Like I promised a while back, I would review games that we play in this house. My daughter and I watch E3 every summer to see what will come out in the year, and what the gaming companies are up to. This summer was no different. As we watched, I was sold on the new XBOX and games they had coming out to play for the year.

One of them was Sunset Overdrive. We were so excited for the game, because my kids loved the Tony Hawk series, and this game had elements of that game, including the soundtrack.

Now, this game has an M rating, which is for 17 or above, and since she’s 15, I said I was ok with that. It’s no different than anything she sees or hears at school, and unfortunately I can’t control what happens there. I raised her well enough to know this is just a game, and not to repeat or emulate what she sees or hears.

With that said, it’s a grown up game, fun for teens 15 or above, in my recommendation. You know your teen better than I do, so it’s your call.

Here’s the story: An energy drink turned everyone into crazy looking zombies, and you are stuck in this city. With the aid of some, you fight off these ‘zombies'(and I use that term loosely) with unique weapons(an bazooka teddy bear launcher), to get out of the city. You have different missions to complete as you go along to get out the city. If your teen is a skater, I recommend it. If, like I stated, your teen is a tony hawk fan, I recommend it. It’s a mix of tony hawk and open shooter game.

Now, it goes back to what you are comfortable with. To me, the rating is warranted. If you where to sit in on a conversation of a group of 20 year olds, this game captured it on the dot. If cursing bothers you, don’t do it. If you don’t like your kids to have games that simulate shooting, don’t do it.

As for graphics, and gameplay, it’s great! I love the color they used to capture the feel of the situation. It comes off like a comic, and if you ever read comics, you know color is everything! Close up shots are fabulous. I notice in some games the game is great, but when you get the upclose shots, the character is clearly a game character. This isn’t the case. Microsoft made sure the game was as realistic as possible. I also love the fourth wall breaking theme it has through out the game. Again, gives the game a real feel to it.

So let’s recap:

Mature game, with adult language, some nudity, and adult jokes.
Great graphics, with the option to play with 7 other people online.

Of course you may worry. My advice is simple. If over 15, think about how your teen is. If over 21, then go for it, if they like games like these. If under 15, hell no. Too much to worry about, and explain. Trust me, I still have one under the age of 14, and I’m not looking forward to ‘the birds and the bees’ talk. If you need an outlet to just have for yourself, and laugh at the same time, this game is for you.

I give it 9 cans out of 10 cans of overcharge.

As a parent, they could do without some of the language, if this was geared towards younger kids, but it’s not. That’s the big lesson to remember if you purchase the game. It’s for older teens and adults. Like I said, if you sat in on a convo with 20 year olds, without them knowing you were there, they captured all of their thinking, and vocabulary on the head. I also got it at a great price of 35.00, instead of the full 60.00, since I waited to purchase(great lesson to tell your kids if they are bugging you, LOL).

I hope this blog post helps. I’m thinking of keeping these around after the holidays, because I also noticed their are no gaming parents that blog about games in general, from what I can see. Maybe I’m wrong, but I only see young gamers write reviews, or moms who don’t play video games, who come down hard on the games. Should be parents who play video games giving their opinion on the games, in simple terms parents can understand, that helps out making the choice of buying, renting, or just saying no.

Enjoy if you choose to buy the game, I’m going to watch my daughter play!

~CSM~