 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Painkiller: Hell Wars
- Xbox
- Price: $29.99
- Genre: First Person Shooter
Common Sense Media says
Disturbing, disjointed, and dull -- adults.
Parents say
Kids say
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this is a violent, bloody first-person shooter game: Players use an array of fantasy weapons to shoot, burn, blow up, electrocute, and chop up enemies. Bloody body parts fly around and even stick to walls and ceilings. The story is set in purgatory and hell, so it features satanic imagery, and players fight against demons; a recurring character is shown partially naked. The game also features an online mode.
What's it about?
PAINKILLER: HELL WARS traces the adventures of Daniel Garner after he and his wife are killed in a car crash and they end up in the afterlife. Before Daniel can join his wife in heaven, an archangel recruits him to fight Lucifer. The lord of darkness has amassed an army of demons to take on heaven, which they plan to reach by first fighting through purgatory.
For die-hard shooter fans, Painkiller offers some impressive open arenas and boss battles against giant monsters that tower over Daniel. Although there are only five guns, each packs a wallop and has a secondary function. The game also has a decent online multiplayer mode with variations on shooter classics like deathmatch and capture the flag.
Is it any good?
Painkiller hearkens back to classic first-person-shooter games in which players had two goals: run and gun. In small doses, this old-school violence -- like blasting hell's minions to a pounding heavy metal soundtrack -- can be exciting. But extend those doses past 10 or 15 minutes, and Hell Wars becomes one dull slog through purgatory.
Not all action games need tight stories, but the levels in Painkiller feel particularly disjointed -- and disturbing. Players blow knife-wielding children apart in a haunted orphanage, move on to electrocute evil nurses in a haunted laboratory, and then zip off to incinerate zombies in a parking garage. Mostly, though, gamers will find Painkiller too simple. Much of the game's action involves fighting the same enemies as they reappear in an area over and over until Daniel has killed enough for a door to open.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about violence in first-person shooters. Do bloody kills and graphic violence make this genre more exciting? Is the violence more acceptable if it's directed against monsters rather than enemies that are human beings? Families should also discuss proper online etiquette.
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AGE
God Dam I would Hate to be your kid.You soccer moms are all the same. Your like kyles mom from south park.You think your making the world better by getting rid of free spech. And that words are the key to all your problems.What about The States Failing School System,Heath Care gone to nothing,your poor only getting poorer and all the crime and violence in your country maybe that could be the cause of all your kids problems not video games moives or flash games.
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| Platforms: | Xbox |
| Available online? | Available online |
| Genre: | First Person Shooter |
| Developer: | Dreamcatcher |
| Release date: | August 14, 2006 |
| Price: | $29.99 |
| ESRB rating: | M for Blood and Gore, Partial Nudity, Intense Violence |
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