Some spoilers on this game, folks. I don’t know how much they might impact the full release, but just in case, you’re warned!
Quiet often I’ve missed out on what the Steam Next Fest has to offer, and being one of those people who laments the death of the demo disc and bemoans the lack of demos in the digital space, this renders me both an idiot and a hypocrite all at once. Nice to accomplish something I suppose… Anyway, this time, I have been somewhat more proactive and have downloaded a healthy pile of games to try out. The first of these is RoboCop: Rogue City – and oh boy… it gets a proper corporate clap from me.
The game opens with a news report (matching the style of the film) and during the broadcast, the building is taken over by a group known as the Torch Heads advertising their services to a new mystery criminal operating in Detroit. A hostage situation occurs and as the police gather outside, a cruiser joins the party, and out of it emerges the one and only RoboCop. He steps out of his car to survey the scene and strikes the famous pose that adorns the 80’s movie poster.
Chef’s kisses already being deployed (let’s hope we have enough in stock). The game then transitions nicely into the player taking control of the said mechanical bobby, and it’s then that the beauty of the game is revealed. Upon first seeing it, I was rather taken aback. My computer is pretty decent, and I’ve kept up to date with playing quite a few modern releases, but this really blew me away. I guess a bit of neon and some damp roads do add untold value to the visuals in a given scene, but I don’t know… Perhaps my impression was so good because my expectations were almost non-existent? I love how this game looks though, and walking through the crime ridden city streets is an absolute joy. Oh and as we’re on the topic of walking, taking steps in Murphy’s shoes - does he have shoes? Anyway, taking steps in Murphy’s metal feet is as satisfying a walking experience as I’ve ever had in a game. The sound design is sublime. I had thought that the whirring of servos would get annoying after a time, but I’m not sure I can get bored of such a well realised experience of being a cyborg.
Anyway, after entering the television studio, having chatted briefly with our partner (Lewis), our first gunfight begins. I was wondering what the gunplay might be like, and after Murphy retrieves his signature pistol (the Auto 9) from his thigh cavity, the shooting begins. Right click to scan and target, and begin blasting away. Bloody good – and I mean that in both ways. Lots of blood and gore – especially with headshots. The weapons feel heavy and impactful, and (in the demo) there is a fair variety of armaments (pistols, SMGs, assault rifles, and detachable machine gun emplacements). Enemy AI is a little weak from what I noticed, but it didn’t lessen then fun at all. They sort of crowd about and shoot or throw grenades a bit wildly, and while they do take cover, it doesn’t seem to be in a particularly intelligent way. This may be a limitation with the demo, or it may be indicative of the full game, but either way, it’s something to keep in mind. Putting aside the slightly lacklustre enemy intelligence, during the first gunfight, I was very much impressed with the destruction in scenery and objects that litter the levels. There are limitations here too though… Certain walls are damaged by gunfire, but not all, things like computers, arcade cabinets, and vending machines are destructible too, but certain pieces of detritus are not, such as some crates, or objects laid out on tables. Not the end of the world by any means, just a little inconsistent. Some furniture can be used as throwables, along with gas canisters and jerry cans, which can also be shot to create devastating explosions.
After working our way up to the top, and finding the hostages, we breach into the room and here we get a little slow down in the combat as we burst through, giving us a little bit of time to shoot up the room before the enemies can react. It’s a system that has been replicated in several games prior to this, but it’s a decent way to do it. Once the situation there is dealt with, a cinematic occurs where Murphy has some flashbacks to his old life and fails to help a hostage being held at gunpoint (something film RoboCop is usually quite good at). This is something that I hope is delved into in the full release. I want family trauma akin to Max Payne, and for ol’ Murphy to go batshit crazy at some stage. Might not happen though, so better not get my hopes up. If the game is just more of what’s in the demo, I’ll still be a happy chap.
Our partner saves the woman anyway, but the top brass back as the station want us looked at. I’m not sure how much this will be explored in the full game, but for now it’s a pretence to have a new chip installed which apparently monitors our activity. It is in actuality an excuse for a mission rating system to exist. Quite a clever way to introduce it. While in the station we pick up a few side quests, and it was then that the game began to open up, and in a rather unexpected way. We got some pissed bloke down to the drunk tank, we helped someone open their locker, and we did a bit of shooting at the range. We also got introduced to the skill tree system. Quite basic, but there is some depth to it that alters gameplay, and style of play. This I couldn’t fully explore in the demo, but it adds a welcome complexity to what I thought initially was a very basic shooter. Moving on from the station, we are given a mission to find a criminal known as Soot (the guy who took over the TV station). Here the game really opens out, and we are let loose in a rather spacious section of the city. Here the game really reminds me of Deus Ex, more specifically 2011s Human Revolution. The setting is similar (both Detroit, of course), and the setup is very familiar. Side quests fill the space, and you can proceed at your own pace. You can explore the city, talk to some of the residents, and you really feel as though you are policing, especially when putting tickets on cars, helping a shop owner, or aiding some officers with a murder case in the area. In these, to a greater or lesser extent, the scanning mode comes into play, and using this you can detect crimes, find evidence, and examine crime scenes. This mechanic is similar to the detective mode in the Arkham games – perhaps a little simpler, but another welcome addition that I did not expect would be included in what I thought was just a shooter.
Gradually we work our way through all the quests, collecting stolen purses and wallets, recovering drugs, gathering dossiers of evidence, and questioning people. There is depth in the conversations too, although to what extent, I am unsure. It certainly seems to have some consequence in the demo, and the manner in which you deal with the criminals you interact with can change whether you are seen as being an upholder of the law, or a figure that the public can trust. Within the demo, the consequences of this system didn’t come up, but it may well change who you can interact with in the future. Your conversation skills can be enhanced within the skill tree, and so can things like safe cracking, gaining abilities such as dash or shield, or being able to heal from electrical conduits. There seems to be a system for upgrading the Auto 9 too, but again, this isn’t touched upon in the demo.
The real treat of this demo is that there is about two and a half hours’ worth of content to play through. An amazingly generous offering for what seems to be a really fantastic game. The developer, Teyon, doesn’t seem to have made anything of real substance prior to this other than the apparently very well received Terminator Resistance in 2019, despite having quite a sizable backlog or other lesser titles. I’ve not played the Terminator game, but it has caught my eye in the past, and looks just as visually beautiful as this RoboCop game. It’s good to see a developer that has generally been under the radar rear its head with what appears to be a true gem. It makes me want to try Terminator Resistance, and it definitely makes me want to buy the full release of Rogue City when it comes out in November of this year. I’ve mentioned the visuals quite a bit, but another fantastic aspect is the voice acting, which feels very faithful to the original films, with Peter Weller reprising his iconic role as Murphy/RoboCop. The rest of the cast sounds faithful too, although it has been a while since I’ve seen the films, and from what I can see, only Weller is confirmed as being a part of the project from the original cast, although there might be others. The accurate visual representation of the 80’s cast is really quite good too, as well as the recreation of the police station and the representation of iconic props. The love for the franchise is obvious, and I really hope the rest of the game can deliver, because the demo gives so much, and promises even more.
I don’t give scores, but I must say, I’ve not has as much fun playing a game in a long time. I thoroughly enjoyed being RoboCop for a few hours, and I can’t wait to continue this late 80’s fantasy – although I have yet to face off against ED-209…
If you’re intrigued by the game, but haven’t had the chance to play it, you can catch my stream of it over on Twitch or YouTube as you might get a better sense of it visually. I would however recommend you try it yourself, if you can. I also watched the first RoboCop again immediately after playing. Couldn’t help myself. Have you played it, and if so, are you going to get it on release?
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