Mad Metal – Review
As much as we enjoy getting our brains tickled by strategy titles and puzzle games, sometimes it’s fun to simply play something that doesn’t require a lot of thinking. Mad Metal, the debut game by indie developer Mad Mechs Inc., is that kind of game, and it isn’t subtle about it. Forget calculating moves and considering every possible outcome: this is a game that promises fast cars, big guns, and explosions. But does it deliver exactly what you’d expect, or is there more than mindless action to be found here?
Story
The narrative premise of Mad Metal paints a bleak picture, depicting a post-apocalyptic future where AI corporations are in control. Sentient vehicles roam the desolate wasteland, hunting for the remnants of humanity so that they can be fused with cars. Mad Metal’s story revolves around a desperate search and rescue: your very own daughter was abducted by one of these nefarious machines. To make matters worse, your wife has gone missing as well, after tailing the abductor in her own vehicle. Accompanied by a sarcastic giant metal eye, you set out to find your missing family. The premise of Mad Metal’s campaign has plenty of potential, both for delivering a heartfelt family story and for scathing satire lampooning the rise of AI, but the game fumbles the ball here. The writing comes across as uninspired and derivative. The story seems to be missing an original twist and a distinct personality to really set itself apart, though this might’ve been different in the game’s final act. We wouldn’t be able to tell you though, because game-breaking bugs discouraged us from sitting out this ride until the end. (Ooh. Foreshadowing.)
Graphics
With a title like Mad Metal, it’s unsurprising that the game’s art direction borrows heavily from both Mad Max and Twisted Metal. The game features an 80s-inspired post-apocalyptic wasteland aesthetic built around rust, wreckage, and ruined landscapes. The different car models are the high point here. Based on different vehicle styles, ranging from muscle cars and ATVs to camper vans, these enemy cars move and lurch like hostile animals rather than simple machines. Environments mostly consist of open wastelands filled with hills, shrubbery and patches of woodlands, though Mad Metal introduces some variety here with the occasional tight, claustrophobic cityscape that contrasts nicely with the barren wilderness. Mad Metal’s graphics could’ve done with a little more polish though. Clipping is common and the camera sometimes acts as if it’s got a life of its own. Visual performance isn’t quite up to snuff either, with the game’s frame rate often tanking, especially during intense action segments.
Sound
If anything, Mad Metal’s music made us appreciate Turbo Kid’s soundtrack all the more. Instead of Le Matos’ brilliant synthwave tunes, which would’ve been perfect for the setting, what you’re getting here in terms of music is utterly forgettable. It tries to emulate the 80s vibe but comes across as bland and generic. The game’s narrative campaign features voice acting, but the lackluster performances fail to inject some much-needed energy into the uninspired story. The sound effects are the saving grace of Mad Metal’s soundscape, with the firing of machine guns, lead splattering, and explosions adding at least some depth.
Gameplay
The core loop of Mad Metal is built on three pillars: combat, movement and customisation. The campaign sends you across different environments where hostile vehicles await. You participate in head-on, arena-style vehicular combat using guns, rockets and flamethrowers. Combat mostly feels like you’re jousting, due to front-facing aiming restrictions, though there is a dedicated 180-degree turn command at your disposal. A slow-time button allows more accurate aiming during firefights, though the damage output of your handgun is too limited to feel useful. Your car is also equipped with a “jump” mechanic that allows you to launch it upwards for evasive manoeuvres, with the caveat that using it leaves you vulnerable upon landing. Defeating enemies earns scrap and raises your level, allowing you to acquire and install different mods for your own car.
We’d hesitate to call Mad Metal’s gameplay simplistic, as there is more depth here than you’d expect, but it is still very straightforward. Ideally, this should translate into a control scheme that complements the gameplay, but this isn’t the case here. Driving your vehicle is outright uncomfortable, with slow, inaccurate, and outright unresponsive controls, regardless of whether you’re playing with a controller or a mouse and keyboard. Handgun combat and front-facing weapon aiming while you are driving is particularly frustrating to manage. The small arena spaces being so restrictive doesn’t help either, making it difficult to build momentum without crashing or flipping your car.
As if the erratic control scheme wasn’t enough, Mad Metal is also plagued by bugs. During our time with the game, we experienced being randomly pulled into new arenas mid-fight, getting trapped in loops and the game even erratically switching between selected game modes. This completely killed our enthusiasm for the game, and we didn’t even bother exploring the options beyond the main campaign, which supposedly include both co-op and PVP deathmatch modes. As fun as Mad Metal sounds in theory, the game really needs to fix some fundamental flaws before we’d even consider recommending it. Keep your €13.99 in your pocket while waiting for bug fixes.
Conclusion
Even though Mad Metal came across as derivative from the get-go, we saw some potential in its concept of chaotic vehicular combat and 80s-style post-apocalyptic wasteland setting. However, the game turned out to be heavily hindered by severe technical flaws. While Mad Metal undeniably possesses a fun underlying core, its current buggy state and uninspired presentation make this a title an easy skip.
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