Any true child of the ’80s remembers Voltron. In a cornball struggle of good-versus-evil, Drule forces sought to enslave entire worlds, opposed only by the pilots of five mechanical lions. Of course, every classic cartoon gets a videogame eventually, and this XBLA spinoff lets you pick your favorite kitty and suit up for 12 levels of dual-stick-shooter combat.
Each lion has unique strengths and special attacks, ranging from the black leader’s armor-shredding melee prowess to the yellow lion’s miniature tornadoes. This variety helps enliven online co-op partnerships, but the hikes between checkpoints can still be tedious. While pouncing on enemy ships and spraying foes with lightning is lukewarm fun, it’s tough to get jazzed about endlessly galloping from one competent but unremarkable battle to the next.
You’ll occasionally rescue civilians to replenish your health, and head into space for scrolling shoot-’em-up action, but co-op mode’s really the only thing that makes Voltron worth playing at all. Get a full crew together, and your stampeding quintet will fill the screen with glowing bullets and exploding enemies.
Where Voltron completely falls apart is in its ridiculously poor boss battles. Gathering your team’s lions to form the famous giant robot means watching ancient TV footage and occasionally flicking a thumbstick for bonus points. Even the climactic final swipe of your Blazing Sword is about as thrilling as slicing a hardboiled egg, as your involvement amounts to tapping a single button for a few seconds. Voltron may be well past its prime, but it deserved a lot better than this.
PUBLISHER: THQ • DEVELOPER: Behaviour Interactive • ESRB: Everyone 10+ • MULTIPLAYER: 2 on same screen, 5 on Xbox Live • ACHIEVEMENTS: Standard-issue • COST: 800 Microsoft Points ($10)
+ Five lions with simple special abilities; reasonably attractive environments; online co-op.
– Repetitive mission designs; somewhat dull core combat; terrible boss battles.
– Campaign lasts under two hours; only two can play local co-op.
? Do the lions have to form Voltron to scoop their litter box?
Phen0m24
December 07, 2011 at 8:36pm
Mini Voltron rant. 1) How annoying was the Princess? "Oh no I'm unconscious in my lion again.. Blue Lion has fallen and he can't get up..." Should have figured out a way to keep Sven around. 2) Pidge, nobody cares and you sound like you just polished off a helium bottle. 3) Voltron wasn't really as cool as the Shogun Warriors, which looked amazing. They should have had a cartoon cage match.What's next to get made into a game, though? Now that Ryan and Andy have joined the OMG Old Married Guy ranks...Thundarr the Barbarian: Ookla Rides AgainHerculoids: Not An Advanced Form of HemorrhoidsStar Blazers: Awesome Before Anime Was Cool
