I did not expect to play through Apocalypse in 2017

I’ve got a lot of games I’ve never played (just like everybody else) and the backlog shelf has been swelling over the last two years. So I finally set out to record some new Just Checkin’ videos where I at least boot them up to make sure the discs work. I managed to get one game out of the way before stumbling into a morning session with Apocalypse, otherwise known as The Bruce Willis Game.

I had written it off after playing the demos they put out before the game’s release but here in 2017 I found it quite playable and even clever in spots, if mindless and repetitive. The game is short and fairly easy up until the final boss fight and gave me plenty of time to soak in the weird 90’s aesthetics.

Willis’ character, Trey Kincaid, was originally intended to be the player’s sidekick but his involvement dwindled during production and he eventually took the starring role. So not only are his lines the most typical gung-ho battle cries, it’s a little fourth-wall breaking due to the change in roles. And the immortal line, “strap one on, it’s time to jam!!” still confuses me to this day.

Things really get interesting in the final level where Trey assaults the White House which is surrounded by a moat of lava and is filled with fire-spewing politicians in suits. The final battle with The Reverend starts in the oval office and expands to an arena of stone and flesh stitched together around the Seal of the President. It feels more fitting today than it ever did in the 90’s.

The episodes are rolling out every three days through July 12th and end with some bonus content and stuff I dug up on the disc. You can follow along with the playlist above or subscribe and catch all of my random videos.