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Bionic Commando

EMAIL PRINT ps3

8.4 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 48 critic reviews
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Based on 14 votes
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Game Info

Publisher: Capcom

Developer: GRIN

Genre(s): Action, Adventure

Players: 10

ESRB Rating: M (Mature)

Release Date: May 19, 2009

Summary

The first true sequel to the classic 1988 Nintendo Entertainment System original, Bionic Commando sees the return of the bionically-enhanced Nathan "Rad" Spencer, voiced by Mike Patton, the former lead singer of Faith No More. Time has not been kind to Spencer: 10 years after his heroic defeat of the Imperials in the original game, he has been betrayed by the government he swore to serve, imprisoned for crimes he didn't commit, and sentenced to death. On the very day of Spencer's execution, terrorists detonate a massive experimental weapon in Ascension City, unleashing an intense earthquake that has turned the city into rubble and wiped out its population. With the terrain in ruins and the city's air defense grid now in the control of a massive terrorist force whose goal remains unclear, the FSA have only one option left - a behind-the-lines assault. The perfect job for a Bionic Commando. Bionic Commando transposes the swing-and-shoot gameplay of the 8-bit original to a stunning 3D environment of towering buildings, suspended roadways and monorails, deep canyons and sheer rock faces, where every environment is scalable using swinging, scaling, climbing and wall-walking techniques. [Capcom]

Cheat Codes & Hints: Cheat Code Central

Also On The Web: Official Website

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

Play Magazine

The gameplay is sheer perfection, the score is superb and the detail for a game this size is plain crazy.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

As you squeeze off headshots and sail around the stunningly rendered destroyed city, the game’s only hiccup is in forcing you to read fine-print-sized text about the game’s optional mythology. But don’t let a little reading stop you from enjoying what’s essentially a playable action movie.

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Kikizo

Heavy odds, tricky acrobatics and a whisper-thin health bar combine to make Bionic Commando an action adventure of such unrelenting sadism you'll want to chew your nails out, but also an action adventure that, once you crack it, rewards your labours like few others.

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Kombo

Do not believe the negative hype. I cannot recommend Bionic Commando enough.

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GameZone

This game looks good, ramps up the difficulty nicely for a solid progressive challenge, and is relatively easy to jump into and play. Ok, the linearity of the storyline is a bit of a drawback, but the game still manages to embroil players in the action and pull them along effortlessly because of the way the action plays out.

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Play UK

Its skillful mix of old-school platforming and 3D gameplay is unique enough to set it apart from the competition, just don't expect to be totally blown away. [Issue#179, p.74]

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ZTGameDomain

Another fantastic update to a classic franchise from Capcom.

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Cynamite

Entertaining, fun action game with a fresh concept, nice graphics and a lot of humor.

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Vandal Online

They already showed what they were capable of when adapting the original Bionic: Commando, and now the guys at GRIN have surpassed themselves translating the original concept to 3D, with a sequel that will please both series followers and newcomers for its approach and visual quality.

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InsideGamer.nl

Bionic Commando is a great experience for action-fans. Flying around with your bionic arm is lovely and we just love the action which comes out of that. There is a lot of stuff to discover and the soundtrack is superb. The only downfall of the game is that the story is a bit short.

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VideoGamer

Bionic Commando will frustrate many gamers, but get past the initial swinging learning curve and you'll find a highly entertaining action game that tries to do something a bit different.

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Giant Bomb

Bionic Commando goes back and forth between moments of great, navigation-based gameplay and a lot of little touches that don't work as well as you'd like. It makes the final product a little frustrating, because you can almost see a better game trying to bust its way out of its constraints.

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Playstation Universe

A classy remake of a classic title, Bionic Commando is the undisputed King of Swing.

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IGN

If you can look past the replayability issues that crop up due to the linear play, you'll find an enjoyable adventure that easily re-establishes the franchise for Capcom.

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GamePro

Even multiplayer is a strange blend of inspiration and worn convention.

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Gamer.nl

The game was worth waiting for. The action feels like Robocop meets Rambo with a little extra. Furthermore Bionic Commando features some references to the old game that will give the veteran a nostalgic feeling. The storyline and non linear gameplay spoil the fun a little bit, but in the end the game does exactly what is expected: shoot, stomp and swing.

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3DJuegos

Those who want the real Bionic Commando experience should try the original one, or if they are in the graphic and technological mood maybe the Rearmed remake. By the way the new Bionic Commando is a nice action effort, but maybe too cyclic and little bit unresponsive at times.

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Cheat Code Central

Bionic Commando is an interesting single-player experience many gamers are likely to enjoy. Disappointingly, the multiplayer experience is entirely forgettable, and not all of the wonderfully tacky elements of the series were well translated this time around.

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NZGamer

In the end the high difficulty will drive away casual gamers so trying the demo first is a must. But between the tough bosses and fast gameplay, this is a worthy successor to the NES original.

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PALGN

Bionic Commando is the surprise of the year so far. With a game that focuses so much energy on making the experience fun, it’s hard not to get swept up.

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Console Monster

Whether Bionic Commando will be enjoyment personified will depend on one simple thing – having the dedication to master Spencer's Bionic Arm.

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Multiplayer.it

Quotation forthcoming.

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Game Revolution

It lacks the balance it would take to make it something really great, but what is there is fun, just not as phenomenal as some of Capcom's more recent franchise reboots.

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Gaming Nexus

You'll have a lot of fun with this new Bionic Commando, but he ultimately plays it safe in his first adventure in twenty years.

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Gamervision

Overall, there's some fun to be had swinging around the ruins of Ascension City, but don't be fooled - it's a flawed experience. The game's campaign is fairly entertaining, but lacks any real depth or originality, falling short of living up to the Bionic Commando name.

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Playstation Official Magazine Australia

There are some great moments, but they're few and far between. [July 2009, p.80]

Eurogamer Portugal

Bionic Commando could have been more. All its problems results in an inability to set the game in a superior quality level. However, many will face the desire to continue playing and, even through all the problems, wont stop loving it.

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Total Video Games

While the combat is a bit of a letdown, the high bar for difficulty is certainly more addictive than it is frustrating, which compensates for the title's shortcomings and fittingly punctuates a solid piece of work.

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IGN UK

Taken on its own merits it is a solid if unspectacular third-person action game, and about the unkindest thing you could say about it is that it is bland and inoffensive.

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XGN

Despite its shortcomings, Bionic Commando has become a nice game. Swinging from building to building in a destroyed Ascension City is a nice experience, and the vast amount of cool action make up for most flaws in the game.

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SpazioGames

Despite the not-so-bad first impressions, Bionic Commando is a disappointing game. Linearity is not a drawback by itself, it's more about the way it has been pushed into the game, which often delivers loads of frustration... Long and frequent loading times, lousy A.I., and inaccurate controls just confirm that this is not a Capcom game, but more a Grin one. Let's hope Capcom itself will be on the next RAD Spencer incarnation: all it needs is some polish.

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PSX Extreme

I personally could not overlook a number of glaring flaws, most importantly the horde of control issues, in addition to the annoying load times.

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PSM3 Magazine UK

Patchy fun, but lack of polish and predictability betray its lack of reach. [June 2009, p.68]

Game Informer

It's hard to forget the unresponsive controls, ludicrous story, and questionable combat encounters. The game is uneven and inconsistent enough to scare away even eager fans who have patiently waited 20 years for another swing. [June 2009, p.83]

Playstation Official Magazine UK

As long as you're not expecting anything more complex than the ancient side-scroller that inspired it, Bionic Commando offers plenty of fun. [June 2009, p.100]

GameSpot

Bionic Commando has some enjoyable moments, but consistent fun always seems just out of arm's reach.

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DarkZero

Even these best intentions cannot hide the fact the game never consistently hits the epic feeling most will feel it should.

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D+PAD Magazine

A flawed, yet incredibly enjoyable, history lesson.

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GameSpy

Crappy story and occasional boring moments aside, Bionic Commando is a good game, akin to a summer popcorn flick. It won't stick with you, but it'll certainly entertain you. When the action amps up it feels awesome; it's just too bad that those moments couldn't have comprised the game's entirety.

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GameDaily

If you dig the swinging and master the controls, you might find this sequel worthy of its legendary name. Other players, however, will discover a linear game banking on a gimmick.

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PS3bloggen.se

Despite the high budget Bionic Commando never manages to swing high enough, mainly due to the steep learning curve and troublesome controls. It's still quite a good game, just not as fantastic as we'd hoped.

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Pelit (Finland)

Being a Bionic Tarzan while swinging from building to building has its thrills but the core action is repetitive, unimaginative and constraining. [July 2009]

Game Positive

If the level design did a better job of integrating exploration, platforming, and environmental puzzles, it could have overcome its deficiencies on the combat front. As it is now, Bionic Commando is only worth a rent or bargain bin purchase.

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Gaming Age

It's not a horrible game, and it does provide some fun for the 8 or so hours of gameplay, but it's not particularly exciting or noteworthy either.

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1UP

It does a lot of things right (great looking graphics, fun multiplayer, and quality voice work), but it's constantly held back by unfortunate design decisions that replace satisfaction with frustration.

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Worth Playing

Try as I might, I can't think of anything that Bionic Commando offers that one would expect from a modern full-priced game.

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Playstation: The Official Magazine (US)

Despite BC's visible level of technical acumen, questionable design decisions combined with an outrageous game ending have produced one of the most frustrating and disappointing games in recent memory. [July 2009, p.74]

Thunderbolt

The blue stuff could be an analogy for the game at large – unexpected, cool to look at, but utterly, maddeningly infuriating and with little resemblance to what the forces that birthed it set out to achieve.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this game is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 14 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Big Joe gave it a9:
I had brought Bionic Commando Rearmed and had liked that game alot. I then heard a sequel was to be released. When it was, all my friends said "don't get it, all the critics gave it poor reviews". I was still determined to. When I did get, I was glad I did. Don't listen to the critics anymore, because they obviously don't know what makes a good game these days. The gameplay is awesome and adrenaline filled. The soundtrack is amazing. The graphics are some of the best I've seen. One of it's flaws is the radiation barrier because you get killed like 3 seconds later when your inside it. All in all, this game is probably the most overated game of 2009. It deserves 9 out of 10.

Tyler H gave it a5:
Im very torn on this game. One minute, I like it, the next I hate it. Controls take a while to get used to, some customization with them would have been nice. Only form of save points are when you finish a level. Go through an entire area, make a mistake, start all over! Fantastic waste of time! Graphics are nice here and there, but begin to look dull rather quickly, with everything blending together (aside from the advertizing sticking blatently out in the open as the only things with color). Combat is more or less enjoyable, the sounds of the guns are whimpy. Yet another Capcom game that could have been so much more, its restrained by so many faults that your hard pressed to find the fun in it all. I've gained almost zero satisfaction from getting farther in the game/killing enemies/whatever. My advice would be to rent, as I have, saving a rather nice amount of money.

Danleroi XX gave it a3:
A gameplay bankrupt for videogame frustrating and a boring. Graphically it expire, the control of the personage is very bad. Bionic Command is one of the most large errors than Capcom, the much worse one than Dino Crisis 3. Sin because it could come outside large videogame like its those. Unfortunately if a video game is not giocabile it is not a video game.

Mack M. gave it a10:
Best most addicting game I played this year so far besides Street Fighter IV...once the superb single player is done you can play infinitely online against fellow grapplers in one of the best online competitive modes ever. There's really nothing else like it and if you give it some time will be able to swing thru the air at blazing speeds while sniping someone else who is doing the same. Gaming bliss!

Masonic Inc gave it a10:
A refreshing game that tries something new and gets a beating for from journalists that clearly don't know how to play a game. This is a game for gamers and not just some mainstream product in a long series of uninteresting games.

Anthony R. gave it an8:
amazing graphical detail. A lot of potential with many of the stage areas but is hindered by the age old invisible barriers or "radiation zones" as the game suggests. there is a steep learning curve but once mastered can make for some really exhilarating gameplay but can also cause must frustration. weapons in the game could use a more "beefed up" feel to them.

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Bionic Commando

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