First let me say, understandably, my expectations were very low for this game. Secondly I’m not a big fan of “gangsta” rappers, either their image or their music. But I’m willing to try anything with an open mind, and refuse to judge a game by it’s cover.

The first reaction of note I felt about this game was the hilariousness of the plot and dialogue. There are so many moments in the game where you are asking yourself “Why?” with utter confusion. But oddly, rather than taking from the game, it actually adds to it. Unknowingly, 50 Cent has made a game that not only seems to a satire on violent gaming but also a parody on gangsta rap itself. Rather than detail the plot myself, here is the summary of it from wiki:

The game is set in an urban warzone in an unnamed Middle Eastern country, where 50 Cent and G-Unit have been hired to play a rap concert. After the concert the promoter refuses to pay them the US $10-million in cash he promised, but relents after being threatened. However, instead of the cash they were promised, he gives them a diamond-and-pearl encrusted human skull as collateral. This is promptly stolen by a team of high-tech mercenaries. 50 Cent (with the help of a selected G-Unit partner) decides to get it back at any cost.

Don’t even try to understand it, and also, later in the game there are a number of twists that make equally as little sense. But like I said earlier, far from making this game bad, it actually makes it pretty fun to play, as you laugh your way through the cut scenes and ridiculously obscene smack talk 50 Cent uses when shooting his way through the levels.

Gameplay wise, the game is also very solid. It’s an unashamed Gears of War clone. With a pretty similar cover system and level progression. If you liked GoW you’ll slot right into playing this game. The format is pretty much a cross up between progressing along a linear line defeating baddies, to entering arena style rooms where you are given numerous options for flanking the baddies or facing them head on.

For weapons, there is the usual fare (i.e. pistols, MGs, shotguns and rocket launchers) and they handle pretty well. As you progress you earn money which allows you to buy bigger and better weapons and they don’t disappoint.

On top of this, the better you do the more you build up a bar that allows you to enter a bullet time mode. Again nothing new, but always a nice addition. I rarely used it, but on occasion it came in handy when I felt I was being overrun. It allowed me to slow everything down and quickly stand up and take out everyone in quick succession. Also, up close, instead of being able to melee you can enter into a takedown QTE where you can take out a baddie with a series of punches and jabs from 50 Cent. There is enough variety in these take-downs and enough leniency in how quickly you hit the next button to perform the next hit that these never get old for the duration of the game.

Graphically, the game is on par with it’s peers. 50 Cent looks like 50 Cent, and the facial animations are up to standard. At no point did I think to myself “man that looks awful” which has been the case with a few games I’ve played recently. My only gripe is that the environment doesn’t really vary for the entire course of the game. As you are in the middle east somewhere all the buildings are sand coloured and there is sand everywhere outside (thus the name I guess) It does get a bit boring looking at just shades of yellow and brown, one level with greenery (an Oasis perhaps?) would of been nice. For Audio, again, on par with other games in the same genre of this generation. The soundtrack is basically a load of 50 Cent music, which I didn’t mind. In fact it probably helped immersing you into this surreal Gangsta Rap world where a rapper goes on a killing spree because he didn’t get paid after doing a concert.  The weapons and also the environmental sounds are also very good.

In conclusion, I’d recommend this game, but maybe as a rental as it is pretty short (around 7 hours long maybe). I’ve heard it said before that this game is a “guilty pleasure”, and I couldn’t describe it better. It’s a game you don’t want to like, but you will. The gameplay is solid, the plot is so bad it’s good and graphically it hits the nail on the head. It’s nothing new, true, but it’s harvested aspects of other games that made them good and put them all into one package. If you can overlook any bias you have towards rappers then you should play this game.

Score: 7.5/10