GameSpy Review of Deadly Creatures

Deadly Creatures is a bizarre idea for a game, not because of its adventure-style gameplay from the arachnid perspective, but because of the interleaved and surprisingly entertaining side-plot concerning two immoral bumpkins hunting for treasure in the desert wastes. Of course, it doesn't hurt that Deadly Creatures sports rich gameplay in the form of numerous and varied attacks for both of its multi-legged protagonists (a tarantula and a scorpion), as well as some clever mechanics specific to each arachnid. Thoroughly enjoyable despite of (or perhaps because of) its creepy subject matter, Deadly Creatures wins on several levels and is easily one of the best third-party games available for the Wii. But make no mistake, just because it's about bugs does not mean that it's for kids.










Skittering Fiends





In Deadly Creatures you alternate each chapter between playing as a tarantula and a scorpion. The two arachnids handle very differently from a gameplay standpoint. Whereas the tarantula is more agile and maneuverable, the scorpion is tougher and capable of interacting more thoroughly with the environment.





The tarantula can jump and use its spinnerets to grapple to distant webs, and its mobility brings significant benefits, letting it traverse more varied terrain than the scorpion. While the scorpion doesn't rely on such acrobatics, it can use its pincers to block incoming attacks and burrow through weak walls, or dig itself into the ground to lie in wait for unsuspecting prey. My absolute favorite move, however, is the tarantula's Stealth Pounce, which delivers a devastating pounce attack at range. Taken together, the move sets for both arachnids present an expansive and incredibly satisfying repertoire of techniques for fighting as well as navigating the game's well-designed levels.





Diminutive Desert





Developer Rainbow is famous for its MX and ATV racing titles, so the studio is no stranger to desert environments, but the locales presented in Deadly Creatures are surprisingly varied given the relatively small area in which the game's events occur. Each rock or cactus is lovingly detailed and lighting is used to great effect throughout. It bears noting that Deadly Creatures looks especially good on standard-definition TVs as the interlacing not present in today's HDTVs seems to smooth out the textures, refining the detail and overall graphical quality. At the same time, the obvious care taken in capturing the animations of the game's generally insectoid cast provides further visual appeal and gives the whole game the feeling of watching a particularly good National Geographic or Discovery Channel documentary (admittedly, a really sensationalistic documentary on the order of "When Bugs do Battle" or something along those lines).





While the environments look very good, it's their layout and general design that truly delivers. Given arachnids' penchant for wall-crawling, you can go just about anywhere, which occasionally gives the game something of an open-world feel. Since your avatars are so tiny, even a tin can or bike tire can be an insurmountable obstacle or a warehouse-sized arena. Because of the scale of the characters and breadth of each level, it can get difficult to get a good perspective on where you're going and what you're supposed to be doing, but, thankfully, there's a handy hint button that will point you in the right direction (I relied on this frequently, I'm sorry to admit).

















Silent Predators





Deadly Creatures presents an intensely atmospheric soundtrack that seriously got the hairs on my neck bristling at the thought of these eight-legged (or, in the scorpion's case, six-legged and two-clawed) creeps skulking in the shadows. It's decidedly ominous in tone, but that perfectly captures the game's theme; it is called Deadly Creatures for a very good reason. Sound effects are suitably grotesque and the slurping and crunching noises associated with scorpion/spider feeding practices abound, working in conjunction with the eerily accurate and frighteningly faint sounds of tiny, furry arachnid feet pawing quietly at the sand.





The voice work of Billy Bob Thornton and Dennis Hopper is simply spectacular, and lends Deadly Creatures' storyline a little extra heft and gravitas. The pair of ruffians on the hunt for lost Civil War gold are brought to life thanks to these two seasoned actors. And really, although it has little bearing on the gameplay itself, I found this side-plot to be one of the game's more engaging aspects, as it illustrates some easily inferred, but still pretty surprising parallels between the two very different sets of protagonists. You could read a lot into this, and I'm not used to seeing so much depth presented in such a unique way in the average adventure game.










Problematic Pedipalps





There are some control issues with Deadly Creatures, but it's not entirely clear whether these are more the fault of the Wii itself. At times, especially during the scorpion's finisher combos, the Wii Remote will misread the required gestures and the combo will fail despite the correct inputs. Of course, this issue was distinctly more noticeable when using a Wii Remote without fresh, just-out-of-the-package double-As, so I'll openly accept that this problem was more operator error than anything else. Still, it was frustrating to miss out on a satisfying killing blow because I wasn't waving the Nunchuck frantically enough for the capricious Wii.





The camera also meets with occasional hang-ups, but considering the multitude of environmental variables it has to contend with it does a fairly admirable job. However, when dueling lizards or wasps in tight, enclosed spaces, expect the camera to freak out occasionally and focus on a wall rather than the action. Also, when negotiating the deep crevasses of the parched desert floor, the camera very rarely has difficulty following your arachnid around corners.





While the overall gameplay of Deadly Creatures seems ostensibly average, the mechanics broaden as you progress through the game. Ultimately, the clever level design and variety of traversal techniques (burrowing, web-grappling and wall-crawling) present both a great challenge and a nice diversity in activities that held my interest and kept me playing much longer than I probably expected to. Despite its frightening, creepy-crawly protagonists, I found Deadly Creatures to be both charming and endearing. It summons a latent predatory instinct that had me yelling things like, "Take that Black Widow!" and "Suck it down Gila Monster!" and reveling in pinning my foes to floor as I sank my arachnid's fangs into my prey. A childish reaction, sure, but definitely very fun as well.

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