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Mad Max – this is the game where some of the graphics settings aren’t just ‘high’ or ‘ultra’… they’re MAX!
Max Rockatansky (voiced by Bren Foster – Home And Away, Days Of Our Lives), who only ever speaks when he needs to – which is almost never – is on his never-ending quest for fuel. It’s a resource that’s meant to be scarce, but then again, as level 2 shows you approximately five minutes in, move a can of the stuff from where it’s held, and another one instantly regenerates! Hence, it’s effectively as limitless as the number of times a politician will tell you “Let me be clear”.
As always, Max only ever encounters really freaky characters, starting with Chumbucket. The number of actual traditional humans he comes across totals a number that I can count on one finger – and that’s when he looks in the mirror! Chumbucket is a hybrid of a hunchback and that weird thing that used to advertise Kinder Surprise eggs in the ’80s, shouting “Chocoadoobie!” In fact, I half-expected *him* to make an appearance at times.
The wastelands in Max’s world, including daft-named places like Gastown, is the place where even a chainsaw in the head won’t stop a particular baddie in the opening sequence!
Mad Max continues the bizarre language and tone you expect from the movie series. As you go through his world, you’ll collect scrap for doing up your vehicles (rather like finding parts The Last Of Us), it’s also reminiscent of 2013’s Tomb Raider reboot for running about (except this this is a game where it *does* feel right), and both The Last Of Us and the recent Batman series for fights, the former of which I’m reminded when finishing an enemy into a wall by bashing their head against it, although sadly their head doesn’t split apart. But then they’re not zombies.
That said, the fighting can get a bit too samey, where it didn’t feel that way in The Last Of Us, and it happens at almost every pitstop you make.
In doing battle against the main enemy Scrotus, who is a threat to the Wasteland, as I type, I’m currently on no.5 of the fifteen story missions. That might seem like an odd time to write the review, but when it comes to time, this game it going to take a LONG amount of that to fully get through it all. The first four story missions were relatively quick, all completed in under 30 minutes (my video length, that is – minus the odd death and so on), but when the fifth began, I learned just how very easy it is to get side-tracked. For example, after Jeet had explained what he wanted me to do, Chumbucket started blabbering on about a side mission, and then Jeet banged on about a different side mission, and I was all “Hold on, mate, one at a time, yeah?” but the markers on the map had moved on. One singer, one song, please!
Anyway, before I crack on with the rest of it, I’m now scouting all about Jeet’s territory, finding ammo, more scrap metal to get on with improving the Magnum Opus, and reducing said threaet, by getting rid of Scarecrows (made from scrap metal and remains of the dead), convoys, snipers and mine fields. Getting rid of the evil Scrotus’ camps also helps.
Side missions are known as “Wasteland missions”, another example of one includes using a hot air balloon at a vantage outpost in order to get a good view of the region. Once you’ve used a vantage outpost, you can “fast travel” there from anywhere else on the map. Again, this is relective of 2013’s Tomb Raider. These side missions give it a Grand Theft Auto feel to proceedings. However, they can be confusing as I got rid of the snipers and baddies outside one gate, but they didn’t seem to be a way in. The entrance said “Weak gate – explosion restricted”, but the petrol can outside did no damage (so much for weak! And I don’t understand how an explosion restriction works, but anyway, it’s not letting you through, Dom, so let it go, for now…)
There’s also a Capture Mode where you can take pictures of the game, from within, or also capture video with a number of different visual effects, but personally, I’ll stick with Fraps as it comes, and without any fancy stuff. You literally pays your money and takes your choice, in this case.
Go to page 2 for more thoughts on the game plus conclusions.
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.