In his weekly column, Android Central Senior Content Producer Nick Sutrich delves into all things VR, from new hardware to new games, upcoming technologies, and so much more.
Given the state of the gaming industry right now, it's always surprising when a gem comes along and blows me away. It's even more surprising that this has happened more than once this year, and TMNT: Empire City is just the most recent example of developers triumphing during a particularly tribulating era.
I've been a turtle fan ever since I was a kid, and the number of excellent beat-em-up games the property has spawned over the years is nothing short of legendary. This latest title puts the action in first-person via a Meta Quest headset, letting you team up with three other friends — each embodying a legendary Ninja Turtle — to take down the Footclan once and for all after the death of the Shredder, and there's more to it than you ever could have hoped for, too!
Smells like teen spirit
After a particularly fantastic intro that takes you through all four turtles to learn their abilities, you learn that the Shredder is dead, but a new villain threatens to resurrect him in an even more powerful state, putting New York City into a state of emergency. As the city fills with portals to another dimension and the Footclan moves in to take over, you wake up safely in the sewer-bound Turtles' Lair alongside Master Splinter, April O'Neil, and even Casey Jones.
From the onset to the moment you finish it, the game feels like a living comic book. The visual style plays perfectly to this feeling, with thick cel-shaded edges, heavy shadows, and gorgeous hand-drawn textures. The game is impressively interactive throughout, too, with tons of collectibles to find, lots of optional side quests and activities to complete, minigames to play with friends, and plenty of objects to pick up and goof around with.
In many ways, this feels like a TMNT version of the latest PlayStation Spider-Man games. You get a sizable New York City to explore, complete with different neighborhoods and sections, underground sewerways, buildings you can enter to complete quests, random crimes and missions that pop up around the city as you roam its streets, and tons of ways to parkour and show off your ninja skills.
Like any good modern open-world game — particularly in VR — you can climb basically anything you want. Reaching for the side of buildings, windowsills, steel beams, light poles, etc., will present you with a white highlight of where to grab. This mechanic feels accurate for a Ninja Turtle, because you still have to grab specific places to climb, not just bare rock walls, but there's no shortage of ways to parkour up a building to get a better vantage point.
TMNT: Empire City rewards players who approach situations with a stealth-first approach, but you can always just rush in and go ham if you enjoy the traditional beat-em-up mechanics. As you would expect, each Turtle has its own weapon and skillset, with plenty of attitude and jokes to fill the gaps.
Combat is rewarding and visceral, albeit a little easy from the onset, but things get more challenging and varied as you progress through the game. You'll also come across tons of little puzzles along the way. Locked doors might require a keycard or just a conveniently placed computer to hack, or maybe even a power junction box that you need to rewire (via a fun laser puzzle).
You'll also find lots of junk lying about. Plastic parts, electronics scraps, and other pickups can be used in Donnie's machine back in the Turtle Lair to craft items and upgrades. You can hold several items at a time in your pouch, and players can equip two upgrades from a list of unlockables that suit the mission best. There's a ton here, and it deeply rewards players who enjoy exploring, something that's great to see in a game like this.
The new hangout
When I first joined a friend of mine in TMNT: Empire City, we high-fived each other and quickly realized how much fun it is to be a Ninja Turtle. The Turtle Lair is decorated in a way that feels legit. Each of the Turtles' rooms fits their unique personalities. There's even a chessboard in the living room with pieces you have to find throughout the game, eventually culminating in a board you can use to play with friends.
Running and climbing through the city with friends is a ton of fun, and between the minigames and strategizing your next attack, there's no shortage of things to do. And if you want to roleplay, there are tons of ways to do that, too. It's equally great for kids and the kids at heart.
One of the most surprising things to me was seeing a city faction map that constantly changes. When you start the game, the Footclan has taken full control of the city, but you can liberate it by completing missions and destroying outposts. The Clan will eventually rebuild these outposts and take the territory back if you don't defend it, so keep an eye on the crime meter back in the Turtle Lair.
As you clear Footclan outposts, special NPCs will appear in those safe parts of the city to offer you bonus quests and challenges. These can be anything from parkour races to basketball, and are all a blast to play with friends. They've all got leaderboards, too, so if your friends can't join you, you can always compete on your own.
I came into this game expecting a fun beat-em-up that lasted a few hours and was just fun for that brief time, but I came away realizing this is so much more than meets the eye. It's an impressive accomplishment in every way, from the visuals to the size of the city, things to do by yourself and with friends, and even the original story itself.
This is what I'll be doing for the next few Fridays when I play with friends, and I hope to see a ton of Turtles joining the fray as the game launches on the Meta Quest and Steam on April 31 for a crazy good $24.99. Plus, it's crossplay-compatible, so you can enjoy time with friends even if they're on a different platform.
