Bulletstorm Review

Game:  Bulletstorm
Year (s):  2011
Company:  dev.  People Can Fly, a division of Epic Games
pub.  Electronic Arts
Engine:  Unreal Engine 3.5
Type:  First-Person Shooter
Metacritic Score:  82
My Score:  So fucking awesome it will fucking murder your dick-tits, you douche-dildo.

Price (as of June 8, 2012)

Regular price on Steam:  $19.99
Lowest Buy-It-Now on eBay (new, with shipping):  $8.50

Game Time: ~10 hours for the campaign, first time on default

Obligatory Trailer:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmKWbOIk1M0


Plot

Grayson "Gray" Hunt and his team were the premier death squad of General Serrano.  On one mission, they find out their targets were civilians.  Gray then leads his team, over a course of years and alcoholism, in a crusade against Serrano.  This crusade leaves Gray, Serrano, and a few others stranded on what was a tourist planet,now turned savage from radiation.


People Can Fly, and Profanity

People Can Fly was on my shitlist.  Painkiller (by the time I played it) was buggy and dated.  They were bought by Epic afterwards, and have redeemed themselves.  The language in this game is extremely profane.  So profane that it is laughable, and at times, nonsensical.  Part of this is due to the fact that People Can Fly are Polish, and didn't fully understand the impact of the language used.


Performance

I'm getting tired of seeing Unreal Engine 3.X, but it's still viable and solid.  I hit only one minor glitch.

Bulletstorm uses Games For Windows Live (GFWL).  I have had problems with this before, but on launch I was logged-in automatically and everything ran fine.  There are GFWL trophies that can be earned, but no achievements on Steam.


Combat/Gameplay

Most of the weapons are standard, with a few creative ones thrown in.  They are all fun to use.  Weapons have primary ammo and super-powerful charge shot ammo.  Additionally you can kick enemies or draw them closer with a lasso-like tool.

Points are rewarded by merit.  Standard shots are worth little, but creative death methods are worth more.  Impale a man on a cactus.  Kill someone that's on fire while you're intoxicated.  Go on, earn it.

In the campaign, points are used to buy weapon upgrades and ammo.  In the Echo game type, points are a way to measure skill against other players on the leaderboards.  


Voice Actors

Steve Blum is the main character.  He's a busy man, and you'll recognize him from Rage, Half-Life 2, or any number of other projects.  Jennifer Hale plays Trishka (her voice sounds familiar; she's done a lot of different things).


Expansions / DLC / Sequels

Two DLC have been released, neither of which add much.  For PC, these are only available through GFWL Marketplace.

A sequel was planned, but unfortunately cancelled.  Epic stated piracy and a poorer review for the PC version as reasons.  Epic further said that it sold well (over one millions copies) but not amazing, and that People Can Fly has been assigned to a project that is a better fit.


Final Thoughts

The Good:  It's rare that a shooter is this much pure fun, or will make you laugh out loud.

The Bad:  It is what is now the standard length for the genre, with no legacy.  Multiplayer is co-op only.

The Verdict:  This game is hilarious, fast-paced, and chock-full of sheer badassery.  I recommend it.