At publisher Graffiti Entertainments E3 booth I had the chance to try out the games multiplayer mode. While I only got to play deathmatch against a single Graffiti Entertainment representative, the game does support up to four players in multiplayer. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the multiplayer mode was basically Quake for the DS.
The controls closely mimicked those used in Metroid Prime Hunters. You moved about with the D-pad, while aiming was accomplished by moving the stylus on the touch screen. The L button was used to activate your primary fire while the R button triggered your secondary fire. To jump you needed to double tap the touch screen. The controls seemed to work fine except it was very difficult to reach the R button in the middle of a firefight.
The deathmatch map I played was set in outer space and looked like it could have been taken right out of Quake 3: Arena or Quake Live. It consisted of a small number of floating platforms that you could navigate by jumping, using teleporters, or even acceleration pads, small pads that launch you at a fast speed in the direction theyre facing. In addition, the usual array of weapons were available including rockets, pistols, and plasma rifles.
During my battle I was constantly being gunned down. At one point I was able to get an invincibility power-up that helped me survive long enough to get a kill. The final game will have other power-ups such as invisibility. Along with deathmatch, players will also be able to face off in team arena and capture the flag.
The framerate seemed to be pretty high and made traversing the arena a smooth experience. On the other hand, the character models and the environment seemed low polygon and werent very impressive to look at.
Even though I wasnt very good at the game I had a lot of fun hopping around the small arena and shooting a variety of projectiles. Players will be able to enjoy local play with all ten multiplayer maps and modes using just a single DS card. Unfortunately, the game will not have an online mode.
C.O.R.E. will also have a 15 level single player mode. The multiplayer mode plays great but the games worth will be decided by its single player quest.