POINT BLANK (PS)
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Publisher: Namco.
Developer: Namco. Released: July 1998 (Europe). Genre: Gallery Shooter. Posted 12th August 2014. By Chris Weatherley © 2014 |
Gallery shoot ‘em ups from the 90s can easily be generalised as gung-ho military slaughter-fests, personified by the likes of Operation Wolf and Cabel. However, Namco took a different turn in 1994 with the arcade release of Point Blank. Sounding like some kind of gangster light-gun jaunt, it couldn’t be further removed from the typical renegade soldier missions. We are taken into a world of innocent playtime, where nobody gets killed and everyone is up for the larks. With this shooter, our targets are soft toys, cardboard cut-outs, inanimate objects and, erm… targets themselves. Sounds dull? No chance, because this formula provides the backdrop for one of the most enjoyable light-gun games on the PlayStation. So let’s blast away without a care, knowing we will leave the gunfight without a single scratch.
Point Blank simulates the cartoon milieu in a tournament-style shooting contest. After each game you get graded and judged by the ever present Muppet-ish duo of Dr Don and Dr Dan, who score your performance and give hints on how to play each stage. They also appear many times themselves in the actual events, even becoming a target or hostage in certain scenarios. Individual events are bountiful, over 30 types of varying difficulty, and all must be completed to reach the Point Blank castle; the final stage which is as tricky as they come. Set against an anime styled environment are the contests, which oblige different player attributes to achieve the targets they set. Some simply require everything on screen to be destroyed, others have a set goal of either hit targets or points, or a single pin-point shot, but all of them are against the clock so dawdling is not an option, and incorrect targets hit is harshly dealt with. It’s a fast paced game, so any hesitancy or complacency with the trigger is met with failure in many situations.
Point Blank simulates the cartoon milieu in a tournament-style shooting contest. After each game you get graded and judged by the ever present Muppet-ish duo of Dr Don and Dr Dan, who score your performance and give hints on how to play each stage. They also appear many times themselves in the actual events, even becoming a target or hostage in certain scenarios. Individual events are bountiful, over 30 types of varying difficulty, and all must be completed to reach the Point Blank castle; the final stage which is as tricky as they come. Set against an anime styled environment are the contests, which oblige different player attributes to achieve the targets they set. Some simply require everything on screen to be destroyed, others have a set goal of either hit targets or points, or a single pin-point shot, but all of them are against the clock so dawdling is not an option, and incorrect targets hit is harshly dealt with. It’s a fast paced game, so any hesitancy or complacency with the trigger is met with failure in many situations.
Beautifully straightforward in a doesn't-need-explaining kinda way!
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Should point out: real treasure hunting rarely involves shooting your bounty
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Garish colours and loud hues leap out from the moment the selection screen appears, primary colours in abundance together with cheeky little details and comedy facets. It’s a style which fits well with the kind of fairground/circus themes aimed at, even the enemy shoot-out games have that carnival stall feel to them, and this is essential in delivering the light hearted mood. With aiming accuracy a vital element, the target sprites are well defined for the most part, with few ‘jaggies’ here and there. This mostly happens with zooming effects and perspective scaling. It’s a factor the arcade original suffered from, but the PlayStation version underlines it more to the point where is can become a slight distraction, and isn’t easy on the eye. That said, the animation, distinction, movement and general physics are solid and glitch-free, and the hit-detection is bang on the button.
Point Blank is littered with funky ditties, random festival music and catchy jingles. The judgement screen which appears at the end of all games to inform you of your results has a succinct tune with both spurs you on to do better next time, or makes you bask in the glory of success, while games which require a steady hand give a more placid background melody. But the finest aspect of the sound is the effects. The gun shot noises are brash and loud but clearly lifted from a children’s anime, and alter with the different targets hit. Faithful sounds such as glass smashing, wood cracking, balloons popping and so on are implemented well and compliment the graphics excellently. There maybe a few ever so slight synchronisation issues here and there; especially in the rapid fire stages or games which have a lot of destroyable toy animals on screen. The piranha and octopus stages are the main culprits of this, but overall the SFX is a highlight of the game, and also adding a nice comical aside frequently to boot.
Point Blank is littered with funky ditties, random festival music and catchy jingles. The judgement screen which appears at the end of all games to inform you of your results has a succinct tune with both spurs you on to do better next time, or makes you bask in the glory of success, while games which require a steady hand give a more placid background melody. But the finest aspect of the sound is the effects. The gun shot noises are brash and loud but clearly lifted from a children’s anime, and alter with the different targets hit. Faithful sounds such as glass smashing, wood cracking, balloons popping and so on are implemented well and compliment the graphics excellently. There maybe a few ever so slight synchronisation issues here and there; especially in the rapid fire stages or games which have a lot of destroyable toy animals on screen. The piranha and octopus stages are the main culprits of this, but overall the SFX is a highlight of the game, and also adding a nice comical aside frequently to boot.
The sea is a worrying green, just like off the coast of North Wales
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Shooting the car is hugely therapeutic. Plus you feel at least 10% 'gangsta'
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Key among all the visuals and fine audio is of course the gameplay, is this is where many gallery shooters can fall flat, feeling either to predictable, linear or unfair. Point Blank gives the player a learning curve which is very approachable, and while you may find a certain game far too tough, there are multiple ways to learn how to play each stage with a degree of success. Some for than others granted, and there are few events which can only be completed with one particular method. But this variety is what makes the game so re-playable, even after many completions. As the events are randomly selected as you choose your difficulty, each time you play gives a slightly different challenge and experience. As already stated, the hit-detection is great so you always feel you haven’t been undone by the tech, navigation through the menu’s is simple but a little slow due to loading/autosave times and a couple of alternate modes are included to extend the lifespan too. As a lightgun game of course it does get tiring to use the peripheral G-Con for quick action with little breaks, but you do get a lot of reward for your arm ache.
Nothing has been lost in translation to the original Sony console however. Namco have this ability to port their gallery shooters to home systems with high quality and faithfulness to the cabinet unit. Along with Time Crisis, Point Blank is a textbook example of this on the PS. Zany, Fraggle Rock-madcap comedy, well varied and long lasting, it’s a staple diet for all lightgun game fans and as such if you own a G-Con45 you must own a copy of this. You would not be doing it justice if you didn’t, so no blank faces please and make a point of purchasing this near-classic.
Nothing has been lost in translation to the original Sony console however. Namco have this ability to port their gallery shooters to home systems with high quality and faithfulness to the cabinet unit. Along with Time Crisis, Point Blank is a textbook example of this on the PS. Zany, Fraggle Rock-madcap comedy, well varied and long lasting, it’s a staple diet for all lightgun game fans and as such if you own a G-Con45 you must own a copy of this. You would not be doing it justice if you didn’t, so no blank faces please and make a point of purchasing this near-classic.
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VERDICT
Visual: 7/10
Audio: 8/10 Gameplay: 9/10 Longevity: 9/10 OVERALL: 8/10 |