Gameplay
Weapon of Choice plays out as a side-scrolling shooter similar to classics like Contra. Run right, run left, shoot anything that moves. The button layout takes a minute to get accustomed to, with aiming and shooting assigned to the right stick and jumping tied to the left trigger, but once you're actually playing it begins to feel natural. The core gameplay is firmly centered in classic side-scrolling mechanics that most gamers will already be plenty familiar with and will pick up instantly. It's a good thing too, because new elements get added on top of those classic mechanics right from the start.

The game is called Weapon of Choice for a reason: the weapons are insane and awesome. Each of the game's seven characters has a standard machine gun as well as their own unique "weapon of choice," and it is those weapons that are the real star of the game. One character holds a jet engine under his arm and uses it as a flamethrower while another character shoots flaming mines that stick to any surface. My personal favorite character's weapon can best be described as a cross between a lightsaber and a 10 foot chainsaw. These weapons would be fun enough to play around with on their own, but to add another layer of depth to the gameplay each weapon also has an alternate fire mode activated by holding the right trigger. For example, with the right trigger held the jet engine goes into overdrive, propelling the character around the level like a jet pack while also doubling the length of the flame to reach farther enemies. Each character has a similarly specific alternate fire designed to compliment their primary weapon fire. Mastery of the two weapon uses is crucial to surviving in many situations, so it's nice that the game gives you the opportunity to test each character's weapons on the character select screen before you even get into the main game.

But there are more wrinkles to the gameplay that set it apart beyond just having a unique weapon selection. Traversing each level is aided by each character's unique double jump ability, which can range from walking on a trail of smoke to creating a holographic clone of the character (a holographic clone whose bullets still can hit enemies for double damage). Every character is also equipped with a spiderpack. The spiderpack will quickly become your best friend in Weapon of Choice with its ability to automatically stick to any wall or ceiling in the level to help avoid obstacles. Once the spiderpack latches onto a ceiling your character can shoot at enemies while walking with the spiderpack's mechanical legs in relative safety. And though it might seem like a gameplay mechanic that automatically sticks your character to walls and ceilings could have a lot of potential for frustration, the level layouts are smartly designed so that it is never really an issue.

Don't get too accustomed to any one character though, because one hit and they are gone. You see, in Weapon of Choice the characters act as your lives. As long as you still have at least one character in reserve you can keep playing after death, but run out and it's game over. But because each character is unique it's a real shame if you lose one of them for good, so the game gives you a few ways to save your favorites. Whenever a character is in critical danger, when enemy fire is inches away, the game goes into a slow-motion mode it calls "death brushing," allowing you a little more focus to dodge the oncoming danger. But even with death brushing one of the characters will inevitably fall at the mandibles of the alien hordes. Once a character dies and a new character spawns in (by way of a rocket that hurts any enemies in the immediate area) you will find the incapacitated character lying on the ground begging for help. Your new character can give the downed one a piggy-back ride, and if you manage to finish the level while still carrying your ally then they come back for the next level. In fact, four of the game's characters are locked at the beginning of the game and must be rescued and unlocked in this way. But you can only carry one ally at a time, so if multiple characters fall during a level you can only hope to bring one of them back.

With the wide range of powerful weapons and special abilities available to you, it might seem that Weapon of Choice wouldn't have any challenge to offer. But remember the Contra comparison earlier in the review? That's about the level of difficulty you can expect in Weapon of Choice. The difference is that Weapon of Choice wasn't designed as an arcade game to rob you of your quarters. While it can be punishingly difficult, the game gives you all of the necessary tools to survive any situation. It's just a matter of using the right ability at the right time. The game gives you all of the intensity of a punishing arcade game without the frustration from cheap deaths. When your characters do die, and they will, you will almost always know exactly what went wrong so that you can improve with your next play through.

Story
The year is 2188 and aliens have begun invading Earth. Not all seems to be going according to plan for the aliens though, as most of their ships have been crashing on the planet with the surviving aliens causing as much havoc as they can. Why did the aliens come to Earth? What do they want? Why are the invaders crashing? None of that matters for you, a soldier sent into the midst of the alien forces with one goal...... Wait, what was that goal again?

Radio communications with the military break down once you land, and it's up to you to figure out what is going on and what your mission is exactly. Each level has multiple paths that can lead toward one of four different story conclusions. Depending on which path you choose you may uncover the answers to the questions above, or re-establish contact with your commander for details on your mission, or maybe something else entirely. I apologize that I'm being very vague on story details, but I really don't want to spoil the fun of discovering each story path for yourself. Although I'm not sure I could spoil it even if I wanted to. There is one storyline in particular that makes little sense and for most players will raise more questions than it answers. A healthy dose of humor has been added to make confusing story segments more bearable, but no less confusing.

The branching levels and story are a big positive feature for Weapon of Choice, but they also represent one of my few issues with the game. On the one hand, branching levels and multiple storylines guarantees that you can't see everything on your first run, and encourages multiple plays through of the game giving it a high replay value. The downside is that this means each run through the game is fairly short. There are only seven levels total in Weapon of Choice, with each storyline only taking you through two or three of them. All told, it took about an hour for me to complete all four storylines and unlock the four additional characters on normal difficulty. The game is short, there's really no way around that. There is also a harder difficulty setting that introduces new enemy patterns and obstacles, while making the enemies take less damage from your weapons. It's great for a challenge, though experienced gamers may just want to start on that difficulty setting and forgo the easier setting entirely. But if you are the type of gamer who likes to explore every nook and cranny of the game, or who wants to record the perfect speed run, then there is a lot to come back for in Weapon of Choice.

Graphics and Sound
Probably the most striking aspect of Weapon of Choice when you first start playing would be the visuals. Every enemy, character, and environmental set piece is hand-drawn and eerily gorgeous. Aliens undulate and crawl with disturbing detail that makes the task of exterminating them all the more satisfying. The art style is truly unlike any other game on the market. And unlike most other games of late, Weapon of Choice is full of vibrant colors with bright greens, pinks, and purples painted on the screen. It's a bit ridiculous and over-the-top, but it's still a breathe of fresh air from the gray and brown tones that still seem to pervade most console games.

To be honest I wasn't a huge fan of the music in Weapon of Choice when I first started playing, but the more I played the more the music grew on me. Weapon of Choice makes extensive use of heavy rock guitar riffs to match the intensity of the action on screen, and in that respect it succeeds flawlessly. You probably won't be singing the songs in your head when you're away from the game, but don't be surprised if while playing you have the sudden urge to perform an air guitar solo.

Overall
Weapon of Choice is one of the best games to come out of the Xbox indie games, and arguably the best side-scrolling shooter on the console. Weapon of Choice is a game I would recommend right alongside games like Castle Crashers and Braid as an essential download for any Xbox 360 owner. It is not without faults. The game is short, the lack of co-op multiplayer is a glaring omission, and parts of the story can be generously described as a convoluted mess. But the underlying gameplay and weapon selection in Weapon of Choice is so fun and addicting that the complaints seem minor in comparison. Weapon of Choice is a game no action fan should miss.

9 out of 10