Breakdown (2004)

Odd game so far. I think I'm about halfway through it (I've been consulting a walkthrough periodically). I think it's fun at times and pretty unique, but I can see why it's mostly forgotten. I definitely appreciate the idea of a super-powered brawler with guns, especially in first-person. Perspective aside, it reminds me of Oni--in good ways and bad. The punches and kicks feel great. Unfortunately, it has similar problems to Oni with repetitive combat and bland level design. The combat can also be quite fidgety in terms of who you're locked onto and how attacks land. Fist-fighting a group of enemies is a nightmare, even with your computer-controlled partner. I think the idea is to use an uppercut or a powerful kick to knock enemies away so you can focus on one at a time, which brings me to my next complaint: I still don't really have a handle on the moves. Pressing the left or right trigger in combination with a direction on the left stick can produce a variety of punches and kicks, but I can never keep straight which is which. A jab/straight/kick combo (L, R, R) seems to be the most effective in almost all situations, so I haven't put much effort into memorizing other attacks. Most of the attacks with more utility (knockdowns and knockbacks) have much more startup time than the LRR combo's initial jab, and since I have a hard time predicting or reacting to enemy attacks, I usually get hit before the attack comes out. I will say, however, that now that I've learned some of the flashier techniques--a ranged energy blast and a flying kick--that I'm seeing a lot more variety in combat.