Review #837: Loaded

 Lock and load, baby.

 While this was the first time I've ever played Loaded, I was actually quite familiar with the game's sequel, Re-Loaded, because when I was a kid, whenever we went to this particular store I'd always spend time looking at PC games, so I'd always come across the PC version of Re-Loaded, and, of course, the comic-book like art always piqued my interest. But I digress, this is about the first game in the duology, so onward and forward.

 Loaded is a top-down twin-stick shooter that released before the PlayStation go its analog sticks, so... yeah, I'll delve a tiny bit deeper into the controls later, for now what you need to know is what the game is. You get to pick between 6 different freaks(More like 5 freaks and 1 'hot' babe, it was the 90's, whatcha gonna do?) and I've got to say, I love the game's art. I love the official art, which looks straight out of a magazine such as 2000 AD, and I love how the game itself looks, having simple 2-D sprites over simple, crude 3-D environments. Each character has a different basic gun, a different bomb as well as different durability and speed levels, so they do feel somewhat different. The game is 15 levels long and it can be played with another player, which is pretty neat. Oh, and the sountrack is phenomenal, heavy rock all the way through, and it fits SO well.

 So how does a twin-stick shooter play without analog sticks? Well... it tries. X shoots wherever you are looking at, and you can hold L1(Or any button, since controls are 100% customizable) to strafe. My hands got cramps after a while when playing this game, something no other game managed to pull in recent memory. Enemies are vicious and love to swarm you while rotation around you, but most of the time, running while strafing and shooting backwards worked really well. When the game is at its best, it is AMAZING. Rock music blaring around you, exploding enemies into chunky showers of blood while the framerate struggles to keep up the pace.... it feels SO good. Yes, the framerate tends to tank a lot in this game, but in a game this hectic it kinda works in its favor. Again, when you are clearing entire rooms of enemies that are shooting at you at the same time... it looks glorious, and the slowdown makes it feel more epic.

 Sadly, the game isn't at its best most of the time. Levels are very... 90's PC game, very Doom. It's a labyrinthine set of corridors and rooms that require you to find the right key to progress. There's a map in the game, but it's useless because it's actually a mini-map, so you'd better remember where you found the blue keycard door. Oh, and you have to choose between the minimap or your ammo/life gauges, toggling between them by pressing circle. While the game is so unbelievably fun when you are blasting enemies, it turns into a boring lull when you are running through empty corridors looking for the door you missed or the door you can now open. A few levels actually have infinite enemies, which also get a bit annoying, particularly because you can actually run out of ammo, turning your gun into a weak pea shooter. And yeah, the game is on the tough side, even the easiest difficulty setting, 'Gamers are Fairies'(It was the 90's...) can get quite tough.

 Loaded is alright. I think it's worth a look for those that are curious, but it's easy to see why it never became a household name. And, in the game's defense, it can be a whole lot of fun, like grin-inducing fun, it's a shame that it has so many moments of aimless searching for doors that totally kill the pace and momentum the game game's best moments attained.
 6.5 out of 10