The iconic Mad Max franchise experienced renewed interest with the premiere of Fury Road. In conjunction with the film’s video release, Swedish game studio Avalanche is releasing a Mad Max game for WB Games.
The game, titled simply Mad Max, is not a direct adaptation of the movie. It shares more thematic elements with the first two films, which featured a young Mel Gibson as Max Rockatansky, a lone survivor in a genre-defining dystopian future. Prior to the release of Mad Max: Fury Road, our editorial team revisited the original films, notable for their low-budget production in Australia and their role in establishing director George Miller and Mel Gibson. While influential, these films have aged noticeably. The pacing can feel slow, and the narratives sometimes feel drawn out. This is largely attributable to the period and budget constraints. Mad Max: Fury Road, in contrast, offered a visual and auditory spectacle. However, it lacked depth and character development, ultimately feeling like a stylish, albeit lengthy, car chase that proved momentarily entertaining but ultimately forgettable.
Developed by Avalanche Studios (known for the Just Cause series) for Warner Bros. Games (recognized for the Batman Arkham franchise), this Mad Max game aligns more closely with the classic films than the recent installment, where Max is portrayed by Tom Hardy. In the game, Max is a solitary figure who has lost everything and teeters on the brink of losing his sanity. Following a violent encounter where he eliminates Scrotus (son of Immortan Joe), he finds himself compelled to save a dog’s life. He soon encounters Chumbucket, a resourceful mechanic and inventor who can construct tools from scrap and repair vehicles. Together, Max and Chumbucket embark on a mission to restore Max’s legendary war machine, the Magnum Opus, and free the land from remaining warlords, all in pursuit of reaching Gas Town.
The Mad Max game incorporates elements from other successful titles in the genre. The combat system draws inspiration from both Uncharted and the Batman games, while the map, missions, and overall structure resemble a blend of Middle-Earth: Shadows of Mordor and Assassins Creed. This amalgamation results in a familiar experience that is easy to engage with. While the narrative has not historically been the strongest aspect of the Mad Max franchise, Avalanche manages to maintain player interest through a seamless tutorial that immerses players in the game world and its mechanics. Players have the freedom to pursue the main storyline or engage in side quests, missions, and races to earn points and enhance their character’s abilities. Liberating settlements provides scrap, which can be used to upgrade both Max’s abilities and the Magnum Opus. As the player becomes more powerful, the game becomes progressively easier.
The graphics present a mixed experience. The overall design is aesthetically pleasing, with realistic and stylistic renditions of clouds, sandstorms, and fire that surround desolate cities and shipwrecks within a former seabed turned desert. Our review was delayed due to initial issues with frame rate, particularly in cutscenes on both PS4 and Xbox One. While version 1.04 has improved performance, frame rate drops still occur during cutscenes and in graphically intense moments. This suggests the game may not be fully optimized for current-generation consoles (a well-equipped PC is expected to offer the superior experience, though we have not tested this). While not a critical flaw, this prevents the game from achieving the highest scores.
The sound design is functional, incorporating cinematic music, competent surround sound implementation, and acceptable voice acting. However, the soundtrack lacks memorability, and the characters’ combat dialogue is repetitive (a common issue in large, open-world games). Actor Ben Foster delivers a solid performance as Max Rockatansky, but the character’s cryptic and taciturn nature limits his impact. This creates a similar sense of detachment to Tom Hardy’s portrayal in Fury Road (in contrast to Charlize Theron’s commanding performance as Imperator Furiosa).
Max’s movement in the game is fluid, and the third-person controls are precise. However, some level design choices are questionable. Max sometimes struggles to jump or climb onto platforms that appear easily accessible, unless marked with yellow paint. This design choice feels somewhat outdated. The vehicle handling presents another issue. While racing is generally acceptable, tight control is lacking during vehicular combat. The ability to shoot tires in slow-motion or harpoon enemies is satisfying, but the control limitations make executing these maneuvers challenging.
Avalanche Studios has succeeded in maintaining player engagement, particularly considering the potential limitations of the apocalyptic future setting. The studio has seamlessly integrated missions with the main storyline, resulting in a compelling gameplay loop. While the missions, which often involve destroying towers and winning races, become repetitive, this is a common characteristic of similar games such as Shadows of Mordor and Assassins Creed: Unity (although greater effort and tighter storytelling are possible, as demonstrated in Witcher 3).
Beyond the fluctuating frame rate, the loading times are also a drawback. Upon death, the game requires an extended loading period. This is perplexing, as the reload should primarily involve resetting enemy positions. In contrast, Uncharted offers near-instantaneous restarts from the latest checkpoint. The lengthy loading times in Mad Max (tested on the disc version) disrupt the flow of gameplay. Furthermore, the initial hours of the game are more engaging than the later stages, as many of the mid-boss encounters (Top Dogs) are repetitive.
Overall, Mad Max is a competent entry in the open-world adventure genre. Its accessibility and engaging gameplay encourage continued play. However, despite post-release patches, the game would have benefited from additional development time. The unoptimized graphics and loading times detract from the otherwise solid production, which stands as another achievement for the Swedish studio. The game is recommended, particularly for fans of the Mad Max franchise or previous action-adventure titles from WB Games (especially Batman Arkham and Shadows of Mordor).
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