One of the greatest games you'll ever play for the PS2. Highly recommended.
Twisted Metal is a car combat game meaning you have a car with weapons and you have to destroy the other cars before they destroy you but the gameplay in this game has much more depth than just that. In twisted metal the people driving the cars are in a contest where the winner gets one wish from a guy called Calypso, while the losers die.
One of the things that separates this game from its predecessors is the dark theme and mood of the game, (hence the name twisted metal black). All of the contestants (with a few exceptions) are patients in an insane asylum and all of them have deep, dark, twisted back stories and endings. The stories about their past and what they wish for are explained in very well animated movies narrated by the characters themselves. The voice acting on these films is some of the best I've ever seen and adds to the creepiness of some of them. WARNING: Do not look at the credits of the game until you beat the game with everyone because it spoils almost all the characters. The game however does not require you to watch the flicks and they can be skipped with a flick of the analog stick for those who don't want to see them (although if you do skip them you're missing out on some great stories).
Even if you do decide not to look at the stories (wimp) Twisted metal black is still an incredibly fun game.
Gameplay
Twisted Metal Black has a lot of great gameplay elements like energy/advanced attacks where you can do a d-pad combo to make yourself invisible, invincible, drop a mine, shoot a freeze missile as well as others. There are also some skill weapons that require you to keep track of your opponent long enough for you to charge up your weapon and shoot them with it.
Twisted Metal Black also has some of the biggest levels of the series. For example one of the biggest levels (the suburbs) expands through out the suburbs, a factory, a carnival, a mall and the roads that lead to them. The levels also have some interactive elements too. Such as pedestrians, and environment attacks. You can also destroy almost every single bit of each level either to get more weapons or for the heck of it.
Twisted Metal is one heck of a fun game and at less than $20 it’s a great bargain.