Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse Preview

E3 2003 – First Look

3DO, known for the G-rated Army Men franchise, steps into the ring with the older kids with their first Mature rated game, Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.  Featuring demons, prostitutes, and industrial-sized buckets of blood, Four Horsemen rivals the gore of any game out there. 

Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is a third-person action/adventure title set in a world where the oncoming Rapture is beginning to rear its ugly head.  The archangel Abaddon must save the lives of the good and innocent (well mostly innocent anyway) by combating the Four Horsemen: War, Pestilence, Famine, and Death.  Abaddon will venture through more than 18 macabre levels fighting evil and spilling blood. 

Abaddon can carry both melee and projectile weapons, and is adept with both classes as can be seen by his technique.  He’ll use these weapons to dismember, lacerate, and putt holes in demons, demi-demons, undead, and ultimately the Four Horsemen.  Players will also be able to perform a variety of excessively gory finishing moves on near-fallen foes, a violent feature that is sure to leave kids beaming with glee. 

The characters of Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse were imagined by Stan Winston (Alien, Terminator, and countless others), Simon Bisley (Judge Dredd and other comics), and Dave DeVries.  And just their creators previous endeavors, they look fantastic, particularly the Horsemen. 

The involving storyline is propelled onwards by the voice talent of Tim Curry (Rocky Horror Picture Show, Clue), Traci Lords (you know where you’ve seen her), and Lance Henriksen (Sam Fischer of Splinter Cell, Scanners), who is quickly becoming the Michael Caine of the gaming industry.  The designer also forced themselves to pace the game correctly, saving surprises for later in the game rather than show everything upfront. 

Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is scheduled for a Christmas release in 2003.