Overall: Good game which borrows its character and background from the comic so not to much explanation is needed to get into the storyline. In a way this appeals to the sadistic part of us that wishes we could get revenge on the scum of the earth without all the legal mumble jumble and if you ever wanted revenge on criminals you would understand why this game gets the Mature Rating. This is a type of game you pop into your xbox when you got an hour to kill and you want immediate action. An enjoyable shooter game that feels a little like dead to rights and max payne so if you enjoyed those games you will enjoy this aswell. Gameplay: Third person shooter that makes you not want to shoot at all but i mean that in a good blood thirsty close combat type of way. What sets this game apart from others is the amount of detail and focus that goes into how you want to kill your enemies. If all you could do was shoot it would be alot like max payne and dead to rights but what truly makes this game unique is the enjoyment you get when you get in close for the quick kills and interrogations and this is where the bulk of the the gameplay lies.
Weapons are your tools for killing, so you have an arsenal that unlocks as you progress through the game. Each weapon has its own variation set of quick kills it can perfom so killing people doesnt get too repetitive. Quick kills are peformed when you get close enough to opponents and the Punisher proceeds to do something like throw the gun in thier hands and then stab them in the face while they catch his gun (very cool and gruesome and very deserving of the M rating).
Apart from weapons you also have four different ways you can interrogate/torture victims when you want to extract information from them and can also lead to death if you please it.
There are also level specific special kill and interrogation zones you can take advantage of during the game.
The way you kill people gives you style points that you can accumulate to upgrade your weapons, unlock special content and win medals in the game. the less you get hit the more you can earn multipliers for your style points.
The AI of the enemies isnt bad but its not all that great either. they think more for themselves than they do as a group but they will take cover and fire blindly around corners if they know you are there. Occasionaly you will get a couple that will try to flank you but they lose sight of you really easily and its not to hard to sneak behind them or head shots on them. Graphics: Great level design, each level feels and looks alot different than the rest and creates believable areas that organized crime would tend to hang out in. The only weakness is in the graphics department. Sometimes when a game focuses on making gameplay fun they tend to think that graphics are not as important. That seems to be true with The Punisher, the game really is fun but they definitly settled on the graphics. level design was great but visually it looks little different than games like dead to rights and max payne.
Cinematic cut-scenes were really good though.
Overall: The Punisher is quite the game if you love shooter games. Torture people to get the information you want, and enjoy the storyline this game has instore for you. Gameplay: Go around shooting at guys, holding people as a human shield, and holding there life in your hands by holding them off a building, or throwing there head in a window is totally awesome in my book. You are the man in this game, and you have to do what is necassiary to get the information you need. It's fun and there are many techniques you can do in this game alone. Gun battles are great, and so are the hand-to-hand combats. Graphics: Graphics are to par. No complaints here about them what so ever. The movie scenes are great to watch as well. Sound: Great sounding game. Everything is great, from the people talking, to the sounds of a machine running. Suggestions: No complaints about the game but to improve I would say to have more battles. If it stays with the storyline as a sequel it would be pretty cool. Also free around play kind of like GTA in a way but better would make this game better than it is already. I know it doesn't really go with what the game is, but I mean when not doing missions you could terrorize the city or something.
Overall: The Punisher is an excellent third-person shooter game. Being a fan of the Punisher and a supporter to his cause for over 15 years, I commend the game developer, Volition for creating a game that does justice for this character. The gameplay is very fun and enjoyable since it contains a lot of bloody over-the-top violence. What makes this game stand out from other third-person shooters is the use of interrogation to force the generic bad guys to talk. In addition, the graphics and sounds are also pretty good. Overall, I highly recommend this game to every Punisher and third-person shooter fans out there. Gameplay: The Punisher is a fun and enjoyable third-person shooter game that contains a lot of bloody over-the-top violence. Armed with a lot of guns and other weapons of destruction, you get to annihilate every criminal scumbag as well as some big name bosses who annoyingly get in your way. In between killing the generic bad guys, you get to interrogate them too to obtain information. I personally like the face smashing and choking the neck technique to force them to talk (muhahahahaha...), and afterwards, you could either use them as a human shield or go for a "quick kill" move like shooting them in the head. In addition, you could also use the "slaughter mode" which is the equivalent to a "bullet time mode" to kill all the generic bad guys. In this mode, the Punisher would drop his weapons and start throwing knives at the faces of the bad guys with precise accurately in slow motion but you have to have enough energy in your "slaughter mode" bar to perform this task.
Graphics: The graphics are pretty good in this game. The cut-scenes are visually beautiful to watch, and the character models and environment settings are nicely drawn too. I want to particularly commend the artists for creating an excellent Punisher model. Great job guys! Sound: The sound is also pretty good in this game. The voice actors did an excellent job especially Tom Jane who was fantastic because he really captured the essence and personality of the Punisher. In addition, the music score and sound effects were really good too. Suggestions: For the sequel, I would like to see the Punisher shoot and run over generic bad guys while driving in different vehicles. I would also like to see the Punisher model be more agile. For example, have him scale walls, and participate in hand-to-hand combat too.
Made in Canada