Oh The Baconing, how can I accurately describe thee? This is one of those games that just pops out at you as being unique as well as hilarious. This game is every bit a hack and slash game. The story does not make much sense as far as what is logical, but instead just throws you out there into the world of “Spanktopia”. Yes, that is really the name of the world, and your character is appropriately (sort of) named DeathSpank. If the rest of the story sounds like a continuation of a previous game, that’s probably because it is. This is actually the third in the series for adventures with DeathSpank, although the first game in the series that I have personally played.
DeathSpank had gathered all of the Thongs of Power, and afterwards felt bored so he decided to try all of them on at once. Possible through the powers of unwashed laundry, this process creates AntiSpank which is an evil robot version of DeathSpank. Before he can defeat this evil nemesis, he has to burn all of the Thongs of Power in the Fires of Bacon which are scattered about the world and will take more than sheer brawn to reach them. There are also brain teasers like puzzles. I didn’t find them all that difficult, but they could be challenging to those who do not pay attention. It would have been nice if there was more of a challenge to these areas so that I would have felt more accomplished when I finally got through them.
The most fun you will have in this game is collecting the weapons. There are a variety of weapons and armor to collect which are all fun to look at. There are also Weapons of Justice that are more powerful and have special attacks. One of them in particular has an air assault with assistance from a dragon which is both odd and good, called the Mobile Nuker. Enemies are affected by specific weapons more than others so you have to pay attention to what you shoot at and with what you shoot.
Most of this is centered around elemental effects of these weapons, but also around using more than one weapon at once. For instance, Undead enemies require the use of nature weapons (such as the Asp of Wacking which includes poison ammo). Using multiple weapons at the same time initiates combos that can devastate your enemies. In saying this, you can wield two different weapons at once which makes it easier to defeat a tough enemy. There are four Weapons of Justice. Weapons in general are assigned to the different face buttons so you can easily switch between them.
Non-special weapons can range from an ordinary bat to a chainsaw, and there are plenty of these weapons scattered about. The weapons have amusing names like “an ordinary bat” and usually have humorous item descriptions. One thing is troublesome about the ordinary weapons, that being the chargeable attacks that are available to the ranged weapons. These attacks are a little too powerful against enemies, and it’s far too easy to just use those attacks against all enemies in the game. The Weapons of Justice are extravagant looking, but the ordinary weapons look just like you would expect them to. There is also a Justice Meter that when it fills up allows you to unleash the special attack for them that is equally destructive against most enemies.
There are varied environments and they are all fairly entertaining. One of them in particular appeared to be a twisted version of a popular theme park that reminded me of Disney World. All of them are unique in their humor and presentation, but at times I felt like some areas were too similar to each other. The enemies were themed per area, but among them were leprechauns, gummi bears, the undead, and ghouls in addition to your more traditional enemy such as lions and dragons.
I liked the animated feel of the game. The backdrop looks hand drawn or painted, while the rest of the game is 3D. It’s not the most amazing game you will ever see as far as graphics, but they are different and will keep your attention.
The Baconing is a worthwhile purchase for fans of hack and slash games, especially those who enjoy lots of loot. I did not find many problems with it, and those that I did find felt minuscule. The game was often too linear feeling with invisible walls popping up everywhere like the plague. I do not like being restrained in a game; I enjoy exploring. Also, some of the dialogue was a little cheesy. I know the game is supposed to be a little ridiculous, but that does not mean that we have to deal with dialogue that makes us shake our heads in shame. Besides all of the problems, this is still a worthwhile game to play. If you are new to the series, you will likely enjoy this game. Players of previous games in the series may want to try it first as it seems like the type of game that may give you the “haven’t I played this before?” feeling.
