Bionic Commando Rearmed

Pros:

• Level Design is faithful to the original
• Excellent Boss Design
• Each weapon has a purpose
• Upgradeable abilities
• Switching weapons on-the-fly
• Music & Sound
• Lighting Effects & Visual Style
• Replay value of Challenge Rooms
• Super Joe's Machine Gun

Cons:

• Old-school, trial-and-error gameplay will frustrate many
• Enemies don't get much smarter and are less varied towards the end
• Final level is ridiculously long and requires stocking up on lives
• Camera is too close on some difficult platforming sections
• Single-player is around 2 hrs long (excluding secrets, power ups, and dying)
• Challenge Rooms get insanely difficult quickly

Misc:

• Supports DualShock 3 rumble
• Audio on the PSN version is LOUD and bass-heavy
• Crashed on me twice
• Runs at 16x9 1080
• Smooth 60fps framerate throughout

Generally, a remake is what, a 3-D re-imagining of the source material? This is the impression I’m under, that developers are afraid of taking two steps back when they put out games because they think the market won’t accept anything less than full 3-D. And one look at Sega proves that a once celebrated game developer can lose that charm and quality that was lost in translation from 2-D franchises to 3-D versions of their former selves. The Playstation and Nintendo 64 virtually killed 2-D gaming. Everything evolved so quickly that a whole new generation of gamers forgot about the NES, the Genesis, and the Super Nintendo. These consoles are the pinnacle of the 2-D side-scroller, platformer, fighter, and RPG’s. They live on in our memories but only serve as blips to modern gaming. It wouldn’t be an overstatement to declare a single generation of consoles as the golden age for gaming overall. Nostalgia aside, these are still great games with huge potential. And I firmly believe Bionic Commando: Rearmed is a step in not only the right direction, but also a great motivating factor for the rest of the industry to go back to its roots. Sales will obviously determine what we see in the future, but critics have already proven that there is still a place for those classic games, remake or not.

In its entirety Bionic Commando isn’t for the faint of heart. There may be no more punishing experience than a Super Hard play-through. And an Easy game will still be a platforming challenge like nothing else. But the most rewarding any game can get is progressing through very difficult areas. Too often a game will hold your hand, something players are accustomed to. You won’t find that in Bionic Commando: Rearmed, and you shouldn’t.

The level design is fair, even if a few parts seem like they should have been tweaked to be more forgiving. The grapple is mechanically sound but it still has minor issues here and there. The levels generally lend themselves well to the controls. Even the last stage, the newest addition, works under very difficult platform sequences. And the grapple is very smooth. It’s a very functional tool. Because you can use it in so many ways, the forced habit of applying it to the game really grows from each stage.  There are instances where you’ll find the need to grab an enemy or deflect a bullet and in those areas it proves its usefulness. It’s more than a way of climbing; the game works because it works so well.

The weapons are all ultimately very different and with that variety it’s still the Machine Gun and Laser that made the biggest difference. I saw no reason to use the Shotgun unless I had to start a new swing. And the Rocket Launcher was effective in clearing the path ahead, but I don’t feel like it’s any better than the Shotgun in a boss fight. The bosses themselves are, in a word, brilliant. Brilliant in the sense that I haven’t had a game with solid boss fights in years. Rarely do games use them anymore, and when they do it can be short on the creativity and imagination of a time gone by. These bosses feel totally retro. Find the weak spot, and shoot that thing. I didn’t know that the grapple would be put to use in so many great ways. It’s just great game design.

The presentation is why you come back. The same reason why I go back. Its visuals are a luxury for such an inexpensive game. The color palette is tasteful and simplistic, but the range of those colors gives the game a little more personality than the original. The effects give little touches that add to the experience without taking your attention away. The music reminds me of a time when it mattered in games, when the soundtrack would be even more memorable than the game itself. Hearing the music in Rearmed, you can’t help but get excited for the potential it has. The game takes itself seriously too, that’s attention to detail. This is the throwback I want to action games that once had over the top ridiculous storylines. Poorly translated dialogue was just something you got used to. I’m just as surprised as I am happy to see that here. It was a real pleasure to read some of the in-game text, because it can be so entertaining. And as you find yourself unlocking challenge rooms, you realize that this is a ten dollar game which could have been even more and would hold its value just as well.

What I’ll always remember from Rearmed was a revival of the past. This could prove to developers that retro still works. For Capcom, it may well lead to a new wave of success in the downloadable marketplace. Right now there is an emphasis on quantity over quality but I think that’s changing. We shouldn’t discourage against Shoot Em’ Ups just because there are so many of them. Instead, we need to encourage more of them. Increase competition and creativity. Mega Man 9 is the next step. A proven formula that was long thought to be dead. It wasn’t fatigue that lead to the demise of big name franchises; it was the assumption that gamers wanted more from their games. It’s not that we don’t want more content, rather we don’t want layers upon layers of gameplay and graphics. There is a place for that, and I think that place is filled with games like Gears of War 2, Soul Calibur 4, and Metal Gear Solid 4. These are games that push technology forward. They’re on the cusp of our expectations. But this download space is very much a void. My hopes rely on Bionic Commando: Rearmed just as much as Capcom’s. I want to see these kinds of games succeed so that other developers will realize there is a home for this content. Sega, Midway, and Rare could all be very successful taking their franchises retro. I understand this desire to keep Sonic or similar characters modern and up to date, but those characters would benefit immensely from this style. Can you imagine how many people would buy Sonic 4, or Vectorman 3, in this style? Sometimes less is more. And in the case of Bionic Commando: Rearmed, we could be looking at the start of something great.

Bionic Commando : Rearmed: A remake of the 2D side-scroller Bionic Commando, a game that earned notoriety more for its need to be different for the sake of being different than anything particularly memorable or great.

Story : Some kind of Nazi faction is building some kind of ancient weapon, all the while kidnapping the ingeniously named soldier “Super Joe” and you, the player, control the equally well-named “Rad Spencer” on his journey to rescue him. For what its worth, the dialogue is more interesting that you’d expect out of such a simple story, despite Rad’s affection for sodomy.

Meet the latest installment in a growing trend in video games – the game designed to promote another game. Joining the ranks of Fable 2 : Pub Games and the Spore Creature Creator, Bionic Commando : Rearmed exists in part to remind players that Capcom is producing a newer, bigger Bionic Commando game in the near future, and to make players think that this is a franchise with a deep and celebrated history. Whether the latter part is true is another question, as the NES game that inspires it is more celebrated for its grappling arm gimmick than anything else.

I’m not quite too sure if the original game is “celebrated” much to begin with to tell the truth.

To its credit, Bionic Commando : Rearmed acknowledges that it’s a remake of an old NES title, a game that clearly didn’t have too much thought put into it aside from “create a guy with an arm that shoots people.” Between the assortment of self-referential jokes in the writing, the use of sprites from the old game scattered around and a soundtrack that remixes the original MIDI tracks with different techno beats, you can’t say that Rearmed isn’t pretending to be anything more than a loving homage to a game from a long forgotten era.

The game expands on the original’s gameplay ideas by adding more types of enemies, a variety of weapons to use to make, and a small handful of original bosses. These help to make the game a bit more forgiving and interesting than its predecessor. However, the functionality behind Bionic Commando’s single unique gameplay mechanic and center of existence remains intact – that your character has a grappling hook arm that clearly weighs so much that asking him to leap or even climb above standard obstacles like the 2-feet-tall barrel is asking for too much out of him. No, instead you kind of have to “swing through” inanimate objects in a clear case of the player having to accept the game’s bizarre laws of nature.

Pretty much every pro and con about the core gameplay rests on this grappling hook and the unusual learning curve it possesses. Controlling the hook and how you swing presents its own set of rules too – you’d think that pointing the analog stick or d-pad in a direction would either fire the hook in a specified direction or extend or detract the cable on your hook, but the controls lose any sense of logic in favor of staying true to its unorthodox original. By default, Rad attempts to fire in a diagonal direction but move the stick and he’ll fire anywhere but. This problem is amplified by the genuinely bad controls that won’t always pick the right direction that you were originally aiming for, causing you to misfire your hook in the wrong direction and fall to your doom.

It’s not that the whole grappling hook mechanic is a bad one, it’s just that the source of the game’s challenge comes more from this, and more from what would otherwise be primitive platforming scenarios than from anything else. The few moments where you’re navigating giant pits by skillfully aiming your hook at certain ceiling spots thrills the player with the feeling of being Cyborg Spiderman. However, most sequences will involve, say, two platforms appearing close together, with just a small space of distance between them that appears on a weird angle. This otherwise odd threat presents an unlikely challenge that could cost you a few lives as you attempt to hope the 360 controller picks up on the right directions you were aiming at and lets you make the precise shots needed to grapple across such a petty gap.

Oh, and you have a set number of lives to beat a level. I tend to think that this old school idea isn’t as outdated as most people think, being that I like games where practice is rewarded with progression. But the game’s challenge comes not from any particular enemy or even a tricky platforming sequence, but rather from the controls and trying to not only figure out how to get the grappling hook to fire where you want it to fire, but hope that the controller clues in on your intention for the hook. I don’t consider fighting the controls to be a good kind of challenge; so ultimately, Rearmed doesn’t provide what I look for in a game of this genre. There seems to be some kind of resurgence of 2D platformers on the handheld systems and digital distribution services like the Xbox Live Arcade, meaning there’s no shortage of ways to feel nostalgic leaping over bottomless pits and stomping goomba-or-goomba-like creatures (thank you Braid), so Rearmed doesn’t feel as novel as it might have been 2 years ago. Hardcore fans of Bionic Commando may want to pick this up to see their gem revived with new graphics, as well as new challenge scenarios to test their mettle, and it’s certainly better than most downloadable games, but this is a game that leaves me wondering why this franchise needed to be resuscitated.

Pros : Entertaining boss fights.

Cons : You’ll repeat most of them twice over.

3 stars

And if you really want the thrill of swinging around, try hunting down the Game Boy Color installment of Bionic Commando.

Remakes of classic games don't always turn out to be as enjoyable or fulfilling as their originals, and Capcom has already proved so with recent releases of 1942: Joint Strike and Commando 3. Bionic Commando Rearmed is the latest installment in Capcom's nostalgic remake craze, deriving from the original Bionic Commando, and unlike 1942 and Commando 3, Rearmed keeps what was good about the original and made it even better in certain spots.

In general, Bionic Commando Rearmed is essentially the same as the original Bionic Commando. The missions are near identical and the ever-beloved arm is obviously still in the mix, where a player will use it, aside from running, as their primary method of maneuvering the game by shooting it at 45 degree increments and swinging between platforms and climbing to the platform above. The map is the same, complete with the enemy encounters, however navigating around it became increasingly annoying as diagonal movement is best used with the directional pad, otherwise you may find yourself going the wrong way. On your quest you will encounter plenty of enemies, and your arm will help protect you and your weapons will help you dispose of them, and as your progress on your journey various equipment upgrades or new weapons will become available as the levels get a little more challenging.

If you never played the original Bionic Commando, you may have yourself a little confused as to the control scheme really is. The most distinguished concept that is absent in the series is jumping. You simply cannot jump. Your bionic arm is your only friend when it comes to a jumping substitute. You may be frustrated at first as controlling the arm itself has a bit of a steep learning curve, but once you learn the basics it will all sink in rather nicely. Additionally, whenever you climb to a platform above you, there is no way to get back down unless you happen to be able to fall back down by going over the edge of the platform currently standing on.

While Rearmed is a lot like Bionic Commando, there are a few new elements in relation to gameplay presentation and mechanics that have been added in to the remake. The most notable, and the most obvious, would be the enhanced visuals, producing an awesome Claymation scene almost like it came out of an episode of Robot Chicken. Among the less noticable adjustments include a fixed health bar, which will slowly progress downwards every time damage is inflicted upon you, and a full arsenal of weapons at your disposal during a mission, meaning you don't have to leave a mission to bring in the correct weapon. Finally, the boss battles are a rather different sight if you've played the original, particularly with the final boss, including a final mission that is completely new to the series.

But perhaps the most fulfilling new features in regards to value and your loss of sense of time are the Multiplayer capabilities and the Challenges. Multiplayer options allow you to step in co-operative play, complete with more enemies and alterations from the single-player mode that emphasize working as a team, and a free-for-all option with three different modes will add excitement and replay value to the bag. Unfortunately, these modes are strictly offline. Challenges consist of over 55 stages in which you must complete the stage in the quickest time possible with no instructions or indications whatsover in regards to how to actually complete the stage, which may be frustrating to some but the majority are easy to complete and it's mad fun to experiment with trial-and-error on some of the tougher challenges. Leaderboards are available, showcasing the quickest times for each stage and where your successful attempt stands among the community.

While Bionic Commando Rearmed may be hard to win over for those who haven't played the original due to its unique mechanics, the subtle yet superb additions to an already pleasing game ultimately make it one of the best downloadable console games available. As a remake, it is best summarized as the same uniquely original hit with an awesome modern twist, but as a game itself it's got enough highly addictive content to last for a while and boasts a price tag nobody can turn down. In the end, if you want to experience (or re-experience) what all the Bionic Commando hype is all about, Bionic Commando Rearmed should in no way be passed on.

The original Bionic Commando for the NES is still one of my all time favorite games, the story was Super 80's Action Hero, and it was GREAT. So when i heard they where gonna "rearm" it for the new generation of consoles i was very excited but also worried the developer  wouldn't give it the treatment it deserves i am happy to say that i walked away from it  with my fond memories of the original not only intact but with a new appreciation for al the guys/gals over at GRIN, they really did a bang-up job not only remaking the original with nearly everything ripped straight outta the NES version but with a very high quality shine to it. They reworked what didnt work back then into a new and often better game. Best of all instead of GRIN just taking the old game and refreshing it they threw in a lot of modes that they reallt didnt need to, though im very glad they did Challenge Mode will have u glued to yuor TV for hours until u can complete them all and Co-Op is great fun, though Multiplayer tends to becoming chaotic, and almost unplayable im sure many people will enjoy it just fine. So all in all for 800 MP there isnt a better deal on XBLA to date. So get online and get to swinging, Super Joe needs your help !!!!

Let me start off by saying that I bought this game on a splurge. I really didn't know what it was or why I should get it, but I wanted a new game so I decided to download it. I quickly realized that this was the game that I used to play as a young child many years ago. It was my favorite game on the NES and for years I had really been searching to remember the name of the game. So, I was thrilled when I hopped in the first level and found myself saying "Hey, I remember this!"

Gameplay
Just like the original Bionic Commando, BC:R introduces a claw mechanic that at first seems clunky and difficult to use, but as you progress you learn to use it in such  a fluid motion, that it becomes second nature, similar to a jump button for instance. Speaking of that, Bionic Commando since it's conception as an arcade game, has lacked a jump button and really that is what makes it stick out from other games of the time period. The gameplay varies from using the claw to traverse simple obstacles, to then shooting, and as you dig deeper into the game, you can find some seriously difficult arm claw puzzles.

Weapons:
In the very beginning of the game, you will only have a revolver and your claw. Without any upgrades your claw has two major abilities. It can grab onto ledges or walls and swing you toward them and it can block enemy bullets. As the story progress, you will gain certain unlockables to your claw which give you the ability to grab various crates or barrels and throw them, and another allows you to grab your enemies and use them as a shield. By the end of the game you also have a large assortment of guns, including a machine gun, rocket launcher, laser gun, and this trippy gun that will bounce lasers off of things to kill enemies.

Sound Design:
As you have probably heard, BC:R boasts one of the most amazing soundtracks in a video game. If you have played the original game, there is no doubt that you will recognize some of the music and you will feel some strong nostalgia. If you have not, do not fear, the music is still absolutely brilliant even to new players. There is something about the feel that the music gives you when each piece of action happens that just feels right. And the music at the beginning and ending of the game, just feels epic, and I usually don't notice sound it games very often.

Story:
I suppose the story can be summed up by saying that this Bionic Commando soldier has been sent to rescue a soldier known as "Super Joe". Bionic Commando (I'm not sure what his name is) is a perfect rendition of a classic 80s movie character. He's totally badass, and he's got the shades and muscles to prove it. There is a more complicated story hidden somewhere underneath about love or something, but for some reason I couldn't find it. I watched a video on youtube of a guy playing the last level, and there was a part of the story in there that I didn't get to play for some reason. The enemy in the game is this army that is fighting with you for some unknown reason, I wont give too much more away about the story, but I'll just say, don't put the controller down after you save Joe. ;) 

Achievements:
The achievements in this game are mad hard. I beat the entire game and only got 40 points, and it's possible to only get 20 after beating it. Most of the other achievements put up a real challenge and one in particular (beating the game on super hard) is going to require you to be very very skilled at this game. I suggest you don't buy it for the achievements, just for the fun. I beat the whole game without concerning myself with trying to get the achievements.

Final Word:
Is it worth it? Whether you're an old pro at the game, or you've never tried it, this is a must have arcade title. This game is probably my favorite game on the marketplace, and if not then definetly in the top 5. You will have tons and tons of fun running and gunning your way through this game. Easily arcade game of the year (so far) and you need to pick this game up! It's a bargain at 800 Microsoft points. If you're still iffy, then give the trial a few minutes.

The original Bionic Commando was heralded as one of the best and innovative games on the NES, and 20 years later, Capcom has looked to spark new magic with the franchise by remaking the original.  And with current standards of remakes, Bionic Commando: Rearmed for Xbox Live Arcade once again falls into the category of 'worse than the original' due to focusing too much on added content than improving what made the original great, gameplay.

There will be several instances in Bionic Commando: Rearmed where you might feel cheated and the game is cheap.  First, are in the new challenges.  Challenges are timed obstacle courses forcing you to use your skills to reach the end.  For the first few, these are fine, with some moderate challenge, however, once you reach the 15th or so challenge, the game forces you to make pixel perfect maneuvers every step of the way, and after your 40th or 50th attempt on some of these, the fun and enjoyment starts to go down.

Another problem with Bionic Commando is the camera system.  In the original the camera squarely had you in the middle.  However, in this game, you are always left or to the right of center, giving you an akward viewpoint.  Also, the camera is sometimes set too close, most notably in secret, moving platform levels where in instances you will have to blindly drop to reach the next moving platform you don't know is there, which will lead to unfortunate deaths if you don't grapple quickly enough.  Also, the grappling mechanic seems flawed in the sense that if you're moving away or towards and object, while grappling, if you don't swing right away, your grapple will be lost, and because of this akward movement most of the time you perform a grapple on a moving platform will result in you swinging off to your doom.

Bionic Commando: Rearmed is by no means a bad game, just a frustrating one in many aspects.  If you wish to play Bionic Commando, go play the original, as that game has more nostalgia going for it than this, but if you don't have an NES, you can't really go wrong with this, but keep in mind the game does have serious issues, including graphical tearing on the Xbox Live Arcade version as well as muffled sound, although the tunes are kind of catchy.  Overall, Bionic Commando is worth experiencing if you haven't played it before, despite being short.  If you're looking for a nostalgia trip from Capcom, wait for Mega Man 9 next month.

There comes a time when you really need to think about the game you’re playing; you invest your time and money reading, watching then eventually playing a game. Sometimes you luck out and your decision was the right one, other times you’re not so lucky and feel that you could have used that time more effectively elsewhere.

 

One fundamental aspect about downloadable games that while great for the money cautious person still poses a problem: the true try before you buy option. Demos only give you a small flavour, but sometimes you need to play more than just a modified portion of the game. Demos are never ‘true’ to form and in order to get the proper experience you need to play the game for a good amount of time before you can say to your self ‘I like’ or ‘I don’t like’ a certain game.

 

This is where I begin with Bionic Commando Rearmed, the ‘new’ game from Capcom developed by Grin Studios. Bionic Commando Rearmed is the remake of the original NES game from the 80s. With Bionic Commando having an upcoming 3D-HD version just around the corner, what better way to help market that game then by releasing the original to the millions of gamers who did not have the chance to experience the game then.

 

I had never played a Bionic Commando game, be it the Nintendo, Arcade or even the Game Boy versions. I was not a fan of the series and knew very little about it. That quickly changed once I read about the remake and I was smitten with the games cool graphics, sound and campy but fun storyline. Now after playing it, I still believe that the game is incredibly cool to look at and with a solid soundtrack, but the games controls are so difficult to use that it turns the game into a disappointment of sorts.

 

The story behind Bionic Commando is simple. You play a Commando Solider sent to rescue a fellow solider and take down the opposing army, it’s your typical 80s Cold-War movie. You have to take out the enemy and fight bosses in your search for your friend and the evil General leading the opposition.

 

Unlike other platform games of the past, rather than using the jump mechanic to get from point A to point B, Bionic Commando has your character, Nathan ‘Rad’ Spencer, use his Bionic Arm’s grapple to swing from ledges. While the mechanic and the method is fantastic, the game’s controls are so inconsistent that often you will get frustrated at the game for that reason alone. Most of the game requires you to swing from ledges and move around the stages with your grapple, but if you don’t time your swings properly and fail to point your character’s arm in the right angle; you’ll miss your next section. This can sometimes be a minor set-back depending on where you are, but in other cases it will result in death.

 

The original game from what I’ve read was incredibly difficult and that doesn’t change here. I am not sure if the difficult stemmed from the game’s original controls but that is the case here. You can get pretty far in the game on shear luck. The boss battles at the end of each stage can be really easy if you move fast and determine their weak-spot. What I found difficult was actually getting to the bosses, thanks to the twitchy controls.

The missions of the game are based on a map with each level given a number. You have your enemy levels and your ally levels. In your ally levels, this is where you get extra material necessary to further yourself in the game and to unlock extras. When on the map screen, if you encounter an enemy convoy, you will play a Top-down level where you need to lead Spencer to the end to take out the main convoy to proceed. These are nice distractions, but sometimes when you’re trying to just get to the next level may anger you. They are easy enough that you should only take a few minutes to complete.

 

The game also includes a series of Challenge Rooms with high-scores being uploaded to the Bionic Commando web-site. While great, these challenges are incredibly difficult and you will get frustrated even more so at the game. It might not be such a bad idea to play the challenge rooms to get better at the game, but be prepared to scream and yell at your screen when your ‘AI’ dies/fails.

 

Bionic Commando Rearmed is a great looking game. For a downloadable title, it is a really nice site to look at. While it’s 2D, the characters all have 3D sprites and the environments also look stunning. This game makes you wish/hope that more classic 2D games from back in the day get re-made to look this good. The sound is also really enjoyable with a stunning electronic based soundtrack. The music is remixed from the original and really cool. If you enjoy the soundtrack, you can purchase the album off of iTunes.

 

My recommendation of this game is based entirely on your preference of the genre. If you enjoy the classics or were a fan of the original game, then you’ll no doubt enjoy this game. But if you have never played this game before I must suggest you not only play the demo but try to find a friend who has it and play the game in more depth. You can’t judge this game fairly before spending enough time with it. If you can get past the twitchy controls, then you will have a great time with it, but if you can’t then this game is not for you.

 

I still have every intention on continue playing this game. It’s not unplayable and while the controls are bad in my opinion, it is not to the point where you say the game is unplayable. As long as you keep practicing and realize the game is intentionally difficult, you should feel good about yourself once you finally manage to complete it. If you can’t take the stress, then I strongly suggest you play something else.

This game is excellent and well worth the 800 points, but i find the 360 controller absolutely crap for this game. The analogue stick lacks the precision at times to latch on to the desired ledge, and quite often makes the gameplay slow down to a crawl  when you feel you should be swinging effortlessly. As for the D Pad, we all know how useless that is.

The game looks lovely, bright colors and graphics that surpass most of the games available on the marketplace. The difficulty can be frustrating, but is exaggerated with the 360 controller. It Captures the addictive quality from the original, but brings it up to date with its high-def  makeover.

In a nutshell, very good game, poor interface that make the game more difficult than it already is!
 

Bionic Commando is just an excellent game. I downloaded this game having only seen the preview video for it and it is fun. It has the old school feel of the original Bionic Commando with the updated graphics of today. Like its old school counterpart It can be challenging. I've played on the normal setting and it has given me a few problems. Most of the problems isn't from the enemies but in the timing of the swings - which is what every level is designed around.

There are a couple of things that get repetitive and I could have done without them. That is the top down view missions. From the main map screen if an enemy vehicle hits your chopper a mission starts from this different view point. At first they are fun but towards the end they are just a nuisance.

Like most platformers timing is crucial. If you have a problem with multiple quick movements you may find yourself dying a lot. Download the demo first for a taste and then if you think you enjoy the mechanics buy the game.  It can keep you occupied for longer than a movie for the same or lower price.

This remake is from the ground up, graphics, sound and some gameplay elements have all been modernized while keeping in spirit with the old games. The graphics are good there are some nice effects, real-time shadows and explosions but nothing eye-popping, this is an XBLM game after all. The character models overall are pretty undetailed, they serve their purpose but not much more. I think the main effort went into making sure that you could tell which enemy was which by looking at their profile or colors. The bosses however are magnificent large and colorful. Each bossfight is preceded a conversation between Nathan “Rad” Spencer and the boss. These conversations are often humorous and presented in beautiful hand drawn, comic-style images.

The music itself is exceptional. If you like remixes of old Nintendo / C64 tunes you are in for a real treat. The soundtrack is available on iTunes and I think I’m going to buy it because it is really worth it. The sound effects aren’t really anything special but serve their purpose.

The main gameplay elements remain the same and so does the main controls. You’ve got two main buttons to use; one which fires your weapon and one that uses your arm. You can also throw grenades (unsure if this was in the original) and switch between different weapons. This last point is a new feature from the original which only allowed you to take one weapon into each stage.

From what I gather most of the stages remain reminiscent of their classic version but have had some layout changes. This is the same as most of the bosses who mostly remain the same but have had some behavior upgrades or tweaks to their strategy. The bossfights are overall very enjoyable and very memorable, from a construction site robot with lose bolts to a giant assembly machine that locks you into place and attacks you from different directions with attacks you have to repel with your arms. Each boss is absolutely huge and usually the game zooms out to get the entire boss to fit on the screen.

I can’t really comment on the co-op  and competitive multiplayer since I haven’t had a chance to try them yet.

One final point I’d like to make is regarding the controls. Some people seem to degrade this game because of lousy controls. However by doing that it seems like you have missed the point of the entire game. The controls are fairly simple yet it requires practice to learn how to handle them. I can’t see how anyone who has played the game longer than an hour can say the controls are bad because that’s when you start to learn how to properly play the game. The B button shoots the arm. If you are standing still Rad shoots it diagonal in the direction you are facing. If you press up or left / right you shoot it in that direction. Fairly simple but very hard to master and that’s part of the fun.

 

After 20 years of waiting and begging, the Bionic Commando franchise is coming back in a big way. This is all in part of Capcom's remake renaissance with such games like Street Fighter IV, Mega Man 9, and 1942: Joint Strike. Bionic Commando Rearmed is the official console remake for the NES version of Bionic Commando with some tweaks and additions (Yeah, it was sort of remade on the Game Boy). If you don't remember, Bionic Commando was truly an innovative game for its time revolving a grappling hook and no jumping at all. Even its crazy story is still as memorable as it was in the late 1980s. Developers should take note of Rearmed because this is how a remake to a 2D game is truly done. Grin has definitely made Bionic Commando awesome again with Rearmed and the upcoming sequel for hardcore fans and even newcomers who never played the original like me.

The story of Rearmed is the same as the original. Your goal as Nathan "Radd" Spencer is to rescue Super Joe from the Imperials and eliminate their leader, Master D (or Hitler if you want to call him that). The game is structured in an overworld map full of areas to swing around defeating bosses and obtaining more weapons along with FSA camps for more items required for the trip. Some areas require certain items to go through as it is not an linear approach as you can back and play the same levels again if you missed any secrets or going for certain achievements. Also in the map, there are trucks that drive around and if you bump into them, you initiate a top-down shooter sequence set in the desert, snow, or the jungle taking down soldiers and big turrets. These break away from the normal action well, but be prepared to do these a lot if you're going back and forth in the map. Absent in the NES version is a new final area (in the Game Boy remakes), the Albatross, which is an airship containing the "Ultimate Weapon" that the Imperials would use to destroy everything.


The original Bionic Commando was one of the hardest games for the NES. Rearmed is slightly more forgiving, but still a difficult game especially for newcomers. The grappling gameplay is still as awesome as it was back in the day with great execution. You get a sense of satisfaction of swinging through a difficult section after dying multiple times, but the frustration does kick in since some moments in the game especially in the final areas require perfect timing. The controls also factor in the frustration as well as there will be some times that either the left stick or d-pad didn't perform the right direction you wanted it to which would likely lead to deaths. Despite that, the game controls beautifully with the shooting and swinging. The combat got significantly better as you can switch weapons at any time instead of stacking from the original. Sure, you can still rely on the Bazooka especially against bosses, but other weapons like the shotgun, vector cannon, and the machine gun still can put the hurt on the Imperials. The lives system is changed to be more forgiving as you start with three lives at an area and if you lose all of them, you just start over at that area from the beginning, which is not bad considering most of the areas except the Albatross are pretty short at times. On harder difficulties, the enemy's A.I. improves drastically for a even difficult game as they fire shots more frequently, go to cover faster, and you receive more damage for getting hit.

The boss battles in Rearmed are also still as great as they were from the original even though you face most of them twice with the second time being a different twist to the fight. The communication rooms also return along with the hacking mini-game of controlling a ball to its goal of the green box. These mini-games are not that really difficult, which add a puzzle element to the game. After they're hacked, you get to hear what enemy soldiers say about the boss of the level you hacked it from or other things. The dialogue in this game is way better than the original in terms of translation, but Rearmed does make fun of the original's translation during the cutscenes which is a nice touch if you played the original to death.


Other than the main game, Bionic Commando Rearmed has other modes to challenge the player along with multiplayer modes. The Challenge Mode is basically a whole bunch of obstacle courses that will test your grappling skills. These challenges start easy, but get way harder as you progress through them requiring perfect timing and skill. Leaderboards keep track of your times doing these courses along with the main game's completion and stage times / scores. Another of Rearmed's cool features is local co-op for two players through the main game. Grin handled the co-op well increasing the bosses' A.I. requiring some teamwork, being fast-paced, and it goes to splitscreen if you and your partner are far from each other. The splitscreen could be handled better in the top-down sections, but it is tolerable. The competitve multiplayer that is meant for a party atmosphere as Grin pointed out is also a nice distraction from everything else as up to four players can play deathmatches and an unique mode as the only way to kill your competition is making them fall to a bottomless pit. It would have been cool if both the co-op and the multiplayer are both online, but it is understandable.

Graphically, Bionic Commando Rearmed is one of the better looking downloadable games on Xbox Live Arcade. Everything has been redone from the original with new art and animations from the characters and enemies. There is at least some balance of the environments between indoor and outdoor even though there will be more indoor areas in the last half of the game. The swinging animations and explosions look great too. The only flaw with the graphics are that there is screen tearing in some levels. Capcom and Grin definitely kept the presentation as old school (8-bit) as they can specifically with the sound. The remixed soundtrack is arguably the best soundtrack I heard for a 2D remake or one of the best soundtracks for a downloadable game. It definitely feels old-school with 8-bit sounds, but still modernized with the electronica for the current generation and good thing Capcom decided to sell this soundtrack on iTunes because it is amazing. The other sound effects also sound great too with the weapons, grappling, and the minimal voice acting.


Bionic Commando Rearmed is an amazing old-school game just like the original. It is fully faithful to the NES game along with the tweaks and additions for people who never played Bionic Commando. It is still as hard as it was in the 80s, but a little more forgiving with the health meter and the tweaked lives system. There are plenty of secrets to be found to increase the replay value for the main game along with leaderboards, achievements, and harder difficulties that change the game drastically. Challenge Mode is a great idea that utilizes the swinging mechanic through difficult obstacle courses. The co-op and multiplayer are also nice additions even though it is not online. The graphics have been completely redone for the current generation (feels almost 2.5D), an amazing remixed soundtrack, and unlockable content for the 3D Bionic Commando makes the package more complete. For ten bucks (800 Microsoft Points), you got a lot of game in it which is surprising and almost a steal. Bionic Commando is officially back and here to stay for a while.


Pros:

• Main game is still amazing as it was in the original with the satisfying conclusion.
• The swinging mechanic is very satisfying especially during difficult sections.
• Challenge mode is a great idea of utilizing your swinging skills.
• Co-op and competitive multiplayer are fun additions to the full package.
• Lots of replay value trying to unlock secrets and content for the upcoming 3D game.

Cons:

• Controls can be frustrating at times.
• Co-op and multiplayer not online
• Some screen tearing that is very noticeable in some levels.
• Might be too hard for newcomers.

its a little hard to get used to if you haven't ever played the older versions of the game before, but once you get the hang of it you start to immediately. The soundtrack is good if you like techno remixed 8-bit, I personally don't. I would have really liked custom soundtrack support to played music more suiting to my tastes. The visuals are amazing, everything looks really great, that's all that need to be said. My one major gripe with this game, maybe its just me. Why can't I jump! I know you couldn't in any of the other ones, but  sometimes it makes it feel as if it were a tad too much like a megaman game, in which I mean more of a "challenge game" and not a "have fun" game.
The price is good, the game is good, try the demo, if you fall in love with that tiny morsel then upgrade to the full thing, you're in for a real treat. >=-)

I suggest reading Jeff Gertsman's review first as those are my general sentiments about it - but I can't help but be upset by the inclusion of certain annoying features.

1. Delaying gameplay.

When I'm replaying a level over and over - I want the process of restarting to be quick.  There are lots of arbitrary delays going on in Bionic Commando Rearmed that are really annoying.  Game designers:  All sequences that are not gameplay, must be possible to accelerate through or bypass to get to the gameplay.  For instance, in Trackmania Forever, there's a flyby sequence at the beginning of every race - but you can enable an option to bypass it and just get to the racing.  In Bionic Commando Rearmed, you cannot bypass the scene where Rad Spencer parachutes in to the location, lands, pauses for a bit and then nods at you.  Being kicked out to the overworld map upon failing a mission is also bothersome.  Just put me back at the start of the level - if I want to go to the overworld map I'll exit the level myself.

2. Disabled controls.

If you start the game with a gamepad enabled, it disables the keyboard.  You can't switch between using the keyboard and using the gamepad due to this.

3. Yes and No.

Any time there's text up on the screen, you have the option to continue reading it or to cancel out of it.  The same goes for questions such as, "Do you want to exit?" and the computer hacking mini-game. Here's a run down of the options:

During dialogue sequences, A is continue and B cancels.
In the menu interface, A is continue and B is cancel / escape.
On question screens, with YES highlighted, A accepts YES and B cancels.
On question screens, with NO highlighted, A accepts NO and B cancels.

Basically, A does not always mean YES, but it should.  A should always be YES and B should always be NO - there should never be an exception.

4. Online Multiplayer.

Come on.  "I can't believe you've done this."

Well what to say about Bionic Commando Rearmed is the remake of the great Bionic Commando for the NES.I never played the original Bionic Commando but after playing this I'm sure it was a revalutionary game for it's time.First I want to start off with the art style,it's beautiful.Every developer that is planing on making a revamp of a great classic,take note of Bionic Commando Rearmed.But this also brings some of the annoying aspecs of NES games.Some of the most annoying things are you get pushed back when you get shot by bigger weapons,trial and error gameplay,and sometimes annoying boss fights.First lets talk about getting pushed back.Well when your jumping on platforms with your arm and you land on a small platform you can get knocked back and apparently a dude with a Bionic Arm can't swim....gah there is some real annoying things in this game.The trial and error is probably the most annoying part though.Well let me put you in a situation,your swinging and you have to get to a certain point and you swing and accidentaly push the stick to much and your on top of a huge building and there you.....falling down and you either can get people to kill you or you can just climb the wall back up and because of the freaking respawing enemies,you have to kill all of them again.Next would be the annoying boss fights.I can only think of one right off the top of my head and that's the boss fight with MAMA.I mean it's pretty annoying just trying to get the bolts out and if you close to MAMA and it shoots a big bomb,concider yourself screwed cause it'll hit you and take off almost half your health and when he shoots scatter bombs at you and you end up in the middle,again,consider yourself screwed you have no time to get out of the small area in time to avoid getting your ass blown off.Well that's my main hates so now it's time for the smaller less important hates.First would be the controls,the reason I'm not making these one of my main complaints is because the only one I don't like is the arm controls.The thing I hate is when you have to stop just before you hit something that'll hurt you then when you stop you still flie forward a little bit and hit them then more freaking frustration!Gah,now I'm tired of hating on BIonic Commando Re. so now let's talk about some of the good things,we already talked about the amazing art style so now lets talk about the great tutorial,a nice weapon variety,and a pretty long story.The tutorial is flawless if you really read it and acually try to learn the controls then you might get the hang of it after maybe 2 or 3 areas.After every are you complete you receive some reward,most of time it's weapons.After 30 minutes of playing BCR I had already received a Rocket launcher,Revolver,Gernades,and some laser gun thing.They are all very fun to play with and never get old.The story has 19 areas some are just little camps where you pick up chips and gear to do some other areas but most are action packed and has a really hard boss fight at the end.

Multiplayer:The co-op is pretty fun and is the same thing as the story but with one more person,no real pros to it and no real cons to co-op mode.I was really diappointed that there was no online co-op mainly because I bought it mainly to play online with my friend but when I pick it up,nope,no online co-op

Re-play Value:Don't get me wrong,this game is great and is guaranteed to be fun to mostly anybody,but this game has very little re-play value unill the trophies are realesed this game has no real re-play value at all.

End It!All-in-all this game is a bargain,$10 for a game that is hella fun even though it has little to no re-play value.But when the trophie are realesed,this game will get only better.Now it's time to wait for Bionic Commando(Not Rearmed)for the Xbox 360.

The original Bionic Commando on the NES is revered by many for being a game that did things different, and did them well. The jump button was replaced by a unique "bionic arm" that enabled players to swing over obstacles and the game has, considered by many, one of the most satisfying endings ever. Bionic Commando: Rearmed is a shining example of how a remake should be done with smooth controls, beautiful graphics and a kick-ass, manly protagonist. It is on of the best reasons to have an Xbox Live subscription. 

It's fair to say that Bionic Commando is a classic game, for many it's unforgettable and for good reason. So in an age where the Arcade is being reborn in a different style it was expected I guess that Bionic Commando would see a updated version hitting our consoles soon enough. Developed by Grin, Bionic Commando: Rearmed is a great tribute to the classic game in many ways. Offering the exact same gameplay that made the original such a hit Grin have done a fantastic job in bringing it up to date and for the most part it looks graphically superb. I'll admit I got a little sick of the games sometimes over saturation of colours but I guess that in its own way is a tribute to the colourful original that we all played so many years back. The game is identical to the original, and if you have already played it then you probably already know the story on offer here. But one big difference in my opinion is the boss battles that are a lot more enjoyable then the ones found in the original version. For the most part it looks great and as a really nice style, though as I previously said the oversaturation in certain levels started to hurt my eyes and I wasn't even close to the screen, but maybe thats just me. The sound is superb as you'd expect especially the fantastic soundtrack that is a total pleasure to listen to and brings back some classic memories. The soundtrack itself is great tribute to the original.

The game also offers co-op which I've experienced a tiny bit of, whats interesting is that the enemies adjust to the extra player and it does make a difference and adds a little more challenge though I still found it pretty confortable. But I have only experience a little bit of that so I couldn't say what the whole game is like in Co-Op. Though it ran great and there was no problems I came across. Grin have done a superb job with Bionic Commando: Rearmed, they deserve great credit for sticking to the original so well and not trying to print there own stamp mark on it. The soundtrack is superb and for the most part it looks great and even though its not my personal favourite XBOX LIVE Arcade games currently avaliable its defiantly worth the cheap 800 Microsoft points for it. Thats a steal! and its great for both veterans and newbies to the Bionic Commando Universe.

OVERALL!
Bionic Commando is a fantastic reworking of a classic game that will easily be loved by both Bionic Veterans and Newbies, and for the 800 points its defiantly worth spending your precious Microsoft Points on. A MUST HAVE for your XBOX LIVE Arcade collection.

GAMEPLAY: 5/5
GRAPHICS: 4.5/5
SOUND: 5/5
VALUE: 5/5

I give Bionic Commando: Rearmed 4.5 Stars out of 5.

Being that developer GRIN did such an excellent job of recreating the original Bionic Commando with its Rearmed remake, the game retains its excellent qualities, as well as the baggage of bad that accompanied it 20 years ago. While the still-original gameplay is both fast and fun, it is also difficult to the point of violent lashings-out at your controller.

Platforms are meticulously placed so you’ll miss them without a perfect jump; enemies are placed in positions that exclusively exist to screw you, and failing to be the best damned Bionic Commando you can often results in frustrating restarts — for example, the amount of effort expended in 15 quick-paced minutes of the final stage is agonizingly lost and must be redone should you die on the boss… and getting to him isn’t an easy task.

In spite of its hateful difficulty, Bionic Commando Rearmed is a breath of fresh air that’s 20 years old.

The lack of an ability to jump in the platformer is replaced with a mechanical arm that allows you to swing your weapon-wielding soldier to victory across 20 or so stages, and it feels as new as it is awesome. On top of the single player campaign, players can unlock and access Challenge Rooms. These simulation rooms require speedy gameplay, as the focus is to earn the quickest possible time and star rating by swinging from the entrance to an elaborately placed exit. There’s plenty of them to enjoy, and it’s a great and addicting addition to an already awesome game.

But the heart and soul is in the campaign, which can now be doubled in fun with a local co-op partner. The lack of an online component is criminal, but forgivable since everything else that’s present — hi-res visuals, tons of weapons and character upgrades as well as a few twists you’ll have to see for yourself — is absolutely awesome. Even the outrageously hard platforming is fun, as figuring out the best way to swing from one end of the stage to the other is an exhilarating experience.

You won’t hear complaints from me about smack talking robo-bosses (new additions, all of which freakin’ rock) and gory climactic finales in a game where you use a mechanical arm to propel yourself under, above and around platforms instead of jumping between them. The fresh feeling of the great looking, excellent to play remake warrants another one in 20 years. Our only real gripe is the insane difficulty, which is also something we’re huge fans of.

It wouldn’t be Bionic Commando without it.

        Man I came to this game as a Fan of the original nes game and was not disappointed at all. First thing you notice is the game play is intact and not broke like in other remakes out there.  Even though its in 3D it just feel wright. From the beginning  I was looking for flaws,  me myself could not find them if any .
        There are some difference in the game like there is a woman piloting  the helicopter and the addition of challenge rooms you unlock during the game that are fun, and challenging. after every room  your time and score will be compare to a bunch of other players online and you get ranked.  The other  thing that is new to the game is the online game which is not to fun or good. Maybe it just me but if a death match is going on you need a 3D world just me but hey maybe others will like it. 
         The main game is great If you like the original then you will love Rearmed.  For $9.99 you cant go wrong. 

Rearmed is a remake of a game for the original Nintendo, but if I didn't know that I couldn't have guessed. It's probably the most fun I've ever had with a game played in two dimensions, and the fact that something this forward thinking in its design and uniquely fun mechanically was made all those years ago makes me surprised it's not hailed as more of a classic. Admittedly I don't have much expertise on the time period, but Bionic Commando had an overworld map that gave you some choice about where to go next before Super Mario Bros. 3 did, and it helps sell the story a lot better.  The levels aren't just random locations you have to run through to beat the game, they're specific, important buildings or areas strewn around a piece of land that's being contested by two opposing sides in a war.  Your objective is to rescue another soldier that has been captured, and you always have a goal in each level, whether it's just gathering intelligence about his location or disrupting some operation the enemy has going.  It's not much, but it seems advanced for the time.

But what I really like about the game is how fun it is to play.  You play as a special soldier who can't jump like most video game heroes, but who has a special arm attachment that lets him deflect projectiles, pull things toward him or the other way around, or grapple the ceiling and swing to different platforms.  Anyone who complains about the lack of jumping is clearly missing the point, because the swing mechanics suffice for every situation, and what's more, they're a lot more fun.  It's the same reason why Spider-Man's web swinging is cooler than Superman's flying - it's more limited, but it's also more visually interesting, and in this case, more entertaining to screw around with.  There's a nice progression to the game, both as you gather more weapons and equipment to make you capable of tackling tougher enemies, and you naturally get better with the arm, allowing you to traverse more difficult areas.  There's some freedom in the levels, with secrets to find and optional paths to take, and the boss fights, while limited in number of actual unique encounters, are always fun tests of your skill as well.  The game's definitely not easy, but succeeding is always rewarding.

The story is pretty simple, but it's enhanced by the sense of humor, which is usually pretty self-referential.  The main character, Rad Spencer, is a take on the typical meathead protagonist, making cheesy threats against any foe he comes across.  There's some Internet jokes and pokes at the original's poor English translation, and it's a bit hokey, but fun enough to like.  The visuals and audio have been updated for today, and they're both really nice.  The graphics maintain the spirit of the original  (I've seen screenshots!) while still looking nice on modern displays, and the music is all remixed from the NES tunes.  It's the best game music I've heard in a long time, and I don't even really like techno.  Anyone with any interest at all in retro gaming should get their hands on Rearmed.

Bionic Commando: Rearmed is the redo and update of the classic 8-bit franc