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Twisted Metal: Black

Twisted Metal: Black is a 2001 vehicular combat video game from Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2,[2] developed by Incog Inc. Entertainment as their first game. The fifth title of the Twisted Metal series following Twisted Metal 4 (1999), it serves as a reboot of the franchise. An online enabled multiplayer-only variant, Twisted Metal: Black Online, was released later as a free send-away.

Twisted Metal: Black
North American box art
Developer(s)Incog Inc. Entertainment[a]
Publisher(s)Sony Computer Entertainment
Director(s)David Jaffe
Producer(s)Scott Campbell
Designer(s)David Jaffe
Programmer(s)Steve Poulson
Composer(s)Michael Reagan
Gregory Hainer
Kevin Riepl
Kevin Manthei
SeriesTwisted Metal
EngineKinetica
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
  • NA: June 19, 2001[1]
  • EU: December 7, 2001
Genre(s)Vehicular combat
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

It was also the first Twisted Metal released in PAL territories since Twisted Metal 2. Both Twisted Metal: Black and Twisted Metal: Black Online were reissued as part of Sony Greatest Hits program. A standard downloadable version of Twisted Metal: Black is included in the first batch of copies of Twisted Metal for PlayStation 3, discernible by the "Limited Edition" tab near the top of the cover art. In December 2015, the game was made available for the PlayStation 4 through the PlayStation Network.

Overview

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In concept, Twisted Metal: Black is a demolition derby that permits the usage of ballistic projectiles. Players choose a vehicle and an arena—or a series of arenas in the story mode—to engage in battle with opposing drivers. A variety of weapons and upgrades are obtainable by pick-ups scattered throughout the stage. The objective of the game is to be the last one standing.

The basis of the plot follows the same structure as in all the previous games: Calypso runs a car-based contest called Twisted Metal (though in the game the contest is never called that), in which the various characters compete risking their lives to claim the tournament's prize - any single wish they desire, no matter the difficulty, rarity or even reality of such wish. Although Calypso is indeed malevolent, characters who have malevolent wishes (which make most of the cast) have their wishes granted without him tricking them on the wishes, while those seeking more noble ends (such as Outlaw's driver Agent Stone) find that Calypso usually has the last laugh.

In a somewhat different take from previous games, each character has their own story, which they narrate from their own point of view. Each of them starts with them being visited by Calypso, who knows what they desire and offers them in his contest. More of the characters' background is revealed in their midpoint cutscene, presented as a dream experienced when they briefly pass out after the sub-boss Minion is defeated. The characters' ending movie showing their wish being granted is presented after defeating the final boss Warhawk.

The game instead takes place within a single city known as "Midtown", with most competitors coming from the city's mental asylum, "Blackfield".

Twisted Metal: Black has a cast made up from both new and returning characters, some of which have changed drastically from their previous appearances. There are a total of fifteen selectable characters, in which ten of them are selectable from the very beginning and the other five must be found and unlocked.

Reception

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Twisted Metal: Black received "universal acclaim" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[3] Daniel Erickson of NextGen said, "The best car combat game in history is also the most creative. Go get it."[15] Dan Elektro of GamePro said, "If you've lost your taste for Twisted Metal, this is the game that will bring back your appetite. Twisted Metal: Black is car combat action at its best."[20][c]

Many critics praised its dark and outstanding storylines for each character and its variety of weapons and unlockables, but its hover style controls for not changing much from the previous installments and its unbalanced difficulty were noted criticisms. Maxim gave the game all five stars and called it "a road rager's dream come true".[21] Playboy gave it 90% and called it "fun for the whole family!"[19] The Cincinnati Enquirer gave it four stars out of five and called it "a fight to the finish, so it's important to keep moving and to quickly learn how and when to use each of the weapons".[18]

The game was nominated at The Electric Playground's 2001 Blister Awards for the "Best Multiplayer Console Game" and "Best Console Driving Game" awards, but lost to Halo: Combat Evolved and Grand Theft Auto III, respectively.[22] It was also nominated for the "Best Shooting Game" award at GameSpot's Best and Worst of 2001 Awards, which also went to Halo.[23] The game also came in ninth in their list of the Top 10 Overall.[24] A year later, the Online version was nominated for the "Best Online Game on PlayStation 2" award at their Best and Worst of 2002 Awards, which went to SOCOM U.S. Navy SEALs.[25] During the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences' 6th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the latter online version received a nomination for the "Online Gameplay of the Year" award, which went to Battlefield 1942.[26]

By July 2006, the game had sold 950,000 units and earned $31 million in the U.S. NextGen ranked it as the 61st highest-selling game launched for the PlayStation 2, Xbox or GameCube between October 2000 and July 2006 in that country.[27]

Twisted Metal: Harbor City

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Screenshot of Twisted Metal: Harbor City.

A sequel project is Twisted Metal: Harbor City,[citation needed] though it was never officially announced and the project was later scrapped.

Details on the game were revealed in the PlayStation 2 port of Twisted Metal: Head-On, Extra Twisted Edition. It was originally planned the levels of Harbor City to be greatly expanded and inter-connected with one another, giving a greater feeling of a single, complete world rather than stand-alone levels.

The four completed levels were included in the game as a bonus feature entitled Twisted Metal: Lost.

Webisodes

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Animation S4, a producer of 3D and Flash animations, created a series of six original Flash "Webisodes" to promote the release of Twisted Metal: Black, beginning with No-Face, and including Billy Ray Stillwell, Sweet Tooth, Dollface, Bloody Mary and Mr. Grimm.[28]

Notes

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  1. ^ Santa Monica Studio assisted on development.
  2. ^ Three critics of Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game each a score of 8/10, 9/10, and 8.5/10.
  3. ^ GamePro gave the game two 5/5 scores for graphics and sound, and two 4.5/5 scores for control and fun factor.

References

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  1. ^ IGN staff (June 19, 2001). "Twisted Metal Black Ships to Stores (Go Get It)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on April 14, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  2. ^ "Twisted Metal: Black Ships for the PS2". GameZone. June 19, 2001. Archived from the original on April 29, 2007. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Twisted Metal: Black". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on December 12, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  4. ^ J.C. Barnes. "Twisted Metal: Black - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  5. ^ Edge staff (September 2001). "Twisted Metal Black" (PDF). Edge. No. 101. Bath: Future Publishing. p. 82. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 13, 2023. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  6. ^ Dan "Shoe" Hsu; Kraig Kujawa; Che Chou (August 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black" (PDF). Electronic Gaming Monthly. No. 146. Ziff Davis. p. 110. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  7. ^ Todd Mowatt (June 21, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on January 9, 2003. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  8. ^ Tom Bramwell (February 26, 2002). "Twisted Metal: Black Review". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on March 7, 2002. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  9. ^ Andy McNamara (July 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black". Game Informer. No. 99. FuncoLand. Archived from the original on January 21, 2008. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  10. ^ Shawn Sanders (June 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black Review". GameRevolution. CraveOnline. Archived from the original on October 1, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  11. ^ Ryan MacDonald (June 18, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black Review". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on June 25, 2001. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  12. ^ Russell Garbutt (June 29, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black". PlanetPS2. GameSpy Industries. Archived from the original on August 4, 2001. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  13. ^ The Badger (July 6, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black Review - PlayStation 2". GameZone. Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  14. ^ Douglass C. Perry (June 18, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  15. ^ a b Daniel Erickson (August 2001). "Twisted Metal Black". NextGen. No. 80. Imagine Media. pp. 80–81. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  16. ^ Kennedy, Sam (August 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black". Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine. No. 47. Ziff Davis. pp. 102–03. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  17. ^ Emmett Schkloven (July 6, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black (PS2) Review". Extended Play. TechTV. Archived from the original on June 8, 2002. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  18. ^ a b Marc Saltzman (June 11, 2001). "Road rage rules in racing games". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Gannett Company. Archived from the original on May 21, 2008. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  19. ^ a b Marc Saltzman (August 14, 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black". Playboy. Playboy Enterprises. Archived from the original on March 6, 2002. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  20. ^ Dan Elektro (August 2001). "Twisted Metal: Black" (PDF). GamePro. No. 155. IDG. pp. 90–91. Archived from the original on February 12, 2005. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  21. ^ Ryan Boyce (June 6, 2006). "Twisted Metal: Black". Maxim. MaximNet, Inc. Archived from the original on August 7, 2001. Retrieved November 16, 2014.
  22. ^ EP staff (2002). "Blister Awards 2001 (Console Games)". The Electric Playground. Greedy Productions Ltd. Archived from the original on July 13, 2003. Retrieved April 9, 2024.
  23. ^ GameSpot staff (2002). "The Best and Worst of 2001 (Best Shooting Game Nominees)". GameSpot. CNET. Archived from the original on February 4, 2003. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  24. ^ GameSpot staff (2002). "The Best and Worst of 2001 (Top Ten Overall)". GameSpot. CNET. Archived from the original on April 5, 2003. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  25. ^ GameSpot staff (2002). "GameSpot's Best and Worst of 2002 (Best Online Game on PlayStation 2)". GameSpot. CNET. Archived from the original on February 12, 2003. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  26. ^ "6th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards: Winners". Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on June 3, 2004. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
  27. ^ Campbell, Colin; Keiser, Joe (July 29, 2006). "The Top 100 Games of the 21st Century". NextGen. Future US. Archived from the original on October 28, 2007.
  28. ^ "TWISTED METAL: BLACK WEBISODES". S4 Studios. Archived from the original on December 5, 2023. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
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