Back when Xbox Live Arcade first launched, an inspired indie title like Small Arms is just what most gamers dreamed of getting. After a long drought of decent titles, Microsoft is finally stringing together some solid fresh releases, rather than the bland regurgitated retro titles gamers had to endure for the past several months. Small Arms leads the way as a simple shooter tugging along a boatload of replay value.
The game boasts eight characters from the start, with another four un-lockable as players make their way through the game. Gastronaut has done an excellent job of giving a rather simple title personality. The cuddly cartoonish 3D characters each have a little bio, from Mr. Truffles the assassin pig to Pector El Pollo the Mexican mutant wrestler chicken. Each character comes equipped with a specific primary and secondary weapon, with their own set of pros and cons, although picking up a different weapon is a frequent option throughout the game. Cartoon-like sound effects for both the weapons and the character voices compliment the amusing style of the game.
The basic premise of the game could not be simpler; if it moves, kill it. Your left stick controls your movement, and your right stick controls your aim, with the right and left triggers firing your primary and secondary weapons respectively. The game also utilizes your "A" button to jump, your "Y" button for dash, and "X" or "B" for melee attacks, when another player gets too close for comfort. With responsive controls, and a solid aiming system, it is quick to learn but difficult to master. Since just how well you keep all of this together in the heat of the moment in a four-player match is important, you would be wise to play through once on Mission Mode before jumping into Live.
Graphically, the game is solid but not spectacular, about what you would expect from an Arcade title. The small touches put in to the weapons helps take some of the attention away from the average graphics. From the arrows sticking around a bit in the walls after a badly aimed shot to the ricocheting saw blades, Gastronaut did an excellent job with the little details that make the game more memorable. The camera system can be both an asset and liability at the same time. Zooming in to show more detail when players are near each other is nice, but the levels can be treacherous. Gamers without a great memory may loose focus amongst the mayhem and forget about the two suicide-happy floorless sides of the Bazaar or the missing planks on the bridge at the Outhouse levels. Smart level design gives gamers many opportunities to escape danger, while also providing enough pitfalls to make sure they never just run around firing aimlessly.
Offering multi-player play for two to four players either via Live or on your own console, Small Arms earns your money many times over. The only drawback is the limited choices players have for a ranked match. Unranked matches allow players to alter the settings to set the game up as timed (up to an hour-long marathon), give players a set amount of lives for the game (up to one-hundred), or a set number of points that needs to be attained to win (also up to one-hundred). The lone option of a two-minute timed level for a ranked match is simple and easy to enjoy, but the game could use another option or two. That said, the action is fast, furious, and insanely addictive. The game has no lag issues, and performs just as well online as it does as a single player game.
