REVIEW: Attack on Titan


Title	Attack on Titan
Developer	Omega Force
Publisher	Koei Tecmo
Release Date	August 30th, 2016
Genre	Action
Platform	PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Steam, Vita
Age Rating	Mature
Official Website

The Attack on Titan anime took the world by storm back in 2013 with its over-the-top violence and unique art style. When I found out Dynasty Warriors developer Omega Force was working on a title based on the series I immediately took interest. I was really curious about what the gameplay would be like. Would I be swinging around cutting down enormous Titans one after another Dynasty Warriors style, or something different altogether? Let’s find out if my curiosity led me to something good!

Giant Titans have appeared and are devouring humanity. On the verge of extinction, humanity constructed three concentric walls: Wall Maria, Wall Rose and Wall Sheena, which graced them with a century of peace. This peace was shattered 100 years later when a Colossus Titan, which was the biggest Titan ever, appeared and destroyed the outer walls. The Titans then poured in, eating everyone in their path, even the mother of a young boy named Eren Yeager. He soon joined the military to seek revenge on the Titans and save humanity.

If you’ve seen that Attack on Titan anime, the game follows that basic story to the letter. The one major difference is the game focuses almost entirely on the battles found in the anime, and you’re not properly introduced to some characters. This would make you question why certain characters act a certain way or do things a particular way. You can totally play this game and enjoy the story this way, but I do recommend you check out the anime before playing if you want to get the most out of this.

The graphic style of this game captures the dark and gritty look of the anime to a tee. Highly detailed character models and fantastic looking Titans really make this title stand out. The environments are also very impressive, from the crumbling buildings to wide open forest areas. Everything is detailed and really makes you feel like you’re a part of all the crazy action that took place in the anime. I played the PlayStation 4 version of the game for this review and it runs at 1080p and 60 FPS for the most part. If you are in the city and tons of buildings are crumbling you may notice a slight dip for just a few seconds, but this is nothing major.

The audio is just as impressive as the visuals. The soundtrack is a mix of some orchestral type music, metal, with maybe even a little electronica mixed in. It is all high-octane and gets your blood pumping to kick some Titan ass. The game is voiced in Japanese, with the Japanese cast from the anime reprising their roles. There is no English dub, which is kind of a bummer for those that love the English voice cast.

The gameplay department doesn’t disappoint either. There are two different play modes. Attack mode lets you play all of the game’s story missions. In this mode you will have to use a certain character to complete missions. Completing these missions will unlock characters and missions you can use in the game’s Expedition Mode. This mode will allow you to choose whichever character you like from the ones you’ve unlocked playing Attack Mode. You can also play this mode online with friends, which is a ton of fun and runs very well.

Once you choose a mission it is time to slay some Titans. You will swing along at crazy speeds with your omni-directional mobility device by simply pressing the square button and using the left analog stick to change your direction, while pressing X will use some of your gas to give you a nice speed boost. Maneuvering may be tricky at first, but within a few minutes you will be flying around the map with ease.

When you see a Titan you simply press R1 to enter combat mode. This will lock you onto a body part on a Titan. Using the right analog stick in combat mode will allow you to select which body part you want to lock on to. Then press the square button to shoot wires into that body part and when reeled in close, press triangle to attack. Timing is important here, as having more speed and attacking at just the right moment will cause maximum damage. Just like in the anime attacking a Titan in the nape of the their neck is death, but some will have protection requiring you to cut off some of their other body parts first. This can also drop you important materials for crafting better gear in between missions.

When each mission starts you will be given a main mission, which will be marked with red smoke on the map, and some side missions, which are marked with green smoke. Side missions consist of you escorting various people to certain parts of the map or maybe saving one of your teammates from becoming a meal for a Titan. Completing side missions will grant you important resupply points on the map and well as new team members to help you eradicate that Titan menace. When you have a solid team playing online or with the AI this game really shines. There’s nothing more satisfying then coordinating attacks with friends to cut these beasts apart, or cutting off the arm of a Titan about to have one of your comrades for lunch and saving them. Usually, once you have slayed enough Titans on the map, the boss Titan will appear and slaying him will end the mission. You will be graded each mission on how much time you took to complete it, how many Titans you slayed, and more. The better the grade you receive, the better the materials you obtain at the end of the mission.

All in all I was very impressed with Attack on Titan. The game looks great, the OST is amazing, and the action is fast, furious and most importantly fun. This game can get a bit stale after a long play session so I would suggest playing in short bursts, or with friends. The only other issue I have with this title is the screen can get really busy with lots of graphic effects as you’re fighting the Titans and it can make things hard to see at times. There are plenty of unlockable character models and other goodies to obtain, and mulitplayer is just a pure joy to play as well. It took me around 10 hours to complete story mode and some of the expeditions. If you’re a fan of the anime this game is must buy, and at the $59.99 price tag you won’t be disappointed. If you were not a fan of the anime, but want a different fast-paced action game, this might be for you as well. Now if you will excuse me, I have more Titans to slay!