behind, but a las, this is not the case. Fireflight, Skydive and Slingshot are nowhere to be found. Air Raid's name makes it hard for him to be depicted as anything other than some sort of a jet and this holds true. Impulsive to the max, he had one of my favorite mottos of all time: "If you look first, you may not leap." Regardless, he plays a semi-major role in this game which is what made the surprise as large as it was for me given his relative obscurity in the various timelines otherwise.

Omega Supreme

Last and certainly not least. The original trailer showed the big 'bot blowing up a ton of crap (effective marketing 101 to Transformers fans btw). Every incarnation of Omega has him as the last line of defense and speaking very...voice synthesizerish. He's also always been depicted as some sort of a very large transport vessel. Was very happy to see how he was used in this game. I just have to say the last couple chapters of the Decepticon campaign where Omega Supreme is pretty much rampaging to meet his objective of destroying Megatron are about as G1 as you're going to get.

Next post (hopefully): Decepticons.