July 16, 2008 - The feature film Wanted, based on the graphic novel series of the same name, features Angelina Jolie and James McAvoy as assassins who belong to a mysterious and deadly secret society. In the comic and film, the character Wesley goes from being a timid nerd to a badass killing machine on the hunt for answers.
It's a premise that seems tailor-made for the leap into videogames, and developer GRIN has announced it's taking on the project with the help of publisher Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. IGN caught up with the folks at GRIN and Warner for an exclusive first look at a very early version of the game at the E3 expo in L.A.
The Wanted game begins directly after the end of the film. We won't spoil the movie for those who haven't seen it, but it's safe to say Wesley lives to fight another day. The developers consider their game to be "Wanted 1.5," meaning it continues the story told in the comics and film but doesn't serve as a true sequel to the story. In the game, Wesley is on a mission to find out the truth about his mother, and he has to assassinate a whole mess of people along the way.
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The level we were shown took place in an airplane in mid-flight (the screenshots you see here are from a different level), and things were not going well for the passengers. The cabin was a wreck, people were sprawled dead in their seats, and blood was splattered all over the overhead compartments. Wesley was crouched behind a service cart, gun in hand, surveying the scene.
We were told Wesley's intended target had parachuted out of the plane, which was now hurtling through the air, pilotless. The target's goons were determined to make his life even more difficult by shooting at him.
Wanted is based on an updated version of GRIN's Diesel engine and features an innovative cover system that rewards the player for zipping from cover point to cover point. Much of the cover in Wanted is movable, destructible and creatable, which should make for some interesting moments. Here's how it worked on the Xbox 360 version of the pre-beta level we watched.
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When Wesley is crouched behind cover, an icon will appear on-screen with the A and X button highlighted. Pressing the A button and a direction on the analog stick will send Wes to the nearest piece of cover with a flourish, a la Gears of War. Hitting the X button, however, pulls you out of cover and into "Assassin Time," a slowed-down reality that allows Wesley to target enemies while they remain relatively still. Depending on his surroundings, Wes might fly across the room, dual guns blazing like a John Woo action hero. Or he could slide down a table, taking out thugs on either side.
But Assassin Time doesn't last forever and can only be used in a quick burst unless you make good use of the cover system. One of the unique things about Wanted is the cover chaining system. Unlike some action games that reward you for combining melee attack combos, Wanted rewards you for hopping from cover point to cover point, building up stored Assassin Meter power as you do so. Store up enough, and you can go into an extended Assassin Time session.
And slowing down time isn't all your Assassin Meter power is good for. The Wanted film is known for its unique bullet effects – the assassins have the ability to curve bullets through the air, which is a nifty trick when an enemy is hiding around a corner or being generally sneaky and hard to kill. That feature will be in the game as well.
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Engaging this bendable bullet power uses some of your Assassin Meter power – hit a button and an arc comes up, leading from your gun to a point down-screen. Moving the analog stick bends and shifts the arc, allowing you to target an enemy directly where you choose. A properly placed bullet can even take out multiple enemies in one pass, just like in the movie. Both bullet bending and time-slowing can be done without building your Assassin Meter up, but only in brief bursts. Chaining cover combos is definitely the way to go if you want to have control over how you use your assassin powers.
If you're more the silent but deadly type, Wesley also has stealth assassination moves that can be unleashed on nearby enemies. In our demo, Wesley approached a goon from behind and, with a press of the B button, grabbed him and held a knife to his throat. After using him as a human shield for a spell, he nonchalantly slit the enemy's throat and moved on. You can also choose to just stab the poor fool and move on, but using him as a meat shield first is an added bonus. Wanted is not a run-and-gun game. There is strategy involved in taking cover, finding your way through levels and using your Assassin Meter. While using cover, Wesley can fire around corners and even blind fire. The latter skill comes in handy for flanking enemies and outmaneuvering your foes.
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The early level we saw was not complete, and the game is still a work in progress, but the environments already looked sharp and detailed. Some of the combat, stealth and cover specifics do still need to be fleshed out, though. It's still unclear, for example, how Wesley will take cover while manipulating the arc of his bullet. The developers of Wanted promise that the game will be more than the sum of its influences -- Gears of War, John Woo and the Wanted film and comic series to name a few -- but there are elements of all the above in the game. And we do know that Wanted is single-player only, so if you were hoping to take Wesley online with multiple assassins, you'll have to save it for your daydreams.
Currently, there's no date set for Wanted, but we're guessing it might be shooting for the release of Wanted on DVD. Although the devs wouldn't specifically say the game is slotted for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC, they did say "current-generation consoles and PC." We'll have more on Wanted as GRIN gets further along with the title.
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