Video Game Review - Robocop: Rogue City
ROBOCOP: ROGUE CITY by Teyon is a first-person shooter set between the events of Robocop 2 and Robocop 3. This is already something that might put off serious Robocop fans who, bluntly, are the only people who would truly get the full experience of this game. However, the handling of the gameplay lore and story is arguably better than Robocop 2 and certainly more so than Robocop 3. In a very real way, this is the third movie we deserved, and the fact Peter Weller is back voicing the character makes me think this deserves to be considered part of the official canon--such as it is.
The premise is that a group of Nuka-addicted punks have taken over Channel 9 news as part of a demonstration for a new crime boss in Old Detroit called "The New Guy." The names are one of my few complaints about the game, but I suppose the Eighties didn't have that much imagination in terms of their crime bosses. Robocop puts a stop to the hostage situation but quickly develops a series of glitches that might be related to an explosion to the face knocking loose some of his memories.
What follows is about nine to ten hours of gameplay as you embodying Alex Murphy in his quest to bring justice to Old Detroit. Most of the gameplay is Murphy entering shooting galleries full of drug dealers, bikers, mercenaries, and other classic Eighties villains. Murphy moves at a glacial pace but can absorb dozens of bullets before going down. This is not a cover-based shooter, though you may want to hide behind a pillar or two during your attacks.
In-between the shooting sections, you'll do a variety of side quests that homage the Robocop universe. Sometimes this will call upon Alex Murphy to investigate murders, other times this will require him to handle the overflow at the front desk, or even get a card signed for a cop in the hospital. There's very little real investigation involved, and you can't really get the results wrong but the humor as well as oddball writing more than makes up for the simplistic gameplay.
One thing I cannot stress enough is that this game is a loving homage to the Robocop movies. The aesthetic from the original movie is recreated perfectly with CRT monitors and rooms replicated with extreme precision. You can go down to the server room where Alex Murphy looked up his own death and even meet the same police officers that were down there. Robocop's police car even makes the same dip that it did speeding away that it did in the movie. Plus, beloved characters like Officer Lewis and Sergeant Reed are recreated even if their actors didn't choose to lend their voices.
The best part of the game is the fact that it doesn't ignore the tragedy of the franchise. Alex Murphy is an effective corporate slave of Omni Consumer Products and suffering severe body dysmorphia. Several times during the game, we get to see just how tortured that Alex Murphy is by his condition, and we know there's no real release for him.
In very simple terms, this is a game for die-hard Robocop fans while those unfamiliar with the franchise probably won't get nearly as much from it. However, it is a fantastic game for what it is and the love as well as care that went into it is something that works well here. If you're looking for a short Double A shooter with a decent story, then you could do a lot worse.
