Transformers: Devastation

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 231 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 158 out of 231
  2. Mixed: 44 out of 231
  3. Negative: 29 out of 231
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  1. stamito
    Dec 5, 2017
    7
    This game is fantastic at some levels, but unfortunately it is a disappointment in a very important thing, level design.

    First, graphics are nice, they look exactly the same as in the old cartoon series, so they’re fantastic cartoony graphics that hit you directly in the nostalgia spot (if you watched the original series at some point). Sound and music are all right, I do think sounds    This game is fantastic at some levels, but unfortunately it is a disappointment in a very important thing, level design.

    First, graphics are nice, they look exactly the same as in the old cartoon series, so they’re fantastic cartoony graphics that hit you directly in the nostalgia spot (if you watched the original series at some point). Sound and music are all right, I do think sounds are very good with a lot of sounds and voices being the same or similar to the original ones. Music, although it goes well with the game, it’s nothing special, so it is average/good.

    The gameplay is a lot like many other platinum games, like bayoneta for example. Very fast paced combat with different melee combos, some ranged weapons, power-ups and ultimate abilities. It feels a lot like a classic beat’em up in a lot of ways. Gameplay is frenetic and fun, I got no complains about that, and you can try quite a different set of transformers so it gives you variety in characters. Also you can transform in the “vehicle” mode, which unfortunately it’s something that is underused in the game, since “vehicle” mode is basically just a way to get around faster. Maybe something more exciting could have been done with it.

    One of the things that surprised me the most and it was fantastic in this game is the lore. There are a few collectibles in the game, and when you pick them up, they basically unlock a piece of lore. I wasn’t aware the transformers universe got such a rich and well developed lore so it was a fantastic thing to discover. Following this same line, the story of the game itself, although it’s nothing special, it was nice enough, it felt a lot like one of the old episodes from TV, a bit cliché but still serves its purpose.

    My criticism for this game, and what prevents me from giving it a better score are the menu/weapon crafting system and the level design. The menu/ weapon crafting system is a mess and massively tedious. You basically, accumulate a lot of weapons and stuff that you can either equip directly or dismantle to get some bits and pieces and make other stuff. It takes a lot of time to do this and feels very boring. For a game that’s basically a beat’em up, adding this RPG kind of thing feels unnecessary and for me slows you down, something that could have been avoided whatsoever and/or simplified. Finally, the level design, it is horrid and I think it’s what makes this game, that otherwise could have been great, fall into the “average game folder”. Level design is super simple, all of them are kind of like clone long corridors that lead to open clone rooms where you find some bad guys. It doesn’t motivate you to explore anything as the map itself is boring and every room and place looks the same within a same location. For example, if you’re in the city missions, all the missions happen in clonic city-like corridors and rooms, there is absolutely nothing characteristic or special about any of them. That makes the game feel incredibly repetitive and even boring at times. It is obvious they didn’t spend a lot of time or money in trying to make venues something special. Shame, I do believe there is a lot of potential in the transformers universe for awesome locations.

    Summarising, this is kind of a beat’em up game, that feels good in a lot of ways but it’s ruined a lot by the boring, repetitive, meaningless and clonic level design. It could have been a fastantic game and it is just average. If you’re a fan of transformers and you enjoy this kind of game, get it if it’s cheap, I think you’ll have some fun with it (although don’t expect anything special). If you’re not particularly excited about the transformers world I would spend my money elsewhere, you won’t find anything out of the ordinary here.    … Expand
  2. juliankennedy23
    Apr 9, 2017
    5
    Playstation’s PSplus free games for the month program gets a lot off well-deserved stick (As of this writing April 2017’s four free games for the PS4 are just this side of a war crime). Transformers: Devastation was the perfect free game for that service. It is a game I would have never thought of picking up and despite my criticisms below I did overall enjoy.

    I certainly understand the    Playstation’s PSplus free games for the month program gets a lot off well-deserved stick (As of this writing April 2017’s four free games for the PS4 are just this side of a war crime). Transformers: Devastation was the perfect free game for that service. It is a game I would have never thought of picking up and despite my criticisms below I did overall enjoy.

    I certainly understand the defenders of this game. A peek at a message board or even the TV Tropes entry for this game will show a large amount of passionate worldbuilding surrounding the Transformers franchise from the cartoons and movies, to the novel and comic book adaptations, to the fan fiction, Wikipedias, toys and I am assuming an off-Broadway musical.

    I certainly understand the appeal of nostalgia when it comes to a property like this. I loved a certain Scooby Doo platformer from last generation that let’s face it I wouldn’t have looked at twice if not for the branding. And the original Xbox sported not one but two Buffy the Vampire games that were certainly more fanservice than top quality third person adventure. (Why does Buffy die if she touches water again?)

    I am not a Transformers fan. I am too old to have seen it during its original run and I have found the entire concept bizarre. I have found the sheer breadth of generations, universes, adaptations outright perplexing. The fact that the game has retained the original look of the cartoon with some of the original voices actors does not register with me. On the other hand, I am not about to commit seppuku due to the mishandling of Starscream’s characterization.

    Developer Platinum Games strengths are on full display here and the combat is overall a delight. It can take a while to get your groove on and it seemed a good hour before I gained access to the home base where I could upgrade weapons, create other upgrades, purchase additional moves and switch out my character. But once I was able to do these things the game was a delight. Outside of some bizarre top down, sections like a PG rated GTA 2 game and some unfortunate (though generous) platforming sessions, this game is a collection of third-person brawling and driving with the ability to switch between the two on the fly which allows one to do combos that simply never get old.

    But good Lord is everything else a wreck. I actually like the cell shading graphics. They fit the retro theme and allow a butter smooth 60 frames a second. But the overall design lacks such imagination. You literally spend half the game in about twenty city blocks. All of which looks so identical to each other that you never get the sense of where in the city you are in though it is so amazingly small. It’s like a cartoon version of Dragon Age 2. The rest of the time is spent in boring spaceship corridors, boring Cybertron corridors and empty space (that is supposed to be in well space) All the objects in the game look the same, all the enemies basically look the same and everything has this cheap cut and paste glow to it.

    The overall game just feels cheap. It is also really really short. I don’t mind short games but this one seemed to end somewhat suddenly. Replay value is there as the combat is fun but outside of that the challenge areas and different characters really don’t mix it up enough.

    As a free game on the PS4, it is perfect. Issues such as value and length fall by the wayside. But as an original $50 download… it really is less than meets the eye.    … Expand
  3. Nel
    Apr 17, 2017
    7
    Great game for the average gamer, even if you are not a big fan of transformers you might still like this game. The game has several features on nicks and nacks that you can enjoy, upgrading weapons and so forth.
  4. KayVen17
    Dec 1, 2016
    6
    Deutsche Review - Kritik

    Der folgende Test ist in 5 Kategorien zusammengefasst. Diese 5 Kartegorien ergeben die Gesamtpunktzahl von 0 - 100 Punkten. Um einen passenden Userscore zu geben wird auf oder abgerundet. Bei 84 Punkten ergibt das einen User Score von 8. Bei 86 einen von Userscore von 9. Falls eine 85 kommt entscheide ich ob ich es eher positiv oder negativ nehme. Regeln    Deutsche Review - Kritik

    Der folgende Test ist in 5 Kategorien zusammengefasst. Diese 5 Kartegorien ergeben die Gesamtpunktzahl von 0 - 100 Punkten. Um einen passenden Userscore zu geben wird auf oder abgerundet. Bei 84 Punkten ergibt das einen User Score von 8. Bei 86 einen von Userscore von 9. Falls eine 85 kommt entscheide ich ob ich es eher positiv oder negativ nehme. Regeln verstanden?
    Dann sind hier meine Punkte.

    Mein persönlicher Score = 65/100
    Mein User Score = 6/10

    Lohnenswert? = Kann man mal einen Abend spielen.
    Fortsetzung erwünscht? = Brauch ich eher weniger.    … Expand
  5. SmashLampJaw
    Oct 8, 2015
    7
    While Platinum delivers their traditionally excellent gameplay here, the stench of corporate meddling and the common constraints of a licensed game remain and do make themselves known.

    There are two levels. While there are more enemy types than in Legend of Korra, their last licensed title, there is still significantly less variety than in any of their other games. But worse than the    While Platinum delivers their traditionally excellent gameplay here, the stench of corporate meddling and the common constraints of a licensed game remain and do make themselves known.

    There are two levels. While there are more enemy types than in Legend of Korra, their last licensed title, there is still significantly less variety than in any of their other games.

    But worse than the lack of variety is the crafting system. For some reason there is an utterly pointless MMO-style loot and crafting system for producing gear for the Autobots. It's needlessly complicated and slows down the game, as well as added nothing. Should have just had flat upgrades.    … Expand
  6. drlowdon
    Nov 3, 2018
    7
    Transformers Devastation essentially takes the template laid down by Bayonetta (from the same developer) and replaces the witches, demons and monster with giant robots. To be honest it doesn't quite have the variety to its gameplay that Bayonetta or Vanquish (my favourite game from Treasure) has, and at about six hours long it is relatively short, but the combat is excellent and this willTransformers Devastation essentially takes the template laid down by Bayonetta (from the same developer) and replaces the witches, demons and monster with giant robots. To be honest it doesn't quite have the variety to its gameplay that Bayonetta or Vanquish (my favourite game from Treasure) has, and at about six hours long it is relatively short, but the combat is excellent and this will appeal to both fans of the genre and Transformers fans.… Expand
  7. Kostas101
    Dec 2, 2021
    7
    It's very fun to play, but I wish that you could transform into a vehicle whenever you want. That being said, I think this game does many things right, the level design is exciting and the gameplay is fine, it's a pretty good game.
  8. Unicron666
    Jul 21, 2020
    7
    Entertaining at first but it does get a bit repetitive towards the end. I loved the cell shading effect though!
  9. ehtaco
    Dec 24, 2022
    7
    It's fine. My memory of this game gave it more credit than it deserved as evident by my recent playthrough, but it's still good. I really appreciate the art style, though. The G1 vibes are immaculate. This is a far cry from the best Transformers game ever as some people are claiming, the Cybertron games literally exist, but still. Doesn't make it bad. It's a solid game that wears thatIt's fine. My memory of this game gave it more credit than it deserved as evident by my recent playthrough, but it's still good. I really appreciate the art style, though. The G1 vibes are immaculate. This is a far cry from the best Transformers game ever as some people are claiming, the Cybertron games literally exist, but still. Doesn't make it bad. It's a solid game that wears that Platinum DNA very much on its sleeve.… Expand

Awards & Rankings

81
#81 Best PS4 Game of 2015
65
#65 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2015
37
#37 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 50 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 50
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 50
  3. Negative: 0 out of 50
  1. Gaming Nexus
    Mar 14, 2016
    80
    Transformers Devastation is the definition of a fan-service game. An excellent combat system layered over sights and sounds that take children of the '80s back to their youth creates a memorable experience for Transformers fans. The only sad thing is that it never really goes deeper than that.
    Read full review
  2. The Digital Fix
    Dec 17, 2015
    80
    Fantastic looking brawler made by a team that understands the source material and the fans.
    Read full review
  3. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Dec 15, 2015
    80
    Don't let your natural wariness of licensed games steer you clear, because there's more than meets the eye here. [Christmas 2015, p75]
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