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There’s a certain satisfaction that one can only experience from cruising around blowing things up, and 1995’s Twisted Metal delivers. Known for revolutionizing the vehicular combat genre, the title revolves around a contest held in Los Angeles annually by the evil Calypso. The contest? A battle to the death in which drivers compete in an ultra-violent demolition derby style event. The last one alive receives a prize of any wish they desire.
The game was developed by SingleTrac and published by Sony for the original PlayStation, which had been released the year prior. The lead designer on the project was David Jaffe who later went on to create the God of War series. Though not as deep, Twisted Metal‘s grim subject matter is a glimpse of the dark tone that would color much of his later work.
Fire up the game and choose your character, each has varying strengths and weaknesses. All cars come stocked with a machine gun and a unique “special” weapon. A few other standard weapons are also available such as fire missiles, homing missiles, and drop mines. Gameplay is arcade-like and incredibly satisfying! I’m sure you’ve guess the objective by now: destroy…all…opponents. Yes, it’s a blissful feeling to tear around town in a recklessly violent manner, happily blasting away other vehicles at will. And if you manage to stay alive while doing so, you’ll be alright.
Each level is a different area on the streets of LA such as a warehouse district and the freeways. If you make it through each level as the last one standing, you meet Calypso and claim your prize. With different endings for each character, the game has extremely high replay value. And what vehicular combat game would be complete without multiplayer? The game offers a head-to-head versus mode, allowing you and a friend to pick an arena and throw down on a smack-talking match (or twelve).
Twisted Metal performed well enough to receive a Windows port in 1996 (Japan only) and a 1997 PlayStation re-release under the Sony Greatest Hits label. Several sequels/spin-offs arrived in its wake starting with Twisted Metal 2 in 1996. The series saw a complete overhaul in the form of a 2012 reboot for the PlayStation 3, receiving mixed reception. As of this writing a TV series for Peacock is in post-production with an air date yet to be announced.
