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Very Good game(8.2/10 IMHO)(SPOILERS galore)

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: December 20, 2006
Author: Amazon User

First of all, I don't feel like comparing this to GTA, to me it feels very different and takes the step towards realism, I like "The Getaway" series more than True Crime and I nearly like it as much as I do Driver/GTA.But after this I will stop the comparisons

Its a stepforwards from the original "The Getaway" which Sony and Team SOHO released in 2002 for PS2, although there are things in "The Getaway:Black Monday" that aren't as good as the original such as the graphics

The game is set in London, England(again) and puts you in the shoes of three characters...in the one storyline:

Sgt.Ben Mitchell-
A very touchy cop claimed by the Media for being a "Delicate" and "Trigger Happy Cop" after he shot a teenage boy in the back after the teen never dropped his weapon.The year after the incident, he is back from suspension but some of his teammates aren't exactly warm about his return such as Evans who believes "Mitch" is the liability of the team and claims Mitch is too sharp round the edges.
Mitch works for the CO19 firearms divison in the Metropol. Police.Mitch will usually be armed with a GLOCK 17 handgun and an MP-5 submac.

Eddie O'Connor-
Ed is an amateur boxer for his local gym, Shoreditch Boys Club and has been trained by a local hero and trainer, Danny West who has been working there for over 30 years, however the darkness is that the fact Danny has bad gambling habits and one of the days it gets out of hand, Ed and a few other people Danny knows including a codebreaker, another amateur boxer and a young girl hacker(Sam) but they get caught and all of Eds' teammates(with the exception of Sam) are killed.And to make matters worse, the same people bust into Shoreditch and kill Danny and one of Eds partners in crime son aswell as others.Eddie is hell bent on revenge.....

Sam-
Sam is a 19 year old stealthy and capable hacker, from far she looks like a docile teenager, she was one of Eddies partners-in-crime but luckily she wasn't captured.Now her and Eddie are fugitives after Danny's murder, she is forced to handle the stealth missions while Eddie goes after revenge

My ending was that all Mitch, Eddie and Sam survived the standoff(at the end, when Mitch and Ed have each other at gunpoint and Mitch goes to shoot Sam)...The ending I wanted anyway since I liked the characters

You have 4 minigames, Chase, taxi, race and freeroaming(the freedome aspect of the game)

In freeroam you get to play these characters:

Mitch(the only one that can't get Cops after him unlike the others listed)
Eddie
Sam
Yuri
Zara
Jamahl
Viktor Skobal(the man Ed wants to kill)

I was exactly what I was expecting

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: February 08, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This game is not nearly as bad as all of you say it was. The controls were the same as they were in the first Getaway. The story had the same feel as the original getaway. It did add some cool cars and i like that they added motorcycles and other 2 wheeled vehicles ( a bicycle). I got this game for 22 bucks at gamestop used and I dont feel ripped off at all. I feel i got exactly what i payed for.

Not bad but better than the first series

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: June 07, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This was the continuation in the epic Getaway series. First of all not the best sequel, its true the GTA series truley outdone themseleves compared to Team Soho. Now on to the reviews, graphics are decent not much of an improvement from the first game. Story line is alittle better maybe more appealing to some viewers. And i will agree if you want something decent to play not alot of difficulty buy this game, but dont spend over $30. I got this game for 25 and it was decent at most. The worst thing about this game is the camera angle and the enemies they truly dont give much of a difficult fight. One reviewer said u could handcuff 30 enemies while everyone around you is shooting.....sadly its correct. And for god sake's what is the point of being in London if they dont utilize the place. In san andreas and Vice City they utilized the urban history from hispanic gangs to haitain thugs.....In London it completely a bore. Dont expect much from this game, but if u want a good little 2-4 week challenge for the weekends invest in it.

biased reviews

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 1 / 7
Date: May 30, 2005
Author: Amazon User

beware of biased reviews panning this fine game.they do so probably because its British. It's far better than Gta san andreas.

WASTE OF $$$$$$$$$$$

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 3 / 7
Date: April 08, 2005
Author: Amazon User

First lets say that this game is not very good at all, i wish i could've spent my money on a stripper or something of that nature, because that would've put a smile on my face, I was pretty excited with the release of this game, all because of the first one, now that was a good game. If you even look at this game you might as well crumple up a fifty and take a leak on it, so if you have half a brain don't purchase this game, and if you choose not to listen to this review and go ahead and buy it anyway, you'll kick yourself in the rear later, and another thing, I wish i didn't have to give it a 1 star rating because its not even 0 worthy

Terrible

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 4 / 5
Date: March 25, 2005
Author: Amazon User

That pretty much sums it up. The first Getaway was fantastic in my opinion. It was original enough to be great. Shooting around walls was awesome. Getting lost was fun in itself because I could marvel at London. Say goodbye to that.

Black Monday is flat out terrible. There were some problems with the original Getaway, but I could overlook them as I fell in love with the game. Black Monday fixes nothing, it actually has caused a ton of problems itself.

The first apartment you raid is absolutely stupid. The main problem is that the camera is jerky. You can always see what you need to see, but when you move the camera jerks to follow you. You will notice this right at the start of the game.

Another problem is how easy this game is. Enemies can't hit anything. Even at point-blank range, the enemies don't seem to be able to hold their gun straight. I walked up to about 30 dudes and just handcuffed them. While I was handcuffing them everyone stopped and politely waited for me to finish. The fighting in the game is stupid as well because you just walk up and punch dudes. Occasionaly you can grab them, then turn them around and snap their necks. It is so unbelievably boring.

The worst idea was putting in the crappy stealth missions. They are horrible. EVERY GAME WANTS TO DO THIS NOW! Almost every game I play puts you in a stupid stealth mission that just drags. STOP MAKING STEALTH MISSIONS! I just played Shadow of Rome, and the stealth missions are pure crap. I love Metal Gear Solid and Splinter Cell, but honestly, those are the only times I appreciate stealth. The stealth missions in this game consist of you walking around, occasionaly hiding until a guard leaves. I don't think they tested this game with real people. Had they of done that, they would of been told to take out the stealth missions and kill themselves for making such a horrible game.

London is recreated perfectly. The only problem is, I don't care. Now you have a map option. To me, this is a terrible idea. The whole concept of the original Getaway is realism. Sure, you could buy a map. When you're driving alone though you can't freeze the time continum and take a break to see what road you need next. You will use the map function only to finish this game so you can take it back. I only got 17 dollars for it. I'm surprised they even took it back, seeing as how horrible it is.

The graphics are terrible. Blah blah blah. Everything about this game is bad. I'm just so mad I spent fifty dollars on it. Truthfully, this game is flat out terrible and I don't think they will be creating another Getaway anytime soon. If they do, I think it will be the first game in history to sell zero copies.

Solid, but...

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 2
Date: March 04, 2005
Author: Amazon User

I enjoyed this game but either found that the missions that are there aren't satisfying enough or that the game itself wasn't long enough. I'm not entirely sure which. I guess that I'm glad that the ending seemed to leave it open for a sequel because I really liked the first game of this series. I hope that ultimately this will just be a stepping stone to a game more like the first.

Flawed, but strangely addictive.

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 6 / 7
Date: January 31, 2005
Author: Amazon User

When the first Getaway came out, it was naturally compared to the revolutionary Grand Theft Auto 3. It was the first game similar in the city re-creation aspect to follow GTA3. After years of creation, it was released with much fanfare and a lower price of $39.95. While it wasn't a failure, it sure did not live up to the hype.

Now the sequel has been released in a much more subdued launch, with much lowered expectations, and though it is extremely flawed, it's an enjoyable game. It's a strange game. In terms of gameplay, in terms of problems, and in terms of wasted potential, this game should be terrible. Despite all that though, for weird reason, I couldn't put it down.
Even though it has the City of London to traverse through, the game is mostly a third person shooting game with just a smaller part consisting of driving or chasing missions. You play as three different character in 22 chapters, a cop and a criminal, and a teenager.

First, the bad. The most glaring problem are the camera angles. In many missions, the camera is the toughest enemy. Close quarter angles are just terrible. This is mostly an indoor shooting game, and much of it relies on stealth and looking over corners . The camera just doesn't want to cooperate. It's just bad. I can't stress that enough.

This brings up the stealth missions. Now, with the camera described above, it makes it annoying. While doable, you'll be spotted, but you'll never see who spotted you. While a nice change of pace from the constant gun firing, the camera ruins it as you can't see half the stuff you need to. It's also sometimes pretty unintuitive to figure out where you need to go.

The game is short, which is what I prefer, but the reply value is virtually non-existent. You get to roam around London, go back to missions to find keys to I guess unlock more stuff, race, or drive a cab. I had no inclination to do any of those except drive around London, and that was dull after twenty minutes.

Finally, what good is reproducing London if it's really just a gateway to the missions? In the original GTA 3, the city was always an integral part of most missions. In this game, it's just a place to drive through. There is a lot that can happen, but Team Soho didn't bother to take full advantage of their years of work. I can only imagine a shootout in Hyde Park, or snipers on the Tower Bridge.

Now to the good. As with the first game, the graphics are great. London is as, well, Londony as ever, the graphics for the indoor parts of the missions are smooth, polished, and capture the ambiance of warehouses, office buildings, slums, etc. Unlike the first game though, the map is really useful, as it tells you where you are and where you're headed, so there is no need to rely on those horrible blinkers from the first game. Even if don't use the map, the blinkers actually perform much, much better than the first game. Team Soho saw the weakest part of their previous game and tackled it.

Though I think most cut scenes are usually game filler with no redeeming value, the cut-scenes compliment this game very well. They're much shorter than the first game, and describe a particular event from three different perspectives. They intermingle well with the game and add to the gameplay, not detract from it.

Finally, it's just addictive. I got it Wednesday, thinking I would have something to play over the weekend. I finished the second half of the game in one sitting on Friday night. A game has great flow and is addictive when someone like me, who can't sit still for an hour straight, can play this for almost five hours straight without even realizing it.

Don't expect miracles, in fact, expect some flawed gameplay. But still, it was a fun game.

Pros:
Could not put it down
Story and gameplay splicing is perfect
Improved map and handling was a drastic improvement
Great flow with little frustration
Great graphics
No backtracking and little repetition

Cons:
Camera is perhaps the worst I've seen on PS2
Stealth missions don't work
Up close aiming not as fine tuned
Doesn't really use the city of London
Extras are useless

Time to Complete: 10 hours

Frustration Level: Low

Difficulty Level: Low

Amazing tour of London, but annoying gameplay

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 8 / 10
Date: January 29, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Getaway - Black Monday is the sequel to the Getaway game. This is set in an almost photorealistic version of London, with cops and robbers trading bullets.

For better or for worse, everyone is going to compare this game to GTA - San Andreas, as well as to the first Getaway that came out several years ago. So it's a strange situation in that the game is truly amazing in its own right - but it is very weak when held up to the standards of today's gaming.

First, the amazing parts. You literally are driving around the actual streets of London in this game, in real cars. If we had shown this game to gamers 5 or 10 years ago, they would have been blown away. Every detail of the streets is paid close attention to. If you played this game for a few weeks and then visited London, you would know your way around. That is an amazing achievement.

The game is very much like an interactive movie. Often the cut scenes almost seamlessly merge into your action. The shadows and movements in game are quite impressive. Some say the cut scenes are too long - but again this isn't a game about blasting away. It's about being drawn deeper and deeper into the story.

The graphics are very impressive, with tons of details. For example if you pick up dropped ammo, you actually stoop down and pick up something that looks like ammo. If you're in a car that is hurt, it goes more and more slowly, and the smoke obscures your vision.

The sound equally draws you in, from the various accents of the characters to their dialogue and background sounds. Also, unlike most of the games of this style on the market, you're actually playing 'good' most of the time. Instead of just killing people for fun, you are able to handcuff them and only take out the truly bad guys. That's a refreshing change.

Now, for the not-so-great aspects of this game. The one that really drives us crazy is the camera angle and controls. There are ALL sorts of times that the camera actively impedes your gameplay. Maybe we've been spoiled by Splinter Cell - but interpersonal combat is very clumsy here.

Next, gameplay is *incredibly* short. With games existing that take months to solve and explore, you could literally finish this game in a day or two. Now, if this had been the first release, I might have understood that. After all, building the incredible map of London was quite a task! But this is the *sequel* - meaning all of that hard work was done. All they had to do was maybe enhance the graphics, and add new missions. To add on missions that were so quickly solved seemed a shame.

I really love open ended missions, but this game makes it border on the edge of truly annoying. Sometimes you can kick open doors - but other times you can't - and there's no rational as to why. I love the no-health-meter interactive aspect - but you lean against walls to insta-heal? How about carrying a health kit at least? You don't have an ammo meter - again to make this immersive - but you can't actually see your gun's ammo levels.

I appreciate greatly that you can handcuff bad guys instead of just killing everyone in sight - but for some reason you just tap a guy and he dutifully lets you cuff him without a fight, and everyone else nearby pauses in their shooting until you're done. I would rather have some sort of mini-game that lets you cuff them in more of a challenging fashion.

A LOT of this game requires an intimate knowledge of the streets of London. Of course if you played the first game, you're pretty set here. If you aren't, make sure you take as much time as you can to learn them. It often spells the difference between success and failure.

And finally, as much as every game in modern times seems to involve swearing, this one goes over the top. The cops and bad guys seem to swear every third word. Sure, half of them are "English" swears so maybe don't carry the same weight in non-English countries. But it is still pretty incessant.

This really could have been an incredibly excellent game, but the combination of bad camera and short gameplay make it more of an exercise in frustration. You get periods where you really get into things - and then periods where you are swearing as much as the characters on-screen are. Maybe if they get around to a Getaway 3, they'll finally find a good balance.

Great Game if you liked the original...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: January 28, 2005
Author: Amazon User

Graphics are awesome, and London is very well done (if you've ever been there). The problem with this game is in the difficulty setting...the "combat" portions are VERY easy, IF you can drive to get there...once again, no maps..vehicles handle very poorly, with lots of obstacles. This game could have been great with the addition of difficulty setting, or a some adjustments in the driving aspect...fun game, but not the next Grand Theft Auto.

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