Video Game Vintage Title: Transformers: Dark Of The Moon

Transformers: Dark Of The Moon

Transformers: Dark of the Moon is a third-person shooter video game which was released on June 14, 2011 in North America. Transformers: Dark of the Moon was first revealed on February 12, 2011 along the release of the trailer for the game. The PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game were developed by High Moon Studios who previously developed Transformers: War for Cybertron while the Wii, Nintendo DS, and Nintendo 3DS versions were developed by Behaviour Interactive. The game features a mode known as "Stealth Force" in which characters only partially transform from their vehicle mode. Weapons protrude from the vehicle form and more precise controls are available, such as strafing, airplanes also use this Stealth Force. Electronic Arts also released mobile incarnations of the game for Symbian, iOS and BlackBerry.

Transformers: Dark Of The Moon Plot

Xbox 360,PlayStation 3 and Wii

The game takes place three years after Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. Bumblebee is sent somewhere in South America to shut down a Decepticons device that listen in to the Autobots transmissions Bumblebee does shut it down with Optimus prime and Sideswipe.Then in Detroit the city is attacked by Decpticons lead by Mixmaster.Ironhide is sent there to take care of it with the help of Ratchet. Ironhide takes out Mixmaster with an experimental mini-gun. Some were in Central America Sideswipe disappears in the jungle so Mirage is sent to go find but he encounters Starscream and is knocked out by him. Mirage wakes up to find after being knocked out by getting knocked off a bridge and does not have his ability's to transform and use his weapons he does gets his ability's back after sneaking to a helicopter drop off point. He does find Sideswipe with the help of Bumblebee. Meanwhile Megatron orders Soundwave to go to a fromer sector seven bast on an island with Laserbeak. They find knowledge of a crash on the moon during the 60's. Star scream is sent to find a weapon technology called Mechtech He then fights the Arialbots consisting of Air raid,Breakway and Silverbot. Starscream takes them out along with an aircraft carrier carrying the technology. Star scream returns to the Decpticon base in Russia unknown to him the autobots put a tracer on the weapon. The Autobots invade the basewhile that is happening Megatron gets a truck mode and fights Warpath an Autobot tank. Megatron then finds a cryotube holding a frozen Schockwave a Decpticon assassin. Meanwhile he fights Optimus prime takes him down and kicks him into a pit holding Shockwave and a drller beast a worm like transformers who only works under Schockwaves command. Prime fights them both then they flee.Some were in Africa the Decpticons meet and launch project pillare.

Wii and 3DS

Taking place three years after the events in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the Autobots continue to hunt for the Decepticons despite humanity believing that they have fled the planet, defeated. Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and Mirage head to a desert to test out the new "Stealth Force Mode" upgrade given to them by the Autobot scientist Wheeljack. After finishing up, Optimus tries to contact N.E.S.T. headquarters, but something jams his link to them. Bumblebee is sent to infiltrate a Decepticon base also located in the desert to find out why. He discovers that the Decepticons are using satellite dishes to jam the Autobots communications. After shutting them down, Bumblebee heads inside the base to scout it out, but his link with the Autobots is lost, prompting Optimus to go in after him, blasting down the door to the base after a brief fight.

Wheeljack tasks Optimus to plant an upload virus into three satellites so the Autobots can learn the Decepticon's motives, and ends up trying to protect them from the Decepticons. The upload is a success and Optimus ends up fighting the Decepticons for five minutes until Bumblebee escapes the base and Stratosphere arrives to pick them up. The Autobots had escaped and learned that the Decepticons are plotting an attack on Detroit, Michigan and are involved in a project called "Operation: Pillar" and Megatron is interested in something or someone called "Shockwave". In Detroit, Soundwave and the Constructicon Mixmaster lead a full scale assault on the city, with Ironhide as the only Autobot in the area.

Soundwave deploys Lockdown to attack the Autobots and to infiltrate the base, where Lockdown targets the mainframe terminals to upload a virus created by Mixmaster. Meanwhile, Ironhide protects some satelitte dishes from the Decepticons and learns that Mixmaster is trying to bring the rest of his former teammates back online and to reform Devastator. After destroying the components and killing Mixmaster, he battles Soundwave, who is being aided with aerial support from Starscream. After a brief fight, Soundwave ends up defeated and flees. Optimus calls Ironhide back to headquarters and enters the Autobot base Lockdown entered. Starscream tasks Lockdown with destroying the controls for the main gate and escaping, all while avoiding Optimus. He succeeds and Starscream tells him to retreat, as Megatron has new orders for him to carry out.

The Autobots track the Decepticons to an abandoned base in Siberia, where Wheeljack informs Optimus and his team that Megatron is trying to reactivate his primary objective: Shockwave, who is revealed to be a deadly Cybertronian assassin. Optimus deploys Mirage to take out the Decepticon's communications and Ironhide to take out the shield that is protecting the base's entrance. Upon learning of the Autobot's presence, Megatron deploys Soundwave to hold off the Autobots while Megatron reactivates Shockwave. Soundwave ends up battling Mirage, who is being aided with aerial support from Stratosphere. Mirage ends up defeated and flees proclaiming, "You got lucky! It won't happen again!".

Megatron destroys the coils inside the base to speed up Shockwave's reanimation, which he succeeds in doing. Upon awakening, Shockwave tells Megatron that his energon levels are depleted, prompting Megatron to hold off the Autobots while Soundwave takes Shockwave to a safe location. After defeating multiple Autobots, Megatron learns that Shockwave's minion, a massive Cybertronian, multi-headed, metallic, worm-like creature called "the Driller" has been awakened. Megatron tells Starscream to take the Decepticons and leave Siberia and decides to use the Driller to destroy Optimus.

Ironhide confronts Megatron as he is fleeing the base, having defeated Optimus. Against Wheeljack's warnings, Ironhide battles Megatron and defeats him, who admires him for having "a warrior's spirit", and vows that when they meet again, he will crush it to dust. Wheeljack advises Ironhide to retreat and that they'll get Megatron next time, which Ironhide swears to accomplish.

In South Africa, Megatron, Starscream, Soundwave and Shockwave meet where Megatron tells Shockwave to head to Chernobyl to search for a certain ancient Cybertronian artifact.

Reception
The title has received generally mixed reviews, with a score of 60, 62 and 36 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 and Wii versions on Metacritic. GameZone gave the 360 and PS3 version a 7, stating "Transformers: Dark of the Moon is a perfectly fine, if short, adaptation of the Transformers film. The characters are likable, and the different vehicle types work beautifully." IGN gave the Xbox 360 and PS3 version a 6.0 of 10. Praising the ideas but criticizing the game as a whole. GameSpot gave 5.5 of 10. They praised the transformation abilities but criticized the bad graphics, strange vehicle physics and brief campaign.

Joystiq gave the title a bad rating of 2 out of 5 stars. Criticizing the game because it feels half-finished. Destructoid gave the title a 5.5 out of 10 rating. Stating that the title is better than most movie video games but feels like a rushed movie tie-in. The Official Xbox Magazine awarded the title a 6.5 out of 10 rating. Praising the controls, stealth force mode but criticized the last levels of the game and the multiplayer component. GamePro gave the title a 3.5 out of 5 star rating. They praised the good graphics, voice acting and variety of transformers for each mission but criticized the story, vehicle physics, multiplayer mode and the repetitive melee combat. GameTrailers gave the title a 7 out of 10 rating. Stating that "Dark of the Moon provides plenty of popcorn thrills that you'll likely forget as soon as the credits begin rolling. Judged against other movie games, it's actually pretty good; next to last year's superior entry, however, it looks a bit like a tin can." GameInformer gave the title a 7.5 out of 10 rating. Stating that anybody who played last year's Transformers: War for Cybertron should enjoy this title. Eurogamer gave the title a low rating of 5 out of 10. Stating that the title doesn't have enough polish as Transformers: War for Cybertron had received and High Moon Studios should've been given more time.

The game has been reviewed as being too weapons based, as the transformers are in weapon mode at all times and players cannot deactivate from weapon mode. However the weapons factor overall is an improvement in comparison to Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen the game as players have more realistic conventional weapons such as submachine guns, assault rifles and shotguns. The game lacks the fluidity of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen the game, as players are not able to execute advanced maneuvers such as super jumps from vehicle form or for transformers with flight capacities to hover in the air without activating abilities.