'G.I. JOE' game brings firepower to consoles
— -- You never know what you're going to get when you buy a movie-based video game. You might be pleasantly surprised with the results, but more often than not the game feels like a shameless marketing tie-in or was rushed out the door to be released with the film.
Now we've got G.I. JOE: The Rise of COBRA from Electronic Arts, based on the highly publicized Paramount Pictures flick of the same name and, of course, Hasbro's 45-year-old toy line. While not a flawless game, this arcade shooter proves to deliver a fun experience, especially for younger players.
Available for multiple consoles and handheld systems, G.I. JOE: The Rise of COBRA introduces you to the G.I. ("Government Issue") JOE team of elite military fighters who protect the world from terrorists, such as the COBRA organization. The third-person action game offers an all-new story line, but also lets you replay some of the biggest moments from the film, as well as play through story threads from G.I. JOE comics, cartoons and toys.
Climb into the boots of familiar G.I. JOE characters — such as Duke, Heavy Duty, Ripcord, Scarlett and Snake Eyes — as well as some unlockable COBRA fighters (including Baroness, who escapes from a G.I. JOE holding cell at the start of the game). Each character has his or her own unique weapon and special move: Snake Eyes, for example, uses a katana for close-combat attacks with super stealth as his special move, while Duke's primary load-out is an assault rifle and he can also toss grenades at bad guys.
Before every mission and sometimes during them, you pick which two characters you want to lead the fight. If you're playing alone, the secondary character will be controlled by the game's artificial intelligence, but G.I. JOE: The Rise of COBRA offers two-player co-op support. This means a friend can pick up a second controller at any time, press Start, and begin to play as the secondary character.
Much of the action involves shooting enemies, vehicles and key buildings; solving a few puzzles, such as how to get through security fences or locked doors; collecting file cards and other goodies such as unlockable artwork and other bonus content; and taking down tougher boss characters. The game also lets you hop into various G.I. JOE and COBRA vehicles.
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