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Transformers: Cybertron Adventures Review for Nintendo Wii

Transformers: Cybertron Adventures Review for Nintendo Wii

As a child growing up in the 80’s, I was obviously a huge Transformers fan. The very idea that everyday objects around me could possibly be two-story tall robots in disguise fascinated me to no end. As such, I’m usually quite happy to check out anything having to do with the Transformers, as long as it doesn’t involve Megan Fox and Shia LaBeouf that is. So when I was tasked with reviewing Transformers: Cybertron Adventures, I was actually pretty excited about the prospect of seeing how the Wii version of the Transformers: War for Cybertron game turned out. Unfortunately, after playing the game it seems like the robots aren’t the only things in disguise.

Transformers: Cybertron Adventures screenshot

Whereas Transformers: War for Cybertron for the HD consoles gives players the chance to take part in some Gears of War styled third-person shooting and transform at any time, Transformers: Cybertron Adventures takes most of this out of the player’s hands. The game still uses a third-person perspective, but instead of maneuvering about, transforming, and grabbing cover wherever you can find it, you’re simply just waiting for your robot to stop moving, shooting a handful of enemies, and then waiting for your robot to move on. This is because instead of just downgrading the visuals, adding motion controls to War for Cybertron, and then putting it out on the Wii, Cybertron Adventures took the on-rails shooter or “guided experience” route.

While there have been plenty of good on-rails shooters for the Wii (Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, The House of the Dead: Overkill, and Dead Space: Extraction just to name a few), Cybertron Adventures simply isn’t one of them. To begin with, this game looks incredibly rough, even for a Wii title. Heck, the game even looks awful for a GameCube title. The main Transformers in the game are made up almost entirely of dreary, muddy looking textures and lack the kind of detail you’d expect. Sadly, the overly reused enemies fair even worse, appearing as though they were given just enough distinguishing features to be recognizable as Transformers. Mixing those with the almost completely textureless, boring, and baron environments in the game creates a title you’ll swear looks like it was made for a console no newer than the Dreamcast.

Transformers: Cybertron Adventures screenshot

Visual failings aside, this game is just completely uninteresting to play. The story behind Cybertron Adventures differs from that found in War for Cybertron. Perhaps the story was meant to fill in story elements found in War for Cybertron, but as someone who has played only a limited amount of the HD counterparts, Cybertron Adventures seems almost entirely incoherent. As I proceeded from one mission to the next, I rarely had any clue as to how the two may have been interrelated, making the game feel like a bunch of one-off missions that were haphazardly thrown together for seemingly no reason.

Unfortunately, the gameplay is so repetitive and lifeless it does very little to distract you from the other shortcomings of the game. As I mentioned before, Cybertron Adventures is a guided experience, which means you have no direct control over your character’s movements. Your on-screen Transformer will maneuver about each level, going from cover to cover, and then pausing whenever there are enemies about. It is then that you are finally able to actually have some control over their actions. From here, you can aim your Wii Remote and fire at enemies, hit a button to take cover and regain health, or switch between your four allotted weapons.

Transformers: Cybertron Adventures screenshot

Every Transformer in the game has the same four basic weapons including a sniper rifle, rocket launcher, machine gun, and a blaster. The blaster is almost completely useless, as it deals very little damage and needs reloaded almost constantly, while the other weapons can serve a purpose depending on the situation. The sniper rifle is good for taking out distant enemies that are difficult to target, or even see, using the other weapons and the machine gun comes in handy when being attacked by hordes of tiny robots. However, there is rarely a need to switch to any weapon besides the rocket launcher during the entirety of the game. Using this weapon is similar to the mechanic found in Panzer Dragoon where you simply hold down the fire button, run your aiming reticule over a group of enemies, and then release the button to fire. While targeting your enemies can often be painful due to bad detection issues, this is the most effective way to progress through the game.

While the majority of the game consists of these on-rails shooter sections, long stretches are frequently broken up by small driving or flying segments. After your robot transforms, you are given limited direct control over their vehicle form’s movement, speed, and weapons. These portions are rather weak, having you either flying down tunnels or driving on roads with borders to keep you contained while blasting enemies or random debris. These segments are just so limited that you’ll never feel like you’re actually doing anything but being funneled to the next on-rails segment.

Transformers: Cybertron Adventures screenshot

Given the fact that all you’ll have to do to survive in Cybertron Adventures is to make sure to duck to recover your health every so often, it is mostly a breeze to make your way through the game, even on normal difficulty. The only exception to this rule comes from the random difficulty spikes artificially manufactured by the use of timers. For example, you’ll only be given a certain amount of time to take out a wave of enemies or a boss, with failure resulting in having to start again from the beginning. This doesn’t so much make the game more difficult as it does make it infuriating, especially when poor aiming and hit detection is often the cause for most delays.

You’re still given two campaigns, one as the Autobots and one as the Decepticons, but both are incredibly short and rather unremarkable. You can probably finish both in less than four or five hours total, with only a challenge mode to help add longevity to the title. However, this challenge mode is simply just the campaign with a series of secondary objectives to attempt to complete. The truth is you’ll likely not want to waste your time playing back through the game just to try to beat levels in a certain amount of time or destroy a certain number of debris while driving.

Cybertron Adventures is a truly a sad case. I’m all for putting out a different version of a game on the Wii, as long as it displays the same quality as those found on the HD consoles. Instead, this title just looks like a poorly thrown together afterthought that takes everything good about the HD versions and boils it into an uninteresting mess of tedium and dated graphics. We’re all aware that the Wii doesn’t have the horsepower of the Xbox 360 or PS3, but that’s still no excuse for a game that looks bad for a Dreamcast title.

RATING OUT OF 5 RATING DESCRIPTION 1.9 Graphics
This game would have looked dated ten years ago. 2.2 Control
While most of the controls are taken out of your hand, aiming and hit detection are a constant problem. 3.4 Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
This is perhaps the lone bright spot of the game since the voice work sounds authentic. 1.7

Play Value
Repetitive, short, and uninteresting are good ways to describe the play experience found in Cybertron Adventures.

1.9 Overall Rating – Avoid
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

  • Battle as the Autobots and Decepticons through two unique campaigns.
  • Original Missions designed exclusively for the Wii tell the untold story of Cybertron.
  • Team up with a friend in two player co-op to dominate the battlefield.

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