June 9, 2011 by Paul Curtin
With so many games being constantly released throughout each year, it seems like everything is some type of mash-up of concepts taken from other games, and originality in games is quickly decreasing. We got the chance to check out Konami’s new IP NeverDead, which proves that there are still some interesting ideas that have yet to be done in gaming. You can get the premise behind NeverDead right from the title… it’s a game where the character you play as can never die.
After seeing some footage from the game at Konami’s Pre-E3 party last week, I was very intrigued by the idea of a main character that can’t die. I was able to get my hands on the game at E3 and have to say that while the 3rd person shooter gameplay isn’t the strongest, it’s a lot of fun watching your character constantly having limbs severed and jumping or rolling around to put his parts back together.
The whole limbs falling off concept isn’t all gimmick either since you can create special attacks by ripping off limbs and can solve certain puzzles by using your detached limbs. One of the abilities I loved was ripping off my own arm and throwing it as bait to distract the demonic hellhounds attacking me. But ripping off your arm and using it for bait was just too normal for Konami, so they included the ability to detonate your arm like a C4 charge after throwing it. I don’t know how or why the arm was able to explode after being ripped off and thrown, but it was pretty awesome. There was even one puzzle that required me to rip off my own head and throw it to hit an object and unlock a gate. At any time your character can start ripping his own body parts off or have them blown off by enemies; it’s strange how such a sick feature makes the game so lovable.
I was wondering what the twist would be since your character can’t die, and unfortunately, it’s pretty simple: certain objectives can run out of time and cause levels to be started over. You’ll also have a girlfriend that you need to protect because she can die and cause levels to be restarted too. Nothing mind-blowing with the concept there, but if you’re looking for a unique and wild game, Konami has you covered. NeverDead is set for release on Xbox 360 and PS3 late this year.
