Wacky Racers
It's been around four years since we were last treated to a new Twisted Metal game, Twisted Metal Head On: Extra Twisted Edition for the PS2, so we're more than excited to see Sony's legendary car combat franchise return even bigger and better on the PS3. Although Twisted Metal has always enjoyed cult popularity in these lands, the latest entry in the franchise looks set to win over a whole new group of fans through slick presentation and some honest to goodness fun.
Twisted Metal is all about vehicular carnage, complete with roaring cars and bikes, thundering explosions, pinging bullets and sizzling fires. It's destruction derby taken to the furthest extreme. While it might sound similar to another big Sony racer, Motorstorm, in reality it feels closer to something like Call of Duty or Mortal Kombat. The emphasis is focused squarely on chasing down the opposition and gunning them down.
Carmageddon
The game features a dark storyline - those who aren't too keen on killer clowns may want to approach with caution - in which a a mysterious ringleader named Calypso lords over a vehicle combat contest known as Twisted Metal. Billed as the ultimate test of skill and destruction, contestants who emerge victorious will win whatever prize their heart desires.
But it's in its 16 player online modes that the game looks set to truly shine. For those who prefer less objective-oriented games, there's Free-For-All, where it's every man and woman for themselves, and Team Deathmatch, which throws rival groups into an arena and lets them bump, grind and shoot each other until they perish. There's also a twisted take on Capture The Flag that's brand new to the series called Nuke Mode. It requires players to pool their efforts in a bid to kidnap the leader of an opposing faction. If they pull it off, they're then tasked with strapping the kidnapped opponent to a nuke and launching it at the opposing team's base.
Easy rider
The game features a good mixture of heavy and light vehicles to suit different play styles including cars, bikes and even a helicopter, all of which are heavily modified to dish out serious damage, allowing you to transform an ice cream van into a killer robot or fire coffins from a speeding hearse. Our favourites include the Juggernaut, an 18-wheel truck that can release mines which roll into unsuspecting pursuers, and the Talon, a chopper with a devestating mounted turret. Players can stay high in the sky and reign down bullet hell on anyone who crosses their sights, while it also works as a magnet, allowing users to grab friends' vehicles and move them around.
Twisted Metal looks set to build on what's made the previous entries in the series so much fun while bringing something new to the table; namely tightly designed vehicles and maps, explosive and highly-entertaining multiplayer gameplay, and a new single-player narrative for those who want a side of story with their outlandish driving and shooting.