Twisted Metal: Head-On Review

By Tom Bramwell Published 21 December, 2005

Bent out of shape.

Version tested: PSP

Apparently if I finish the single-player of Twisted Metal with the skeleton-man-on-a-bike, I'll discover his real reasons for entering the tournament.

I don't even have a punchline. I just want to make it stop. I feel like I'm in one of the Americans' secret prisons having my resolve sapped by O'Brien wannabes.

You fire machineguns and collect weapon power-ups and then drive around in circles trying to shoot people more than they shoot you.

You can also use a range of special moves, activated through different button combinations, which allow you to do things like fire homing freeze attacks and avoid taking damage for a few seconds. Each of these uses up your gradually recharging energy bar.

You can also upgrade your armour, turbo and so on by looting the twisted metal of dispatched enemOH GOD I'LL TELL YOU ANYTHING YOU WANT! MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE LET ME GO! I DID IT! IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT TO HEAR?! EAT MY CHILDREN! ANYTHING!

In fairness there's nothing drastically wrong with the actual premise. Why shouldn't vehicular deathmatch work? Super Mario Kart's battle mode is one of the best multiplayer games ever. Sure, you'll never emulate the twitch kills of Quake or the strategic gunnery of Battlefield, but with a decent handling model, a varied arsenal of exciting weapons, claustrophobic level design and a bit of personality, you can definitely achieve something!

Ah.

'Twisted Metal: Head-On' Screenshot clobber

Being able to pick up and clobber enemies like this is the most entertaining thing in the game.

Twisted Metal: Head-On doesn't have a decent handling model. Most vehicles move too fast, even more so with boost engaged, and stopping is another issue entirely, but the twitchy steering is the worst. It's very hard to control without just charging into everything, and being able to turn around on the spot and jump isn't an answer to that - particularly as neither is a particularly fluid or instinctive action.

Analog control is absolutely awful - for some reason, accelerate and reverse are mapped to up and down on an ANALOG STICK. This is daft because, as everyone knows, you can't help going a little up or a little down when you're trying to whip an analog stick from side to side, and since Twisted Metal boosts on a double acceleration-tap and stops dead when both accelerate and reverse are engaged, manoeuvring is even more difficult and randomised.

It's less of a problem on the d-pad, but you still end up driving into things you don't intend because it's quite twitchy and you can't stop, etc. Steering is rather closer to TRON's light bikes than the steadiness of the average racing game. Thanks to the general speed, turning circle and sliding abilities, Mario Kart's levels managed to be tight and yet manoeuvrable at the same time. Twisted Metal's are large and yet you crash into things at the same time.

The weapons, meanwhile, are various but largely similar. Missiles home in (some more than others) and come in various quantities, you can drop remote-detonation mines, and there are a couple of other fizzing projectiles. Plus you've got the special move attacks, which are pretty similar to the weapon attacks - freezing enemies is about the most distinct.

'Twisted Metal: Head-On' Screenshot swarm

That and swarm missile kills.

The problem isn't so much the weapons though as the use of health bars. Mario Kart battle works best because it's three strikes and you're out. In Twisted Metal, people just go for health packs, and a well-aimed strike rarely takes anyone out. So there's no green-shell-hit style satisfaction - the closest you come to it is when you wipe out a tough enemy or a boss by queuing up homing swarm missiles (think Unreal Tournament's rockets) and directing them the right way within the time frame they're available to fire. You can argue that FPS games do just fine with health bars. But then you have much greater control of your character in FPS games. This is square peg-round hole stuff.

The sense of risk is less, and the sense of gain too. When defending yourself, you'll use the invisibility and invincibility special moves where necessary until your lapping the outside of the arena nets you a health pack - and unless you're really obvious in how you go about it, you'll probably evade most attacks. Attacking is just the opposite - Hoover stuff up and pound away. Eventually people die.

Levels are often quite expansive and multi-faceted, but you're moving and twitching so fast you still bash things or fall off. And the game is largely personality-free. The story mode's central idea - that some guy is offering to grant someone's wish if they can blow everybody else up - is quite interesting, but the characters are not. Mainly because you're just looking at the outside of a car all the time. Look at Mario Kart, again - I have friends who won't play as Peach because she's a cheating bitch with an annoying voice. Catchphrases and power-up predilections are well known. I've played Twisted Metal: Head-On for hours and hours, and I couldn't tell you anything distinctive about the skeleton-man-on-a-bike that I don't cover in his description. I haven't even bothered to remember his name. That wasn't conscious - I just didn't care.

'Twisted Metal: Head-On' Screenshot representative

Zooming past people without denting their health much, then losing them completely, is far more representative.

Being able to go online and fight people is obviously a boon, and a darn sight more use than most of the multiplayer options we see in PSP games, but for all the reasons above I simply didn't enjoy doing so.

What I'd like to convey here is this: good vehicular action games are possible. Even the PSP can do it. Fired Up!, largely ignored by all and sundry, is so moreish that you'll finish it before it's really started. Again, it gets the health system wrong, and it's hardly perfect in a lot of other senses, but its objective-based and collectable-driven approach is far more rewarding, its range of weapons and skills far more empowering, and there's a far greater sense of control.

I'm keenly aware that Twisted Metal has "an audience", and I'm not belittling the people who like it. Heck, I remember a time I found it enjoyable belting around loosing off missiles. But it's such a disposable form of entertainment.

I mean, under prolonged examination, you might extract traces of depth and ingenuity from Twisted Metal's combat and moves systems. But realistically you shouldn't have to transport the whole thing to Siberia and buzz around on ice skates to conduct the interrogation, should you? Particularly when you already know better answers.

5 / 10

Read the Eurogamer.net scoring policy
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About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (38) Latest comment 6 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Furbs #1 6 years ago

    In first with "another shit/ported game for the PSP then" comment.

  • Dizzy #2 6 years ago

    Another.... errr.. never mind.

    ;)

  • funkyd #3 6 years ago

    3rd :(

  • Darren #4 6 years ago

    Where are all the must-have PSP games then? All it seems to get are ports of existing PS2 titles so if you've got the console you've probably already played the game. Sure some people might think it's neat to be able to play the same games on the move but surely ORIGINAL, never-seen before games are more preferable. As it stands there's absolutely no reason for me to own a PSP.
    Edited by 1 at 21/12/05 @ 12:32

  • markypants #5 6 years ago

    ^^^ 3rd and a penis! You must be proud.^^^

    Is there some reason to let us all know what number poster you are?? We can count... Can you?

  • Furbs #6 6 years ago

    Darren - cool, dont buy one then!

    Why are original never-seen before games any better than a good port anyway? I'm still waiting for an answer on that one even though I ask it every time this comes up.

    Originalty does not automatically equal quality.

  • myiagros #7 6 years ago

    Metal Gear Acid 2 is a reason to buy a PSP!! it is absolutely excellent. It arrived monday afternoon and i have already played 14 hours.

  • Darren #8 6 years ago

    Furbs - I can't even believe you're asking the question!!! Surely you'd rather play different (that's what I mean by original) games on the PSP than what's available on the PS2 or do you like buying the same game twice? lol

    In that respect, the Nintendo DS is a better choice for portable gaming because it does seem to offer something different from the PSP even though it also has its share of dreary console ports.
    Edited by 1 at 21/12/05 @ 12:42

  • CosmonautX #9 6 years ago

    Furbs --

    You're perfectly right, originality != quality, and a good port can still be a great game (Timesplitters 2 on the 'Cube being a prime example). However...

    ...to persuade someone to buy a new console - be it DS, PSP, PS2, GameCube, Xbox, whatever - you need to have something that really separates it from an existing product. That's where the problem with the apparent surfeit of ports on the PSP - no matter how good - comes in: If all you're getting are cut-down versions of games you can play better on another machine & all you get in return is portability and a bit of extra/different content, then a lot of people are going to see that as a poor trade-off.

    /me crosses his fingers & hopes this thread actually prompts a bit of polite discussion...

  • GuiltySpark #10 6 years ago

    does it matter if its "available" on the ps2?

    what happens if you dont have a ps2 dipshit

  • mattigan #11 6 years ago

    Oh dear, I thought I was bad.

  • krudster #12 6 years ago

    I get a tad confused about the damning of PSP ports. It'd be a bit like slagging off a minidisc player because all of its music was 'ported' from a CD.

    Surely not everyone has the chance to play games at home and will relish the opportunity to kill a bit of spare time with gaming on the move? Not that this game is one of those, but the tiresome argument about the PSP having ports was boring months ago. Get over it!

  • Royal Fool #13 6 years ago

    "does it matter if its "available" on the ps2?

    what happens if you dont have a ps2 dipshit    "

    The chances of someone not owning or having access to a PS2 these days are quite small. If the person in question is a fan of games at any rate.

  • tengu #14 6 years ago

    But not everyone is going to have played these games before, just because they've been released before.

    It's nice to have SOME options in front of you while you wait for 'newer and better' games isn't it?

    It is rather depressing to look at some of the tasty games out for the thing in Japan and the US right now and compare them to Europe's meager selection though. I could really go for a play on Tenchu and Infected.

  • Furbs #15 6 years ago

    Royal Fool - I have a 360, a decent specced PC, Gamecube, PSP and 3 xboxes but no PS2. Does that mean I'm not a fan of gaming? :-O

    I'm more than happy to play Vice City on my PC then play LCS on the go on the PSP, or PES5 on the Xbox then have a go on PES5 on the PSP. Infact, why is that any different to Ninty bringing out a Mario or Zelda game on the DS, with minimal changes to adapt it to the format? The advantage the PSP has is they can be closer to the original, which is a good thing imo.

    And finally CosmonautX, what is radically different between an Xbox and a PS2? Other than a handful of existing licences, and the Xbox's harddrive (which has never been fully exploited), very few. The fact the PSP is selling well is surely a sign that unique/quirky/Nintendo-esque games are not the only sure fire way to get buyers.
    Edited by 1 at 21/12/05 @ 13:28

  • Genji #16 6 years ago

    Yeah. You really just need lots of bling. :-)

    Take that, Nintendo!

  • jmctavish #17 6 years ago

    PSP in another shit game shocker.

  • mechamonkey #18 6 years ago

    Personally I love TW:Ho , had it on import since the UK PSP launch and until GTA came along was by far my most played game. Multiplayer is excellent and especially the on line games (no online battle mode in Mario) .
    I'd definately rate it 8/10
    Its not a port either by the way and clearly not shit.
    Edited by 2 at 21/12/05 @ 14:35

  • GuiltySpark #19 6 years ago

    "PSP in another shit game shocker."

    *slap*

    Why do people always say that?

    Whats the point?

    The psp has good games....the psp also has shit games..just like every other friggin console.

  • SirScratchalot #20 6 years ago

    I really don´t think this game is shit.
    It´s simple stuff but I had a lot of fun with it when I just got my PSP.
    I just don´t think every game has to be either worth selling your babies for or crap...

  • andyk #21 6 years ago

    i agree princess is a cheating slag.

  • reality_cheque #22 6 years ago

    @Markypants: because otherwise people would have nothing to feel positive about. I imagine it's a small consolation prize for being pea-brained and unimaginative.

    Princess Peach might cheat, but her sister sounds so evil when she knocks someone off the edge with a red shell I can't help forgive her entire family. Christ, I'd forgive Condozella (or however you spell it) Rice for being a fascist puppet if she had a mischevious giggle like that... ;)

  • reality_cheque #23 6 years ago

    @Furbs & Royal Fool: I have no PS2 either, because mine broke and the Sony warranty department have their heads up their arse, and lied to me through their teeth in the most obvious way possible. I guess this is part of the reason I dislike Sony, even before Sony and MS brought new meaning to the term "Marketting Bullshit" with all this HD nonsense.

    Oh, that and I accidentally* sold my PS2slim last year for huge profit because once again people didn't think that they might need to pre-order consoles. God bless letting mentally deficient people back into the community, without them Ebay would be so unprofitable.

    *Actually true - I forgot to cancel my eBay auction when I sold the one I accidentally purchased** to a local buyer.
    **Also sadly true, but that's what you get for being impatient when Amazon are slow as hell.

  • Furbs #24 6 years ago

    LOL - the phrase "lucky bast" comes to mind :)

  • reality_cheque #25 6 years ago

    Says the man with THREE x-boxes :p

    I've only got 2, and technically one of them belongs to the girlie :(

    Although having a girlfriend who buys an X-Box just so she can play some 8 player Halo 2 is pretty awesome. If only she was any good...

  • Furbs #26 6 years ago

    I've only got the two spares as it was becoming a pain in the arse moving it upstairs to the spare room when I couldnt use the main tv, and then in to the bedroom when me and mrs furbs wanted to use XBMC in bed. New versions of XBMC cause me to tear my hair out with frustration :p

  • kangarootoo #27 6 years ago

    @markypants
    Someone got out of the wrong side of bed this morning (and other things friendly old people say).


    @krudster
    "I get a tad confused about the damning of PSP ports. It'd be a bit like slagging off a minidisc player because all of its music was 'ported' from a CD."

    Don't you go bringing your common sense in here young man. If we wanted to calm down we would stop holding our breath and count to 10.


    @Furbs
    I'll be looking forward to the answer to your "original titles" question too. I like original stuff as much as the next person, but if a game is good I don't really care whether it is a license, franchise or new IP. The same can be said if a game sucks funnily enough.

  • onyxbox #28 6 years ago

    I just think that for such a smart bit of kit, the PSP just isn't reaching it's potential and people (whether they own one or not) just wish it would. Instead we keep seeing port after port after port and although most of 'em are pretty good they aren't anything special and when you're out and about the extended load times endured for these ports makes it even less appealing.

  • lambtron #29 6 years ago

    I totally agree with Onyxbox. Since buying my PSP the game I have played the most has been Lumines which is hardly pushing the machine to its limits. I also have Wipeout, Burnout and Ridge Racer but they just haven't captured my attention. And the load times have definitely made more of an impact than I thought they would. The standy button is a godsend though. Nevertheless am beginning to wish I hadn't bought the damn thing :(.

  • tengu #30 6 years ago

    It's more a case of a lot of the more noteworthy PSP titles not making their way to Europe from Japan and the US yet. There're some interesting titles like Infected, Legend of Heroes, Exit, Tenchu, SOCOM, Death Jnr and a few others out in those territories, but not here. Then are are a number of interesting 'on the way' titles.

    There are good games made for it, with more on the way, but we in Europe have simply gotten a bit of a raw deal so far with regards to what games are available.

    I have no doubt that this time next year there'll be no complaints about having nothing worth playing on the console. That does us no good right now, true, but I don't think having a bit of patience and giving the thing a chance is asking too much. I'm as bored with the titles on offer here right now as much as anyone, but I don't regret buying the thing.
    Edited by 1 at 21/12/05 @ 17:41

  • Royal Fool #31 6 years ago

    reality_cheque and Furbs: Heh, no, I wasn't saying you're not gamers if you don't have PS2s... not at all. I was just mentioning how widespread they are, although you may not own one yourselves it is very likely that someone in your family or group of friends has one.

  • urban #32 6 years ago

    i knew you meanies were going to give this a bad rating.

    twisted metal is a classic and you can see how much effort they put into building a great wifi gaming system, its beautiful to play alongside your mates.

    i'm going to write my own review just to spite you, i'd give it a 8, just because twisted metal saved my childhood.

  • morriss #33 6 years ago

    Anoth...

  • CosmonautX #34 6 years ago

    Tip-toeing gingerly past the tards...

    Krudster --

    It'd be a bit like slagging off a minidisc player because all of its music was 'ported' from a CD

    Well, that's a bit of an iffy comparison. With a portable music player I do at least have the option of copying my existing record collection over, and I'm not forced to buy duplicate copies of my favourite albums.

    Leaving that aside, however, what I want from a handheld is not simply that it can play versions of existing games on the go. There is some of that, of course, but it's only a part of what I'm looking for. Primarily I'm looking at a handheld as a new gaming device, not a portable version of console X, and if I'm going to shell out for it I do so because I want to get some fresh, interesting games that I can't get anywhere else. I held off on buying a GBA for a while pretty much because at the outset it wasn't offering anything radically different from the GB/SNES games I already owned. At the moment I'm in exactly the same position with the PSP.

    I appreciate that for other gamers simply being able to play versions of their favourite PS2 games on the go is enough, and I hope that they would appreciate that for others that simply isn't going to entice them to shell out £200+ on a console - especially if the multimedia functions are not of interest.

    Furbs --

    Infact, why is that any different to Ninty bringing out a Mario or Zelda game on the DS, with minimal changes to adapt it to the format?

    Well, IMO, Nintendo are doing a little bit more than just porting across games - and even when they do release something like Mario Kart DS (closer to a straight port than a game like Nintendogs) they have a great deal of additional content and offer unique experiences (wireless & online play, missions...) other than just being able to play on the go.

    The advantage the PSP has is they can be closer to the original, which is a good thing imo

    I don't agree. As I said earlier, I don't want to simply play the same game on the move, and I think that the ability of the PSP to get close to PS2 titles & the apparent ease with which developers can port or rehash existing games is the cause of what seems to be a flood of shovelware on the PSP. The DS - by virtue of hardware features like the twin displays, or the touchscreen & stylus interface - forces developers to do something a bit different than simply dumping a prettier GBA or cut-down GC title on to the machine. Of course, some make more effort than others, but it does appear that the hardware setup is at least encouraging most to try new things and to think about developing unique versions of their franchises on the DS.

    what is radically different between an Xbox and a PS2?

    Not a great deal. Same goes for the GameCube -v- PS2, and I think the lack of "clear blue water" between the consoles, coupled with the PS2 being early on the market & following on the heels of a successful predecessor, has contributed to the relatively lacklustre sales / small marketshare of both the Xbox and GameCube & the dominance of the PS2.

    The fact the PSP is selling well is surely a sign that unique/quirky/Nintendo-esque games are not the only sure fire way to get buyers

    Could be. However, you could also argue that it's the extra functionality of the PSP - music & video playback, for example - that's helping to attract buyers. The DS is a games machine, pure & simple, so it sells on the quality & range of games available.

    Tengu --

    Death Jnr

    Oh, dear - not exactly what I'd call a must-have title ;-)

    I have no doubt that this time next year there'll be no complaints about having nothing worth playing on the console. That does us no good right now, true, but I don't think having a bit of patience and giving the thing a chance is asking too much.

    I'm not so sure. I just don't see any titles out now, or in the next 6-12 months that would make me shell out for the PSP. It's a great piece of hardware, but other equally deserving consoles have died because of a lack of decent unique software - and while it's fine to ask the hardcore gamers who post here to be patient with a console, I doubt the general audience will be quite as forgiving. Hype and promises of better to come will carry a system until must-have software turns up - witness the PS2, for example - and while I'd be happy to see the PSP develop a richer library of titles I'm a bit pessimistic about that.

    See you here next Christmas? ;-)

  • tengu #35 6 years ago

    Death Jnr no good then? Thought it looked like a laugh myself.

    I know the stuff coming out may not appeal to everyone, but now the console has a large established user base, I think heavy hitter companies like Capcom, Namco and Konami will start releasing some big name titles for it before long. Example: just a couple of hours ago I read that Konami are bringing out a 'real' Metal Gear Solid(MGS B.D) title for the thing in addition to MGA 2(first one was a decent original title, no?). I'd say 'signature' Playstation titles like Tekken and DMC are likely at some point as well. Don't forget the ICO guys have a game on the way for it as well, and a Final Fantasy title on the way from Square-Enix.

    I'm just saying that it's still too early to write it off, it has a few good games out that people seem happy with right now, and the potential is definitely there. You mentioned the PS2 for instance, dire line up the first 18 months or so, but as of today it has had more really fantastic games than any one console I've owned before I'd say. That's why I have faith in PSP doing the same. If it doesn't? Eh, no real loss, it isn't the only handheld around.

  • euraweener #36 6 years ago

    I guess I'd like to know why eurogamer isn't slagging the PSP for not possessing any truly "next-gen" characteristics and features. This was a primary scoring factor in many xbox-360 games on this site, and is yet curiously absent in reviewing this "next gen" handheld gaming platform.

    Why aren't we reading about the PSP not bringing any new features to this gen of handheld gaming and the lack of games being offered to take advantage of these "next gen" features? Was sony silent on this? Did they not promise new and revolutionary gameplay options? Inquiring minds want to know!

  • freshcut #37 6 years ago

    cosmonautX you raised some good points in your post and intellectually and without flaming or being an arse, well done... although I thought I'd give my 2 pence...

    you say,
    the hardcore gamers may wait but the general public will only hold out for so long for the "killer titles" well this maybe true of a games console, but the way the psp is being marketed is not as of a games console. It is a portalbe multimedia station capable of games, photos, music, videos and now rss feeds, internet browsing and I'm sure many more features that sony intend to implement just to bring out new firmwares as hacks arise. This is attractive to the mainstream, not just a games device that your girlfriend/wife/mum will think you've wasted your money on, but as a useful commodity. This will keep the mainstream happy... the hardcore will be downgrading to 1.5 and running snes games until the fun stuff comes out :)

  • gallow #38 6 years ago

    I really enjoyed the Twisted Metal 2: World Tour on the PS. It was a fun game that made me laugh. There was a bit of depth to it to. Is this game anything like that version? Or has the game just aged badly and I am thinking about it through rose tinted glasses?

  • kincaide #39 6 years ago

    Did you get the "solid-eye" with MGAc!d 2?