Transformers: War for Cybertron

2010 | High Moon Studios | Playstation 3

While I wasn’t quite old enough, or alive enough, to experience Transformers G1 as it aired, I lived it vicariously through the few episodes we had on VHS tapes that were scattered around the house. I still have vivid memories of the impression that the original 1986 Transformers movie had on me, even after the 40th viewing. The kickass theme, performed by Lion, accompanying solemn speeches by Peter Cullen’s Optimus Prime still ring a deeply nostalgic heartstring. Despite these fond memories I completely lost sight of the franchise, outside of the Michael Bay movies. But, 2010’s War for Cybertron immediately put the scope right back on target and revitalized my love for the franchise that had been long since laying dormant.

Transformers: War for Cybertron is a third person shooter, developed by High Moon Studios, set against the backdrop of the civil war that tore Cybertron in half. The game would take the essentials from the Transformers G1 era and use that as a blueprint to start working on a concept for the game. The team redesigned the characters to fit the darker, gritty look that permeates through the game’s every pixel, whilst staying true to their original designs. Throughout development the team at High Moon Studios would go back and forth with Hasbro to determine the best outcome for the problems they ran into. An early example was the lack of mobility when the player turned into a vehicle. Despite being a Transformers game, it wasn’t build like that from the get-go. As Matt Tieger stated in an interview from 2010 with Giant Bomb, the primary focus was to create a good feeling, well performing and snappy game first, and then layer the Transformers elements onto that. This approach and philosophy translates beautifully to the final game, and High Moon Studios succeeded at making the Transformers game that Matt, and we, wanted to play, 25 years in the making. The game received critically positive reviews upon its release, with a lot of praise directed towards the, admittedly stellar, voice performances. I mean, Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime is always a huge treat!

Transformers: War for Cybertron plays out across ten stages, a Decepticon campaign and an Autobot campaign. While the events of the game play out chronologically, leaving you to solve the problems in the Autobot part that you created in the Decepticon part, you’re free to choose which campaigns you play. This stems from the idea that High Moon Studios didn’t want people to feel forced to play a Decepticon if they’re on Team Autobot and vice versa. The game neatly divides itself into two parts that resolve themselves by the end of their fifth stage, but together transform into an overarching narrative. With Cybertron on the verge of collapse due to the ongoing civil war between the Autobots and Decepticons, things are becoming desperate as Energon, the resource powering the Transformers, become increasingly scarce. Megatron, the Decepticon leader, tries to bring back the “Golden Age” of Cybertron, and is going to increasingly dangerous lengths to get his wishes. This time, Megatron seeks to use the highly unstable and corrupting power of Dark Energon to gain the immense power to overthrow the Autobot leader, Zeta Prime, and gain control over Cybertron by corrupting its core. The Decepticons proceed to assault an orbital station guarded by Starscream, to seize control of the manufacturing plant. With Starscream seeing no way out, he ends up joining the Decepticons and teaches Megatron how to harness the power of the Dark Energon. The now superpowered Decepticon leader then turns his eyes towards Iacon, one of the last remaining Autobot bastions, in search of the Omega Key to open the pathway to the Core.

The Autobot campaign picks up during the assault on Iacon, where Optimus Prime is desperately trying to gather allies to help against the Decepticon onslaught. With Zeta Prime captured by Megatron, it’s up to Optimus to lead the Autobots in the fight. After the first wave has been repelled, the Autobots find out that after losing to Megatron, Zeta Prime wasn’t killed, but instead taken prisoner in Kaion. In an effort to save the Autobot leader, Optimus and a few others allow themselves to be captured to break out alongside some of the other prisoners of war. They eventually succeed in freeing Zeta Prime, however he quickly succumbs to his injuries. Optimus brings his body before the Autobot High Council, where he takes the role of the new Prime as well as the task to purge the Cybertron Core of any Dark Energon. The only way to purge the Core is by rebooting it, which would leave the planet a barren wasteland for millions of years. The following evacuation of the remaining Autobot cities is jeopardized by Megatron’s orbital cannon gunning down any and all transports attempting to leave the planet. As Cybertron is preparing to shut down, Silverbolt, Jet Fire and Air Raid are sent in to stop the weapon from firing, but find out that the station is actually a massive Decepticon, Trypticon. The planes are grossly outmatched, but do manage to send the titanic machine crashing into Cybertron, where Optimus Prime awaits for the final confrontation.

*The Star Fox crossover we never knew we wanted*

I honestly didn’t expect the game to carry as much narrative as it actually does. The writing, and in particular the voice acting, are stellar and go above and beyond what you think you’d get in a Transformers game. It gives War for Cybertron a nice layer of nuance to it. Getting to choose between the Autobots and Decepticons is a nice touch for the fans, and each campaign closes in a narrative victory for the respective parties. It’s a nice touch that, while Megatron wins at the end of his campaign, you get to clean up the mess that you as the player have created. Overall, the story feels more fleshed out than you’d expect to get and the presentation is absolutely stellar, with large action sequences accompanied by short intervals of interaction between characters during downtime. These moments, usually when you’re entering an encampment, provide some neede reprieve from the onslaught outside and give you short interactions with the rest of your crew to get to know them a little better. The jabs from Bumblebee, or the disgruntled rustbucket Iron Hide grumbling about them young ‘uns, all add a little extra flavor to this lead riddled pie.

Transformers: War for Cybertron plays around the third person shooter genre and adds its own unique touch to it. The guns feel as heavy and impactful as the scale of the characters demands and it gives the game that extra bit of customer satisfaction. Alongside this we, naturally, have the ability to transform into a variety of vehicles. These are divided into trucks, cars, tanks and planes, and completely overhaul the dynamic of the game. With a simple click of the analog stick you can switch forms whenever you feel like (including the iconic sound), which allows for a much more free feeling range of motion. The controls for the vehicles feel a bit stiff at the start, as most of the vehicles move a lot slower than you’d imagine, but each one of them is equipped with a variety of boosters to increase your velocity. The first time I transformed Optimus into his iconic truck form, I felt a bit lackluster about the experience as it left me with a slow and bulky target for gunfire. It wasn’t the quick getaway I had envisioned. But once I got the hang of using the different boosters and thrusters, I found myself flying across the map with the most idiotic smirk on my face. Another big function of the transformation mechanic is ammo preservation. While it is incredibly fun to mow down hordes of Transformers, you can do so with very limited quantities of projectiles. Each Transformer has its own weapon and an additional slot for weapon pickups. Megatron’s pulse rifle is a very powerful weapon to have in your arsenal, but with 40 shots on a good day, it’s often nescessary to supplement it with a weapon of a different caliber. It can be a bit frustrating to deal with at times, but it keeps you quick on your feet and constantly improvising. This is where the vehicle forms come in. The vehicles each have their own unique weapon and provide you with unlimited uses. Transformations also have the added benefit of being immensely satisfying to do. They carry the momentum over in a similar fashion to Optimus Prime transforming on the highway in the first Transformer movie by Michael Bay. This carried momentum gives the game a certain flow to it, that provides you with immense catharsis. On each stage you’re accompanied by a selection of two other Transformers, and despite forming a solid supportive backbone, they don’t interfere with progression. This allows the player to choose when to advance to the next bit of each level and how they want to complete objectives, giving you complete control over your playthrough.

Even though the gameplay is immensely satisfying, it does lack a certain variety amongst the Transformers themselves. You have the aforementioned classes to pick from, but very few of the stages are actually catered to them. The exception being the Autobot assault on the orbital station and a sewer stage with Starscream. The game needed a bit more to differentiate the otherwise beautiful mechanical world of Cybertron, and to make each individual Transformer feel unique. Don’t get me wrong, War for Cybertron is an absolutely stand-out product in a franchise that was somewhat lacking in decent games. The biggest drawback it has is that it goes far, but just barely misses the finish line of excellence. The game is a visually stunning piece of work, with Cybertron feeling like a broken world for machines, by machines and of machines. The fractured highways feel like giant connector cables that attach the various pieces of infrastructure together into a vast network. The renewed and grittier designs feel familiar, yet extremely fresh. You’ll instantly recognize the G1 designs, but High Moon Studios managed to go a step further and made them feel at home on Cybertron. There is a bit of a downside to the more metallic look of the Transformers, though. During this era, games tended to have a bit of a smudged look to it, and War for Cybertron is no exception in this. While the Autobots stand out with the bright red logo perforating through the dark metals like a bright summer day, the deep purple of the Decepticons make them blend into the background. It’s excellent for camouflage, but it makes for lousy readability, especially in darker areas. This makes the Autobot campaign feel a bit more cluttered, as it’s very easy to lose track of enemies.

Transformers: War for Cybertron is truly outstanding in making you feel like you’re playing as one of your favorite Transformers. The game feels incredibly smooth and responsive to play for the most part, and this is by and large due to High Moon Studios‘ commitment to creating a satisfying experience before making it a Transformers game. The choice to split the campaign into two halves, with each story finishing itself, is an absolutely brilliant move to ensure that the game wouldn’t be an Autobot or Decepticon exclusive experience. It creates a balance that allows fans of the franchise to choose their favorite side to enjoy, or both. The music is surprisingly good, with certain tracks towards the end providing some extra dramatic tension to the ambiance. While I really love most of the game, the fight against Trypticon sticks out as the biggest sore point I have with it. The fight is incredibly chaotic and can end before you have time to take in your surroundings before your health bar is reduced to ash by a barrage of missiles. It feels like a frustrating contrast to the incredible build-up it has and took the wind out of the sails for a few minutes. However, after recovering from these frustrations, I quickly found the fight becoming more exciting as it demands the use of every mechanic the game has to offer. Overall, Transformers: War for Cybertron might be one of the best, if not the best, Transformers games out there. It packs tons of treats for fans and provides an incredibly satisfactory experience for newcomers. The presentation is beautiful, the story intriguing and action packed, the voice acting stellar and the gameplay incredibly responsive and satisfying. It truly is the Transformers game we waited 25 years for to play.

Roll out/10