Jump into a Viewtiful game with Joe!
Joe gets a V-watch which turns him into the Super Hero Viewtiful Joe. With this watch Joe has increased strength and speed, but also obtains special powers, such as mach speed, slow motion, and zoom in. These actions not only help in fights, but also help in environmental puzzles. For instance, in one part of the game you are faced to jump a bus over a long ditch. To do this you have to hop on the bus and hit the slow motion button. This increases the buses thrusters and soon you'll be flying over the ditch of polluted water.
However these powers don't last forever, Joe has a meter and the longer you use these powers the more the meter runs down. If the meter drains completely then you revert to your normal average Joe self, until the meter recharges that is. The meter also regains power when you stop using zoom, mach speed, or slow mo. for a while. You can also increase this meter by collecting film reels.
The thing about this game is that it is hard. You'll constantly be redoing boss battles, and may need to resort to changing to the kids' difficulty mode. During boss battles, you special powers are your best friends, helping you dodge attacks, and increase damage. So during the levels collect as many reels as possible. You can also buy items and moves in the menu screen between acts of the level. Between each act you are able to save, and such. In the "item shop" you can buy extra lives, and more hearts, along with attacks like a boomerang and more kicks and punches.
The game is set on a 2D plane (like all side scrollers) but all characters and back grounds are 3D. The biggest thing is that it's all beautifully cel-shaded, which means that they have lots of different colors on the palette. All the Special effects really makes it look like a movie, and when Joe's meter runs out, the screens turns from vibrant, an aged look to the film.
The game features voice acting which is a plus, and the sound effects are very well done. Everything from tanks firing, to punches and kicks sound great, and when you use powers it alters the sounds of these to make them sound even better.
The bad thing is that the game is only 5 hours long. If you are good enough you'll be able to beat adult mode, and unlock even harder modes. These harder modes have different playable characters which is a plus.
Viewitful Joe is a must see if you're into artistic games, or side scrollers. But its incredibly hard difficulty and short length might put off some.