Whiplash review

Another day and another three dimensional platform title hits the shelves. At least this time however the developers sought to create a game that stands out from the normal trudge of generic muck we are so often presented with. Whiplash is the story of a Weasel and a Rabbit who break free from a scientific lab and rush for freedom. Both are handcuffed (and this is where the twist comes in) with the weasel (Redmond) being completely insane - he uses the poor rabbit (Spank) as a kind of medieval war mace. If you ever dreamt of bashing a scientist to death with a live rabbit then this could well be the game for you.If nothing else the concept of a mad rabbit-wielding weasel is at least an interesting one. The rest of title follows the same over the top madcap style as our heroes rush around trying to free other creatures held captive in the lab - hamster cannons anyone? The style of the game is completely out there, and genuine humour comes through on numerous occasions. However with regards to the main characters there is only so many times you can hit someone with a rabbit before it simply it loses its novelty. The graphical style of the title fits the theme well with decently animated characters all looking slightly insane and uttering stupid things. Levels come with destructible scenery and there is a decent variety of enemies to fight and creatures to rescue - each more tortured and mad than the last. While the look of the game as a whole is varied from area to area, individual levels do have a habit of looking familiar all too soon. These follow the basic format of a central hub with various doors leading off, yet the developers have tried to disguise its shortcomings.Movement and combat is solid enough, though at times it can be a touch tricky to do exactly what you want to. This is mainly caused by the camera taking up a hugely irregular angle. Yet does not happen often and the camera can be moved using the right analogue stick should it become too much of an irritation. Combat is fun yet limited (theoretically have a wide range of moves to amass) but it is highly unlikely you will deviate to far from the standard practice of hammering the X button to dispatch foes. Our heroes have a wide range of moves with which to navigate the lab, including the standard double jump found in all platform titles by now. More unique moves do exist such as the ability to scurry along wires and zip line using the handcuffs. Think Prince of Persia with a Weasel and Rabbit set in a scientific lab (without the time manipulation) and youre almost there. Indeed the comparisons do not stop with most of the levels in Whiplash (like Prince of Persia) requiring our heroes to climb to the top of something. Whatever the something maybe (normally a round shape) it involves a section of scurrying; jumping; hooking onto something; and a section of double jumping. Herein lies the biggest problem with Whiplash. No matter what you do it all feels like exactly the same after a while. Walk along and hit things, jump this, hover over that, hit this, and hook onto that. The formula is repeated in every single level in an almost identical pattern. One Hub section has you doing exactly the same thing in the five corridors leading off to other rooms; it just seems pointless and dull after a while. The few decent ideas in the title have been stretched way too thinly across the somewhat huge game, leaving you with a feeling of so what? before long.The ideas within Whiplash are good, and there is no denying that the title is fun in small bursts. But in the end the absolutely crushing level of repetition just turns the whole thing into a dull exercise. If levels had been more focused it would not have been such a problem, but there are simply too many unnecessary sections in there. Each section contains the same ideas, repeated over and over and over again. Whiplash is by no means a bad game but is way behind the market leaders. The title is worth playing as it represents an original idea, unfortunately though that originality has not been converted into an overall original gaming experience.