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Surprise hit of the year

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 22 / 25
Date: August 26, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I spent some time with this game at this years E3 and there is no question this is going to be one of those surprise hits no one sees coming. That's a good thing too, because in a year without Halo 2 Xbox is going to need something to kick it in the pants.

The graphics are some of the tightest the system has seen, each world is just beautifully rendered in 3D awaiting to be demolished by your weapons. I had a blast just picking away at enemies limbs, the way they pop and squirm as you shoot them is just awesome, you really need to see it in action. This game really pulled me in from the moment I picked up the controller.

No serious gamer can pass this up and it won't take much convincing of an average joe to get hooked.

Definately not just another "average" shooter!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 4 / 10
Date: October 24, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game rocks! Metal Arms is a hard core shooter with just a dash of platformer in there for fun, a perfect mix. Tons of weapons, and tons of things to blow up. The AI is great, right up there with some of the very best 1st person shooters. Unlike most hard core shooters, this game does not take itself too seriously, it has a great sense of humor. The enemy robots mouthing off at you are funny. Also the robot "hijacking" is super cool. You get to take over and play as just about all of the enemies. Some of them have special abilites like jump jets and power stomps that are great for clearing out the other enemies. When you hijack a robot the other bad guys talk to you like you are one of them, it's funny. It's a tough game, but if you're ready for a challenge, you gotta play this!

Hearing enemy robots scream never gets old

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 5
Date: November 25, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Metal Arms: Glitch in the System is a 3D action-shooter that's been called a combination of Halo and Ratchet & Clank. High praise for an unlicensed game from a small developer. But Swingin' Ape Studios has delivered a fantastic, fun, lengthy, and challenging game that deserves all the status of higher-profile titles.

You control Glitch, a mysterious robot found by a rebel force on the planet of Iron Star. General Corrosive and his army of Mil mechs are overrunning the planet, and it's up to you and your arsenal to take em out. OK, so the story isn't the most original ever written. However, the dialogue is well-written and hilarious, and the voice-acting is very well done.

The gameplay is what matters here. Glitch's right arm can be outfitted with any of 15+ weapons, ranging from a machine gun and rocket launcher to a rivet gun and mining laser. His left arm is used for support items, like grenades, but some items can be combined with his equipped weapon (use a scope with a compatible weapon and you can snipe from a distance). Weapons can be upgraded, as can Glitch's own servos, which enable him to reload faster. Destroyed enemies leave ammo, as well as washers, which act as the game's currency, letting you purchase extra life, grenades, or weapons. The game controls like Halo - left stick to move, right stick to aim - but is in third-person. Left trigger is for Glitch's left arm, right trigger fires his weapon.

Pretty basic stuff. But there's more. Glitch can use a weapon called a control tether, which can be used to hack into enemy droids, giving you complete control over them. You can use this to scout ahead, sneak into heavily guarded areas, or hack a huge armored mech to lay waste to everything. And I mean everything. Destroyed bots fly apart into pieces (often with a funny death wail). Bridges collapse. Doors are blown inward. Buildings crumble. There's a lot of interactivity in Metal Arms, and you'll need it, because the game can be tough in spots. However, you've often got several strategies to try. Come across an area with too many enemies? Shoot out the grate beneath their feet and send em into burning lava. Use the razor gun to sever an enemy's arms so he can't use weapons against you. There are also gun turrets to man and vehicles to use (one level has you fleeing across a desert canyon in a jeep much like Halo's Warthog). Once you've wasted all enemies in an area, exploration can net you extra ammo, new weapons, or golden computer chips (which unlock new levels for multiplayer).

Metal Arms looks great. The levels range from labs to robot cities to underground mines to open deserts - there are over forty in the single-player game. Characters are well-animated, and the sound effects are about as perfect as you could ask for.
Music is appropriate without being distracting, and as already mentioned, the voice-acting adds a lot of character.

There are eight multiplayer modes for up to four people on splitscreen. One mode limits everyone to control tethers only, so it's a mad dash to jack into the strongest bots. There is also the option to create your own type of game. It doesn't support LAN like Halo does, but the splitscreen is almost as fun - the inclusion of CPU-controlled bots is a nice addition.

The only thing negative you could say about Metal Arms is that it's being released in the time of year when multiple high-profile titles are coming out every week. It's sure to get lost in the holiday shuffle, a fate it certainly does not deserve. Swingin' Ape are a talented bunch, and this delightful, diverse, and rewarding game is a very welcome surprise.

Metal Arms is so much fun

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 8 / 9
Date: November 28, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I have to say that I really like METAL ARMS. The concepts in it - recruiting friendly bots, taking control of enemies, and the collecting of washers in order to buy weapons, weapon upgrades, energy, and ammo - are great. The graphics, level design, and sound effects are among the best I've experienced in any game.

Having said that, the thing I can't believe about this game is the controls - they only allow the standard FPS control scheme! I'm not left handed but I've always used the "southpaw" setup in FPS games because pulling the firing trigger throws off my aim in standard. By now I'm used to it, and it's never been a big deal because in EVERY other game you can customize the controls or at least pick from several control options, but NOT IN METAL ARMS. For me, this nearly ruined the whole game. Yes I'm adjusting but it throws me off and makes the game much harder and more frustrating than it needs to be. It could have been a pure pleasure to play but instead it's a struggle fighting the controls as well as the enemies. If you're used to standard this won't affect you, but it's such a basic thing that I still can't believe the designers left it out. I mean, you can invert up/down and you can even set the look sensitivity, but no options for the control scheme...??? I keep thinking that maybe I'm wrong and I just haven't found out how to change it yet, because the people who made this game wouldn't leave out such a common sense basic option, right?!? OK it isn't the end of the world but it drives me nuts that they obviously put in so much time and effort building an innovative, fun, and beautiful game and then they kill it by forgetting something stupid like control scheme setup. If this game interests you, and you're used to controls other than standard, you'll be stuck relearning how to play. Don't let it keep you from getting METAL ARMS, because it's otherwise such a great game, but just be warned.

And it really is a great game. Scheme aside, the controls are tight and responsive, the enemies are detailed and smart (at least the ones that are supposed to be smart), and the gameplay in general is lots of fun. There are things like gold washers, chips, and powerups to search for without it bogging you down ( they're in logical areas - behind pillars, under bridges, and in tunnels or ditches). If you want you can just ignore all those things and blast your way through the game. That doesn't mean that you don't have to think in this game, but just that it doesn't get in the way of the action. There are of course some parts where smart play is necessary, like an enemy boss that has to be killed in a certain way that isn't immediately apparent.

METAL ARMS feels like a Super Mario type platformer with weapons. Lots and lots of weapons! ...perfectly designed with great firing action and reloading. One of the things I like most is that there is a real difference between weapons. You have to pay attention to what enemy bot you're fighting because sometimes you'll need to switch to the right weapon to be able to kill them before they kill you. Upgrading the right weapons at the right time will make the combat easier to handle. The combat itself is amazing: a frenzy of hard-hitting firefights with huge explosions and robots screaming and coming apart all over the place. It's funny to sneak up and throw a grenade at a group of enemy soldier bots and watch what happens. They yell and freak out and try to get away and then the grenade pops and they each explode individually. You walk over and there are smoldering robot remains with gears and springs everywhere. It's great.

METAL ARMS is an extremely fun game with heavy combat, firepower, and beautiful levels and enemies that are well designed and great to look at (and destroy). I can't give it 5 stars only because some aspects look and feel unfinished, like they rushed it to market before it was 100% completed. Not anything crucial in the game itself, but for instance the lack of control choice (important to me!) and certain other things, especially menus and such, that just seem thrown together at the last minute when compared to the rest of the game. Still, METAL ARMS is one of the best games I've played in a long time and I recommend it to anyone who likes shooters. You'll love it.

Another Game Like """PacMan World 2"""

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 1
Date: December 10, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I highly recommend this game for anyone who might have children who would need a game to play, This is a great game without any bloody details like morst games have. Which is why this game is so great for children.Metal Arms Glitch in the System, is very much like "Pacman World 2", so if you liked that game, you will love this one too. The graphics is a twin to "Pacman World 2". The level of play, from its tough levels to very fustrating levels of play, is "Pacman World 2" twin too. In the making of this game, some of the best points from games like Halo, Mechassault, & Ghost Recon have been programed into this game. So it is fun game overall. You will need to keep the "automatic targeting" in the profile settings on, to get through the tough level of the "Zombieking". Once the Zombie king has frozen, if you run up real close and target your sights on the Zombieking's left hip joint, (that the hip to your right), and toss the core charge into his mouth. It will greatly increase the change of killing him with time. It will take some practice to find just the right spot to aim, to get the core charge to go into his mouth. You will only have time to toss in 2-3 core charges before he will start to move. Also, as you start to kill him, othe monesters will come forth to kill you. ((When this happens, you will know that you have been successfull in hurting him)). ...

This game ROCKS

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 6
Date: December 12, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Wow, this game rocks! It is 95% bot destroying, pieces flying, metal clanking, non-stop action with just a few puzzles here and there. It has 4 difficulty settings, and on Easy this game is pretty easy to destroy even multiple enemies. But its most fun on normal. If you like Halo, this game comes very close. It has a ton of enemies, weapons, vehicles, and minigames and has something like 40+ levels. It also has 4 player split screen multi player action with many types of games you can play. My brother and I got this last week and we (and our friends) haven't been playing anything else. Buy Metal Arms. It's totally worth the money! Great game! I highly recommend it.

Don't buy this Game! It s --NOT-- like Halo!!!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 16
Date: December 13, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This is no way like like Halo!... I have played many games, that is puzzle solving 100%. My friends & I love to play the following games as single & multiplayer, the games like Halo, Mechassaut, Ghost Recon, Pac Man World 2, Enclave, Conclict Deasert Storm, Star Wars Jedi Outcast, Splintercell, soul Calibur II, Elder Scrolls, & Brute Force are all great games!........... This Game, METAL ARMS Glitch in the System, well my friends & I couldn't wait to get the game. We were all very dissappointent in this game. Yes there are Monsters to kill at every turn of the game. The puzzles are also there 100% of the time. What really makes this game bad, is only one game can be saved or played, each time you wish to play a new game, you must esase 100% of the old game. You can't go back to play any part of the game, without wiping the game clean & then you must start over. So what if you can play many players split screen, until your friends can finish the game, you can't play, unless you wish to esase the game in progess, so you can play. Of couse your friends game will have to start all over again. WORST GAME OF THE YEAR!!! DON"T BUY THIS TRASH!!

Great Game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 14, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This is a challending game with lots of shootem up and puzzle solving. Those looking for mindless shootem ups look somewhere else, you actually have to think on some levels of this game.

Blast your favorite robot and watch it scream! Yay!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: December 16, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This is a great game! It has a lot of levels and a good range of weaponry. You can have machine guns, scatterguns, and, my favorite, rivet guns. The rivet guns are kind of like a needler from Halo mixed with a sniper rifle, and it blows limbs off easily. That is what I liked the best about this game, you can blast off any limb and knock limbs loose so they flail around uselessly. It seems like the creators of this game where greatly influenced by Halo. It has a fast vehicle like the Warthog. It has a tank like the Scorpion Battletank. It has Zombiebots that seem like Flood which take several kills to actually kill them. And they have Swarmers that seem like Infection Forms. Though this game may not have a really creative storyline and may have things that remind you a lot of other games, this is a great game and it was most fun. Go try this one. Hearing robots scream was worth it enough for me.

Fustrating and Poorly Programed DO NOT BUY!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 2 / 20
Date: December 23, 2003
Author: Amazon User

The levels of play are incorrectly listed. Easy, is in truth, Very Difficult, and it gets worst with each level upwards. With some levels that are impossible to complete with any success, except with a lucky attempt, that one can never do twice in an hour of play. An example of this, is the level that is called "Zombie Bot King". After several hours of play, I was still unable to kill it. This bot takes large steps as it chases you, and a huge weapon that does a lot of damage, when it hits you & it has the range to hit you. Any damage done to the bot, results in the bot standing still for 5-10 seconds, to totally recharge its health. This bot can't be killed with damage done to its outer heavy armored skin. One it takes so much damage, it frezzes for about 6-8 seconds, with its mouth open, "a 1 inch target" which you can shoot about 7 missles inside it, before it becomes active and kills you with one swing of its weapon. The throwing of the grenades at the open mouth at close range will miss 95% of the time, while it will do great damage to yourself each time it explodes. Once its active again, it will have totally recharge all of its health, while your bot is hurt, and its weapons are must be reloaded with weapons laying at a distance from you. There is a very short time limit before you loss. Info on the net, one person said they got lucky in killing this bot with the time alloted for your attempt to kill it. Each time it stops to recharge, you must put 4 each of the rockets and 4 grenades inside the bots mouth, all 8 weapons must explode inside the bot's mount, without slightly hitting the edge of the mouth, and with in the 8 second the bot is recharging. Of couse you must stay at a distance doing damage to the bot until it stops, then it takes about 2 seconds to get close enough to fire your weapons. Oh the weapons can't fire very fast, and the grenades miss the mouth opening, while it does damage to you, and you must use at least 1 second to excape when this bot becomes active. So in truth you have 5 seconds to throw grenades and fire the rockets. Of course to throw & fire 4 each, it take about a minimum 6 seconds. Each time you die, you get to start this level over, again & again. And this is called the very easy level. DO NOT BUY THIS GAME!!!

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