![]() ![]() Unfortunately, cool takedowns and solid parrying aren’t enough to rescue Wanted: Dead from the doldrums of its own mistakes. ![]() The animation work done on these takedowns is so fantastic that even when you start seeing repeats, you never get tired of watching them. There’s about 50+ finishing moves in Wanted: Dead, and each of them feels like they’re channeling the energy of a John Wick stunt coordinator. While it’s always satisfying to reflect an enemy’s attacks, the highlight of Wanted: Dead is the takedowns. Parrying adds an extra layer of skill to proceedings, and being able to parry an enemy’s full string of attacks becomes an essential part of the late-game experience, especially when the game starts throwing cyborg ninjas at you like they’re confetti. Players are given a few basic combos to work with, but the real meat of the combat comes from parrying and takedowns. The results are pretty much the same, with those who can vibe with Wanted: Dead’s idiosyncratic nature likely to find plenty of value, but there’s so much that gets in the way of the player’s enjoyment that Wanted: Dead becomes hard to recommend. If that core gameplay sounds a little like the Wii U title Devil’s Third, that’s because some of the developers also assisted on that game too. While gunning down enemies might sound more convenient, using your sword allows you to recover some lost health, which means getting up close and personal is often a winning strategy. You’re equipped with an assault rifle and a sword, and can switch between the two pretty seamlessly depending on what the situation allows. Wanted: Dead plays like a blend between a third person cover shooter and a hack and slash game like Ninja Gaiden. Subtlety and stealth are thrown out the window, as Zombie Unit consistently ride the cool guy conveyor belt from one explosion to another, laying waste to everything in their path, much to the chagrin of their long-suffering Captain. The game sees players controlling Hannah Stone, the leader of Zombie Unit, a police squad that likes to carve their questions into their bullets before shooting at their suspects repeatedly. Meanwhile, the cutscenes, presentation and performance of Wanted: Dead are consistently annoying, leading to quite the miserable experience. The gameplay is the main reason you’ll keep coming back for more, but even that has its limitations by the end of the game. Wanted: Dead is a throwback to the schlocky, bargain bin PS3/Xbox 360 days, with solid core gameplay at its center, and it definitely has some merit in that regard. Despite the fact that the game boasts developers who have worked on the likes of Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive, two franchises I have a lot of love for, Wanted: Dead simply wasn’t for me. That’s perfectly valid, but it comes with the obvious caveat: Wanted: Dead isn’t for everyone. On the surface, Wanted: Dead has a lot going for it, and it’s those qualities that are going to ensure that there’s a fanbase who unapologetically love everything about this game. ![]()
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