Konami wants to make the wait for Hellboy's silver screen return in 2008 bearable with a little third-person brawling action to tide you over. Taking inspiration from the first film, Hellboy: The Science of Evil is actually a totally original work incorporating new characters and scenarios. We got our hands-on a playable demonstration, testing out the combat-heavy gameplay and rich visuals firsthand.
Hellboy: The Science of Evil follows the titular hero in a quest to stop the Nazi madman Hermann Von Klempt from taking over the world. An original storyline crafted exclusively for the game will allow you to take control of Hellboy as he bashes across the planet, foiling Von Klempt's plan. You can play through the campaign alone or cooperatively; even better, the game will support both local and online cooperative play with characters Abe Sapien and Liz Sherman available only in multiplayer.
We took a spin through a couple short sections of two different levels: one set in deep in the Carpathian Mountains and the other winding along a small stream in central Japan. Hellboy's jaunt through the Carpathians serves as the opening level for the game, placing him on a mission to track down a witch hiding in the surrounding forest. The mountainside was filled with miniature monsters called Bambinis that threw fireballs at Hellboy and could self-detonate for significant damage. Our trip to Europe ended with an intense battle against a large group of Bambinis in a creepy cemetery.
Jetting off to Japan, Hellboy had to travel up a tiny creek weaving through a thick bamboo forest. We weren't able to figure out the context of the mission, but it had an equal share of action. You'll have access to close-quarters combat and guns, both of which proved helpful in our demonstration. Normal punches can be done with a press of the X button, whereas stronger heavy punches can be pulled off by hitting the Y button. You can also grab and pummel enemies by repeatedly tapping on X after grabbing one with B. Occasionally you'll have the option of triggering a context-sensitive finishing move such as the one we saw where Hellboy rips off the head of a little Bambini.
Depressing the left trigger will enable you to fire off Hellboy’s huge revolver, which can be switched via the directional pad. Reloading is done by means of the left bumper. Aiming requires moving a reticle tied to the right thumbstick, which grants a lot of control over the direction of fire. You will have to be careful about wantonly firing at enemies because ammunition is limited. During our demonstration, gunplay didn't seem as fun as fisticuffs and we found ourselves sticking to punches over gunfire.
Along with the two levels we saw thanks to Konami, Hellboy: The Science of Evil will span a number of other locales across the globe for a staggering 30 to 40 hours of gameplay; additionally, Konami promises downloadable levels following the game's release. That’s a lot of Hellboy. The schedule for these downloads and whether they'll be available for both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game is something on which the company wouldn't comment. For the time being, we're content with mulling over what we've seen of this pretty little brawler. Look for it sometime next year.
