Cobalt Preview: Chaotic And Robotic

There's rather a lot happening in Cobalt. Like, quite CITY2020.COM .

In actual fact, as much as I detest "it is like this however this," I feel like that is one of the best place to start out. One of the simplest ways I can describe Cobalt (the primary third-party launch from Minecraft's Mojang) is as a curious mixture of John Woo, Tremendous Meat Boy, Contra and (most prominently) Tremendous Smash Brothers.

Like I stated ... so much happening.

%Gallery-131035%You management a diminutive, adorable, blood-thirsty robot battling others of your kind in a 2D, neon-drenched battlefield. Except for the weapons all robots have at their disposal (batteries, hatred of flesh-males), these bots have a quick arsenal of explosives, vitality weapons and good old fashioned robot punching.

While the modes I played at PAX had been fairly conventional (seize the flag, dying match), their pace was way more accelerated than what you'd anticipate. Kills and captures happen fast, and one well-placed grenade can flip the tide.

It was clear that there was definite technique to this robotic madness.

Actually, the one time the game slows down is when an enemy projectile is nearing one of the bots. As time slows, the bulky beam or bullet is highlighted, and the goal has only one likelihood to deflect the shot by rolling into it (cool) or punching it away (supremely cool).

The impact of this slowdown is that a bunch of players meeting in the midst of a map quickly transitions into a sluggish-mo gunfight that may very well be accurately described as a bullet ballet if the robots weren't so stubby and if a lot of the "bullets" weren't rockets/grenades/power beams. It is probably not elegant, but it surely certain is a heck of a variety of enjoyable.

Although chaos defined my temporary play time with the game, there appeared to be deeper techniques that players may discover as time goes by. In reality, I used to be unable to complete the "advanced tutorial" which taught moves like getting extra grenade distance by throwing mid-roll.

While the pace and frantic action was rather a lot to wrap my mind round in a crowded expo corridor, it was clear that there was definite technique to this robotic madness. I for one am trying ahead to exploring it when the sport arrives on Pc, Mac and Linux this fall.