Worthwhile Reviews: Perfect Dark Zero | X360 | ~$13.33 | Used

Let me say right off the bat that I didn't play Perfect Dark on the N64. I actually own it (bought it new for $10 years ago), but just couldn't ever be bothered to plug in my N64 to play it. I heard it was really good, but in the time before dual-analog, I'd usually turn to my PC for FPS's. Also, to this day I hear people mention how great another N64 game by the same developer (Rare), Banjo-Kazooie is, while I personally thought it was slightly better than terrible. Very slightly.

The buzz I heard about Perfect Dark Zero (PD0) was that it was an example how far Rare had fallen since their glory days on the N64. Since I didn't even think they made good games then, it was only the incredibly cheap Collector's Edition (and paucity of games for my shiny new 360) that made me give it a whirl.

Given my low expectations, I was somewhat pleasently surprised. There's definately a stealth theme going on here, and I've always had a fascination with the Tenchu games, where you may crouch behind the same cover for five minutes, watching patrol patterns and waiting for the right moment to strike. PD0 has some moments that scratch the same itch--you'll find yourself slowly crawling through underbrush until you get a good position, locking on your silencer, scoping in, and dropping guards with a quick succession of headshots. Hearing the silenced squeak of the single bullet leaving your gun's muzzle, then seeing the first guard drop and tapping the others before they can react to it is really satisfying in that Tenchu stealth-kill kind of way.

Cover is a big mechanic in PD0--when you get close to a wall or other solid object, you can crouch behind it or put your back against it and the camera will switch to 3rd-person, allowing you to aim past the cover. When you get your sights lined up, hitting the trigger will have you lean out from cover and fire, ducking back when you stop firing. Some of the best moments in the game are running towards enemy fire, slamming your back to as intervening wall, and taking out anybody who tries to approach your position. Leaning out, scoring a headshot or two, then ducking back, ignoring the bullets hitting the corner inches away from you to calmly reload, then popping out again to drop some more enemies is really pretty engaging.

PD0 has a range of weapons--various pistols, semi-autos, sniper rifles, grenades, and close combat weapons. To unlock a weapon for future play you have to not only find it in a level (which makes sense) but hold onto it until the end of the level. This is a bit irritating when you're trying to unlock the less-useful weapons and have to give up something better, but at least it's entirely optional. I found that the Shotgun and one of the SMGs (the DW-P5) were the most fun and really the only weapons you need in the game. With the DW-P5's ability to zoom and use a silencer, you have long and medium range covered, and the shotgun will destroy anybody closer than that.

The single-player campaign in PD0 is competent, with a pulp sci-fi storyline and very capable voice work. If you spend too much time trying to figure out what to do, your support tech will literally draw a path from your feet to your destination, so you won't be frustrated by trying to figure out where to go next. You'll be doing a lot of the same things over and over again in the game, but level design and situations vary enough that it doesn't feel dull. Multiplayer was not tested, since everybody else got tired of this game over a year ago.

The collector's edition package includes an attractive full-color embossed metal case with slipcover, a bonus DVD I honestly didn't bother watching, and a mini-comic I didn't bother reading.

Was it worth it? Yeah, it was worth playing through, and I'm a sucker for a metal case. One could easily get their fill of this game in a rental, but if you're going to pay nearly the same money to rent or to own, why not pick it up?