You can tell the same folks who made the Thunder Kid games also made this one, as they both feature low poly (and rather ugly) 3D graphics.  But while Thunder Kid focused more on running and gunning with some platforming mixed in, Escape from Terror City focuses more on aiming and shooting.  It’s available on all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on PS4 here.

Even though this game looks a lot like Thunder Kid, since they changed the focus on the gameplay a little bit, controls are a little different here, too.  You can still move with the L stick, but since you aim your shots with the R stick, jumping and firing your weapon are now with the L and R shoulder buttons.  So it’s a bit awkward.  You’ll move through 3D areas, but every so often you’ll come across barriers and must move left and right to avoid shots and aim and shoot to defeat all the baddies.  These parts of the game remind me of arcade classics like Cabal or Rambo, or even console games like Wild Guns.  Except those examples are way better games.

Once you get to the end of the stage and defeat the giant boss, you move to the next level.  There are five levels in all, and even though they are pretty hard, at least you get unlimited continues and a level select.  When you get hit, you’ll lose some energy, and when you lose it all it’s Game Over.  Pick up little chicken leg icons to restore some of your health.  But be careful because those are few and far between.

Aside from the awkward controls, the other main problems I had with the game are that it’s hard to see your aiming reticule against the garish background graphics, and since this game is all about aiming, being able to see that is pretty important.  And even though this game doesn’t feature much platforming, when they put it in, it’s awful here.  So yeah, this game isn’t very good at all.

Kid Factor:

Escape from Terror City is rated E-10 with an ESRB descriptor of Fantasy Violence.  You shoot beams of light at soldiers and robots that explode when defeated.  When you get hit, you let out a muffled ‘argh’ and fall down when you lose all your energy.  Reading skill is helpful for some of the text, but not necessary just to play.  Younger gamers may get frustrated at the controls and difficulty.

Tags: Game Reviews