Weapon of Choice is developed and produced by MommysBest and was released on Xbox Live November 14, 2008. A copy of the game was provided by the publisher for reviewing purposes.

Weapon of Choice is a fast paced side scrolling shoot’ em up reminiscent of favorites like Gunstar Heroes and Contra. The player character is tasked with protecting the world from a horde of invading aliens. There are branching levels giving players the ability to choose where they want to, each direction leading to a different ending. There are seven unique characters, each has a unique gun and double jump. This gives players a very diverse way to play through the levels.

Here’s what we liked:

Characters – Weapons of Choice gives players three characters from the start and requires them to rescue four others from the levels as they play through giving a total of seven. Each character has a machine gun and a unique special weapon ranging from a giant jet engine style weapon to a futuristic over sized chainsaw. The double jump for each character is different; some put out a blast that will push enemies back, others allow you to specifically push the character in the direction of choice, and some create a cloud that allows the player to walk on air for a short time. No matter your style of play there are plenty of options to find perfect for you.

Difficulty – There are six different levels of difficulty to pick from ranging from easy to mega wicked. This is a very good thing as the average gamer can pick it up and beat it while the avid gamer can have a challenge. Another cool thing about the different levels is the enemies not only more abundant and harder to kill but, also react differently when being killed such as exploding which can hurt you a sending out a last chance shot when they die, things which they do not do on the easier levels.

Level design – With several levels to play through with beautiful graphics and backdrops and different story lines attached to each one gives this game quite a bit of replay value. No matter which choice you make you will be deciding the fate of earth as you go. It will be up to as to which path you choose and how you try and traverse through it. Almost all levels have more then one route from to reach the end which gives is always nice since it is technically just a side scroller and to many of them have a very linear path for you to travel.

Boss fights – Every level ends in an over sized boss battle like and good shooter of this style should. Each boss has is simple in concept, you and your weapons versus a giant monster that must be shot said amount of times so he will die and you can pass. What is great here is each boss is completely different from the last keeping you on your toes and wondering what is next.

Here’s what we didn’t like:

Glitches – Finding several glitches though out the game was very disappointing as they normally lead to either death or abandonment of your mission. To give you an example;e as to what happens is at the end of one of the levels after i defeated the boss instead of giving me the go ahead arrows the dead boss simply fell off the map leaving me stuck as if though i had not defeated. On another occasion I was jumping through a level and hit some magic invisible booster that shot me bouncing all over the screen resulting in my death as i ran into an enemy. Also on this same level at a different spot the same thing happened again only this time trapping me inside of a mountain that I could walk around in but could not escape out of.

Co-op – Once again this is something that should be a no brainer. Since the beginning of time the only thing better then busting up a bunch of bad guys with cool guns is doing it with your buddy. Yet here we are with no multiplayer of the sort whether it be on-line or off you are stuck traveling this amazing adventure alone. This is the one thing that seems almost impossible to believe they over looked. Who knows maybe they will make a sequel and will remedy this issue.

Level select – You have only one choice where to start your journey. No going back and replaying a specific level just to see a different route or because it is your favorite. This also becomes a pain when you have to abandon a mission because of a annoying glitch that you had no control over. Nothing like starting from the beginning because the game spazzed out on you.

Weapon of Choice is a fun fast paced adventure that keeps you on toes and blasting aliens from start to finish. Even with a few glitches here and there and a total lack of multiplayer it is still a great game. Each level gives you a choice of path and story with plenty of options for replayabilty. So if you are a veteran to this style of game or new to the genre it is good old fashion fun for everyone.

Score: Buy it!