Anarchy Reigns is an action beat 'em up developed by PlatinumGames for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 and released in 2012. It is It is the spiritual successor to the Wii video game MadWorld.
Plot[]
Jack Cayman is a bounty hunter and a member of the Chaser Guild. He has been hired to track down the missing former Maximilion Caxton, by Max's daughter Jeannie. The only problem is Maximilion is also the man responsible for Jack's adopted daughter's death. To try and find a lead on Max, Jack finds himself at the Asylum bar, looking for any clues, when a trio of BPS (Bureau of Public Safety) elite units known as Strike One come in, with their leader Nikolai Dmitri Bulygin interrogating the local bar bot in a violent manner.
Jack tells Nikolai to back off and leave the bar bot alone, with Nikolai recognising Jack and looking up his files via a cybernetic eye piece. The two men prepare to square off when Sasha Ivankoff, one of Nikolai's partners announces she's found a lead on Maximilion Caxton, the man they've been sent to kill. Hearing that they have information on Max, Jack attempts to grab Nikolai's attention and shake him down for the information but is knocked off his feet by a sucker punch from Nikolai. Jack lays on the floor cursing him out as Nikolai leaves with Sasha and Leonhardt "Leo" Victorion who pauses to stare at Jack with vague curiosity.
At this point the game asks you to choose one of two routes, either the Black Side or the White Side campaigns:
Black Side[]
In this campaign the player plays as Jack Cayman.
Upon picking himself back up, Jack spots he is being watched like a hawk by Big Bull and his men. He leaves the Asylum bar and walks into the desert like wasteland where he is approached by a group of Killseekers, all of whom want to kill Jack. After making his way through the horde via either punching or slicing, Jack arrives at a foundry which ends up being Big Bull's headquarters. Big Bull has heard of Jack's reputation and wishes to 'lock horns' with him. Jack tells him to get lost, but Big Bull refuses to let Jack leave without a fight. Upon defeating Big Bull, Jack is told he's now considered part of Big Bull's brotherhood and if he ever needs a hand, he'll be there to help. Jack is confused and annoyed by this but leaves the foundry to continue tracking Max down.
He doesn't get far before being attacked by a swarm of Drones, robotic soldiers who have been sent out to kill Jack, but Big Bull comes to the rescue and helps back Jack up in the fight due to their 'brother bond'. Big Bull defeats the last of the drones but is forced to leave after taking an injury alongside his men.
Jack continues his quest, coming across a familiar pair of faces, The Blacker Baron and Mathilda, fellow Chasers and bounty hunters on Jack's level.
White Side[]
In this campaign the player plays as Leonhardt "Leo" Victorion.
After walking past the fallen Jack Cayman, Leo notices he's being watched like a hawk by the bounty hunter Durga. Leo leaves the Asylum Bar, but he, Sasha and Nikolai are immediately set upon by Killseekers. Nikolai and Sasha go on ahead leaving Leo to deal with the mob.
After defeating them, Leo comes across Durga who is admiring Leo's tech, wanting to see just how skilled he is with his armaments. Leo wins the fight, but Durga notes that "the hologram man is ten times the fighter" Leo was. Leo, realizing that the hologram man must be Max, demands to know where Max currently is, but Durga doesn't answer, and takes his leave, excited about their next battle together.
Gameplay[]
The gameplay of Anarchy Reigns is similar to other action beat 'em ups with an emphasis on strong and light attacks being mapped to a button each. Players can also jump, evade, grab and perform strong and light attacks with their 'Killer Weapon', essentially a special move providing their gauge is full. Each Killer Weapon is unique to the individual character and varies in strength, speed, element and type.
Players can also unleash 'Rampage Mode', a super powered mode where their stats are all improved and they have unlimited killer weapon usage whilst in this mode. The mode is, however, temporary and is meant to be used as a last-ditch effort attack to finish off the opponent.
Trivia[]
- Anarchy Reigns appears to be an alternative universe to MadWorld as whilst Jack Cayman's backstory remains relatively similar in both titles, his relationships with Black(er) Baron, Big Bull and Rin Rin differ greatly...and also, he kills all three in the other title.
- The returning MadWorld characters are Jack Cayman, Black Baron(now called Blacker Baron), Mathilda, Big Bull, Rin Rin and Amala. All but Amala are playable.
- Bayonetta appears as a DLC character in the game. However no new lines of dialogue were recorded for her with her lines coming from the first Bayonetta title.
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