Perfect Dark Zero

When I first decided upon purchasing an Xbox 360, there were three games I ordered for it, Need for Speed Underground, Kameo and this. Perfect Dark Zero soon became one of my most loved games of all time, Why you ask? Lets take a look.

/* Firstly I must say I didn't play the previous Perfect Dark for the Nintendo 64, so I cannot compare this version to any of its predecessors. */

Single Player

I popped the game into my console on December 2nd to be greeted by high octane dance music as the introduction played through, after setting up a profile (If I remember it was literally selecting a save point) we were under way in the Single Player campaign.

The graphics were very crisp, clear and vibrant thanks to the games very unique art style, I was immediately impressed, this was my first taste of what next generation consoles could do. I have to give praise to Rare (Creators of Perfect Dark Zero, Banjo Kazooie, Donkey Kong), they did a wonderful job on the textures in this game. Bricks stood off the wall, Icicles glistened in the light, each rock had its own individual dips and cracks, Nightclub lights dripped the world in neon colors.

As I began the initial training level I noticed the game's beautifully crafted sound's. Shots flew beside my head, machinery and lasers filled the background noise, enemies hurled abuse my way, the innocents wept as they were stuck in the middle of the battlefield, all of this helped bring the world to life and immerse me more in the game world.

The single player was of medium length ( I believe it took me around 9 hours) and consisted of you controlling the main character, Joanna Dark as she traveled through various locations trying to save her father and stop the evil company dataDyne, led by the evil Zhang Li. The single player, although very good, was not the area most loved by me, multiplayer was.

Multiplayer

So I'd finished the single player, it was onto multiplayer, and what a treat that was. Multiplayer consisted of 6 maps, or levels (each with 2 variants, along with a third 'small' variant) and 8 games modes, which varied from your usual Deathmatch/Team Deathmatch to Sabotage and Dark Op's. Dark Op's (specifically Eradication) was where, for me, Perfect Dark Zero shone. At the beginning of each round you were given time to buy your weapons, ammo and gadgets before you head of into the battlefield. To earn money you completed tasks, which ranged from destroying the opposing teams 'satellite' , to just killing the opposing team members.

During the first year of Perfect Dark Zero's life it had a very competitive, yet very friendly community which really made Perfect Dark Zero a favorite amongst many and drove many to play more to become the best which increased the game's lifespan ten fold.

Perfect Dark zero was, and still is, what I consider one of the best online games on the Xbox 360, and for this reason I recommend anyone with an Xbox 360 to pick up this game, especially when you can get it for as little as £15 these days, its a steal for such a good game.

John Rowley