The Warriors (2005) (VG)

User Rating:

9.1/10   

Director:

John Zurhellen

Writers:

Sol Yurick (novel) &
Sol Yurick (characters) ...

Release Date:

18 October 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime

Tagline:

Come Out To Play

Plot:

The Warriors are a gang from Coney Island. They go to the biggest gang leader's meeting under a truce...

Plot Keywords:

Gang | Coney Island | Drug Use | Coward | Surprise During End Credits

Cast

Dorsey Wright	...	Cleon (voice)
Michael Beck	...	Swan (voice)
James Remar	...	Ajax (voice)
Thomas G. Waites	...	Fox (voice) (as Tom Waites)
Andy Senor	...	Rembrandt (voice)
Sekou Campbell	...	Snow (voice)
Joe Lo Truglio	...	Vermin / Birdie (voice)
David Harris	...	Cochise (voice)
Kurt Bauccio	...	Cowboy (voice)
Ephraim Benton	...	Ash (voice)
Deborah Van Valkenburgh	...	Mercy (voice)
Pat Floyd	...	The DJ (voice)
Michael Potts	...	Cyrus (voice)
Oliver Wyman	...	Luther (voice)
Omar Scroggins	...	Beansie (voice)

Country:

Canada | USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby (PlayStation 2 version) | Dolby Digital (Xbox version) | DTS (Xbox version)

Certification:

UK:18 | USA:M | Australia:MA

Filming Locations:

Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

Bonus missions in the game show how each member of the Warriors (that appeared in the film) joined the gang.

Quotes:

Cochise: [Puts on a hat] Man, this ain't gonna help with the wool!

Movie Connections:

References The Karate Kid (1984)

Couldn't have been better

If you were gonna pick any developer to make the classic cult movie The Warriors into a game, it'd be Rockstar. Even if you started playing not knowing they were the developers it wouldn't take long to figure out. There are elements of GTA in this game that blend perfectly with the action and feel of the movie, and make you really believe you're a part of the world of the Warriors.

The authenticity is top notch. The missions are fun and get you right in there, and when you inevitably fail one for whatever reason, you won't mind at all playing it through again. Some of them will have you on the edge of your seat. Each character has their own strengths and weaknesses that tie in with their movie counterparts, and even though some of the fighting moves get a bit samey after a while they all have great, solid impact, and there's a wide array of weapons to put to good use. The game also cuts to some entertainingly brutal pneumatics when you perform certain moves that'll make you wince when you see them. All the gangs, voices and music from the film are here, and the streets of New York are perfectly crafted as you scale rooftops, trash businesses, run from cops, steal, loot, pillage, rough up the general populace and pummel your way through rival gangs and their turf. Anyone who's a fan of the GTA games will know that Rockstar don't hold back on brutality, violence and profanity in their games, this is no exception, and it works on every level.

One of the best things about the game is that it shows and lets you take part in the excellent, believable back story to the movie, letting you see how the Warriors became one of the toughest gangs around and giving insight into the events that lead up to Cyrus's big meeting. The content of the movie itself makes up the last level of the game and those fans familiar with the movie will absolutely love the way it ties in. As if that isn't enough, as you work your way through the game, building up the gang's rep in various ways all over town, you'll also come across bonus missions that let you see and take part in even earlier back stories of how Cleon started the gang and how certain members came to join. These are some of the most interesting and fun missions to play. There's also an entertaining Rumble mode that lets you play several game modes with hundreds of different characters from the game and movie, side missions to do around Coney that you can undertake at any time that upon completion grant you special abilities in the main game, and when you complete the main game itself you get a few little nifty extras. How's that for content?

Movie-to-game licenses are always a risky venture and more often than not produce some awful games but I'm happy to say this is one of the best movie-to-game adaptations I've ever played. I enjoyed it from start to finish.