Final Exam Review
"2.5D Sidescrolling Alien Slaughter"
Campaign
Four friends embark on a quest to return to their school for a reunion that takes a turn for the worst the group of four swerve to miss a pedestrian that was actually an alien. Then all out bashing occurs that starts with a tutorial that is required. I note that I seriously hate forced tutorials that lock you out of multiplayer as I like to get right in there to learn how to play. The campaign is done in either single or up to four player coop while retaining a crazy fast paced expereince. Blunt objects are always swinging, guns be firing or grenades flying. Layered on each individual character are skills and weapon layout which can be upgraded or changed with the RPG underlaying system. This leads to unique gameplay for each character that may entice you to have multiple playthroughs to explore each of them. I do at times question why this group of folks would hang together as a group since they seem to represent differing sections of High School, but won't question it to too much of an extent. The campaign itself takes a few hours and some wild worlds to explore. These levels have a number of objectives to progress that may or may not take some teamwork depending on your style and a many variety of alien creatures to take out. These levels looks beautiful having multiple levels that are a constant 2D, yet 3D world.
Coop/Gameplay
Where the Final Exam shines is within the multiplayer or coop component that is restricted to two locally or four online has you take the combat to the aliens with a frenzy of onscreen activity. It really seems the game was designed with this in mind and it's nice that everyone can seem to have their own little thing going on in the world while eventually coming together in order to get quest objectives complete. The gameplay is nice and fluid without any negatives while having some beautiful aesthetics while nagivating through it. Each environment that you traverse is neat in its own respects and create interesting additions to the experience. On the side of campaign there is a survival or quick killing mode that pits you off against many waves, so that's nice just to note in there.
The Conclusion
The Final Exam these random group of kids will take is one that is filled with hordes of zombies, melee bashing and a many powerups. It's a fun adventure filled with enemies to bash into small bits and coop fun to be had. The graphics are quite beautiful and the environments are fluid to move through. It gets the job done and will provide you with time depending on how much you want to spend on it. Of course the RPG and differing character elements will add some additional playtime.
