I'll kill all you mutha f**kers
The underworld cult-classic Scarface tells the story of the ruthless Cuban refugee, Tony Montana, as he battles his way to the top of Miami’s drug underworld through any means necessary. The ultra violent nature of the movie was criticised by some and adored by others who were totally gripped by Al Pacino’s powerful and emotional performance as the hard-hearted Montana.
It wasn’t going to be long (well, only 23 years) before someone came along and bought the rights to make the videogame of Scarface and try to turn it into a blockbuster hit. Scarface The World is Yours hit the shelves last week and sees Tony Montana back in action, looking to reclaim his turf and rebuild his empire.
As the action begins it’s clear to see that Vivendi Games’ Sierra Entertainment division have done a great job in bringing the 1980 drug fuelled world of Miami back to life with some great acting from the likes of Steven Bauer, Jason Mewes, and Wilmer Valderrama, some superb locations, and amazingly, even more bloody violence than was seen in the movie. Tony Montana’s personality, look and voice have been precisely replicated by using a voice actor that sounds remarkably like Al Pacino. The main character animates extremely well and manages to nail Tony’s mannerisms accurately; add to that a no-holds barred script that can quite often be shocking and you’ve got a character that displays a violently passionate persona, but also manages to amuse and manipulate you with his sharp wit and one-liners. The story and cut-scenes draw you into the headstrong world of the gangster, and although there are moments that will have you shaking your head in disbelief at the fantasy violence, there are other times where you’ll smiling at the tongue-in-cheek humour and relishing the next bloody battle.
Scarface The World is Yours is a brutal, shockingly violent game. From selling cocaine to going on a blind rage killing everyone in your path, the game lets you loose into the world of drugs and violence where, despite feeling guilty at times, you’ll progressively become more violent and ruthless in order to achieve the goal of the American dream.
The game begins at the end of the film just before Tony’s life of crime was about to catch up with him. You have a chance to cheat death and rebuild your tattered empire and armed with an M-16 you’re thrown into a fast paced, bloodthirsty introduction to the game as you plough through 50 or so enemies in order to escape the mansion, reach the safety of your car and start your life of crime all over again.
There are many frantic battle sequences throughout Scarface The World is Yours and during them you have access to the taunt button which allows you to unleash a barrage of expletives on anyone in ear-shot. Although some of the things Tony comes out with can be quite shocking, it’s just the type of occasionally witty, but nasty language that you’d expect from the psychopathic maniac and it adds to the personality of the character. There is the aptly named balls meter which can be filled by killing enemies and once full you’ll be able to enter the blind rage mode where Tony’s four letter outbursts gain more pace, the sound of gunfire gets louder, the action slows down slightly and the screen turns a sepia tone; it basically gives you the chance to cause as much damage as possibly in a short space of time…great!