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I'll be the first to admit that I like going to my favorite Gameworks or Dave and Busters and taking part in some good old arcade action. Even though I own far more superior technology at home, there's something about getting together with friends, grabbing a few brews, and just chucking credits into an arcade machine - whether it's an 8 player racer, or a two player gun game. For some reason that feeling loses some of its meaning when you try to bring the experience home. In the past the visuals were not up to snuff to the arcade shooters, or even the monitor size eclipsed what was in the home. Now the 360 and PS3 out perform and arcade titles and most TVs in homes are larger or equal to the 50 incher at the arcades. The biggest problem with today's ports lie in the fact you only pay a couple of bucks to play at the arcade, but the home experience, as with Time Crisis 4, will cost you around $90. Not that the port isn't faithful, but even with a few unlockables, new modes and score battles, it's hard to justify the hefty price tag. Let's not forget that visually Time Crisis 4 nowhere near takes advantage of the PS3 firepower. The polygon count and textures could have easily been duplicated on a PS2 or Xbox, and to put it simply, the game just looks dated. Even the new FPS system looks and feels very stiff, not to mention very slow.
The game also sounds so five years ago. You have generic sound effects from the guns to the enemy deaths. The voice acting is laughable. Oh and don't get me started on the constant "hint" voiceover that will let you know when you have a "Hand Gun", "Machine Gun", or to RELOAD. While I feel that Namco really could have taken more time and developing a title that screamed next gen, that doesn't mean the game isn't still fun to play. This is Time Crisis 4's only saving grace. The Guncon 3 works quite nicely, and thanks to LED attachments, can finally be played on HDTVs. Going through the game's various missions is a blast, but a few extra options such as Mini Games and various ways to play such as Full Mission, Crisis Mode, and Multiplayer modes keep you coming back for more. The FPS mode is an interesting change of pace and takes you away from the "rail" experience. Frankly I go into this style of games expecting to play on a rail, so this mode is an unnecessary move, not to mention not as much fun as the other modes in the game. Where Time Crisis 4 will lose points with some gamers is the unrelenting difficulty level, and even worse, limited amount of continues. The last part bothers me most as if I'm going to the arcade to take down Time Crisis, I'm not going into the game saying "I only have 5 bucks to spend on this game, if I don't beat it, oh well." I stay till the job is done. So why omit the option to allow players to continue till they deem fit to quit. I mean I appreciate the challenge, but you should have included an unlimited continue option as well, this way you can let the gamer decide when enough is enough. All in all, Time Crisis 4 is an enjoyable, if not dated experience. Is it worth 90 bucks? Not unless you are just an insane light gun fan. If all goes well in the sales department, maybe Namco will issue a Point Blank next gen title. That I'd happily pay the money for.
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