There’s no way to disguise the fact that Transformers: Dark of the Moon will be one of the biggest movies to hit theaters this summer. But before you go see your favorite Autobots and Decepticons on the silver screen, you’ll be able to play as them in the franchise’s upcoming game which shares it’s title with the blockbuster film.
I had a chance to preview Transformers: Dark of the Moon yesterday, and it’s shaping up to be one of the best titles in the franchise’s history.
The game will take place three years after the events of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and will serve as a prelude to the third film. Gamers will be able to take control of both Autobots and Decepticons in a well-crafted story that will lead fans right up to the film’s July release. While the details of the story haven’t been completely revealed, it seems as if it will center on the Autobots’ search for the Decepticons, who have gone into hiding, and their subsequent return to Earth leading up to the third movie.
As far as gameplay goes, each Transformer will have it’s own personal level that is tailor-made to fit each one’s specific strengths. The levels I saw yesterday featured Bumblebee, Ironhide, Soundwave (and his partner Laserbeak), Starscream, Megatron.
Not only will each Transformer have their own specific level gameplay-wise, but each mission’s location will take place in a unique setting. Where Ironhide’s mission took him to the mean streets of Detroit, Soundwave explored a jungle in search of a Decepticon base.
In addition to the exotic locales and each level being designed specifically for each Transformer, gamers will have three options in which to play through the missions, all of which I was able to see in action yesterday. The Transformers will each have traditional vehicle and robot modes, and this time around developer High Moon added in an all-new “Stealth Force” mode where your transformer will remain in vehicle mode but will retain it’s weapons. This was intended to make sure the action flows freely and constantly as gamers will no longer be separated from their weapons. The key thing that I noticed was that all of the transformations and gameplay were seamless and fluid throughout the game’s levels.
As mentioned before, the game does serve as a prequel to the third film, setting the stage and shedding light on the events that have occurred in the past three years. High Moon had the freedom to delve deeper into certain characters’ backstories and had the ability to be more creative with the game’s storyline due to the fact that they are not bound by the plot of the movie. This should serve as a truly refreshing take on movie-licensed games.
Despite each level featuring a single Transformer, players will see their characters joined by allies. For example, in Bumblebee’s level you are joined by Optimus Prime, and in Ironhide’s level you meet up with his ally Ratchet. Other levels will feature boss battles against the opposing faction’s Transformers. In one particularly exciting segment, Starscream took part in an aerial dogfight against Autobot Stratosphere. It’s going to be a star-studded cast for any Transformer fan.
Overall, Transformers: Dark of the Moon is shaping up to be an incredible lead-in and will certainly satisfy the appetites of even the most hardcore of fans when it hits shelves this June.
