Since there are three monsters, three players can play at a time. In the arcade game you go from city to city and simply destroy everything. In order to proceed to the next level you will need to destroy all the buildings. Eating all kinds of things will give you health as you are attacked by a barrage of military and police forces. Things you can eat include people food.... and people... It's like a real life King Kong or Godzilla.
That's the whole game. Just going from city to city. There is no real story to be had. There is also no real ending to the game. After 768 days spanning five cycles of 128 days the game resets to day one. The game largely takes places across the continental United States along with a couple Canadian cities. The game would be ported to a multitude of consoles including the Atari 2600 and the Nintendo Entertainment System. Version difference are pretty limited, but there are a couple major things. Ralph does not appear in the NES version and the Atari Lynx version actually adds another mutant in the form of a rat named Larry. Overall, the arcade version I think is the definitive version of this game so if you ever happen to stumble across a Rampage machine, check it out. I really wish I had more to say about this game. I still remember pouring quarters into this machine at the local roller skating rink (what's that?) and even having random kids and even adults jump in and help just shred cities. It seems kind of mindless now, but it is still fun to this day.
****Spoilers ahead from games in the Rampage series*****
Rampage would see a revival in 1997 with the second game in the series, Rampage: World Tour. The game once again featured George, Lizzie, and Ralph doing what the do best, causing total mayhem and destroying city after city. Unlike the original arcade game, Rampage: World Tour actually has a story. Scumlabs at some point after the original game had captured and imprisoned the three mutants. At the start of the game the trio breaks out and sets out on a world wide war against Scumlabs. They take no prisoners as they smash and eat their way though the entire world in search of Scumlabs facilities. Finally in a desperate move the CEO of Scumlabs transforms himself into a mutant in an attempt of defeating the trio. He fails and is killed, but another Scumlabs scientist manages to shrink and recapture the trio, ending the world tour.
World Tour brought a bunch of new features and even some freedoms to the series. As I mentioned earlier, the game came out in 1997 and much like it's predecessor, was ported to many systems including the Sony Playstation, Nintendo 64, and even the Game Boy Color. I have the most experience with the Nintendo 64 version of this game, so that's the version I will talk about for the rest of this portion of the blog.
Visually, World Tour is an obvious upgrade from the original regardless as to which system you play it on, perhaps Game Boy Color aside. George, Lizzie, and Ralph can now come in several different colors that can be selected before you start the game. At long last you can change Lizzie into a crazed purple Godzilla/Barney hybrid. Glorious. The gameplay is a bit different than the original as well. The main objective is still smash every building in the level, but that's almost where the similarities end. Unlike the arcade game, World Tour does have that story I mentioned before and such has an ending. In the original arcade game you would go from city to city on a set path. World Tour mixes it up by adding in billboards that when smashed will signify that you are taking your World Tour elsewhere. What this means is one minute you could be terrorizing the west coast of the United States. bash a billboard and the next level will see you starting a conquest of Europe. Don't worry though, you will eventually go back and wreck any skipped cities.
Another new addition to the game is V.E.R.N. (Vern). Vern is a mutant that your mutant can transform into after eating more Scumlabs toxins. Unlike the other mutants, Vern flies around, completely shreds buildings in just a couple hits, and takes out military forces like they're nothing. Speaking of mutants. As I mentioned earlier, the CEO of Scumlabs, Eustace DeMonic, turns himself into a mutant bringing a boss of sorts to the series, which is something the original arcade game lacked. In the original arcade game you were only able to punch buildings. Well this time around you can both punch and kick which opens up a lot of possibilities as far as combating military forces and other players goes. The kick also has a bit of a humorous side to it as you can punt both vehicles and people. Something about punting people and seeing them just splat on the ground is just funny to me considering how sci-fi the game is. Other changes/improvements/what have you include three player mode on the Nintendo 64 as opposed to the two player mode of the NES port of the original game. Multiplayer also has a sort of head to head where you are graded on your destruction of buildings, vehicles, and people eaten. The game also features larger levels thanks to scrolling. From time to time you'll also come across bonus stages to pat your scores. They really don't serve too much of a purpose, but it does break up the monotony of busting down buildings. Sadly though, there is only one type of bonus level in the game so it does get repetitive.
These new features were not enough to really grip critics as the game got average at best scores. It was still Rampage in that it still was all about smashing and eating your way through the game. The problem is that World Tour did not do enough to distinguish itself from the original game. The concept and gameplay were nearly identical and while myself and I'm sure other fans of the original enjoyed it, it left many wanting more. Still though, the game sold very well and was a pretty big hit. Kids seemed to really enjoy the game, so it was only a matter of time before Rampage would get it's third installation in it's series.
Personally, I think World Tour did do a lot of things half baked. Pretty much all the new features moved the game in the right direction to a point. Vern, kicking, DeMonic, larger cities, an actual story, and a bonus stage were all good to a degree. Many of the cities look similar. Sometimes I could have swear I'm doing the exact same level multiple times. Vern is awesome, but only appears in a few levels and there is no way to unlock him. DeMonic turning into a mutant is cool and all, but overall he's just very underwhelming as he just bounces across the screen. As I mentioned, the bonus level is nice, but repetitive. The story element is there and while I am alllllll for games not having much of a story attached to it (Donkey Kong Country anyone?) seeing Eustace DeMonic smoking his cigar all annoyed upon the completion of each area left me wanting him to at least say something. Honestly, it's weird for me to think this, but kicking is something the game nailed. As I stated earlier, it's funny to kick people around. It's also a good strategic way to deal with certain enemies.... or beating the crap out of your friends... I wouldn't rush out to your nearest retro shop or internet shop of choice to grab this game, but if you enjoy mindless smashing, eating, etc. like I do, then this game is worth a play. It's long like the original, but at least there is an ending and it's an improvement in almost every way.
With that I would like to wish all of my fellow Americans a very happy Thanksgiving! This blog was a quick look at the first two games in the Rampage series. Stay tuned as Part 2 of this blog will cover even more monster sized mayhem! Thanks for reading!
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