The $300 MadWorld Review
Tuesday, March 24th, 2009
For those following the most current video game releases, MadWorld should need no introduction. In a nutshell, Madworld offer players a highly stylized, film noir environment in which to creatively torture and execute an assortment of grotesque and supernatural foes. The central controversies surrounding the game relate to its sole target platform - the Nintendo Wii. Before the game’s release, critics and fanboys have mainly argued the following points:
- The Nintendo Wii is not technically powerful enough to provide the intended experience.
- The family-friendly Wii will become a liability for children due to MadWorld’s vulgarity and excessive violence. This could also create an opportunity for similar games to be published without Nintendo showing any concern for morality obligations.
Simply and objectively put, the first argument is fallacious because the MadWorld developers specifically chose Wii as their target platform due to its unique motion controls (see: Why MadWorld is Wii-only). The second argument is dismissible due to the existence of Mature Wii games (Manhunt 2, No More Heroes) as well the illogical implication that Nintendo has a social responsibility to prevent adult content from gracing its consoles. The “Mature” rating on MadWorld’s cover should be the first clue to parents of young children that Super Mario Galaxy might be a better choice.
MadWorld was the first release developed by Platinum Games, a relatively new company formed by many of the ex-members of the dissolved Clover Studio (Viewtiful Joe, Okami). Since I’m a huge fan of their Playstation2 beat ‘em up throwback God Hand, I’ve been eagerly awaiting MadWorld’s release since it was unveiled last year. However, when the game was released, my Wii was inaccessible; My father had kidnapped it to play Guitar Hero World Tour. At the same time, I was facing the decision to have surgery to correct a level III+ acromioclavicular separation. The total time needed to completely heal from surgery and rehabilitation is 4-6 months, so it wasn’t a light decision. With the surgery date looming only three days away and no way to play my copy of MadWorld, I went insane and I did the only thing I could.