Can this budget XBLA game take on the FPS titans?
Blacklight Tango Down tries to compete with the big boys of the FPS genre by giving gamers non-stop multiplayer action instead of a single player experience that quite a few missed playing the likes of MW2 and Bad Company 2. So, does it stand a chance at taking them on?
The problem is that while the game is fine to play, it adds absolutely zero in terms of new ideas to the table. It has 12 maps, 4 co-op missions that feel tacked on, customisation and earning experience. It just feels all too familiar to the other competitors, but sadly doesn’t do as well thanks to the small budget that the game clearly had.
Your health regenerates over time, but only a small portion of it depending on how much damage you have taken. Weapons pack a punch but lack the impact and originality of its competitors, which is pretty much the problem with the entire game. The maps are nice but forgettable and once you earn all 200 gamerpoints in about 20 hours just to exp grind and then you’ll probably put it down and go back to MW2 and BC2.
The game isn’t without its share of technical problems either, AI can get caught in-between objects and shoot you when you are in cover. For an XBLA game it looks pretty good, but these are imperfections that hold it back. Sound effects are average and the little bits of voice-acting are pretty bad.
The Verdict
Blacklight Tango Down adds nothing new to the FPS genre, but does provide a fairly fun multiplayer experience for those bored with the other games on the market. Although 1200 Microsoft Points is perhaps too pricey for 12 maps in my eyes…I’d personally wait for the price to come down and boost the game with your friends for a quick 200 points. With a sequel planned, hopefully the team at Zombie can go back to the drawing board and come up with some innovation to add to the game.
