Robocop: Rogue City - I'd Buy That For A Dollar
Who is Robocop: Rogue City intended for? I was a kid when the original came out (but it didn’t stop me from watching it). It was one of the greats from the 80s and captures the feel of the decade so well, what with other films such as The Running Man and Bloodsport.
I had the Robocop game on the Amiga – a spin-off of the arcade game (which was way better) and super hard. Not when you have trainer cheat codes, however. Anyway, back to reality, Teyon has encapsulated the vibe so well. It doesn’t feel like the shoddy tie-ins back in the day as this follows Murphy while in the line of duty.
Robocop: Rogue City is a stunning open-world experience where you stomp through Detroit looking for a gang member, only to sign up for side quests such as locating drug dealers and murderers.
As a fan of the original film (and subsequent games), I always felt that Robocop was essentially overpowered, which comes across in this game. But it works somehow. You storm, actually breach, an area and, using Robo’s targeting system, can locate and neutralise any threat when visibility is low.
It’s possible to pick up enemy weapons such as a pistol, SMG and assault rifle, but honestly, his dedicated pistol is the best and has infinite ammo. So where’s the challenge? Robo can still take damage and move at a shockingly slow pace. Again, it works as you use the environments to your advantage (and the targeting system, which I hasten to add, is not auto-aim but improves visibility).
In the 90s(?) Red Faction pioneered in environmental damage, but I don’t remember being as blown away as I have been in Robocop: Rogue City. Enemies hide behind concrete and OSB, and Robo blasts through, taking some of the foundations with it. It’s glorious on so many levels.
Besides combat, which arguably could be too repetitive if that’s all there was to the game, it has a Bethedsa-like feel to it as you are free to roam the streets, interact with bums (heh), and use your vision to look for cues, Easter eggs and more. Like a robotic Batman, you reverse engineer a scene using deduction and select from the options in a dialogue tree. The voice acting and character modelling are sublime, featuring the original cast.
Briefly touching upon the stat system and assumed longevity for the full game, XP is awarded and unlocks new buffs such as vitality, combat, hacking abilities and more. Note that this is a demo, so it’s limited in scope but enough to trigger some drooling.
I played Robocop: Rogue City on ultra settings, and it was perfect. It was almost like a showcase for a new gaming engine. Honestly, I can’t wait for this. It’s at the top of my list.