SOFTWARE REVIEW

Communications Report:

Deathrow

Category:
Sports Simulation

Players:
1 - 8

Type/#:
DVD / 1

Graphics and Sound:

>From the name, Deathrow conjures up more of a prison-based fighting game image than a sports title, doesn't it? Take a look at the back of the box, and you probably still can't tell what the hell this game's about. Well, think The Running Man meets Rollerball meets Frisbee, I guess. Welcome to the hottest new sport of the 22nd century, now playing on an Xbox near you.

These days, if a sports game doesn't look fantastic, nobody's going to play it. In Deathrow's case, everything seems almost too polished for such a gritty activity. Each arena comes painstakingly decorated with reflective surfaces, light-riddled walls, and a distinctive flair representative of the home team. The Sea Cats battle it out in an underwater base complete with sharks swimming below a glass arena floor, while the Black Dragons' dojo boasts an authentic ninja training ground appearance to full effect. Team models are super-detailed and brilliantly sharp, especially up close. Looks like SouthEnd got creative with designing several of the characters, too -- check out the Convicts for some clever movie tributes ('Riddick' from Pitch Black, and 'Hector', a face-masked spoof of Hannibal Lector).

Sound plays a big part in Deathrow, as every team has a defining voice set and specialized trash-talk before and during every round. I'll admit, I was a bit spooked upon hearing the First Blitzers speak for the first time... and you've got to love the Sea Cats' bitchy Russian accent. And boy, do they let the expletives fly! You can expect to hear every foul-mouthed phrase under the sun when the fighting starts, so make sure there aren't any children present when you pop this bad boy in. Deathrow also supports custom soundtracks for those who don't favor the pulsing drum and bass-tinged default tunes. Unfortunately, it'll only allow 10 songs per soundtrack, and the in-game song search works randomly, so it might take a while to find that perfect fighting song. Very odd.

Gameplay:

To be honest, Deathrow sometimes feels like an intricate mini-game for some massive RPG that somehow developed into a title of its own. The sport itself, Blitz -- not to be confused with Squaresoft's 'Blitzball' from Final Fantasy X -- really couldn't be simpler. Throw disc into goal, kill other team when they have disc, repeat. That's basically it.

Yet for some reason, I can't stop playing! With 18 teams to choose from and over 200 items to unlock, it's actually hard to take a break from Deathrow once you get into it. See, it's not just a sports game. Whenever you aren't in control of the disc, you're free to run around and punch, kick, grab and stomp any member of the opposing team to keep them from scoring, or take them out of the match completely by injuring them constantly. Believe me, it's a great way to relieve stress.

When you start playing for the first time, it's a good idea to check out Sports View, an aerial perspective of the match with more emphasis on placement and coordination. Once you get used to how the game works, though, Action View really puts you in the game with the camera behind the character you're controlling at the moment. This way, players can see everything in greater detail and make precision passes using virtual 'pass lines' drawn from the disc to any open teammates. I personally tried Sports View only once before moving on to Action View, and I haven't looked back since.

One of the nicer touches is the ability to control your team's current strategy, from maximum defense to all-out attack. This is essential for an effective victory, especially during the later matches when the Demons and Slashers are out for your blood. When playing as a faster team with weak fighting skills, ordering everyone on defense lets you focus on taking out the goalie and scoring on your own; if, on the other hand, you're controlling the First Blitzers, you can switch to complete offense and go for a brutal Team K.O.! Using the wrong approach will often get your ass kicked, though, so you'll have to adjust to what's happening in each round.

Difficulty:

Players can choose from Easy, Medium, Hard and an unlockable Extreme difficulty to put their abilities to the test. On Easy, the opponents are sitting ducks. On Hard, expect to take a few beatings. On Extreme... well, just start praying. Each tier has its own incentive to play, though -- a win on Easy earns 100 bonus unlock points, while an Extreme victory nabs you 1000! The better you play, the more stuff you get to unlock.

Game Mechanics:

The controls are perfect. The most complex moves involve simple combinations of the left trigger with Punch or Kick to perform dash tackles and slides, and they'll become second nature in a matter of minutes. And with weeks worth of unlocking to be done, the replay value almost never ends!

I've owned my Xbox since the day it came out, and I've gotta say Deathrow is the most addictive title I've played on it yet. The premise is simple, the rules are few, the violence is plentiful -- just the way it should be. Whether you're cramming in one more match before bedtime or blitzing all night with seven of your buddies, Deathrow packs enough sheer fun to last a long, long time. Don't let the holiday blockbuster rush draw your attention away from this one... it's a f***ing blast!