Metal Arms: Glitch in the System is a third-person shooter developed by Swingin' Ape Studios. It was published by Vivendi Universal in November 2003 for the Nintendo GameCube, PlayStation 2 and Xbox. It was released on April 21, 2008 on Xbox Originals.
Plot
The story begins with Glitch being found by a group of robotic rebels. He has no memory and his only identifying mark is a symbol that connects him to the Morbots, the ancient race that supposedly built Iron Star, the artificial planet on which the story takes place. Glitch joins up with the rebels and eventually discovers a vast conspiracy involving a space station that is disguised as a moon and a supposedly long dead scientist.
Table of Contents
Multiplayer
Up to four players can compete in multiplayer mode in the Xbox and Gamecube versions of the game, but this number is limited to two in the PS2 version. The PS2 version contains two exclusive maps, however.
There are seven modes of play:
Bot Brawl - Comparable to Deathmatch. The first bot to gain a set number of kills wins.
Team Bot Brawl - Similar to Bot Brawl, except players are split up into teams and share scores.
Possession Melee - Players cannot directly attack other players, instead they must control or recruit other Bots to gain points.
King of The Hill - Players must gain control of a certain place in the level for a selected amount of time in order to win.
Moving Hill - Same as King of The Hill, but the control point moves.
Tag - Players must "tag" (kill) a player. The killed player then becomes "it." Whoever has been "it" the least after a time limit expires wins.
Reverse Tag - The objective is to become tagged by destroying an opponent and then staying that way for as long as possible.
Notes about multiplayer:
- The game begins with 4 multiplayer levels unlocked, with the rest unlocked by finding set numbers of secret chips in the Campaign.
- Players can create custom-made game variants for use in multiplayer, which allows them to enable and disable certain modes and objects during gameplay.
Races
Iron Star is the home to several varieties of Bots:
Droids - The Droids inhabit Iron Star's surface cities in abundance. There are many different types of Droid robots, from small biped miners to intelligent science bots to large transport bots.
Morbots - Ancient race of Bots believed to have constructed Iron Star. It is also believed that they inhabit great cities at the core of Iron Star where they generate the energy used by the planet's surface inhabitants. They disturb the droids that live on the surface. None are seen throughout the game- with the possible exception of Glitch.
Mils - Race of Military Bots created by General Corrosive with the purpose of conquering and controlling Iron Star. The Mils make up the majority of enemies in-game.
Zombiebots - Bots made of scrap metal, and have an unquenchable thirst for fresh oil, the equivalent of blood for droids. They tend to inhabit the more decrepit regions of Iron Star.
Characters
Glitch - The protagonist. A miner droid who was found in a heavily damaged state by the rebels in a ruined city. He has a distinct mark on the back of his head which shows his possible connection to the Morbot race.
Zobby - Zobby is the robotic canine that, along with a small band of Droids, discovered Glitch in the ruins. He can't talk, but he can drive the RAT and is good with the machine gun mounted on RATs.
Colonel Alloy - Colonel Alloy commands the Droid rebellion. Before he became a commander, he was a Droid architect. He helped design the massive cities that now surface Iron Star. His final project would be the designing of a place called Droid Town. But the project would be cut short as the war between the Mil Bots and the Droids began. The location of Droid Town is unknown to the Mils.
Dr. Exavolt - Dr. Exavolt was once the Head Scientist of the pre-Mil Iron Star. He was one of the science bots, the only model able to understand and upgrade the workings of the other models. However, scientists could not understand or upgrade themselves. In an attempt to create a better scientist, Exavolt created General Corrosive. The project created disastrous results for the planet Iron Star. Corrosive went on a rampage and destroyed the entire science lab he was created in. No remains of Exavolt were found after the incident.
Krunk - Krunk is the Head Engineer for the Droid rebellion, and is Alloy's most reliable conpanion. He is known for his amazing skill of turning scrap metal into deadly weapons in just a few seconds, and he is also known for his constant use of obscene language. Krunk has built multiple weapons for the rebellion, but one of his greatest inventions is the Control Tether device.
Mozer - A large Droid, Mozer wields a Level 2 Rivet Gun and a huge club. He led Glitch to the Mil Compound that Vlax had escaped to but was trapped by the Zombiebot King. Glitch frees him and Mozer agrees to return to Droid Town to join the rebels.
Slosh - Meets Glitch in Morbot Reactor. [More Information Needed] Agent Shhh - Agent Shhh is a master spy, he is used to give valuable information about the Mils to the rebel forces. Don't upset him or he just may put some pads on your oversized metal clankers.
Shady and Mr. Pockets - Shady and Mr. Pockets are Barter Droids who will usually show up in some of the most random places. Using Washers, the player can purchase upgrades and weapons from them.
General Corrosive - General Corrosive is a failed science experiment led by Chief Scientist Dr. Exavolt. General Corrosive is an exceptionally intelligent robot. He has designed and automated a new race of robots called the Mils. The Mils have since overpowered Iron Star and enslaved the Droids. General Corrosive constructed a unique bot chassis for himself so well armored that it would seem almost completely indestructible.
Goff - Goff is another marine from the Droid Rebellion. At one time he was captured and disassembled, but then Glitch managed to find his body and put him back together. Goff would then give Glitch information on how to rescue Dr. Exavolt and fight side by side with Glitch.
Vlax - Vlax is a purple Grunt that broke through the Droid Mines into Droid Town and managed to escape in a RAT. He later serves as a Boss in-game.
Gameplay
Metal Arms consists of 42 separate levels. Here, the player will take control of the game's main protagonist, Glitch, viewing his actions through an over-the-shoulder third person perspective. Over seventeen weapons are accessible to the player, most of which can be upgraded through the use of upgrade kits strewn about in various locations in the Campaign.
Although level design for Metal Arms is linear, there is more than one way to complete objectives. The game provides a multitude of standard-fare shooter weapons, such as flamethrowers, machine guns, various types of Grenades, shotguns, rocket launchers, et cetera, to push through levels with brute force. To contrast, it also includes a relatively unique weapon- the Control Tether. The Control Tether, as its namesake implies, allows the Player to directly control enemy forces and use their own firepower against them.
Vehicles
There are 3 vehicles that can be boarded and used in Metal Arms. They usually provide a strategic advantage, because they provide the player with more firepower (without having to use any of their own ammunition) and armor.
RAT - (Rapid Armored Transport) A fast, six-wheeled vehicle with a .30 cal S.P.E.W. turret mounted on the back. Players can either drive the vehicle, or man the turret. There are three levels in the game based around this vehicle, as well as multiple other levels where it is featured in some manner or another. It can crush small enemies.
Loader - A small mining hovercraft. It can hover over water and other similar liquids, allowing access to areas normally unattainable. It has a S.P.E.W. mounted on its front, as well as a large claw which can pick up small enemies, rocks, or other small objects.
Sentinel - Easily the most powerful vehicle of them all. The Sentinel is a large tank, with a powerful S.P.E.W. turret and a large powerful, turret, all controlled by just the one player. It can crush small enemies.
Other
Arm Servo: Glitch's Arm Servo determines the speed of his arms. As he gains Arm Servo upgrades, he can switch weapons faster and even reload most weapons faster.
Batteries: Batteries are a Health analog for robots on Iron Star. Glitch is capable of housing 6 but only starts the game with one.
Secret Chips: Strewn throughout the game are yellow processor chips called Secret Chips. Some must be located by either destoying a certain bot, moving objects such as crates with the Loader, or even buying them from Shady and Mr. Pockets.
Platform variations
- The GameCube version supports Dolby Prologic II, progressive scan and multiplayer for 1 to 4 people.