Despite the 15+ hours of fun I had, there are clear and obvious flaws with Robocop Rogue City, But from the previous work of this games development studio they've improved leaps and bounds.
I'll try and keep my review as short and concise as possible explaining everything you need to know if you're planning on getting the game, or if you want to know what someone who's beat the entire game feels about Robocop Rogue City. Let's start with story.
Story: 8/10. This is the games strong point. As someone who was born in the early 90's right in between Robocop 2 and 3, I can say I was brought up on Alex Murphy and his tin can. I remember watching at a much younger age than I should have been, but being truly amazed at such a unique and often startling world of Robocops Detroit. Rogue city takes place right in that sweet spot between movies and has all the usual cast of characters who play their part excellently. I especially enjoyed seeing Anne Lewis again in all her bubble popping glory. The main actors do a great job and Peter Weller even reprises his role as Alex Murphy which sounds great in game. I won't spoil any story points but I will say it does a really good job at keeping you immersed in its plot and egging Robocop on to get the bad guy.
Visuals: 5/10. Not great. A weird mashup of modern techniques like raytracing clash with what seems like ancient character models and outdated mechanics, which make a sometimes graphically off putting game. The game starts with an awful cutscene where one particular characters hair was waving about like he was free falling from an airplane, despite being inside a building. Not a good start at all. The worst thing without doubt is the characters mouth movement. It just looks like they should be speaking in a PS3/Xbox 360 game from nearly 20 years ago. The downtown city itself is decent looking especially at night with raytraced reflections in things like pools of water on the ground, but the overall look of the game during the day isn't as good. Cutscenes as mentioned can be jarring and off putting so if you're buying this to test the limits of what your PS5/Series X can do, then this really isn't the game for you.
Performance: 7/10. Solid enough. Weirdly on PS5 the game starts in fidelity/Quality mode, which is by far the worst mode. It feels slow and impacts gameplay because shooting and moving in 30FPS just isn't it in 2024. The performance mode however does a good enough job to try and maintain 60FPS. There are drops in the framerate for sure, especially in certain areas/sections but for the most part it's passable with no major issues.
Gameplay: 8/10. Really fun, slightly repetitive. Shooting is awesome, it feels fluid and responsive, you have a decent amount of guns to swap between, I especially like the mounted guns you can rip from their mount and blast fools away like you're Arnie. There is dashes, flashes and a few more abilities you have your disposal, but by far the best is the slow mo. It's not Max Payne good but come on, who doesn't love a bit of slo mo shooting in your games, it's just plain fun. The movement is limited as you would expect playing as Robocop but they make it just agile enough to where it doesn't feel too sluggish. The ability to put chips on your main gun is something that adds a little mini game which can be a nice distraction now and then. Skill points are gained each time you level up and are a very basic but welcome addition. Later on in the game the gunplay does feel slightly repetitive but picking up items like PC's, gas canisters and TV's to throw at your enemies mix it up enough. Still very enjoyable for the most part.
Overall: a mixed bag of a game with solid gameplay and entertaining storyline that is slightly let down by some questionable and outdated graphics, mediocre performance and can be limited in enjoyment depending if you're a Robocop fan or not. Far from perfect but a charming game that does just enough to keep you entertained throughout. 7/10.
