Bionic Commando: ReArmed (Xbox Live Arcade) Review

Posted by Ty Huston on 08.29.2008

Does the remake of the 1988 NES classic stand up to today's standards? Does it live up to the hype? Is it worth the $10.00 price tag? Come inside and find out.




Game: Bionic Commando: ReArmed
System: Xbox 360 Live Arcade
Developer: GRIN
Publisher: Capcom



Bionic Commando emerged as a side-scrolling platformer for the Nintendo Entertainment System to North American customers in December of 1988. The game was your standard “run and gun” game, with an additional bonus – the leader character of the game, Nathan “Radd” Spencer, had a mechanical arm with a gun that fired a grappling hook and could be used to swing throughout the various obstacles and stages of the game.

The general story of the game, was that sometime during the 1980s, a resurgence of Nazis began working on a project known as “The Albatross,” commissioned by their leader Generalissimo Weizmann with the main plot twist being that they also had some hair brained idea that they were going to resurrect Adolf Hitler.

Now, the Japanese version of the game came equipped with direct references to Nazis, Hitler and blatant use of the swastika. The North American version, being that this was 1988 and being politically correct was all the rage, referred to the Nazis as “the Badds, “ their leader was Generalissimo Killt and Hitler was known as “Master-D.”

Oh yeah, they ditched the swastikas too.

Anyway, the general idea of the game was that The Federation has sent Spencer, who was this super soldier with a bionic arm, into Imperial territory to rescue the world’s greatest solider 3V4R – Super Joe (who just so happens to be the character from the NES game Commando). You see, somewhere along Super Joe’s mission to infiltrate the Imperials and end their plot to raise Hitler … uh …“Master-D”, from the dead and build this Albatross thing, he was captured and held as a prisoner of war.

So Spencer goes on a mission to save Super Joe, finds out about The Albatross and Hitler … “MASTER-D” … and then joins forces with Super Joe to put an end to this crazy bullshit and save the world.

Since 1988, the game has seen the light in a Gameboy version and was also on a release with other Capcom legends (Capcom Classics Mini-Mix) for the Gameboy Advance which featured other such games as Mighty Final Fight and the NES version of Strider.

Twenty years have passed and people have continued to discuss how awesome the original Bionic Commando is. It is one of those few crown jewels for the original Nintendo Entertainment System that was not developed by Nintendo themselves.

On October 16, 2007, it was announced by Capcom that they were producing a sequel to Bionic Commando – an 3D version for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Windows PC. Unknowingly, until 2008, Capcom and developer GRIN were also in the process of reinventing the game that started it all – creating an updated version of the original NES classic with additional weapons, stages and even using the same side-scrolling platformer style while adding in three dimensional graphics and ragdoll death animations.

The game has several added features which improves the game from the original (as listed by Wikipedia):

- The addition of a health bar and the ability to upgrade your health and regain health through pickups.
- The ability to grab barrels and enemies using the bionic arm.
- Different weapons to change between with varying levels of effectiveness based on your enemy.
- Completely redesigned boss battles.
- Two-Player co-op, which the game adjusts the artificial intelligence for both enemies and bosses to accommodate the second player.
- A new three dimensional puzzle for hacking into enemy computer networks.
- Challenge rooms where you can train your skills using the bionic arm and are timed from start to finish.
- Competitive multiplayer modes.
- Force feedback for the controller.



”Swing it to the left, swing it to the right, think about baseball and swing all night …”


Gameplay

The obvious key to this game is the bionic arm. It is everything in this game. The weapons have been updated from a simple one slow shot at a time revolver, to a shotgun, plasma rifle and even a bazooka (which rocks, by the way). They are handy. But if you want to go anywhere in this game, you use the bionic arm.

The mechanics of the arm are quite simple, but the controls are a bit stiff on the Xbox 360 version. That’s not to say you can’t master it after trying for a while, you simply have to do a lot of swinging to get it down and even then it can be difficult. The biggest issue I’ve noticed is while trying to swing from object to object, the use of the directional pad nor does the stick in a diagonal direction seem to be very effective. That may just be part of the known flaw with the X360 controller (which has recently been fixed) or if the control for the arm is just that stiff. It can lead to a lot of deaths just trying to get from place to place.

One thing you’ll also notice is that you can’t control which direction you fall as you are falling. That too can be quite the pain in the ass. My biggest gripe? Absolutely no jumping function whatsoever. None. Nathan Spencer is a white man and we all known white men can’t jump. Apparently.

Beyond the few flaws with the controls, however, is the amazing usage of the bionic arm. You can grab barrels and use them for shields. You can toss the barrels at your opponent. You can roll the barrel at your opponent. Plus, once the arm has been upgraded, you can grab your enemies and use them for shield or just toss them away like the little bastard they are and watch them die.

The few gripes about the mechanics of the arm can be overlooked because a game like this would be far too easy if the arm worked like you were Spiderman slinging from building to building. Instead, it adds a level of difficulty consistent with old school NES platformers and that is not a bad thing at all.



BOOM! Shaka laka.


Graphics

Completely redesigned and given 3D architecture to provide the game with crisp textures, bright colors and smooth animation. Rarely you see this level of detail put into a current generation retail game, let alone a remake of an old NES game. There is no clipping. No lagging. Nothing. This game runs so smooth you might actually drool over the fact that an XBLA game is this great to watch.



This guy doesn’t know what’s comin’.


Sound

GRIN and Capcom have gone the extra mile to have all of the music in BC: ReArmed sound reminiscent of the original MIDI versions. They hired Simon Viklund to create these masterpieces and the music has even been released on May 27, 2008 as a soundtrack. What does that tell you? Yes, the music is awesome. The standard gun shots and explosions are there, and done well, but the music is what shines in the audio department of Bionic Commando: ReArmed.




Boss battle, bay bee.


Lasting Appeal

The gamers who are going to pick this game up are 95% old schoolers who want to relive their youth. I can’t even begin to count the hundreds of hours I wasted playing the original game on the NES as a kid. I loved that game. ReArmed is everything the NES version was and multiplied by three. Hell, it’s not even tripled. It’s cubed. If you like side-scrollers, if you like platformers, if you like any game from the pre-64 bit generation – you’re bound to enjoy Bionic Commando: ReArmed, and you’ll continue to play it for a long time to come.

Not only is the single player mode tons of fun, but with the challenge rooms and added two-player cooperative play, how can you not play this game until you get “Nintendo Thumb?”

(Nintendo Thumb is the classic injury to one’s thumb, making it stiff and sore and originally named because of countless hours of playing Nintendo.)




Two bionic arms are better than one.


Fun Factor

Incredibly fun. Ridiculously fun. Simple, yet engrossing enough to keep you playing until the wee hours of the morning with your best amigo by your side, saving Super Joe and putting an end to Hitler … err, “Master-D” … oh, wait. He’s called “The Leader” in ReArmed. Yeah, killing that guy. Again.


The 411

To say I was excited when I heard this game was being developed is an understatement. My only hope was that it would live up to the original and do the franchise justice. It has. There is no better videogame remake anywhere that can touch this and no game I’ve played through XBLA is even anywhere near Bionic Commando: ReArmed’s league. It is a standout game for the console. Plus, the price tag doesn’t hurt. In a hurting economy where everybody is trying to save their pennies, BC:ReArmed is priced at a mere $10.00 (800 Microsoft Points) is a steal.

After seeing what GRIN and Capcom can do with old licenses and quality remakes, my vote is for Strider to get the BC:ReArmed treatment next. Between Bionic Commando and Strider, I think I spent 95% of my childhood in front of my old NES.

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While I'm at it, I’ve decided to include the known cheat codes for Bionic Commando: ReArmed. The following codes, entered at the game’s title screen, unlock the particular secret rooms:

Aaron Sedillo Room - Right, Down, Left, Up, Left Bumper, Right Bumper, Y, Y, X, X, Start

EuroGamer Room - Down, Up, Down, Up, Left, Left Bumper, Square, Left Bumper, Square, Y, Start

GamesRadar Room - Right Bumper, Y, Square, Square, Up, Down, Left Bumper, Left Bumper, Up, Down, Start

IGN.com Room - Up, Down, Y, Square, Square, Y, Down, Up, Left Bumper, Left Bumper, Start

Graphics	9.5	Perhaps the highest quality animations, textures and colors you'll find on an XBLA title.
Gameplay	9.0	The game runs smooth with minor issues, such as slight control problems with the bionic arm and after adding everything they added - no jumping?
Sound	10.0	A XBLA game with a full, quality soundtrack? Scary.
Lasting Appeal	9.0	The game is somewhat short, but with all the challenge rooms and the multiplayer options, you're sure to get three times the play out of Bionic Commando: ReArmed than any other title on XBLA.
Fun Factor	10.0	From the nostalgia to the newly implemented features, Bionic Commando: ReArmed delivers. Here's to hoping that Capcom will give some of its other classic licenses the same treatment.
Overall	9.5   [  Amazing ]

Screenshots
All 21 Bionic Commando Rearmed Screenshots