Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan Reviews
Mutants in Manhattan is so aggressively dull and sub-par there’s little to no joy to be taken from playing it. Like a coloring book, it’s nothing more than a shallow collection of non-stimulating activities and disconnected clichéd references created with the purpose of alleviating mild boredom.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhatten is both basic and overly complex, delivering almost none of the magic that made previous four-player Turtles games so memorable.
One of Platinum’s worst games so far, with dull and repetitive action that doesn’t do the heroes in a half-shell any justice at all.
But even with the admittedly enjoyable boss fights, all the letdowns of Mutants in Manhattan gave me an impression that this was just another rushed game. The mechanics were simple to understand; but it surely lacked the local co-op mode, and missing the satisfying achievement that each hack n’ slash / beat ‘em up game should always have.
Underneath TMNT Mutants in Manhattan’s shell are solid mechanics that could have been a great foundation for a technical brawler. Those technical elements, however, don’t get as much play as the game typically devolves into a four-turtle free for all. Add the lack of local co-op and you have a missed opportunity, especially given how the game nails the Ninja Turtles’ visuals. Overall, the game just can’t quite figure out whether to provide a solid single-player adventure or hectic multiplayer brawler.
That exact design decision is emblematic of most everything wrong with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan. It does its best to spread little content as far as it can possibly go. It's a very short game that still manages to be far too long. The anchovies on the pizza is that it doesn't even necessarily succeed where Platinum Games usually excels. Cowabummer.
TMNT: Mutants in Manhattan is a repetitive hack n' slash that forces the player time and again into encounters with samey enemies against a paltry selection of passionless backdrops. It's really only saved by the bosses, but the amount of filler you'll need to sift through to fight them just keeps a'coming.
Not a Megan Fox in sight... and it’s still terrible.
Even with a super-short running time, the repetitiveness that pervades Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan makes this fight a slog. I've heard all the jokes the team has to tell and have marveled enough at the rogues gallery of bosses – both of which I could’ve done by watching this game on YouTube rather than playing it – so I'm not planning another trip to Manhattan.
You could refer to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan as the best TMNT game in years, but that really doesn't mean much. While there's a moderately entertaining co-op experience underneath the lazy level design, short game length, bland missions, occasional bugs, and minor kinks in the combat system, the quality and value most certainly aren't in line with what we expect from a $50 game. Sure, it could be worse (look at the last three TMNT games, for example), but it's especially heartbreaking considering Platinum's history of delivering fantastic action games. This is not Bayonetta. It's not even Transformers: Devastation. Don't shell out your hard-earned cash when you could spend it on delicious pizza instead.
I’m looking forward to Platinum Games returning back to what they do best—creating original games with unique settings and fast character-action with crazy combos to learn. They can certainly make these licensed games look fantastic, but nearly everything else they leave little to desire.
One of Platinum Games’ more disappointing offerings – too short and too simplistic.
I can only recommend this for only the hardcore of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles fans. For everyone else, you may want to think about putting down $40 dollars (PC) or $50 for consoles and instead try to rent or wait until the price drops. Sadly it seems that Platinum Games either doesn't excel when it comes to licensed games and should focus more on their own IPs, or at the very least take a pass when it comes to doing video game adaptions of tv shows.
As I sit through Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan, why does this marriage made in heaven bore the hell out of me?
This could have been the TMNT title for which all of the fans have been waiting, but sadly it is another missed opportunity and a dip in form for the usually brilliant Platinum Games. The level design and watered down combat leaving the game feeling more like a button mashing grind than the deep combat intensive hack and slash that it could have been. What remains is a distinctively mediocre title that might appeal to some hardcore turtle fans, but from a gamer's perspective, there's very little to recommend other than some easy achievements. There are certainly better hack and slash titles out there. For a full priced title, that's not much of a return on investment despite the short campaign.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan’s charming visual style doesn’t make up for repetitive level design and combat that would leave even Master Splinter frustrated.
Does a good job of showcasing the spirit of the turtles, but never reaches its potential and will let you down with repetitive combat, lack of local co-op and bland environments.
Given how much I was hyped for the game, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan is a bitter disappointment, meeting only some of the expectations I had and feeling like it was heavily rushed through development to meet a deadline. It’s not Platinum’s worst by any means, as it certainly looks and sounds the part, but the combat and level structure leave a lot to be desired. This is a classic case of a game that is more of a cowa-bummer.
The Platinum spark exists in Mutants in Manhattan, which is why it's tragic the developers couldn't spend the same resources they would on original IP like Bayonetta. As licensed games go, you could do much worse, but this TMNT outing feels like a collection of good ideas in need of a second pass.
Mutants in Manhattan does just enough fan service to make TMNT fans almost forget how mediocre this game is.