WET Demo Impressions

Ah, WET.

What can I say? A game that obviously was born by a developer leaving the theater after a showing of Tarrentino’s GRINDHOUSE (Check the dates for the development cycle, go ahead, I’ll wait) And after 4+ hours of Tarrentino brainwashing you too would think a grindhouse style game would be a great thing. Just ask the last House of the Dead game developers, they got it right. Where to start? You are Rubi, a character so geared and hellbent for revenge, it doesn’t seem to matter if they killed her parents or just took her parking space at the mall. Story here is not important. It’s all about stringing together cinema-style fast paced killing sprees with the pre-requisite cheesy camera effects (Slow-Motion, Black and White, Red with Rage vision, etc..) Which is all and good, mindless violence is fun, but the complicated control scheme may kill that fun. Look what they’ve done with Bayonetta. One button havoc, and just sit and watch the explosive action. WET toggles back and forth between jumping and sliding, gun and sword, wall running and combinations of all of the above, and then to keep you on your toes, heres a quick time button event while you’re at a crucial point balancing on a car returning fire to a bunch of baddies. Think “The Club” but with more style. Don’t look for an immersive game here, it doesn’t take itself seriously, which, given the genre is to be expected.  Fun? Hell yeah. 60$ US fun? ehhh, that depends on your love of the genre and your bank account, as well as your tolerance of new control schemes. Invest the time in learning what Rubi can do, and it just might be a rewarding experience. Oh, extra points for the cymbal-monkeys. Don’t ask, just go play the demo, and if it’s an inside joke you know of, let me know.