Back in 1979 George Miller presented to the world a modern take on the dying western genre, telling the story of an earth in ruins, a dusty Australian dystopia featuring murder and vengeance as its main themes, and told from the perspective of a man utterly indifferent to any form of human contact after the brutal deaths of his family. Sounds like a pretty cool idea for an action movie franchise right? And for someone obsessed with post-apocalyptic fiction like me, a damn fine setting for a video game. Unfortunately for developer Avalanche Studios (the same Avalanche responsible for the completely bonkers Just Cause), the mass majority of gamers had all but written off their vision for ‘Mad’ Max Rockatansky before the game had even released. Of course the fact that Mad Max hit store shelves on the same day as Metal Gear Solid V didn’t do it any favors, but I’d wager many gamers may regret overlooking one of last years most fun action titles if they took the time to sit down and play it now, over a year removed from release.
I should first state that narratively, Mad Max is a rather simple story of vengeance, with Max the grim anti-hero, and the plot being rather plodding until the final third when the game suddenly hurls mission after mission at you until it abruptly ends. Those of you looking for a wholly satisfying conclusion or happy ending won’t find it here. And while the game’s writing certainly isn’t award winning – Max himself being next to mute outside of cutscenes, the supporting cast were interesting and varied enough to keep my attention. For anyone familiar with the movie series, you’ll know that no-one in the world of Mad Max world is entirely sane, yet still I wanted to learn more about these characters the more I played. What happened to them in the years since total societal collapse? How on earth did they end up so twisted – both physically and mentally? What clues have the developers left for me to figure where this story falls in the movie timeline, if at all? (If you’re interested, it seems to take place just before Fury Road, though I could be way off). These questions ultimately remained unanswered, however the narrative and characters aren’t what kept bringing me back for more, that honour goes to the gameplay.
Max doesn’t speak much, but then how much would one have to say wandering a desert wasteland alone?
Since the narrative is rather one dimensional, the main goal of Mad Max from a gameplay perspective is to essentially build the most badass car ever to grace the Aussie wastes, dubbed the Magnum Opus. Actual gameplay itself can be divided into two distinct halves; car combat, making up the lions share, and a mix of on foot exploration and hand to hand combat. Lets discuss the former first, but allow me to preface this by stating that I am not a racing game fan in any way. I’ve been playing video games for as long as I can remember and in my 25 years I have’t found much else in video games (apart from playing against a countdown timer) to be more irritating than driving segments, often due to the unresponsive handling and clunky controls. The cars just never seem to do what I want them to. Even this years incredible Uncharted 4 and 2015’s Batman Arkham Knight left me feeling frustrated in that regard. But what about proper racers like GT or Forza you say? I grew up on a stable gaming diet of RPG’s. Simply put, I find racers boring. So what is it about Mad Max’s vehicles that kept me so entertained? It wasn’t just the silky smooth driving mechanics – which Avalanche clearly spent a TON of time honing to damn near perfection, but also the open world car combat. I’ve never experienced anything like it in a video game. Granted, Twisted Metal gave us car combat as early as 1995, but there’s just something so engaging about speeding through the desert wastes, harpooning an enemy vehicles wheel or bumper, ripping it right off their car and following up by boosting your car directly into theirs. That metallic crunch as hunks of metal fly through the air is just so darn satisfying. Combine this with numerous other methods of destruction including spears strapped with explosives, great for dealing with enemy armored vehicles, a long range rifle in the back for taking out those pesky snipers, and of course Max’s classic shotgun which can be put to great use in disposing of enemies foolish enough to clamber onto the magnum opus.
Car combat is truly visceral in Mad Max. Shouts of encouragement can be heard from your on-board mechanic Chum Bucket who rides in the back
As for the on foot exploration, its standard third person affair. Anyone who’s played Rocksteady’s Arkham series will feel immediately at home at here, Max’s shotgun and other weaponry found in the surrounding environment replacing the bats gadgets. A God of War inspired rage meter has also been implemented allowing Max to temporarily deal a ton more damage and dish out some nasty executions when fully charged. Enemy strongholds can be found throughout the entire wasteland and can often be seen from quite a distance, identified by their intimidating smoke stacks, and tall sniper towers. Many are guarded by some pretty inventive traps, such as gate mounted flamethrowers, snipers who can cause you some serious pain at great range, and explosives launched at you through the air – which I remember looking decidedly like fireworks the first I came across them, until i realised I was in fact witnessing my own demise hurtling towards me. Some of the friendlier denizens of the wasteland can provide you with advice on how to penetrate these defenses, if you’re willing not to just kill them and take their scrap for use on the Opus. Since these strongholds offer some of the more entertaining on foot sections of the game, speaking with these NPCs can be of great benefit; some offering secret passages inside through the nearby hills, others allowing your to blow up oil tanks from afar or giving you scrap to upgrade your car allowing you to ram straight through the front gates, getting the jump on the enemies inside. Once you’re in you’ll fight mobs of mostly the same dudes as you progress through the outposts regardless of where they are found in the world, but Max’s rage meter, the brutal execution kills and simply blowing enemies to bits with the shotgun certainly keep things interesting. The bosses however are rather dull – it’s a case of you fight one boss, you’ve fought em all. They certainly look intimidating, though their bark is much worse than their bite.
This wouldn’t be Mad Max without some brutal executions
All this chaos is juxtaposed against the often eye-watering beauty found in your surrounding environs as you traverse the open world. The lighting and weather effects make for some beautiful moments of serenity allowing you to ponder your place in such a gruesome world filled with hideously repulsive inhabitants. Trust me when I say that when a sandstorm blows in, complete with thunder and lightning, it only makes those car chases all the more blood rushing, especially against some of the games tougher enemies including full convoys which you can raid for precious upgrade materials and some crazy looking hood ornaments for the magnum opus. These can be used to improve the cars stats including handling or acceleration while driving on or off road, or for a nice boost to offensive power in combat for example. Landmarks and points of interest are a common sight as you travel, all of which which can be explored at your leisure for supplies such as ammo, food and water, and collectibles like photographs of happier times or diaries of what people went through after things went to hell. Max’s responses to these is often a mournful one, reminding us just how much time has passed and how much of the world itself has been lost alongside its people since civilisation came to a crashing halt. These additions to Max’s dialogue give the writing some rare time to shine and contribute some much needed flavour to Max’s otherwise bland personality. It’s the little details that go a long way towards making these dusty badlands feel lived in, even if that was a long time ago.
Rare moments of tranwuility like this really showcase the beauty of the world Avalanche created for Mad Max
But Mad Max is an open world game first and foremost, and any open world worth its salt should be packed to the hilt with challenges right? Well Mad Max has them in spades, be it combat, racing, or exploration, everything you do in the game rewards you with upgrade materials needed for survival. Some of the tougher challenges, side quests and enemy strongholds will also lead you to those rare and much coveted vehicle upgrades. The variety of modifications available for the magnum opus are indeed impressive, with options ranging from simple tyre types and suspension improvements all the way up to adding side mounted flamethrowers. Who wouldn’t want that? You can even find different body types for your car as you explore which can be switched out at any time at any time. Different car bodies can have a positive or negative impact on the handling of your car however – a heavier car body may offer more damage protection but will almost certainly slow you down if you know you’ve got a super fast convoy to take out or a racing challenge to beat. And yes, while you may look good, so will your enemies as they speed away with all that sick loot while you eat their dust. Clearly Max’s car was a focal point during development and if you as the player don’t also afford it that same care and attention, you’ll be staring at a game over screen more often than you may like.
Car customization is a major focus of Mad Max
Mad Max’s world and setting urged me to explore every corner of its ugly and depraved landscape – even on foot I was compelled to explore every nook, every cranny, ensuring I’d left no stone unturned. Surely this stands as testament to the world building and environmental design Avalanche put into this game? Those of you familiar with the Ubisoft style checkbox open worlds or Borderlands ‘turn-in’ mission design will find plenty to keep their interest. There’s a constant sense of progression thorough unlocking upgrades for your gear and weapons, increasing Max’s own stats such as health and water consumption rate. Numerous in game costumes, hairstyles beards etc have also been included, one even based on Mel Gibson’s portrayal of Max in the The Road Warrior as well as different paint colours and graffiti designs for the magnum opus.
There’s no shortage of collectibles and challenges to be found in the wasteland. Completionists will have plenty to keep them coming back
There’s a lot to like in Mad Max, its an admittedly somber journey through a disgustingly primal world, punctuated by moments of loneliness and despair combined with the pulse pounding action all in your own personal playground. Mad Max may just be one of the most underrated, if not overlooked games of 2015. It’s easily one of my personal favourites this generation despite its flaws, and while I doubt we will ever see a sequel to this flawed gem, if this piece has convinced even one reader to give it a shot, then I consider this a job well done.
Written by Richard Doyle.
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