By 

Seppo Helava (Oakland, CA USA) –

  

Buffy’s a great game, whether you’re a fan of the series, or not. Sure, it’s more compelling to people who’ve seen the series, as most of the voices in the game are done by the actual actors from the series (SMG being the sole exception, but her replacement is flawless). The game also manages to capture the feel of the show perfectly, from the snappy dialogue, to the creepy environments and atmosphere.

Honestly, though, all that would be useless without solid gameplay to back it up. Fortunately, Buffy has it in spades. While there is some minor switch-finding involved in some of the levels, the lion’s share of gameplay in Buffy involves slaying things, whether they’re vampires, zombies, or other random monstrosities. The control in Buffy is fantastically responsive, and great, even for multi-enemy hand-to-hand combat – something most games are horrible at.

The controls are similar to the old Soul Reaver games, where the R-trigger locks on to an enemy. You can jump, kick, punch, or stake your enemies, or execute a variety of moves on them, which will often lead to nifty combo moves. If you let go of the R-trigger, there are moves that will hit people in virtually any direction around you, as well as special moves that’ll clear everyone around you for a few moments.

There’s a good variety of weapons, from stakes, to crossbows, to hellfire-filled Super Soakers. Each feels right, and the ability to stake vampires from a distance with the crossbow is really well-implemented.

The game’s graphics are phenomenal. Neat lighting effects, wide open levels, and beautiful character models abound, but easily the most interesting feature, in my opinion, is the facial animation. The Collective (the game’s developers) clearly put a lot of effort into giving Buffy & Co. a wide variety of facial expressions, and lip-synched animation to match their dialogue. The results are astonishing, and seeing Buffy grimace while staking an enemy, or giving a casual shrug when wondering why her Friday nights are spent slaughtering demons adds another level of immersion to an already fantastic game.

It’s the best single-player beat-em up I’ve played in a good long while. The controls are fantastic, the graphics are beautiful, and it’s a sharply written and presented game. Excellent stuff, I’d recommend it to both fans of the show, and people who’ve never heard of it before alike.

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