In a near-future world where Russia and the United States vie for ownership of the world’s fast-depleting energy resources, the US has constructed a space station in order to harness energy from the sun. Russian forces capture this space station and divert its harvested solar energy into a blast wave that destroys San Francisco, aiming to force the US into a total and unconditional surrender.
GenreFirst-Person Shooters
Platforms ps3
DEVELOPER platinumgames | PUBLISHER Codemasters | RELEASE DATE
Vanquish Reviews ps3
extremegamer.ca review
One of the things I really love about this game is that the A.I. on both sides engage each other all the time and as you’re running (or sliding) across the battlefield you’ll see all kinds of confrontations going on that make you feel like you’re part of something, instead of all enemies focusing all their attention on you.
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nowgamer.com review
The Japanese games industry needs more games like this. All the relentless pace and slick style of a classic 2D Japanese action game in a 3D modern masterpiece.
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eurogamer.net review
It is a game of astounding creativity and polish, exhilarating on the ground in the moment-to-moment thrills of high-speed-to-slow-motion combat, as well as in its wider, twisting trajectory. Doubtless the best third-person shooter ever to come out of Japan, Vanquish builds on Western developers’ triumphs to push the genre in new, interesting directions, shifting the balance of power, and cementing Shinji Mikami’s position as one of the best directors working in videogames today.
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gamespot.com review
Vanquish feels exactly right. It’s fast and furious. It’s totally entertaining. It’s got style oozing from every pore. Vanquish is all game and no filler, and that’s exactly what makes it one of the most gleeful and memorable experiences of the year.
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joystiq.com review
The gameplay in Vanquish may have been possible on the PSOne, but the presentation is pushing the 360 and PS3 into overdrive. There’s so much going on, so much detail and so much … wow that it’s no wonder there’s a button that makes Sam take a smoke break — the spectacle simply has to be taken in.
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gamingexcellence.com review
Vanquish is fun, it’s exciting and it’s a fresh take on the cover based shooter that breathes a bit of originality into the genre. Unless you’re some sort of little pansy that can’t handle a bit of a challenge, or just loathe the genre entirely, there’s no reason not to add this gem to your library.
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gamesradar.com review
Insanely fast and relentlessly fun, Vanquish manages to keep up a breakneck pace almost throughout its entire runtime, never quite slowing down enough to get boring. Of all the Gears of War-alikes we’ve played, this may be the best.
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playstationlifestyle.net review
Vanquish isn’t perfect. It has story problems, it’s not as long as it could be (roughly 6 hours for me), and there is no multiplayer to speak of. The combat, mechanics and action are so innovative, and are done so well it’s easily one of the best games to grace consoles this year.
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gameplanet.co.nz review
The only other criticisms that can be scraped together and levelled against Vanquish are that often in cutscenes Sam is doing awesome stuff that I wish I had a hand in controlling, and that you can only throw grenades a fixed distance (“really far away”).
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strategyinformer.com review
During these moments Vanquish never stutters or drops in frame-rate. Considering the size and scale of the enemies you face and the number of robot grunts around you this is a display of technical prowess. Everything you do, whether it’s blasting off the heads of a dozen enemies and watching them explode in succession, or taking down a boss that fills the screen with glowing weak points and immense weaponry, Vanquish never stops.
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play.tm review
The game could have really done with a bit more content too. We’d handled all the different weapons and projectiles within the first hour of play, and apart from a few special enemy types, the same baddies are repeatedly used throughout the game. We didn’t particular have a problem with the game’s length, clocking in at around 7 hours of play, but there may well be gamers who deem that a rather short length, hence it’s worth mentioning.
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ign.com review
Vanquish is a stylish, spectacular looking game with great gunplay and some stunning set pieces. Although the game’s story and character development pale in comparison to the action, I had a great time with Vanquish from the in-game tutorial all the way to the ending credits. Even though Mikami’s latest creation is difficult at times, players looking for a highly entertaining shooter should look no further. Vanquish will keep you on the edge of your multi-thruster booster seat.
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spaziogames.it review
No Synopsis Available
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gamerevolution.com review
While it’s a great and thought-provoking discussion to have, my job right now is to decide whether or not a game is worth playing for you at $60, the hard-working gamer and/or kid who’s begging for money from your hard-working parents. And given that simple charge, the length of Vanquish is a serious strike against it. With no multiplayer, the only ones coming back frequently after beating it once are Achievement/Trophy whores and high-score junkies fighting for the leaderboards. I gotta think those are minorities in the overall gaming population. Perhaps a rental is in order.
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cheatcc.com review
Vanquish may be a fully modern game and western-style game, yet its non-stop, over-the-top style and pumping soundtrack is also reminiscent of Contra or Square’s underrated horizontal shooter Einhander—titles that are Japanese through and through. It would be easy enough to recommend Vanquish for its gameplay merits alone, but if you consider yourself a fan of both Western and Japanese games, missing out on one that bridges the design gap as well as Vanquish does would be downright foolish.
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videogamer.com review
If you enjoy shooters then you absolutely must experience Vanquish; just know that you’re not going to be getting much more than a weekend’s play unless you get addicted to high scores and challenges. It’s hard to be down on the game, though. I enjoyed every second, with the build up to the final encounter being particularly exciting. While we’re being told that the Japanese games industry is on its deathbed, Vanquish is a shining example of what the most talented developers from the East are capable of.
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next-gen.biz review
Vanquish isn’t substantial enough to be a brilliant whole, but there’s more than enough here to bother its western competitors. Finally, Sega can dust off that classic marketing line, because once you’ve played Vanquish, everything else seems a little bit slow.
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giantbomb.com review
Its weird, half-hearted political gestures aside, Vanquish is the kind of video game that reminds you that these are video games. Perhaps more than any quality, video games allow for visceral thrills unfettered by the real-world logistics of physics and general plausibility. Sometimes a game just needs to look cool and make you feel like a space-age badass, and Vanquish accomplishes both with vigor.
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metro.co.uk review
Even though it’s let down by longevity and a lack of ancillary options this still plays like a classic and is one of the best new shooters of its generation.
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guardian.co.uk review
Vanquish isn’t going to change the face of gaming, but it’s impressive to behold, satisfying to play (as long as you’re reasonably hardcore) and shot through with humour (look out, for example, for the robots dancing to a ghetto-blaster which transforms into a mobile gun). It’s the best thing Shinji Mikami has done for quite a while.
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escapistmagazine.com review
Vanquish is an acquired taste, but if you have that taste already – or if it grows on you – it’s a blast. On the other hand, if you don’t have that taste, than none of the robot-face-kicking in the world will be enough to convince you to enjoy the game. Much like last year’s Demons’ Souls, Vanquish knows who its audience is, and if you aren’t part of it then it really couldn’t give a damn.
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thesixthaxis.com review
The Japanese gaming industry has not flat-lined. Diagnosing Vanquish, using its prognosis as a litmus test of the nation’s wider condition; a biopsy taken to understand more about the host, and it’s safe to say it is suffering from an acute case of identity crisis, however.
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totalvideogames.com review
You see, Vanquish is very fast-paced – it slaloms between missions that are sometimes no more than five minutes in length and yet come jam-packed with numerous different types of enemies in their droves. An extensive system of online leaderboards, which take into account everything from the amount of cover used to level completion times and the number of friendlies K.I.A. to the number of enemies killed, then puts added impetus on this fast-paced action.
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gamezone.com review
Some would look at the brevity of the experience as a negative, but Vanquish is a genuine breath of fresh air in a world choked to death by games like Fallout: New Vegas wear out their welcome long before the 50+ hours required to complete them have been met, and titles like Quantum Theory artificially expand their playtime by including one too many waves of enemies every possible chance the developers get. It’s fast, furious, and most importantly, fun. So much so that immediately after I finished the game, I started over again on a harder difficulty. Whether you rent or buy, there’s no denying that Vanquish is simply worth playing.
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computerandvideogames.com review
Mikami has the basis for a gorgeous, thrilling shooter here. But the wooden narrative, stale mechanic and barely-there learning curve prevent Vanquish from ever quite reaching those heights.
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