E3 2012: Bullet Run -- Bring the Heat

Many of the free-to-play games at this year's E3 take themselves very seriously. From the semi-simulation World of Warplanes, to the epic battlefields of Planetside 2, these are games that aim to hook you with fun action, but certainly aren't trying to make you laugh or chuckle at their sheer ridiculousness. Which is where Sony Online Entertainment's Bullet Run stands a chance to break out amongst the increasingly crowded free-to-play market. Sure, first-person shooters are a dime a dozen on PC, but Bullet Run's mix of action, wit and visual spectacle could be enough to engage an audience looking for something a bit less serious.

Bullet Run puts you in the shoes of a would-be superstar competing in a modern-day gladiatorial arena. Unlike the ancient days of Rome, though, you aren't fighting for a crowd cheering in the stands. Instead your adoring fans watch at home from their televisions and computers, seeing the carnage you wreak through the array of mounted and flying cameras in each level of Bullet Run.

Since the premise is that you're always being watched, Bullet Run's design centers around turning your character into a, well, character. Just like modern day WWE wrestlers, every person in Bullet Run decorates themselves with lavish costumes and body paint, assuming a persona. Likewise, just like the WWE, Bullet Run encourages a lot of smack talking, only it comes in the form of taunts. Whenever you die you're treated to a kill cam of the player who did the shooting. If the player wants bonuses, they can take a moment just after a kill to taunt you.

Taunting makes you vulnerable for a few seconds, but they encourage you to do it to earn Heat. Heat is the resource you earn every match, and what you use to unlock additional skills. Heat is earned for kills, for well-time taunts and for other general crowd-pleasing moves you pull off during the match. You see, instead of the now-typical killstreak rewards we see in many other shooters, Bullet Run rewards you with additional powers throughout the match based on the total Heat you earn across all your lives. This means you don't have to be the guy that manages to kill 10 people in a row to get an incredible power, you just need to play pretty well throughout the course of multiple spawns to earn each subsequent tier of power. Do well and you'll earn a power, do better and you'll earn something even better. Powers range from the ability to drop a sentry turret, to a robot that can freeze people in place, to things like "Akimbo," which allows you to wield two guns and do a knee slide on the ground for additional Heat. You don't pick a pre-made character with abilities, but instead choose from an array of them to put together a list you like best, choosing one from each of the four tiers.

Sounds pretty interesting, right? Well, it is in concept, but I think Bullet Run will have an uphill battle taking many people away from their current shooters. The Heat mechanics are a smart twist on the typical killstreak rewards, but otherwise it felt very similar to every other first-person shooter out there. Gunplay is totally competent, but the level design seemed pretty standard, and visually it doesn't stand up to a lot of the competition. The free-to-play angle might give it an audience, but ultimately I'm not sure this will have the roaring crowds in real-life like it does in the game.

If you're interested in trying it for yourself, you won't have to wait long. Bullet Run enters beta in the next couple of weeks, with a planned release this summer.



Source : ign[dot]com