WET

I first saw WET when it was announced a while back and I wasn’t very impressed. I thought it was a joke and I was positive it would be a flop or not even get published. Well, the day has come and WET has been released into the wild and boy did it exceed my expectations by far.

WET reminds me a lot of Stranglehold, the emphasis is on slo-mo and acrobatic kills. Basically you do certain actions like jump, wall-run, or slide which then trigger slow motion that lasts about 5 seconds. One of your guns aims automatically and you aim the other gun manually, this makes it possible to kill two people at the same time. Combine this acrobatic gameplay and a highly stylized art direction and you have the basis of WET. WET reminds me of the Kill Bill movies and I think it was made like this on purpose. You will even see drive-in commercials in between some of segments. The whole art direction, I would say, was made to make WET look like a movie.

Rubi Malone, the main character, wields guns and a sword. Guns are for slow motion combat and the sword is for close combat. There are certain areas in the game that I like to call “battle areas” and you will know you are about to enter one of these areas when a cut-scene of Rubi doing some gun-slinger tricks plays. In these areas you are to destroy the enemy spawn points by slashing them with the sword. Once all spawn points are destroyed you are to defeat the rest of the enemies. After you complete a level you are taken to a screen where you can purchase new moves and perks. You gain “style points” in each level based on how well you do. Once you complete a chapter of the game you are taken back to your “junk yard” which is basically where you can practice all of your skills. There are also challenges to be completed there. I wasn’t sure I actually liked the idea of the junk yard, I felt like the game would be better suited as a campaign with no stops from start to finish. There are also other sequences in the game that stick out from the rest and make you go “Wow” like the “Rage Mode.” Rage Mode happens at random points in the game and basically just makes the graphics look similar to MadWorld but with red, black, and white. There are also quick time sequences in the game. One of them took place on a highway during a fast paced car chase while Rubi leaped from one car to the other shooting enemies in slow motion. It was these sequences that made the game feel unlike any other game I’ve played.

WET is a great looking game, the art direction is fantastic and I was also impressed with how gritty the game is. Usually I am not a fan of intense violence but it fits well in WET. Again, WET feels like a movie and I almost wish they would turn it into one as I think it could be very enjoyable. One last thing I want to add is that the soundtrack to the game is stellar. It fits the game perfectly and really adds to the action on the screen.

I was a little surprised to hear that Bethesda decided to take on publishing WET but I can see now they made a great choice. Hopefully WET will get the attention it deserves. The bottom line is that I really enjoyed it,  it’s pure fun, very artistic, and I would recommend picking it up if you like Stranglehold or if you like the idea of a Kill Bill game.