BlueSmoke - Review : Giants : Citizen Kabuto

BlueSmoke - Review : Giants : Citizen Kabuto

Date : Jan 9th, 2001

Genre : Action

Developer : Interplay

Author : Jin-Ning Tioh

Ever wondered what it would be like to go stomping around as a 900-ton monstrosity of bone and muscle? Well, look no further than Interplay's Giants : Citizen Kabuto. Besides the stomping and chomping antics featured by the Kabuto, Giants offers two more races for your money : The Meccs and the Sea Reapers. The Meccs are advanced space aliens equipped with big guns and jetpacks, while the Sea Reapers are a race of mystical blue females (How they reproduce?) who are experts with the sword and bow as well as Spell casters. Besides this, in order to counter the Meccs, they have the ability to "Turbo", allowing them to travel long distances in a single leap. Well, with that little preview, let's jump in the actual meat and potatoes of the review then, shall we?

Long ago, before man created the loin cloth or even the casino, before the Moon even existed, there was the Island. Once part of a planet, it now hurls its way through space. However, this is no piece of scorched rock. Somehow, the Island supported life, with an atmosphere and vast oceans. Most landmasses are in the form of small continents. Seen from above, they resemble some Deity's name carved into a world. Maybe his shopping list perhaps? Anyway, several races naturally existed here, the Reapers and the Smarties. Another race, known as the Kabuto, exists too, but is actually an unnatural race created by the Reapers. Since the Kabuto betrayed the Reapers, the Reapers have spent much time and effort to kill this beast. Unfortunately, all efforts have failed. Also, due to the Reapers retreat to the ocean, they have grown embittered and angry. Their queen, Sappho, wants to promote the Reapers back to their former glory, thus ruling over the Smartie population with an iron fist. However, one Reaper was different. Delphie, Queen Sappho's daughter, didn't believe in what her people were doing. Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do. That is, until they came. Perhaps five bumbling space aliens wasn't the kind of help she had in mind, but what can one do? After being thrown out of a giant space fish's bowels, the Meccs limped onto the Island for repairs to their ship only to find a very violent war going on between the natives. Thus, they will do whatever is necessary to repair their ship and blast away to Planet Majorca for a well-deserved holiday. Meccs... Sea Reapers... Kabuto... One Island isn't big enough for the three of them.

Here are the races and main characters found in Giants.

Meccaryns

Five cocky aliens armed with superior hardware and suits known as the Meccaryns (Meccs for short) are on their way to Planet Majorca for an annual lad's holiday filled with beer and women. Unfortunately, their ship was eaten by a giant "Gibbon" space fish. With nothing more to do then play cards and get drunk, our lads have no choice but to wait. After two months of waiting and getting drunk, they are ignominiously "discharged" out of the fish's bowels. Left with no choice but to limp to the nearest hunk of rock for repairs, they landed on the island just to find the most violent welcoming committee they had ever met. Aided by their superior technology and teamwork, the Mecc's have only one objective: To get their ship up and running to transport them to planet Majorca for a well-deserved holiday. If they are forced to blow up everything and everyone on the island, well, so be it.

Sea Reapers

These exotic female creatures come with crimson eyes and skin of a soft bluish tint, and usually wear virtually nothing. However, don't be fooled by their looks. They were the dominant life form on the island years ago, ruling over the other races on the island with an iron fist. This ended when they decided to protect their privacy by creating the ultimate defense system - A 900-ton monstrosity of bone and muscle called Kabuto. Unfortunately for the Reapers, Kabuto fitted the job requirements too well, not only chasing outsiders but the Reapers themselves off the island. After surviving Kabuto's onslaught, the Sea Reapers have adapted themselves to their new home, developing mystical powers with the ability to perform lightning quick attacks using swords and bows, and cast elemental spells to cause untold chaos within a massive radius.

Kabuto

As Yan the Samurai Smartie says, "When big Kabuto ass drop from sky, run like your nuts are on fire". He ain't kidding. The Sea Reapers' ultimate defense system, Kabuto went a little berserk and instead chased off all the Reapers into the ocean. Standing over 10 times the height of a normal person, Kabuto is capable of grabbing an opponent and swallowing them whole, or sticking them on his two spikes to keep them as a snack for later. Although Kabuto is not sure how he came to be on this beautiful island save for a serial number "001" imprinted on his stomach, he is definitely sure of four things: He's big, he's hungry, he's mad as hell and he'll do anything to protect the one thing he still loves: His new home. The only weak spot this giant brute has in his tough skin is located directly in the center of his gut.

Kabuto Offspring

When Kabuto wants some company, he has the ability to eat Smarties to get in touch with his feminine side and lay eggs. This in turn will produce mini-Kabutos, called Offsprings. They can grow to half of Kabuto's original size if fed enough vimp meat. They are useful allies in battle, thinning out enemy numbers quickly. Also, they can fetch enemies for Kabuto's consumption if he's too low on health to do it himself. To do this, they can burrow their way to the target. Be warned, if your Offspring brings back the food, it has a chance of killing you. Talk about dangerous food.

Smarties

Smarties are the main inhabitants of the island. They are hardy, small, and extremely ugly. But, when they join your cause, they can be very useful. Besides acting as your guide throughout much of the game, they are the main resource to Meccs and Sea Reapers for base building as well as bodybuilding for the Kabuto. Sea Reapers and Meccs have to keep these little imps happy by feeding, protecting and providing a bar for them to get drunk and happy. In turn, they'll build buildings for you in order to get more firepower. Kabuto however, doesn't keep them happy at all. In fact, Smarties are extremely unhappy to see Kabuto. Kabuto simply grabs them up and chomps them down. This will serve to either make Kabuto grow in size, or allow him to lay eggs to get Offsprings. Either way, they are useful to all three races.

Here are the races and main characters found in Giants.

Meccaryns

Baz "Basil"

Baz (short for "Basil") is the leader of the group, the most intelligent of the lot and consequently always frustrated with the stupidity and ineptitude of his mates. However, he loves his mates like brothers and will do anything to protect them. The one thing he has in common with them is his love for a pint of good beer and the love of a nice beautiful woman. Unlike them however, he insists on tackling the job at hand before thinking of all the fun he's missing out on.

Tel

In his grating cockney voice, Tel often complains that he's unjustly branded as the complainer of the group. Of course, the irony of this situation always escapes him. That said, Tel is loyal to his fellow mates and will do whatever he can to protect them.

Reg

Reg is the technical maestro of the group. He can sometimes be shy, even to the point of being timid. However, this won't show up when he is really pissed off. You'll know when he is. Reg is also the womanizer of the bunch - more than anything, he's desperate to get to planet Majorca to sample a few of the beautiful Majorcan ladies delights ASAP.

Gordon And Bennett

These two Meccs share four things in common: They love their beer, they love their women, they love their holiday destination - Planet Majorca, and they are extremely dense in the head, but in a lovable way (even when they are engaged in some pseudo-intellectual conversations and argue the night away). Gordon and Bennett always seem to be together, inevitably causing trouble for their other mates.

Sea Reapers

Delphie

By far the youngest and most innocent of Sea Reapers, Delphie is also Queen Sappho's daughter. She doesn't approve of the other Sea Reaper's severe methods, but she doesn't know any other alternatives. One thing she is certain of however, is that she must help put an end to her mother's evil reign of terror. To do this, she must learn about her powers, refining and increasing her powers with her famed tutor's help - Yan, the Samurai Smartie.

Queen Sappho

When Kabuto turned on the Sea Reapers, many were killed; the survivors of the onslaught who fled to the oceans were demoralized. They became increasingly embittered and angry. Sappho was easily the most powerful and cruel of the Reapers, so it was only right that she be proclaimed Reaper Queen. Her primary goal is to return the Sea Reapers to their former glory. She had intended for her daughter, Delphie, to become a powerful ally in her cause. However, since Delphie has allied herself with the Meccs, Sappho finds herself forced to show them exactly how powerful and cruel she can be.

Smarties

Timmy

Timmy is Borjoyzee's grandson, and will act as your guide and helper throughout the earlier parts of the game. He can be pretty annoying, but he will be the one who'll supply you with your jetpack and your RPG gun which he took from the "other spaceman", which will be revealed to be Tel later.

Borjoyzee

Borjoyzee is Timmy's grandfather, and will pick up where Timmy left off as the Meccs' guide. Most of the time however, he is found resting his laurels under a tree while the Meccs do all the manual labor. Like Yan, if he is captured during base building, the Meccs would have loss.

Yan - The Samurai Smartie

Yan is Delphie's famed tutor in the early parts of the game, giving her the ability to "Turbo" as well as casting various powerful spells. Later on, he'll act as her guide to Queen Sappho's Secret Palace, ultimately helping her to defeat Queen Sappho. In a way at least. Like Borjoyzee, if Yan is captured during base building, Delphie would have loss.

Whatever way you put it, the gameplay for Giants is unique. From getting medieval on enemies using the sword and bow, to flying around blowing craters where your targets used to be with the most advanced of weapons, and of course, stomping and chomping on reapers and the occasional smartie, chances are pretty high that you'll enjoy yourself one race or another. The only thing that a player could be unhappy with is the lack of a saving system within the game itself, either than at the beginning and end of missions. However, if you're careful and brawny enough, you shouldn't have too much trouble finishing the mission in a single pass. During base building though, if you are killed, your buildings that you constructed will still be standing. This will be forfeited if you restart the game of course. As if the gameplay for Giants wasn't good enough, there are also a few mini games here and there, for example: Delphie's Reaper Ski Races. Unfortunately, the AI for Giants is sadly flawed, although it comes with some perks. Reapers will sneak around obstacles in the landscape, waiting for you to make the first move. However, when they march in groups on their way to your base, all it takes is a single millennium mortar right in the middle of them to send them flying like bowling pins. Unless the creator's reason is that Reapers are just plain stupid, then forget what I said. But overall, the feel and look to it is good, but not excellent. Maybe some tweaking would do it?

Man, what did they do to the multiplayer menu? Looks like a rushed job here. While adequte layout-wise, the menu could really use some spiffing up in the graphics department. It looks plain. To make matters worse, all the text in the multiplayer menu was distorted and pixelated, like what an angry and frustrated artist in Photoshop would probably do. At least the multiplaying experience was worth it. In our first match, we played a Mecc vs. Mecc match. After capturing a few smarties to stock up the pub, Jin-Wei and I had a series of small death matches in the central island, which turned out pretty badly for both of us. Then, to remedy this problem as well as provide me with an unfair advantage, I installed a couple of Surface-To-Air Turrets from my local pub on top of the hills overlooking the island. This meant that Jin-Wei couldn't even cut across the water without having at least five heat-seeking missiles on his tail every time he tried to fly across. He started sniping at the turrets instead, leaving me all the time I could ever want trashing up his base. After that, he quit the gaming scene with the excuse of having something to do. I don't think so. :)

[ Jin-Wei : Hey, it had been awhile since I had done competitive gameplaying! ]

Most of the fighting takes place on deserted islands, with a few smartie villages or Reaper Fortresses here and there. A lot of effort has been put into the graphics, because the level of detail is excellent. You can still see the textures clearly even at a resolution of 640x480 in 16-bit mode.

Now, we approach one of the major shortcomings of the game. While graphics-wise the game is excellent, it could use a lot of improvements performance-wise. I ran the game on 2 systems. One with a Pentium III 550E @ 682MHz, 256MB RAM and a TNT2-based graphics card, while the other, Jin-Wei's rig, which has a Pentium III 700E @ 933MHz, 384MB RAM and TNT2 Ultra-based graphics card. On either system, the frame rate was definitely not smooth (probably less than 30fps), but still playable. There wasn't that much of a performance delta between the 2 systems, and turning down all graphics options (including resolution) hardly helped. Additionally, I have heard numerous unconfirmed reports from fellow gamers that they are experiencing similar problems even on systems equipped with a GeForce2 GTS! Hopefully, a patch that addresses this issue will be released soon.

Hardware requirements are a little steep, but the game offers several options for customizing display details to increase the frame rate on slower systems. Also, despite the, (how do you put this politely?) somewhat dim-witted enemy AI, Giants: Citizen Kabuto definitely has enough originality and style to be declared a winner. If you're looking for an hilarious action-packed action game this new year, then this gigantic brute has your name on it. Happy hunting!