Binary Domain
8.8
10
35
35
Binary Domain - Review
Introduction
Binary Domain is a futuristic sci-fi third-person shooter that features unique aspects such as voice recognition and the consequence system. You play as Dan Marshall, a member of the IRTA task force, or 'rust crew', a multi-national team who's job it is to deal with violations of the New Geneva Convention. One of these violations is the creation of robots that resemble humans. Amada Corp, a Japanese robotics company is accused of this violation and a rust crew headed by Sgt. Marshall is sent into Tokyo to arrest its chairman, Yohji Amada, and bring him in for questioning.
The game begins as Marshall and his partner, Big Bo, infiltrate the Tokyo Bay seawall and move to rendezvous with the rest of their crew in the lower city slums...
Graphics 9.25/10
The visuals are very good. Faces are highly detailed, environments are varied, and the enemies are well designed. Animations are silky smooth and the cutscenes look fantastic. There some issues with lip syncing however.
Sound 8.75/10
The audio is very solid. The music fits with the setting and gets up-tempo appropriately. You won't recognize any voices in the dialogue and while it can be cheesy at times, the overall voice acting is well done. Sound effects are crisp and the roar of gunfire and clashing of bullets with robot armor sounds great.
Gameplay 9.5/10
The combat is smooth and the cover system works like a charm. Everything is implemented well and while it may be a 'gears clone', its definitely one of the better third-person shooters on the market. Enemy AI is great as well. Robots are aggressive and even when half destroyed, they will claw and drag themselves toward you with relentless fury.
Depth 7/10
There is a reasonably long 8-10 hour campaign and competitive & cooperative online multiplayer modes. It was a solid amount of content at launch but unfortunately, the multiplayer component is dead at this point.
Presentation 8.5/10
The voice recognition definitely needed refinement and there are a few design flaws but even that doesn't outweigh how tremendously polished this game is. The consequence system is nicely blended into the story and gameplay and the setpieces are very cool as well.
Replay Value 6/10
Some may want to play the campaign more than once to see the full effects of maximum trust with all companions, but the story doesn't offer any choice nor is there any kind of NG+ feature here. With the multiplayer being dead, the replayability takes a hit. Otherwise, this might have rated as high.
Pros
1. Combat is smooth and the cover system is well designed. Your character has evasive moves and can really motor around the environment with ease. Controls are tight and responsive and the largely familiar control scheme is a welcome sight from a Japanese developer.
2. The overall story is interesting and unique, and the characters (while cliche) are likable and well developed. There's a couple of nice plot twists here, and they can change depending on your level of trust with different companions.
3. The graphics are excellent. As I said, the game has great detail and the way enemies blow apart is intricate and eye popping. The sound effects are top notch and for the most part, the dialogue is surprisingly good for an english dub.
4. Companion AI is very aggressive. You will notice them shooting, moving up, and killing enemies. They get involved in the action and really give you the sense that you're part of a team.
5. This a very polished game. Its easy to learn, fun to play, and largely bug free. The AI programming is among the most advanced I've seen a shooter this generation. The menus are easy to navigate and the minor RPG elements in the form of weapon upgrades and nanomachines are a nice touch.
Cons
1. The voice recognition was a neat idea but unfortunately, its just too inconsistent. When it works, its great but often times it reads words incorrectly or even not at all. Given the nature that voice commands are time critical, this feature is basically unusable. You're better off disabling the voice input and just issue commands off the right bumper. Its a shame because properly working voice commands would added a really unique aspect to this game.
2. The boss fights can be a little long and tedious. The fact that the game throws other enemies into the fray while facing some bosses can make those encounters seem overwhelming.
3. In a number of areas, ammo is just far too scarce. Throughout the game, there is just not enough opportunities to pick up weapons from destroyed enemies and some weapon ammo counts (sniper rifles and shotguns) are simply capped too low. Also, the revive animation could be a little faster.
4. While the dialogue is often engaging and mostly well written, occasionally its cheesy and some of the comic relief feels forced.
5. Even though friendly AI is aggressive and involved in the action, they often walk directly into your gunfire, lowering their trust if you hit them. This is a clear design flaw.
The Score 8.2/10
Overall, Binary Domain is a good game. Its got excellent shooter mechanics, a good storyline, and integrates some character customization and upgrade features that are uncommon in the shooter genre these days. The graphics and sound are of high quality and while the game is short and devoid of much other than the campaign, this is a game any third-person shooter, sci-fi, or Gears of War fan should play.
11/5/12
Epic from start to finish
What is their to say beyond that this game is awesome from game play to graphics to even a pretty good story line for a shooter. And that it will never get the attention and props it deserves since it isn't a house hold brand name shooter. Pick this one up if your a 3rd person shooter fan. You will not be disappointed not by a long shot. I hope it sells well enough to see a sequel.
7/25/12
AMAZING GAME!!!
i bought this game just for the heck of it. it looked decent so i tried it. i was completely shocked how great this game actually was. i had so much fun playing it. took me between 8-9 hours to beat this game. so it definitely has length. this game is a mixture of i-robot and gears of war. but i cant wait for the second one! you must get this game! the story was amazing. and the graphics are sweet. sega did real well here.
4/19/12
Very nice -9
Im writing this review based off of the single player campaign as i have not played the multiplayer. But the single player campaign is excellent. I am about 4-6 hours in and it is reminicent of Gears of War 3, but different enough to make this a completely seperate game. First off, you can respond to your CPU teamates by voice command, a nice feature (although somewhat sketchy -7), the game play is very exciting, even having to run through the debris of a building falling around you (not a spoiler), Gameplay is very responsive (9), Graphics are easily a 10, the game is beautiful. Great game, recommended.
4/18/12
WHAT A SURPRISE!
This game is awesome! Its Gears meats I-Robot! The only thing that I dont like is how much your squad talks! I read the reviews and decided to get this game and I am happy I did! The gameplay is great, grafics are top notch and the boss battles are hard! Great story and I am looking forward to seeing more of SEGA being that I am old school and played SEGA all my life until XBOX!
4/13/12
Binary Domain rocks!!
Very entertaining game. Well executed story, graphics are pleasing, sound was acceptable, decent music, gun sounds needed little more work, all in all I had a blast playing this through. Wish it was longer. Have yet to play multiplayer but campaign was bad ash.
4/11/12
AMAAZZZIINNNGGGG!
If you play this game for five minutes i guarantee you will be hooked. This game has a great story as well as an amazing gameplay. The multiplayer is dead, however the campaign will keep you occupied. The A.I. can be annoying at times but its still a good game. If you dont have it pick it up!
3/24/12
Binary Domain - Biggest Surprise of 2012
Binary Domain is no mere Gears of War clone, I assure you. Binary Domain, unlike Gears of War, offers slightly more variety, a better character cast, well written and sometimes humorous dialogue, and a very cool sci-fi story that trounces Gears of War. Binary Domain doesn't feel like a Gears of War game, it feels like a classic Sega game with modern sensibilities and a ton of heart and character. The gameplay handles well and is about what you'd expect from a third-person shooter. It feels like Vanquish with more heft to it. The graphics are very nicely detailed and the robots are wonderfully designed. The sound is excellent due to some very fun voice acting. I recommend buying this game and supporting a brand new IP with some heart and character.
3/17/12
Horrible...
This game is a sorry attempt to copy what gears of war already has. The game controls and game play is like that of gears, without the amazing cinematic events and fluid controls. The graphics are horrid, and the textures look like something from an old ps2 game. DO NOT BUY this game.
3/13/12
Sega has won my heart, again.
Binary Domain will be the cybernetic super power in video game history. This game provides a common squad based third person shooter, while illuminating bright and humorous characters. The characters are put into a, "Rust Crew", a squad of mercenaries from selected countries to hunt out Hollow Children which are basically cyborgs. This takes them threw the underground of Tokyo where the poorest of humans live in the slums. If the high speed chases, jet skiing, and fighting robotic giants don't attract you to this game you do not have a pulse. The basic overview of Binary Domain is like i-Robot, but it doesn't suck. This game has made me fall head over heels for Sega and can't wait to see a possibility of a great sequel!
3/5/12