It doesn't stop the conspiracy theorists (or the plain paranoid-delusional) though, and the tangled web of possible lies, cover-ups, failed experiments and secret technology that lies within the notorious Area 51 makes for a great subject to wrap your thoughts around. For a videogame concept it's nigh on tailor-made, and it's genuinely surprising there haven't been more attempts to flesh out the myths and legends surrounding this top-secret desert outpost down the years. 3D Realms had a decent crack about 900 years ago with Duke Nukem 3D, and Midway - a lifetime ago - played around with the name with a bunch of rubbish light-gun shooters, but this Austin Studio-developed is arguably the first fleshed-out attempt at really getting under the skin of what lurks beneath this enormous enigma.
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Flicking to your mutant form puts you in a vastly better position, though. Not only does it slow down time, you're proportionally faster than your foes meaning that you can charge right up to them and melee-attack them with ruthless one-punch efficiency. When the odds are really stacked against you (as they become quite severely in places) the only real chance of squeaking through is to plot the path of least resistance, charge and either punch well in advance of your target or fire one of your two available mutant weapons at them. The first of these comes in the form of Parasites which consume and eventually destroy their host, but allow them to continue fighting. Much more effective is the Contagion weapon which almost instantly consumes the target but has the negative side effect of draining your stock of Mutagen, which allows you to enter the mutant form in the first place. Far better, I learned, to become handy with your fists, dodge gunfire and punch their lights out.
There really are a huge variety of impressive moments of technical magic, from the hugely impressive ragdolling to the impressive billowing smoke effects that ripple up convincingly from the burned-out fixtures of the increasingly shattered base. Although it's hard to neatly sum up how many impressive effects there are that bring everything to life without resorting to geekspeak, it's hard to recall any game on the PS2 that had loaded the PS2 down with normal mapping, vast amounts of hugely impressive particle effects and rag-doll physics and gotten away with it. There's nary a hint of frame rate drop even when two of the Delta team man two vast plasma cannons and proceed to take down a relentless onslaught of mutant menace, and for those of you that care, no dreaded v-sync tearing either. It's a fabulous sight that even manages to look impressive on a big, pin-sharp screen (something few PS2 games ever manage). The only slight black mark is the lack of widescreen support, but that's something I can live with when it looks this accomplished. If you need your PS2 shooters to look the part then you'll certainly appreciate what Midway's Austin Studio has pulled off. Those of you spoiled by high end Xbox and PC titles might think otherwise, but in context this is a lovely looking game.
The obligatory online multiplayer is worthy of note, if only because Midway's actually bothered to put it in, unlike Medal Of Honor - and it gains bonus eyebrow-raising for supporting 16-player online even on the under-serviced PS2. On the other hand there's very little of note to get excited about; all the boxes are ticked in terms of Deathmatch and CTF, and there's a Mutants Vs Humans variant, but in reality once you've given it the cursory run-through there's not really a huge amount to keep you coming back and dragging you away from your multiplayer game of choice. Still, at least it's in there; I shouldn't moan.
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