thatdemoguy
Shell Shocked: TMNT Mutants in Manhattan
Madworld, Anarchy Reigns, Metal Gear Rising, The Wonderful 101, Bayonetta 1 & 2, Vanquish and Transformers: Devastation. Platinum Games has quite the track record. They are known for taking existing or creating original properties and injecting them with their own very unique flavor. Typically crisp visuals coupled with over the top, frenetic, yet insanely deep and rewarding combat that encourages the player to maximize their movement and damage options. Their games are typically on the shorter end, but they have always had very high replay value because as you learn the nuances of the system, you naturally blow through the game faster, thus you want to play on higher difficulties. Their formula had almost been perfected to a science. So when it was announced that the next property that was going to get the Platinum treatment was to be none other than the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, it was only natural to assume that this meant great things and was nothing short of a marriage made in heaven.
This was a horrible assumption, and right about now I suggest counseling.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan is NOT a "bad" game but it damn sure isn't a very good game. Mind you it's mechanically functional and doesn't suffer from many technical issues outside of those that have come to be expected like a sometimes unruly camera. But this is a very far fall from the typical quality expected from Platinum. I don't know what happened or where this one went wrong, but the game feels insulting at worst and then uninspired at best. It feels like the license was tacked onto a build that had lots of promise, but then was rushed to retail, maybe to coincide with the release of the new movie next week. And if the recent debacle surrounding Ratchet & Clank proves anything, it's that trying to piggyback off of a separate form of media is a gamble that very rarely works out.
Given that the game is based on the IDW comic, I would have expected better writing or a narrative that actually goes somewhere. But the game relies too heavily on the typical beats we all know. Shredder/Krang want to take over the world, somehow always centering their attack on New York. The TMNT team are the only ones that can stop them. Leonardo leads, Donatello does machines. Raphael is cool but rude, Michelangelo is a party dude. Throw all the ingredients into one pot, stir, add some bonus mutant villains that play on our nostalgia, give you a controller with an afternoon to spare and BAM there's your game. Now I know that I said that shorter length has always been something that Platinum games have been known for, but this game can seriously be beat in one sitting. Maybe 5 hours TOPS. Which would be perfectly fine, if the actual gameplay kept you engaged, and that's where this game falls flat on it's ass.
The usual depth that has come to be expected is gone. This game truly feels like a button masher through and through. Taking a cue from Transformers: Devastation, combat takes place in these pseudo-open arenas with enemies you have to seek out, find, and clear before being able to advance to the next area. But almost all enemies can be taken down with no real thought put into anything. Well im sorry, let me correct myself, the only thought you will put into the combat is how to keep your ridiculously inept AI counterparts alive as they constantly run head long into environmental traps or into enemy attacks. This really becomes a problem when you face what should be the tent pole moments of the game, and those are the bosses. These fights seem like they would be so cool, you and your entire team vs these iconic villains from TMNT lore, but the bosses are horribly broken in the way that they aren't necessarily hard, but the AI makes the fights difficult because they don't pay attention to the visual cues for the huge, sweeping area of effect, stun causing, or massively damaging attacks. So you're constantly having to nurse them while also trying to take down the boss, who has a whole rainbow of multi-colored lifebars. It's artificial difficulty, and that seriously detracts from the fun factor.
Everything isn't all bad, if I can give one positive mark to the game, its that the visuals are very nice. The comic style presentation pops off the screen and is very aesthetically pleasing. The contrast between the hyper stylized character models against the understated backgrounds really stands out. Also even with all the things happening on the screen, with all the turtles fighting simultaneously with multiple enemies, they have done a good job of making each character's attacks distinct and recognizable. So even at its most busy moment, I know what my attacks look like vs the enemy's or even vs one of my fellow turtles. But not to give a gift and then take it away, I have to unfortunately report that while the game looks good visually, its regrettably and almost unforgivingly locked at 30FPS across the board ON ALL PLATFORMS. I'm unsure if this was to make sure that the game still ran properly on the older hardware (PS3/360) but this really gimps the other versions. The fast paced action doesn't ever reach it's true potential when the frame rate holds it back. This may not seem like a big deal to some, but when compared to other action heavy titles, even titles from Platinum themselves, this is an egregious error.
Also look me up on social media. Follow and Subscribe to your boy for future content.
I know it seems like I am just railing on this game, but it's only because I had such high expectations given the pedigree of the company making it and my love for the license. I truly feel that TMNT deserved better than this passable and almost sophomoric effort. I do not lament my purchase, but I have to be as frank as possible and say that I wish that I had waited for a sale. This game wasn't worth my $49.99 at all. Had it been a PSN/XBL title and released at $20, I wouldn't feel so slighted (which is a large reason I was lenient on The Legend of Korra title), but as is this is definitely bargain bin/rental material.
NOTE: All of my impressions are based upon the SINGLE PLAYER portion of the game. I do feel that the game may be significantly better if played with other human players who are working in conjunction with you and understand their chosen turtle's various abilities. I will gladly amend this once I get the chance to play with other players.
Feel free to hit me with your thoughts in the comments.
