Some might call only having only one arm a disability. In Bionic Commando: Rearmed, it’s an opportunity to showboat. There was a lot of hype on this game, so I’m very happy to report that it delivers.

There is so much that was done right in this release that you really have to take your hat off to Capcom. They just get it. They took an old NES favorite, injected it with current-gen graphics, expanded the game content, pumped it full of extras, and were sure to wink and nod to the good ol’ days. It’s mind boggling that more classics haven’t been given this treatment. The only thing similiar that even comes to mind is when they released that special edition of Zelda DX…in color…with no backlighting…(sound of crickets).

Bionic Commando was never my nostalgic favorite, but I understood its place as one of the classics. And I’m just in love with this remake. The mechanic of grappling for survival and to best your foes is as tough to master as it is satisfying. This game is not for sissies. In a day and age where people start whining when the hint arrow isn’t as obvious as it could be, Bionic Commando Rearmed doesn’t make any attempt to cater to “casual gamers” and that’s just the way I like it. It’s a video game, not a word jumble. The whole reason “beating” a game brought about some sense of pride is because they weren’t made like Ikea products. No, they were made to teach young people about what can be accomplished through time and repetition. Sure they took things too far like in the Ninja Turtles game, but whatever, it still made you a man.

The only two shortcomings to speak of are the lack of recorded audio for dialogue and the multiplayer that doesn’t support LAN or internet connections for  co-op. These aren’t so much missteps as they are huge wasted opportunities to make Bionic Commando: Rearmed one of the best games ever made. Instead, it will have to settle for game of the year. PROVE ME WRONG BETHESDA.

Everything else from the hilarious tongue-in-cheek dialogue to the ridiculously satisfying explosions (they must take the record for the most realistic ever to grace a platformer) is off the hook. Yes, pun proudly intended. That’s how good this game is. The database feature is like an interactive game manual that you have to power up and helps emphasize the general slickness of the overall GUI design. The weapons are varied, but awesome. Secret loot and passageways are plentiful. The medal system has cool awards that don’t feel derivative even though this sort of thing is all the rage. And best of all, the dozens of time-trial challenge rooms add whole new layers of strategy and puzzle to an action game. The play time on this game is through the roof. Check it out:

Time well spent!

Now, I love FPS as much as the next guy, but there’s only so much strafing and sniping one can take before your gaming diet starts craving. That’s a nice way of saying that the PC gaming market is glutted with shooters.

And that’s just another reason that Bionic Commando: Rearmed is a welcome change of pace. It’s not just a strong shot in the arm for gamers tired of playing WOW. It’s also a claw in the face for the whole platforming genre…single-handedly pulling the genre to new heights. I’ll put away the puns for now, but only because I need to get back to playing this game.

And not for nothing, but this game was released for PC right alongside of PS3 and XBOX360. If this isn’t proof that we all can’t get along, then nothing is. The PC version wasn’t gimped and it didn’t feel like a half-assed port. This is just more proof that Capcom understands quality. It makes me very optimistic about the new Street Fighter they have in the works, again with a simultaneous PC release. A fighting game! Whoo whoo!

PS. I’ve been playing this game with the Logitech Cordless Rumblepad 2 and it’s hands down the best controller I’ve used for a computer. It mimics the near-perfect PS2 controllers and has just enough weight to it. Also, the automatic detection has been stellar in Vista. Sorry, Mojave users.