I understand that Stuntman: Ignition is considered an old game by now. But I still own it. And I will still review it.
In my previous review, I believe I mixed up the sections. Surely, I should start with gameplay first? So I will.
Stuntman: Ignition is a racing game, in all but name. Sure, you get different tasks and environments thrown around you, but the concept is the same. Drive fast, and drift when you?re told to.
Ok, it goes a little deeper than that. There are a variety of stunts that you have to perform in a variety of different vehicles, and the inclusion of a freestyle, customisable arena can keep your attention for hours at a time.
So, to summarise the gameplay, you have to drive as fast as you can, and follow on-screen instructions for what to do next.
The singleplayer modes are clearly the game?s focus point, with a number of fully-realised movie scenes, stunt shows and arena-building challenges. Career mode puts you in the place of an aspiring stunt driver, and your first film is a typical disaster movie, about a volcano erupting near a small town. Each film in the game is more a generic stereotype than a film, which, personally, I have no problem with. After all, you?re a stunt driver who plays only the action scenes. Stories have no relevance here.
You have your disaster movie, your hillbilly action film (a la Dukes of Hazzard), a spy movie, a superhero one, and others that I don?t feel like listing.
Each scene of a movie puts you in a vehicle, be it a dirt bike, or a SCUD missile truck, and lines up a menagerie of stunts and obstacles, and it is your job to make it look as good as possible, by not missing stunts, not crashing, and not running out of time.
Once you complete a movie scene, you will be rewarded with a rating based on the five-star system. Earn two stars, and you can change the colour of your vehicle. Earn three stars, and you unlock the vehicle for freestyle arena use. Four stars will unlock a new freestyle arena piece, if one is available, and five stars is, well, five stars.
The key to progressing further into the Career mode is to get as many stars on the scenes as possible. Starting at 100, each star you get will subtract from this number, and each film has a number you must reach before the director will hire you.
Should you grow tired of participating in bad movies, there is always the option of Odd Jobs. These range from stunt shows to adverts, and play out in much the same way as the movies.
Summary: Single-player is samey, but avoids being tiresome by presenting a fresh environment and surprises for each different task.
The Multiplayer modes seem like they were just thrown into the game for the fun of it. There are three different modes: Backlot Race, Backlot Battle and Movie Challenge. Backlot Race is exactly what it sounds like. Up to eight players race around a movie set, earning nitrous for performing stunts. Backlot Battle is a little different, the aim being, not to finish first in the race, but to gain the most points from performing stunts. A little more competition is mixed in by allowing players to ram each other to steal their stunt string and points. A stunt string is basically made from stunts performed within four seconds of each other.
Movie Challenge is basically single player film scenes, but you take it in turns to see who gets the most points on said scenes.
So, yeah, Multiplayer, although fun, isn?t anything new or original, and given the game?s age, it?s very rare to participate in a race that has more than one other player.
Stuntman: Ignition, though not exactly fresh and original, is still a lot of fun to play. If you can find it cheap, like I did, I advise picking it up. If you?re an achievement hunter, you can get easy gamerscore from just finishing the scenes with five stars, and if you just want cheap thrills, the special effects from the films are very pretty, and the instant replays let you see your hard work from behind the camera.
Get a load of your friends together, and have a good ol? eight player race over Xbox Live, or whatever you?re using. Online races have proved to be very entertaining, as I speak from experience. The online community I have thus far encountered have been respectable gents who keep their temper to the racecourse, with some vicious driving, and many attempts to brutalise me and my car
In my previous review, I believe I mixed up the sections. Surely, I should start with gameplay first? So I will.
Stuntman: Ignition is a racing game, in all but name. Sure, you get different tasks and environments thrown around you, but the concept is the same. Drive fast, and drift when you?re told to.
Ok, it goes a little deeper than that. There are a variety of stunts that you have to perform in a variety of different vehicles, and the inclusion of a freestyle, customisable arena can keep your attention for hours at a time.
So, to summarise the gameplay, you have to drive as fast as you can, and follow on-screen instructions for what to do next.
The singleplayer modes are clearly the game?s focus point, with a number of fully-realised movie scenes, stunt shows and arena-building challenges. Career mode puts you in the place of an aspiring stunt driver, and your first film is a typical disaster movie, about a volcano erupting near a small town. Each film in the game is more a generic stereotype than a film, which, personally, I have no problem with. After all, you?re a stunt driver who plays only the action scenes. Stories have no relevance here.
You have your disaster movie, your hillbilly action film (a la Dukes of Hazzard), a spy movie, a superhero one, and others that I don?t feel like listing.
Each scene of a movie puts you in a vehicle, be it a dirt bike, or a SCUD missile truck, and lines up a menagerie of stunts and obstacles, and it is your job to make it look as good as possible, by not missing stunts, not crashing, and not running out of time.
Once you complete a movie scene, you will be rewarded with a rating based on the five-star system. Earn two stars, and you can change the colour of your vehicle. Earn three stars, and you unlock the vehicle for freestyle arena use. Four stars will unlock a new freestyle arena piece, if one is available, and five stars is, well, five stars.
The key to progressing further into the Career mode is to get as many stars on the scenes as possible. Starting at 100, each star you get will subtract from this number, and each film has a number you must reach before the director will hire you.
Should you grow tired of participating in bad movies, there is always the option of Odd Jobs. These range from stunt shows to adverts, and play out in much the same way as the movies.
Summary: Single-player is samey, but avoids being tiresome by presenting a fresh environment and surprises for each different task.
The Multiplayer modes seem like they were just thrown into the game for the fun of it. There are three different modes: Backlot Race, Backlot Battle and Movie Challenge. Backlot Race is exactly what it sounds like. Up to eight players race around a movie set, earning nitrous for performing stunts. Backlot Battle is a little different, the aim being, not to finish first in the race, but to gain the most points from performing stunts. A little more competition is mixed in by allowing players to ram each other to steal their stunt string and points. A stunt string is basically made from stunts performed within four seconds of each other.
Movie Challenge is basically single player film scenes, but you take it in turns to see who gets the most points on said scenes.
So, yeah, Multiplayer, although fun, isn?t anything new or original, and given the game?s age, it?s very rare to participate in a race that has more than one other player.
Stuntman: Ignition, though not exactly fresh and original, is still a lot of fun to play. If you can find it cheap, like I did, I advise picking it up. If you?re an achievement hunter, you can get easy gamerscore from just finishing the scenes with five stars, and if you just want cheap thrills, the special effects from the films are very pretty, and the instant replays let you see your hard work from behind the camera.
Get a load of your friends together, and have a good ol? eight player race over Xbox Live, or whatever you?re using. Online races have proved to be very entertaining, as I speak from experience. The online community I have thus far encountered have been respectable gents who keep their temper to the racecourse, with some vicious driving, and many attempts to brutalise me and my car