State of Emergency

Review

by Scott Alan Marriott

Unveiled at E3 alongside Grand Theft Auto III, State of Emergency looked like it would feature the same style of street combat but with a far greater number of people moving around the streets. Players wouldn't be able to drive vehicles, but the weapons were essentially the same, the perspective looked the same, and the basic premise of one man going against the system was identical as well. Another potential plus was the game's series of missions to undertake on behalf of the resistance movement.

Perhaps these comparisons were unfair, as the two games were developed by two different companies, but after the amazing Grand Theft Auto III, it was hard not to get excited about another Rockstar offering that would once again have players roaming through urban settings while wreaking as much havoc as possible before getting caught by Johnny Law. Would the title come close to delivering the same amount of playability, excitement, and freedom?

State of Emergency is no Grand Theft Auto III. There's no storyline or cut-scenes, the "missions" in the Revolution mode are repetitive and mind-numbing exercises in picking up objects and delivering them to specific locations, and the main game has a time limit. Yet once you learn to accept these limitations, there's some fun to be had. State of Emergency is an immediately entertaining arcade-style beat-'em-up along the lines of Fighting Force, Dynamite Cop!, and Dynasty Warriors III.

The main focus of the game, Chaos Mode, could not be more straightforward: score as many points as you can before time expires or your life ends. That's it. While this could have become tiresome, the developers included random point multipliers and optional objectives for some variety. Every action you do earns points, whether it's smashing a building's windows, exploding a car, or pummeling gang members, but the "value" of a specific act can increase as much as ten times.

As soon as you begin play, a voice will periodically announce the special of the minute: killing looters is worth 5X, or destroying buildings might be worth 3X "normal" value. Since these carrots are dangled in front of you as you're playing, each game takes on a different twist. Like classic arcade games of the past, you find yourself trying to better your score each go-around. Another nice feature is the game throws out more elements for you to deal with the higher your score climbs.

Each level in the Chaos mode has you trying to reach 100,000-point milestones. Once you reach that level, the game becomes more frantic and new enemies enter the fray. Death squads come after you with the sole purpose of taking you out, and enemies tend to swarm you even more than before. Fortunately each cop or gang member leaves behind health and an extra six seconds of time, so it becomes part of the strategy to beat up certain people to keep the clock running.

There are also objectives such as killing a specific person or destroying a particular building. Completing these objectives is optional, but they earn you a big payoff in score as well as replenish a portion of health -- something that becomes increasingly important the longer you last in the game. Of course these objectives are usually well guarded, so players will have to decide whether the cost is worth the reward. Achieving specific milestones also unlocks the three additional regions to fight in as well as an unlimited time feature, so players have another reason besides a high score to keep fighting.

Weapons are littered throughout the stages and range from cans of pepper spray (for temporarily stunning people) to flamethrowers (for those human barbeques). Proper use of the machete and shotgun often result in decapitated heads, which in turn can be used as weapons. Also available for bludgeoning people are park benches, trashcans, signs, traffic cones, and just about every item lining the streets and sidewalks.

Because of its decidedly arcade-like approach, with players attempting to last as long as they can before plunking another quarter in the machine, gameplay is not deep. Only two primary modes of play exist, and the Revolution mode is a wasted opportunity to create an engaging storyline with fun missions. The fighting moves are also basic for a title released in 2002, and there are significant problems with a camera system that remains locked in a fixed perspective until the player swivels it left or right using the analog stick.

A lot of frustration could have been avoided simply by making the camera zoom out whenever enemies surround the character, then zoom in when there's only one person attacking. With the current system, it is difficult to see everything around your character, which is not a good thing when you have to routinely fend off oncoming enemies from all sides. Aiming is also difficult because of this, so players will be constantly running and swiveling the camera to get the best view of the action.

State of Emergency isn't going to cause a riot for demand in the way Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto III has done because it is not nearly as ambitious. Viewed strictly as an arcade title, however, State of Emergency fares much better. Each game in Chaos mode is never the same, there is incentive to achieve high scores, and the action is both fun and funny. If you're looking for depth, look elsewhere, but those who miss the style of games made popular on the Dreamcast should welcome this with closed fists.