VIDEOGAME: JAWS UNLEASHED
DEVELOPER: APPALOOSA INTERACTIVE
PUBLISHER: MAJESCO ENTERTAINMENT /UNIVERSAL
SYSTEMS: PS2
RATING: MATURE (M for Strong Violence, Blood and Gore)
NUMBER OF PLAYERS: 1
Graphics: 4 /5
Sound: 4.5 /5
Control: 3.5 /5
Story: 4 /5
Endorphin Factor: 4 /5
Frustration Factor: 2.5 /5
Scoring system:
Average: 3.75 /5
GAMES IT COULD BE COMPARED TO: GRAND THEFT AUTO (If you were a shark), ALIENS VS. PREDATOR (If you were a shark)
DETAILS: If I were a shark, especially a Great White shark, I would probably think the world my oyster. (Preferably a gigantic oyster with lots of oystery goodness.)
But, I am not a shark, so I shall have to content myself once more with the world of make believe, and take it out in the videogame realm.
If you also possess that fishy, predatory instinct, then perhaps Jaws Unleashed might be your fix.
Yes, you play the star of the show itself..the titular role...that menace of Amity....JAWS.
However, I think sharks have easier efforts in self-control than this game allows. Sharks do NOT maneuver like one would imagine in a 3D underwater realm. This Great White doesn't always turn on a dime, but damn do he have some power behind his fins. Needless to say, the control is far from perfect, but is servicable.
So, what does one do as the title character? Save the girl? Fend off alien menaces? Solve puzzles? Well, only one of the three guesses is even partially correct. If you said: "Solve puzzles", you would be somewhere in the ball park. Yes, there are some puzzles that a shark must figure out to regain its freedom, or get to the next passage.
Otherwise, you do as JAWS himself did in the film....go after whatever looks good on the menu, which includes other fish, other sharks, seals, hapless swimmers, etc. Oh, and you also get to wreak havoc and mayhem on the peaceful tourist town of Amity while you're at it. Not only do you get to eat yummy critters and landlubbers (ok...swimmers, and those you may just happen to knock off a boat or pier...those count as swimmers? Don't they?), but you get to destroy stuff. Boats, piers, cages, eat license plates and other such sea junk...just like the ol' boy did back in the seventies.
And when you take your first bite of human....he/she isn't just mercifully disappeared from the game's map. Oh, no. You leave blood, and body parts behind. (arms, legs, torsos and heads) drifting in your wake.
But life as a shark ain't exactly an oyster full o' pearls either. You have to constantly feed...why? Because you are constantly hungry. And for Jaws, hunger equals danger....and death if you don't see to your consumption of mass quantities.
Ok...now for the good stuff. Graphically, this game is alright...yes you do get a feel for swimming about large bodies of water, and it is a target rich environment when it comes to food. Jaws himself looks pretty convincing, but your victims kinda lack detail. Then again, I guess it isn't really necessary since the average lifespan of a victim in this game is....well....start ticking AFTER Jaws has spotted 'em.
Sound. John Williams' score is in this game. Beautiful music. There's even something rather satisfying about the gurgling sounds of struggling humans trying to escape your ponderous maw...whether from a distance, or whether they're already in your mouth. On the bad side of things however, the spoken dialogue of the victims to be is rather repetitive. "GET OUTTA THE WATER!" "WE'RE NEVER GONNA MAKE IT!". Over and over and over....ok...we get the point...you're doomed...you don't need to announce it to the whole world...I have a mouth to feed, dammit.
Sometimes, you can get stuck on a texture in the game, and thus have to wiggle your way out. That's where the frustration factor kinda kicks in. Dammit, a shark pisses where it pleases, and doesn't have to worry about getting stuck, so why should I?!
And yes, sometimes bumping into too many solid things (no matter how destructible they might be) is hazardous to your health. When your health gets low, just go after more food/victims.
You can even pull off some of the great stuff Jaws did in the films. Sneak up under a hapless swimmer and pull him/her under, and drag the victim along the surface. (Remember that poor girl in the first movie? She wasn't surfing of her own accord.) You can also tail whip, body bomb, and stealth along, although the controls take a slight bit of getting used to.
BOTTOM LINE: Not going anywhere for a while? Gotta feed that need? Grab yourself a Jaws Unleashed, and make a little bit of merry mayhem. The people of Amity will thank you for it. No, really. They will.
Also, this game is CLEARLY NOT for the kiddies.
Review--Jaws Unleashed for PS2
