So here we are immersed in the heart of Manhattan in the company of our favorite turtles. Everything starts well, the cutscenes are not unpleasant to the eye and the humor of the franchise, although quite childish, is there. Unfortunately, once we take control of our heroes, we quickly realize that PlatinumGames' latest production will not be a great game. While the Japanese studio has always accustomed us to a minimally worked gameplay, we finds himself here with a combat system reduced to its simplest device. A series of combos by strafing the keys of his controller without really worrying about his health, that's pretty much what you're going to do for the next 4 hours. Indeed, the enemies gather around you without posing any real problems, especially when your team consists of four overtrained ninjas. But where the bottom hurts is that the number of combos ultimately remains very limited, even if each turtle has its own animations to better stick to their respective weapons. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the game does not have some qualities during the fights.
AT PLATINUMGAMES, THERE IS NO ONE MORE
In addition to classic combos, you can use Ninjutsu to launch super-powerful attacks and create real synergy within your team. Launched at the right time, certain techniques can create combination attacks between Leonardo, Raphael, Donatello and Michelangelo, which will inflict enormous damage on the nearest enemies. However, be careful not to abuse it because the cooldowns can be quite long and it often happens that you end up without any special attack while a good group of enemies rushes at you. We also regret the dodging system which could have brought a little more complexity to the game, but the very tight timing and the messy side of the fights makes it almost obsolete. Between enemy attacks stopped by your teammates and the difficulty in analyzing the action, it is almost impossible to benefit from the counters and parries of your dodges. Despite this, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan remains within reach of all hands and you will rarely worry about your life gauge. Indeed with each KO, an allied turtle will be able to bring you back to life within a given time. If you are careful not to lose your four ninja reptiles at the same time, you should encounter very few problems.
Repetitive at will, the objectives to be accomplished all look more or less alike. Between the elimination of enemies in a given time or the defusing of bombs, we very quickly have the impression of going around in circles.
That the game is easy to learn is one thing, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan is clearly intended for a young audience who does not need any real difficulty to have fun. But the real problem lies in the missions themselves. Repetitive at will, the objectives to be accomplished all look more or less alike. Between the elimination of enemies in a given time or the defusing of bombs, we very quickly have the impression of going around in circles. Finally, the player will really enjoy the boss fights which bring a little spice to the clashes. Each boss has its own patterns and the fury mode that triggers when you start their last life bar may cause you a lot of trouble. To top it off, although the levels benefit from a rather correct cel-shading, the lack of variety of the decorations makes the progression much less interesting. No destructible environment, only a few barrels of explosives and turrets will be at your disposal to help you. Some semi-open play areas don't add much, and you'll spend your time running around in circles while activating your T-ray goggles in an effort to find enemies. Moreover, it is not uncommon to spend more time looking for the next objective than completing it. Fortunately, you can have fun visiting the areas by grinding on the rails and other cables or by controlling an impressive Krang robot. But with five hours (large maximum) to complete the Story mode, players may be disappointed in more ways than one.
A PIZZA IS TO BE SHARED!
Fortunately, in addition to being able to add a little challenge thanks to the higher difficulty modes, the most seasoned players will be able to fall back on the multiplayer mode. Playable for four, the online mode allows each player to embody a well-defined turtle. And right away, things get more interesting. The rough side of the fights fades and it becomes easier to manage his blows and dodges to inflict maximum damage while taking the least possible attacks. Thus, it will be necessary to show team cohesion in order to best combine your ninjutsu techniques with your teammates. The only downside is that matchmaking can take a very long time and with the convincing level differences between players and the difficulty of finding people, you will have to be patient before you can start an online game without ending up with a totally unbalanced. Finally, we can only regret the absence of a local co-op mode, even if it would have been difficult to be able to control our four pizza eaters without the camera starting to completely panic. In conclusion, if the fans will find a certain pleasure in embodying their favorite heroes, it is necessary to remain realistic, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan struggles to stand out and is clearly not worth buying full pot. On occasion, the game will inevitably make people happy, but for now, it's best to move on.
