As always with the franchise, Operation Blackout pits G.I. Joe against Cobra and looks for the soldiers to take Cobra down. The twist is that the story is told from both sides, allowing you to control characters from both G.I. Joe and Cobra. There are 12 total characters, six from each side, each of which has a slightly different build, ranging from Roadblock’s strength to Storm Shadow’s agility, and every mission can be played either solo or in local co-op. Each character has a unique starting weapon and ultimate ability, but because every character can wield every weapon, it becomes less about the playable character’s traits and more about your personal weapon preferences, rendering their unique traits generally moot.

At its core, Operation Blackout is a standard third-person shooter. As either a G.I. Joe or Cobra character, you’ll be shooting endless waves of grunts until the game allows you to progress to the next objective. Early on, you’ll find a rhythm of the types of weapons and strategies you find most appealing, and you will rarely have to stray from that strategy, as the game almost never forces you out of your comfort zone.

"Its G.I. Joe skin is enough for a glimpse of nostalgic fun, but after a while, Operation Blackout becomes grating and forgettable."

It can be fun while you’re aimlessly running and shooting anything that moves, but the novelty of doing so quickly wears off as the repetition sets in. Mission structures are almost directly copied and pasted throughout, making the game’s 17 main story missions quickly blend together. The trouble is that it never switches anything up. When you’re on foot, you’ll see everything the game has to offer within the first handful of missions, and it spends the rest of the time repeating what feels like the same mission time and time again. There aren’t any character upgrades, new enemy types, or gameplay twists.

A consequence of such a straightforward structure is that Operation Blackout’s core gameplay is put front and center at all times, which is both a blessing and a curse. The pure combat is relatively fun in itself because of its fast-paced running and gunning that doesn’t tend to let up. When it comes to the actual shooting, though, it becomes much more uneven. Aiming is as floaty as I’ve felt in a game in recent memory, to the point where it is drastically easier to shoot enemies by repeatedly using auto-aim than staying continuously aimed and moving the cursor. Some enemies that zig-zag their way to you are sometimes seemingly impossible to hit, and it can become a coin flip as to who wins the battle.

The fact that shooting is so central to the game at all times makes it very difficult to overlook the frustrating aiming, as most of my deaths came from enemies that evaded my shots by stepping a couple inches sideways instead of enemies who really challenged me or threw me a curveball. This isn’t helped by the AI, which is either reckless or intrusive. Enemies often rush you with no regard for themselves, and, if playing alone, your partner is only noticeable when they stand directly in the way of an enemy rushing you, which happens more often than it should.

"It can be fun while you’re aimlessly running and shooting anything that moves, but the novelty of doing so quickly wears off as the repetition sets in."

Everything comes together to make an experience that’s both unbalanced and unsatisfying. Some enemies can go down in a single shot burst, while others absorb bullets to almost no end. Grenades, too, are so powerful that they easily become a crutch, especially when compared with the idea of using a gun. At some points, encounters can be won with a single well-placed grenade or a couple of headshots, but at others, enemies seem to come from out of nowhere and make the difficulty spike dramatically. It’s ultimately unsatisfying to get through many of the levels, as I often felt I either had gamed the system or was already frustrated in the amount of time it took to beat a mission. Rarely does the game hit a sweet spot that makes it feel like less of a chore to get through.

Some bright spots come in the form of intermittent missions where you control a vehicle through a larger environment. These missions are largely on rails and incredibly linear, but I had more fun shooting from a tank than at any point shooting on foot, and it was always exciting to hop back in and blow something else up. Like the other missions, the vehicle sequences are almost identical to one another and have very few changes, but I generally looked forward to these encounters because they were the most fun and satisfying parts of the game. There are only a few total missions like this, but they’re highlights for a game that desperately needed them.

On a story level, Operation Blackout tells a very familiar and expected G.I. Joe story, contextualizing your missions to take down Cobra through a series of static screens with voiceovers to tell you where you’re going and why. Of course, fans of the series will recognize characters and locations, and it’s certainly made with the fan in mind, especially with the art style that impressively and nostalgically matches the style of the animated series. But this fan service can only go so far.

"Everything comes together to make an experience that’s both unbalanced and unsatisfying."

Environments are very frequently reused, and by the end, you’ll have visited the same Cobra base a handful of times and been returned to other locations more often than not. For environments that aren’t particularly distinct among themselves, they all begin to blur together. Alongside the main story is a local multiplayer mode that pits up to four players against each other in a handful of standard multiplayer modes, including Capture the Flag and Deathmatch, using characters from G.I. Joe and Cobra. Relying solely on shooting, this mode has very little staying power because it both doesn’t have an online component and isn’t introducing anything new to the formula, so it’s altogether very forgettable.

If you’re not already a fan of the G.I. Joe franchise, Operation Blackout does not have much going for it, and, if it weren’t for the G.I. Joe skin, you would never be able to tell it’s a G.I. Joe game. There’s nothing under the surface that differentiates it from any other generic third-person shooter, and its inconsistent and unbalanced gameplay makes it even less interesting. It’s painfully average at almost every turn, and, even with the relatively few bright spots and unique moments throughout, I never felt like I played anything in Operation Blackout that countless other games haven’t done better and more consistently. While those familiar with the franchise may find some nostalgia hidden around the edges, it’s hard to recommend to someone who isn’t already fully invested in the G.I. Joe universe.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 4.

NOTE: This interview was conducted prior to the game’s launch.

"Playing as G.I. Joe and Cobra was a critical design element from the start. Even though Cobra are the bad guys, fans enjoy the Cobra characters just as much as G.I. Joe."

The idea of being able to play as characters from both sides is an interesting one. What led to the decision to give players that option, and what sort of an impact does that have on the story and mission variety?

Playing as G.I. Joe and Cobra was a critical design element from the start. Even though Cobra are the bad guys, fans enjoy the Cobra characters just as much as G.I. Joe. When playing with G.I. Joe action figures, we actively create stories for both Cobra and G.I. Joe, imagining elaborate plot lines for not just Roadblock and Duke, but also Storm Shadow and Cobra Commander.

The story potential this opened up was huge! We were able to offer an entirely different set of characters, each with their own play style. This really adds depth and variety to the game.

It also allowed us to explore Cobra in the story. In the animated series and comic books, Cobra was often shown fighting among themselves. Whether it was Destro or Baroness or Zartan, Cobra members were not always as loyal to Cobra Commander as portrayed themselves. It was fun to develop this with the story.

With a dozen playable characters, can you talk to use how much they differ from each other in terms of playing style and abilities?

This is a great question. Our goal was to create a robust roster of characters that each introduced unique play styles and abilities.At the foundation, is a class system. Each character falls into one of five classes: Soldier, Ninja, Heavy, Skirmish, and Support. Within each class, each character has a unique set of attacks and Ultimates.

For example, Snake Eyes are Storm Shadow both Ninja class. Their strengths are mobility and high damage in close combat. Zartan, on the other hand, is Skirmish class. He works best when eliminating enemies one by one in the most efficient manner. Then you have a character like Roadblock, a Heavy. He is big and tough, almost like a human tank with automatic fire that suppress a large number of enemies. All characters have their strengths and weaknesses, and fun to play for different reasons.

What can you tell us about the weapons players will have access to in the game and what sort of variety they will bring to the table?

Each character has his and her own signature weapon which helps define the character playstyle. This signature weapon cannot be dropped or exchanged. It is a part of the character, as if part of the uniform.

We also feature secondary weapons that help supplement each character’s offensive option. Secondary weapons are shared so can be used by any character. This encourages players to find their preferred mix. These weapons include Shotguns, Pistols, Sniper Rifles, Assault Rifles and SMGs.

"You can play with any character and have a shot at winning, but some characters will have a far easier (or harder) time in some situations."

How do the various character abilities and weapons impact Operation Blackout’s multiplayer modes?

You can play with any character and have a shot at winning, but some characters will have a far easier (or harder) time in some situations. For example, you may choose Snake Eyes for a Capture the Flag for his speed, but Destro or Zartan could really tough to run against. While on the other hand, for a King of the Hill, Destro may look like the perfect match, but Lady Jaye’s ultimate can be great in these dense situations.

The key is to adapt to the situation because there is no one solution that works.

What was behind the decision to keep the multiplayer modes to a maximum of four players?

One of the first pillars of the game was to create an awesome local multiplayer experience. Some of our best memories have been next to our friends and siblings playing games in local co-op. We felt that nothing compares to laughing alongside with your friend solving problems together and celebrating beating a level together, or bragging about beating your friend.

Four players lets more people play on the same screen to maximize that multiplayer experience at home.

Given the game’s multiplayer component, are you considering adding more characters, weapons, maps, or modes to it after launch?

Yes! This is definitely a consideration, and we want to hear from the fans what they want to see in the game. G.I. Joe has a massive universe and lore full of characters and environments we can add to the game. We also can’t wait to hear what modes and weapons consumers want to play.

How much depth and variety can players expect from the cosmetic customization options in the game?

We wanted to have fun with this, so added alternative skins for characters and weapons that players are going to unlock as they progress through the game. It’s really fun seeing you favorite character in winter gear, and we were even able to add some fun outfits. Hasbro was a great partner for this. If fans want more in the game, we want to hear it.

"G.I. Joe has a massive universe and lore full of characters and environments we can add to the game. We also can’t wait to hear what modes and weapons consumers want to play."

Roughly how long will an average playthrough of G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout’s campaign be?

In the Campaign Mode, players will play through 17 missions with a full story. We wanted to bring to life a story that fans of G.I. Joe will love, as if G.I. Joe Operation Blackout was a lost classic storyline of the series. Depending on the difficulty modes players choose, we have seen in our playtest that a first time play through is about 8 hours of gameplay. It can be much longer for the completionist that will complete all the secondary objectives. And of course, there is the multiplayer mode, and I can tell you from personal experience, our team is still having fun with this.

Depending on how old you are, you almost certainly remember the G.I. Joe series. Originally spawning from a toy line, it saw the heroic Joes battling the wicked Cobra, with each side seeing their respective members in fun and over the top situations. Now it’s time for the series to come back to video games with G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout.

Via IGN, developer GameMill Entertainment released the official announcement trailer for the game. It is a action title in the hero shooter mold that sees you take on the role of many iconic series regulars such as Duke, Cobra Commander, Snake Eyes and many more, with a total of 12 different characters. While it does have mulitplayer with a variety of modes, including local couch co-op, it also has a full single player campaign that spans 18 missions where you switch playing between the Joes and Cobra.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout will release on October 13th for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch and PC.