Reviews// Binary Domain

Perhaps the strangest thing about Binary Domain, a squad-based third-person shooter full of manly-looking heroic Americans and Brits, is that it was actually made by a Japanese developer, Japan being a country which is generally just not interested in shooting games. Specifically designed by Yakuza Studio to appeal to both its home territory and western markets, there’s really very little about Binary Domain’s combat gameplay to set it apart from other third-person shooters. The cover mechanics, controls, just about everything will feel very familiar to anyone who’s played Gears of War or Mass Effect.

Instead, Binary Domain opts to make itself stand out with a focus on teamwork and strategy. One of the game’s selling points is its tactical group combat controls. In theory these allow you to direct your teammates in more elaborate strategies than the basic take cover and kill everything approach. In practise, nothing works better than the basic take cover and kill everything approach. That said, later in the game the ability to send your troops ahead with guns blazing and then call them back into hiding does start to prove immensely useful.

Further pushing Binary Domain's teamwork aspect is its use of voice recognition commands. Personally I didn’t take to the feature very well, having no desire to be overheard giving orders to my console. The game wasn’t willing to cooperate with my efforts to be quiet, however, instead demanding that I speak loudly and clearly into the microphone. Once you get into the swing of properly enunciating the game is quite responsive, accurately registering a surprisingly wide range of words and phrases. There are a number of problems, however.

Firstly, while you’re playing and wearing a headset the game will pick up on everything you say, doing its best to translate it into viable combat instructions. Even if you’re asking someone for a sandwich. I had a cough at the time of playing, which resulted in my character shouting nonsense orders throughout every fire fight.

The biggest problem with the feature is that, even when you are doing it properly, the whole thing is entirely pointless. Your team tends to get on just fine without your input most of the time anyway, and even without a microphone you still have controller shortcuts available to issue the most relevant command options in any situation. All the microphone really allows you to do is try out other, less sensible ideas, which your teammates will actually ignore because they don’t want to die. Or you can use it to randomly swear at your enemies or teammates, though again they won’t respond because they don’t actually care. It’s an interesting and unique feature for sure, but ultimately it adds very little to the gameplay. But feel free to add a good 0.5/10 or so onto my final score if the idea of shouting military jargon and swearwords at your 360 appeals to you.

The wide range of enemy robots that is pitted against you looks great and they act very differently to each other in combat, depending on their model. Combat in Binary Domain is very satisfying. Robots take visible damage as you shoot them and pieces of armour and eventually entire limbs can be blown away by your bullets.

A key element of the game’s strategy is using this to your advantage. Blowing robots legs off leaves them crawling around the battlefield, while taking out their heads causes them to begin firing on their own teammates. I admit I’m not usually one to properly appreciate sound effects in games, but the solid metal clangs that ring out as you pound bullets into your enemies just makes things that much more fun.

The campaign is short, around a dozen hours for most gamers, but its brevity isn’t as much of a problem as you’d think. Binary Domain really feels like it’s had its fat trimmed off, rocketing through its story at a relentless pace. The game rarely slows down, instead opting to throw exhilarating action sequences - including everything from car chases and mine cart rides to water slides and jet skis - at you whenever the waves of enemy robots decide to ease off for five minutes. That’s not to mention the awesome boss fights, which pit you against towering mechanical beasts that wouldn’t look out of place in a Michael Bay Transformers movie. Armed to the teeth and immune to your own meagre weaponry, these bosses require you to outmanoeuvre them until a solution presents itself. Often this solution involves hitting them with something explosive, which is always fun in itself.

While the short but exciting nature of the campaign makes it suitable for at least a couple of enjoyable replays, there’s also the usual assortment of co-op and death-match multiplayer modes to extend the game’s lifespan further. Online, Binary Domain doesn’t offer anything you couldn’t get in other shooters, but if you enjoyed playing through the campaign and don’t want to shelve the game straight away then this is undoubtedly where you’ll find yourself.