
	Platform Playstation 3 Genre Action Publisher Paramount Digital / EA Developer Behavior Interactive ESRB E +10 (Everyone) Released March 1, 2011

- Solid level design - Varied gameplay elements - Character upgrades

- Short single player game - Limited replay value - Some frustrating camera moments - Nothing really innovative - No multiplayer

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Rango

Score: 7.0 / 10

Prior to playing Rango, I already had my preconceived notions regarding how this game would play out (i.e. it would be dreadful) but Rango surprised me.

Rango is based loosely on the recently released Johnny Depp movie of the same name. The game doesn’t actually follow the storyline of the movie, so those who haven’t seen the movie won’t have their experience ruined. The game begins with a meteorite crashing at Beans’ (Rango’s girlfriend) father’s farm, which leads to the disappearance of Beans’ father. Rango believes that by collecting the pieces of the

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meteorite, he can determine the whereabouts of Beans’ father. At the same time, Bad Bill, who is Rango’s arch nemesis, is hell bent on collecting the same meteor pieces for himself.

A lot of the game’s story is told from the perspective of Rango recounting tales of his adventures to a crowd at a local saloon and this works in the games

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favor.

Levels are comprised of on-foot and vehicule-based action in addition to several types of mini-games. The on-foot action consists of a lot of jumping, climbing and rail riding. Rango can take on enemies using a variety of hand to hand combat moves or using his trusty sidearm that seems to have an infinite number of rounds. The level design is surprisingly solid and varied.

Throughout each of the game’s levels, you’ll collect Sheriff Stars. Sheriff Stars act as a type of currency that are collected for killing enemies and destroying boxes. The Sheriff Stars can be redeemed for a dozen or more character upgrades. The character upgrade system is fairly deep and blends in quite well with the overall game.

Presentation wise, Rango is decent. The game appears to have a few Western themed songs that are looped over and over again throughout the entire game. Johnny Depp’s voice doesn’t make an appearance in the game, but his replacement sounds quite good. The game’s environments are fairly colorful and some of the level’s do feel a bit on the bizarre side, but then again you are playing a game centered around a talking lizard.

Rango isn’t without its issues. By far the biggest problem with the game is the campaign length. The story can be completed in roughly 4-6 hours depending on which difficulty level you are playing on. Aside from the single player story, there really isn’t a whole lot to go back for unless achievements or trophies are your cup of tea. It would have been a nice addition to see a multiplayer mode based around the various mini games.

At times, the camera can also be problematic, especially in tight spaces. Another gripe is that during the game’s vehicular sequences, aiming use the right analog stick can be a pain as your aiming reticule blends quite well with the surrounding environment making it difficult to tell whether your aiming at an enemy.

Rango doesn’t innovative in any particular way, but it proves to be a solid game all around. I thought nothing good could come from a movie based game, but Rango surprised me. Rango’s core audience are younger gamers, so those with kids should probably give this game a look. The short single player mode and limited replay value make this game worthy of a rental or a purchase from the bargain bin.

- Siddharth Masand
(July 1, 2011)