Judge Dredd: Dredd Versus Death

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	Judge Dredd: Dredd Versus Death	CG rating 60 /100
	Developer: Vivendi Universal Games, Producer: Rebellion Software System requirements: CPU 1.4 GHz, 256 MB RAM, 3D Video Card with 64 MB, DirectX 8.1 compatible Game: Judge Dredd: Dredd vs Death Genre: Shooter

Posted by Wiggins on 12-Jan-2005 09:42

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Every time a new “successful license” game is announced, based on a movie or comic, I can’t shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen. I don’t know if it’s because of the fact that 95% of all such games are mediocre titles at best, or the fact that publishers are only after money, but anyway, the feeling remains the same. Of course, there are exceptions from the rule, but the title that I’m reviewing today comes to prove once again that those exceptions are as rare as they come.
The universe of Judge Dredd is pretty common for Sci-Fi scenarios: in the near future, the human cities have become overpopulated and the criminality has risen to alarming levels. Also, the trials in the court of law have become too tedious to be effective, with the human society risking anarchy and chaos without swift action against the wrong-doers. As a result, the Judges are instated to solve this problem, having the role of judge, jury and executioner. As you can easily tell, the main character of the game, Dredd, is the most feared and respected judge, following the law to the letter, which has an ultra-advanced vehicle at his disposal (in this case an oversized hover bike) and an ever useful gun for eliminating the criminal elements in the city.

     Unfortunately, the game doesn’t stay true to the comics, the Dredd from the game being a scoffed version of the original, giving the impression that the producers have turned the macho hero from the movie or comic books into a rachitic second grade cop, unable to support his helmet or hold the gun he is carrying with him.
     Not even the citizens of the city and they’re crimes haven’t escaped the producers irony. At the beginning of the game, after we go through the inevitable tutorial which teaches us how to move around, jump, strafe and perform arrests, we are sent on a very important mission, to stop a pro-democracy manifestation and also to blow the head off those pesky graffiti makers who would make the imprudence of not stopping once they’re summoned to surrender. The Red Bull smugglers are also some of the most wanted criminals in the city. One thing that you need to keep an eye on is the “law meter”, which monitors police activities. If it reaches zero, the mission is over. However, you can arrest the citizens in the city for ridiculous things, like “illegal possession of a gold fish” and sentence them to some very hard years in jail.
     In the event that these “dangerous law breakers” are resisting arrest, you have the all mighty gun at your disposal, which despite the fact that it has only one type of ammunition, it can fire normal, armor piercing, incendiary, explosive or heat seeking rounds. You can also pick up a secondary weapon, which can be a futuristic machine gun, a shotgun or a laser pistol or use them to hit your opponent, if you want to save ammunition or run out of it.