Twisted Metal... what can I say?
I have played the Twisted Metal series since the first game came out - and that was crap. So was the second one, but the third was just something else. This is because the third game was developed by 989 studios and not Incognito. 989 also went on to make the fourth game and that was even better with a lot of new characters. My opinion is that Twisted Metal 4 is the best Twisted Metal game of them all - even now. Then Twisted Metal Black came along, and this was made by Incognito. This game was great but too old fashioned and weirdly controlled for me. Now Twisted Metal have kept their retro style but made it better. However, I liked when 989 took control.
Some people may say that 989 ruined the game - in fact, this site says it itself - but I feel they did the opposite. 989 introduced more characters, such as Orbital, Drag Queen, The Joneses and RC Car. There was sense of excitement, they make it bright but kept the evil. It was loopy, one of the tracks was a big maze and the special levels were held in a different dimension. That was special, but now Incognito have taken over again, they have lost their loopiness.
However, Incognito still made good, realistic games. Twisted Metal: Head On continues with the Story mode. Each character has to defeat a series of cars and ATVs to face the Tower Tooth in Tokyo and if they win, they get one wish from the almighty Calypso. This mode is very challenging, especially as you meet four bosses along the way. It took me at least one hour per character to complete it and when you do, a crappy 2D video is shown and you unlock a car if your lucky. Other modes include single player and multiplayer where you basically eliminate all your opponents.
The gameplay of this game is the best I have experienced from a Twisted Metal game. Graphically very good for a handheld game. The sound is one of the best on the PSP but it costs £25-30 even now, after a whole year. I don't think this is the best Twisted Metal ever made, but it is the best one made by Incognito and I think they are building up to something truly great in the end.
Thanks for reading, Jem.