Time to do like the title suggests!The command issued in Shoot Many Robots’ title isn’t just one small piece of the experience — it’s really the whole shebang, as you and up to three online pals (or one local buddy) saunter through farms and factories alike zapping hordes of the little buggers. Co-op shooting with thousands of sentient machines to slay? It should be an absolute riot, but sadly, this dull slog yields only malaise and disappointment.
Split between side-scrolling missions and arena-style survival stages, the campaign spans a solid six hours on normal difficulty, with hard and insane missions awaiting masochists thereafter. Despite lightly changing scenery, the kill-everything-that-appears approach never wavers — which would be fine if the action had a satisfying pop to it. It doesn’t; using the left stick to both move and aim while tapping X to fire feels awkward here, and the aiming seems suspect in parts. (You can stop in place and hold the left trigger to aim more precisely, but at times, we still had problems targeting a rocket or a dashing foe.)
With only a handful of enemy types, you’ll face the same scenarios time and again, with poorly placed checkpoints generating recurring rage. And the game doesn’t give you much reason to care, with no real plot or dialogue following the tutorial. Its idea of personality is burping and toilet-flushing sounds between menus, and the muddled, brown-heavy aesthetic is a misfire.
Shoot Many Robots seemed like a sure thing, and its extensive and amusingly described weapon and gear options — which directly affect stats — are a standout feature; really, they’re the only one that feels fully developed here. Nearly everything else around it is as unremarkable as a pile of bolts.
Big bots go down smoother when you tackle 'em cooperatively.PUBLISHER: Ubisoft • DEVELOPER: Demiurge Studios • ESRB: Mature • MULTIPLAYER: 2 on same screen, 4 on Xbox Live • ACHIEVEMENTS: Varied • COST: 800 Microsoft Points ($10)
+ Co-op perks up an otherwise workmanlike shooter.
– One-note approach with dull, repeated encounters.
– Lacks story, dialogue, or anything to propel action.
? Could dual-stick controls have improved this game?
