As with the release of any modern day Hollywood blockbuster, there is always the usual movie tie-in game that accompanies the film. Released in every format possible so that it spans the entire range of hardware available, these games promise to offer you a glimpse at what happens after the credits have finished or fill in the blanks when the cameras have stopped rolling. Hot on the heels of the cinema release comes G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra – The Game.

Very few of these games seem to achieve what they set out to on the back of the case. Recent exceptions to this have been Ghostbusters – The Videogame and The Chronicles Of Riddick. Unfortunately, G.I. Joe comes nowhere near achieving what these games have shown can be done.

From the outset, the gameplay is based on you running between each checkpoint with your finger firmly pressed on the Fire button, barrel rolling around the floor and occasionally taking cover behind the odd piece of fallen tree trunk or cement barrier. When you do get close to an enemy, a quick press of the melee button inflicts more damage than a barrage of bullets.
Once in a while, after you’ve managed to shoot/pistol whip enough soldiers and gun turrets, you gain the ability to use the ‘Acceleration Suit’ which briefly makes you indestructible and increases your speed of movement. But this only allows you to kill the relentless stream of enemies that little bit quicker for a short period of time.

When the action does move along you are presented with the opportunity of using of vehicles; these can be dropped in by your fellow Joe team mates, or found idly waiting for you. The control scheme for vehicles is all based around one analogue stick, with up to accelerate, down to reverse, and left and right to steer. This can be increasingly frustrating, leading to the vehicle being jammed up against a wall or suddenly veering from left to right whilst you try to reverse and turn at the same time.

The camera is incredibly unhelpful – primarily as you have no control over it. Designed to lead the player through each level, it ends up hampering your view; turning a corner leaves enemies off screen happily shooting you to oblivion and retracing your steps leaves the character looking directly at the camera with no way of knowing what awaits you.

Some time seems to have been taken in trying to recreate the characters likeness with player models looking very good, but only one member of the film’s cast seems to have lent his voice to the character he portrays. The landscapes you encounter during the game have all been seen before, with no attempt to create anything fresh and new. With more time and effort from the developer an enjoyable third person shooter could have been made, but as with all movie tie-ins, the product has had to be completed by the time the film launches, regardless of whether it reaches it’s best possible standard.

G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra * ½

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