Peter Jackson's King Kong Xbox 360 Game Review

"When gamers see a new game based on a movie, the hardcore usually shy away, knowing how utterly horrible it’s going to be. Who can forget how E.T. the game, made by Atari almost 20 years ago almost bankrupt the company, or recall Enter the Matrix just a couple of years ago as examples of dismal failures in the movie game genre. I was a little leery of this title when it came out, and didn’t really think it could live up to it's potential.

Then I remembered 3 little movies made by Mr. Jackson himself, a tiny collection of films known as The Lord of the Rings. Who can forget all the fantastic action of Middle Earth that Peter brought to life on the silver screen, and that fistful of Oscar’s he walked away with for all his hard efforts. His creative genius, teamed up with perhaps the finest developers in the video game business right now, Ubisoft, got me intrigued, so I went out and picked up a copy of King Kong to see if this could have somehow turned out right.

In the beginning I really wasn’t expecting much, but thankfully I got a whole lot more than I thought was ever possible! Is this game the first hit in the movie genre? Read on and we’ll see how Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie stacks up!

Gameplay

In King Kong, you get to play the game from the point of two characters in the Story. You start off as Jack, the screenwriter on the trip for Carl the movie producer, who sets off to Skull Island to film an epic movie. Along with you is Ann, a down on her luck and out of work vaudeville actress. Immediately upon arrival, you realize that the island is inhabited by prehistoric creatures long thought extinct. Jack is separated from his companions and must fight his way through the jungle to get back to them. Armed with simple spears, the battle is tense and at some moments almost scary.

Along the way, Jack will find cargo crates that are occasionally dropped from the seaplane that has accompanied the ship on its journey to Skull Island. These crates will carry a single weapon from an assortment of pistols, shotguns, machine guns, and sniper rifles. Ammo is always scarce, so try to make every shot count. The spears can be acquired almost everywhere you look, so use these when possible. Spears can also be lit on fire to clear areas of thick brush to make your way through the jungle easier, or burn the prehistoric beastie’s to death if you’re lucky and time it right.

As you make your way through the jungle to get back to your shipmates, Ann is captured by the island natives and offered up as sacrifice to the great ape, Kong. This is where the fun really starts as you are now playing as King Kong in a third person view, unlike the first person view you use while playing as Jack. Jumping from cliffs, climbing vines, swinging through the trees, Kong does it all! Pick up a downed tree and use it as a baseball bat against the killer V-Rexes, it’s just great fun to play as Kong! His infatuation with the blonde haired beauty keeps Kong on the trail of the ship's crew, and eventually leads to his capture and shipment to NYC.

All in all, the gameplay is just really fun as you prove your dominance over the inhabitants of Skull Island." [more]