Archview #11: Godzilla Destroy all Monsters Melee

 It grew on me...

  For starters, I know jack about Godzilla, I mean, I'm familliar with the franchise, I know what is a Mothra, I know that there is more than one Mecha-Godzilla, I know that the franchise involves aliens and humans as much as the kaijuu themselves(Well, maybe not as much). So I hope I don't mess up too badly as I fumble around the review.

 Godzilla: DAMM is a fighting game in which you take control of a "Kaijuu", a giant monster, and have to battle another giant monster. Battles take place in various cities, which can, and will, get destroyed as you fight. You have a Punch, a Kick and a "Limb" button, stringing them together you can get combos, and coupling them with the analog stick you get more moves. Punch+Kick is grab, and Punch+Limb unleashes the rage move, provided you are in Rage mode. There's also a Beam button, that can be charged to unleash... a beam attack.

 First complaint: Controls feel wonky. Yes, monsters react slowly to your button presses since they are supposed to be big and heavy... but they are still wonky. Also, if you are not exremely precise with the Grab or Rage move combination, you'll end up just punching the air. It happens a lot, and it's annoying. Another baffling mechanic is... Head rotation. By using the C-Stick you can rotate you monster's head, in order to better aim the beam attack(Since homing is also wonky). It's a really strange mechanic, and due to the camera angles, it never manages to become second nature.

 Monsters are caged with laser walls, touch them, and get knocked back while taking negligible damage. Throughout the stage, sometimes power ups will appear, they can be either Health restores, Energy restores(Energy recharges slowly, and it's used for beam attacks), Rage(This puts you in rage mode, allowing you to use the Rage attack AND goes through monster resistances) or... Mothra. Yes, Mothra, one of Godzilla's trademark enemies is a mere power-up. He flies by, zapping the enemy.

 Stages also have the military forces and alien spaceships, and both like to take their anger out on the Kaijuu. While they do little damage, occasionaly you'll get frozen by the ice beam, granting the enemy a free attack. Some buildings can also be picked up and thrown. Something I disliked, is that it's not immediately obvious what can be picked up, unless you get close to it and it flashes red.
 The game looks really good. While buildings are very simple, the monsters look really good, however the beam attacks look really puny. They sound puny, and the visual feedback looks as if the other monster simply got a weak push. Monster screams are quite fitting though. The music is barely noticeable, but it's better that way, it sounds way more epic to have all the little explotions and monster screams fill the enviroment.

 There are 11 Kaijuu, and one of the neatest things, is how each one feels very different from one another. Actually, Godzilla 2000 is a slightly different Godzilla 90s, and Mecha Gidorah is barely different from King Gidorah. However, those particular cases aside, each monster feel very different. For example, one of the has a spiked shell, hit it, and your monster will get stunned as he grabs his paw or foot  in pain. Another one can dive into the ground, and a couple of them can fly. One thing I disliked though, is the Blunt, Sharp and Beam resistances. Some monsters are particularily resilient to one type of attack, and weak to another. It's a bit annoying, but I guess it adds some un-needed depth.
 This game is a case of "It's better with friends", 'cause y'see, if you play single player, you can only play: Adventure mode(Where the AI is horribly cheap and the Military seems to target you exclusively, shame it's how you unlock everything), Versus(You versus 1 CPU) and Survival. However, if you have friends, you can play Melee, a 4 man free for all. You can also play Destruction, where you race to destroy the town before the other player. You also get the added bonus that human players won't own you like the CPUs.

 Godzilla: DAMM is not a bad game, but it's not for everyone. Godzilla fans will eat it right up, anyone else, tread carefully.
 It's a 6/10.