From my first sip of an energy drink, I knew nothing good could come from them. It was no surprise then to learn that the virtual world’s largest provider of energy drinks, Fizzco, inadvertently turned most of Sunset City into mutants with its latest product, OverCharge Delirium XT. The monstrous freaks are known as OD, ravenous creatures that are as violent as they are eager for more OverCharge. In Sunset Overdrive, Insomniac’s Xbox One debut, players must band together with the remaining humans in order to save the city from the roaming hordes of OD, marauding Scabs, and Fizzco’s security forces.
Sunset Overdrive has many of the hallmarks of an Insomniac Games title: it’s colorful, humorous, and as focused on platforming as it is on action. The bright, stylized graphics are in stark contrast to other third-person shooters, and despite the ongoing catastrophe, the game never takes itself too seriously. There’s no brooding here; instead, the opposite is true. From “POP” appearing in explosions, the frequent fourth-wall-breaking comments, and baritone announcer narrating weapon demonstrations, the tongue is firmly in cheek. But even more important is how players navigate the world.
As with most open-world games, player mobility is an important element in creating a large but manageable environment. Unlike most games, however, Sunset Overdrive doesn’t just focus on how players get from point A to point B but also on how to make that trip as exciting and engaging as possible. The city’s layout encourages players to keep their feet on anything but the pavement, with vehicles, bushes, and canopies liberally located on every road and in every nook to provide surfaces to bounce off of, railings and wires to grind on, and walls to run up and along. Everything, save for the occasional awkwardly placed overhang or corner, is placed just so to keep players in the air and on the move. The game’s loose adherence to physics offers even more options, including the ability to glide through the air and slide across water. Fast travel is also available for those who somehow get bored of soaring, grinding, and sliding about, a scenario I find difficult to fathom. Given the amount of freedom all of these options offer, it’s going to be difficult for me to go back to other open-world titles.
Learning how to best traverse the cityscape does have a learning curve, though. Players will occasionally land on objects without a bounceable surface, which results in an abrupt end to a nice run. The controls will also take some time to adjust to as they don’t always interact with the environment as expected. Actions are quick to come out, but there are times when it’s difficult to judge the appropriate amount of wiggle room that the game offers when interacting with objects. This leads to surfaces or items occasionally being too far away to use despite seemingly being in range; however, with enough practice, players will be able to pull off some impressively fluid runs with few hiccups. The game’s focus on momentum can also lead to the occasional slip-up independent of the player’s skill. For example, I landed straight down on a hard-surfaced rooftop, but instead of staying put, the character immediately segued into a small jump animation that sent me right over the edge. Falling doesn’t result in any injuries, but little moments like this, or when the otherwise steady camera switches to an odd angle, can be frustrating when trying to be precise—especially during combat.
Keeping off the ground and in motion is crucial not only for speedy travel but also for staying alive, as there are numerous enemies wandering about the city. Not only are there a variety of ODs, including swarming grunts and others that spew poison and spawn more enemies, but there are also Fizzco security robots and hooligan humans know as Scabs. As with the OD, there are a variety of each, breaking down into long range, medium range, and melee, with the Scabs replacing laser swords and guns for more traditional bats and assault rifles. And anyone who finds themselves standing still will quickly become the target for dozens of melee brawlers and waves of projectiles as enemies come out of the woodwork to converge on the position. It’s very easy to become overwhelmed. Fortunately, all of the navigational tools at the player’s disposal are just as useful to avoid attacks, from using fans to get a boost while jumping to being able to alternate between grinding above a wire on foot or below while hanging from a crowbar. These are supplemented by a generous targeting system that follows a ‘Close enough? Good enough’ philosophy, which turned out to be a great decision given the speed at which players can travel and the pandemonium of combat. Enemies will also fight one another, and large skirmishes can break out at any moment between factions. It’s thrilling to be able to skillfully dodge dozens of projectiles while over- and undergrinding to avoid traps, jumping between rails, and bouncing around on cars while lobbing explosive teddy bears, firing off roman candles, pelting enemies with vinyl records, bashing enemies with bats, and unleashing all manner of weird attacks.
In many ways, the game feels like Jet Grind Radio, Jumping Flash!, and Dead Rising 3 were tossed into a blender with some Insomniac elixir. Not only are all of those fine titles from which to draw inspiration, but more importantly, the elements were improved upon and skillfully implemented within a unique framework and a well-designed open world. The first title that sprung to mind was Jet Grind Radio, and not just because of how much rail-grinding is involved. Style also plays a large role in both titles. In Sunset Overdrive, the more moves that are linked together, the more the player’s power builds up alongside their style meter. Building style and navigating the city by bouncing between canopies and off cars gave me flashbacks of jumping around all manner of random objects in Jumping Flash!, an excellent series built around leaping to dizzying heights. From Capcom’s wholesale zombie-slayer comes an expansive city teeming with monstrous enemies and a wacky arsenal that is as bizarre as it is destructive. Weapons aren’t constructed as in Dead Rising, but they can be bought from a vendor who offers weapons and ammo for cash earned from defeating enemies and completing quests.
As has become the norm in open-world titles, a number of side quests are available alongside the major ones that advance the storyline. Most of these involve doing favors for the few non-mutants still holding on, which primarily involves clearing out areas and fetching items for cash, abilities, and gear. This actually holds true for storyline missions, which can be a little underwhelming given their similarity to the numerous extra quests. Given the style and imagination inherent in the city, characters, and eye-popping iconography, it’s disappointing that so many missions are so formulaic. There are some standout quest lines, though, especially one requiring that players protect a band of LARPers as they harvest trees and storm a makeshift castle, often to the tunes of a rocking bard. The dialog is also particularly funny during this segment, and the voice-over work is fantastic. I was actually surprised how funny the game is in general given how averse I am to the punk ethos, and the exceptional voice work delivered even when the punchlines didn’t. But while the occasional fetch or area-clearing quest is expected in an open-world game, Sunset City is home to just a few too many.
One recurring mission set that was consistently enjoyable involved defending bases from nighttime raids by OD. Every time the player’s crafty friend Floyd finds a new area to set up shop, he requires assistance in order to get Amp generators online. These are different from the normal missions, as they require that unlocked traps be laid at strategic spots in order to prevent the OD waves from overrunning the base and destroying the generators before they power on. Not only does this add a nice, light strategic element of trying to maximize the traps’ shared energy pool by selecting the optimum type for the chosen location, but it also leads to more ways to power up the character. Amps are the cornerstone of the character-customization system, and while there are plenty of options to tailor the character’s physique and attire, Amps have a more direct impact on gameplay by modifying weapons and abilities.
Amps are available in four categories: epic, hero, melee, and weapon. A variety of collectibles are required to purchase them from Floyd, such as smelly shoes hanging from wires, toilet paper hanging from light poles, and debris gathered from smashed cameras. Epic Amps tend to deal some type of elemental damage, like causing lightning to strike nearby or fire to erupt in the player’s wake when grinding. Hero Amps focus on the player’s character, from increasing damage at the expense of health to increasing the radius in which loot is drawn in by the player. Melee Amps enhance physical attacks, such as adding the ability to create a health-regenerating graffiti mark on the ground or sending shrapnel out after dive bombing. Weapon Amps add extra damage and often weird perks with attacked enemies spawning rockets and defeated enemies generating an electric blast that shocks nearby foes. Weapons not only level with use but can also be equipped with Amps, which will result in anything from an enemy possibly summoning a Grim Reaper or dealing extra damage while the player is grinding. And that’s not all.
Just as weapons become more dangerous with use, so too does the player. Overdrives are character perks that unlock throughout play in three different categories: Combat, Hero, and Style. As players traverse the world and kill enemies, they accumulate points, be it from grinding or killing Fizzco security droids, and these are spent on unlocking and leveling the numerous Overdrives. These are more traditional than Amps, adding extra health, dealing greater damage to a specific enemy type, and increasing ammo capacity. There are many of these across all categories, and those that have been unlocked can also be upgraded.
Seeing all of this on the character menu screen, along with the various trap options, can be overwhelming. Insomniac attempted to alleviate the burden of abundance by offering reminders during play that there are upgrades available, but I frequently ignored them given the many minor variations, and still had no difficulty beating the game. Granted that some might appreciate that level of micromanagement over their character’s traits, I would’ve preferred fewer but more meaningful options.
Playing through the story mode will offer plenty of opportunities to see all of the weapons and upgrades in action, but joining others online really brings the mayhem to another level. Booths scattered around the city allow players to join a public or private Chaos Squad of up to eight members at any time to go on a series of co-op missions. Scenarios involve defeating waves of Scabs looting a hospital, stopping OD spawners, destroying Fizzco property, and clearing Scab bases. A voting session after each round determines the next event, and the chosen option is then placed as a waypoint, which leads to a frantic race by everyone to get there first. Enemies are still on the map during this time, affording players the opportunity to goof around together before initiating the mission. After several rounds, the session is capped off by a base defense mission, similar to those in story mode. Multiplayer shares the same characters and stats as single-player, so everything carries over from one to the next, making for a seamless transition between off and online play. However, as in single-player, the mission types are limited in number and do not provide the kind of breadth or depth to keep the mode very engaging after a few hours. That said, those few hours are a blast and easily provide some of the most visually impressive moments I’ve had with the Xbox One. The large numbers of enemies and over-the-top player attacks, now multiplied by up to eight, fill the screen with so much goo, fire, lightning, fireworks, and debris that it’s as mesmerizing as it is chaotic, all without any slowdown. So make that a beautiful blast.
Overall: 8/10
Sunset Overdrive has an infectious design that takes longer to reveal itself than expected but nevertheless provides a lot of fast-paced fun. The wonderful visuals, solid voice acting, and playground of a city make for a wild and wacky fast-paced third-person shooter. However, the frequently formulaic and repetitive missions in story mode and in online play don’t hold up as well. There’s a lot of fun to be had here, but there’s also a little too much of the mundane.
(This review is based on a copy provided by the publisher.)