One of Sony’s biggest releases for 2012, Twisted Metal, is set to arrive next week. In preparation for it, Eat Sleep Play Studios and Sony released one of it’s biggest and most featured packed demos on the PlayStation Network. Twisted Metal finally returns to grand form almost a decade from it’s last major console release, Twisted Metal: Black on the PS2.

For a behind-the-scenes look into Twisted Metal, check out our developer interview with Eat Sleep Play Studios Co-Founder and Twisted Metal creator David Jaffe.

Here’s my thoughts on Twisted Metal so far:

Exploding Scythes? Nah, I'd rather use CHAINSAWS!

Right after David and I talked back at PAX Prime last year, I had a chance to play Twisted Metal and quickly got into the controls. It was quite reminiscent of my first time playing Twisted Metal: Black on the PS2 back in 2001; meaning I was damn excited and learned the controls quickly. This new demo, that’s out on PSN, now contains many of the same features as the PAX one with a number of gameplay tweaks, extra modes, and graphical additions.

Let’s Start With Gameplay:

If you’ve ever played a Twisted Metal game before, then you know what you’re in for here. Of course there’s a lot of tweaks to the gameplay that makes TM a great way for new players to understand and play. Back then, players had to input a number of buttons to use special abilitites like freeze, shield, back-fire, and jump. While helpful, these special abilities were a pain to perform because of the lengthy button combinations. Thankfully, the new Twisted Metal alleviates that by mapping each of the skills to the directional pad. Up fires freeze, right turns on shield, back shoots weapons backwards and so on.

There’s also the new experience point system that allows players to upgrade their chosen vehicles. The more kills you get, the higher XP you receive. This addition should keep the Call Of Duty XP-addicted players hooked on Twisted Metal.

Rain down hell from the Twisted Metal skies

Another BIG new feature is the addition of aerial combatants. Talon, one of the newest and most devestating of the new vehicles, is a freaking attack chopper that’s armed with a heavy gatling gun. It’s pretty cool too because once you activate the gatling special, it zooms into a first person view of the weapon and players have to manually aim at their opponents to rain down death a thousand rounds per minute. (Imagine the Call of Duty: Black Ops Perk and you get the idea.)
You’d think that because it’s a chopper it wouldn’t be a fair fight against cars right? For some reason, the game balances it as choppers are out in the open and are susceptible to homing, fire, and other aimed rockets and specials.

Then there’s the new cars like Death Warrant – a variation of the popular Roadkill, Vermin — that shoots deadly piloted rat rockets — and Meat Wagon, an Ecto-1 like car that shoots explosive gurneys just like Shadow did in Twisted Metal: Black. Twisted Metal also has returning fan favorites like Reaper (Mr. Grimm’s Bike), Darkside, Outlaw, and Crimson Fury (an original car from the first TM game.)

Get ready for the all new "Nuke Mode"

Now Let’s Look At Game Modes

The demo features a number of modes for play. Offline offers Challenge and Training modes. Challenge lets players battle against AI-controlled vehicles in a death match-style game where players have to destroy all opponents or be destroyed themselves. Training is pretty much an open level that allows players to get used to the game’s various controls.

Then there’s the online modes. What would a multiplayer game be without the traditional death match? Twisted Metal puts players into a gigantic map like Sunsprings, California which is perfect for team-based games because it allows for a lot of strategy and ground to cover. And speaking of strategy, the new “Nuke” game mode — basically TM’s version of capture the flag — requires a lot of teamwork from players to try and capture other team’s leader and drag (literally) the hapless victim back into their base.

Other Thoughts?

What I really liked about the Twisted Metal demo was its difficulty. It allows for really deep competitive gameplay that I can see being added to MLG and other tournament-type gameplay venues. It’s got a certain beginner friendliness that welcomes new players/victims and a certain complexity that really gets veterans like myself salivating to conquer.

While past TMs have been fairly easy for me, this new one kicked my ass, and kept on doing so until I was forced to adapt new driving techniques and learn the complex strategies and combos needed to succeed in the game. Suddenly I was turbo car jumping to easily catch up to faster cars, then hitting them with freeze and finally peppering them with my sidearm, shotgun, and special attack.

The result? Mangled wrecks and destroyed locations. My kind of vehicular manslaughter.

Twisted Metal is set to release February 14, 2012.

Discuss:

Are you excited for Twisted Metal?