I will be the first to admit that the girl in me always gravitates towards female lead characters (Lara Croft being a case in point), so I was intrigued to give WET a go. But other than Lara and Rubi both being female lead videogame characters, the similarity ends there.

Unlike the British accented Lara who possesses a certain air of charm to her and her quests to save the world, Rubi Malone (despite exhibiting the same curves) is a little rough around the edges. For one thing she swears like a trooper, for another not only does she wield Duel Pistols but a Samurai sword too, and she’s in it for one thing, the money.

In fact most things about WET, including the art style and presentation of the game, may catch you a little off-guard. However, this distinct flavour is carried effectively through to every aspect of the game and, even if you find yourself feeling a little uneasy about Rubi’s ‘take no prisoners’ attitude, you will find yourself marveling at the uniqueness of the game and the fresh attitude which Rubi brings to the shooter genre.

Basically Rubi is a gun for hire who sets out to get revenge on those that wronged her after a job in the underworld goes wrong. If you can imagine a Kill Bill-like theme with a dash of Quentin Tarantino thrown in for good measure, then you can pretty much imagine WET. That probably sounds quite good to most of you, but be warned, if ever there was a love it or hate it kind of game, this is it.

Let me start by describing the art style. The developers have tried to theme WET to represent an old movie, so every now and again you will see the screen tearing and advert breaks will also interrupt chapters. If Rubi loses health, you will see the stylized black and white film reel running up and down the left and right sides of the screen. Everything about WET is over the top, starting with the presentation and going into the characters, gameplay and Rubi herself. In fact to replenish her health, you will need to find whiskey bottles which she will chug down, throw into the air and shoot to smithereens.

Rubi is definitely not your average woman, she’s the kind of dame who shoots first and asks questions later, and she does not hesitate to lop heads off with her Samurai sword either. Yet it’s this go getter attitude that will somehow endear her to you before long, always outnumbered in fights with men that are armed to the hilt with weapons and intent on putting her life to an early end, she simply never gives up.

Rubi is a crack shot with her Duel Pistols and very effective in close combat with the Samurai sword too, however, it’s her acrobatic prowess that brings something new to the table. Whether she is shooting as she slides down a ladder upside down, performing wall runs ala Price of Persia style, swinging on poles, shimmying across ledges or gliding across the floor and under an obstacle to take out an enemy, Rubi definitely has skills. Of course the developers want you to make use of these acrobatic skills, so it’s simply not effective to run up to an enemy and open fire – you need to master Rubi’s moves and combine these with her gunfire to effectively take out the multitude of enemies that will come your way.

Luckily Rubi has a few extra tricks up her sleeve – she can target more than one enemy at once, essential in eliminating enemies as you slide down a ladder into a closed courtyard, and let’s face it, it’s always handy to be able to wield two guns at once. When Rubi uses split-targeting or shoots while performing an acrobatic trick time slows down, enabling you to aim more effectively. During these sequences she will automatically target one enemy so you can take out enemy number 2.

And the age old saying ‘don’t bring a knife to a gunfight’ simply does not hold any water in Rubi’s case – her Samurai sword is pretty effective when dealing with enemies, especially when they are coming at you thick and fast, as they are wont to do, and you don’t have time to aim and fire.

However, the very acrobatic moves that make the game so distinctive can also make it frustrating. If you don’t master the moves correctly you simply won’t enjoy the game very much because they are essential to progress in the game. Because Rubi is armed with guns, a sword and acrobatic abilities, she will always be facing multiple enemies in a fight. Most fights follow the same formula, take out a few enemy spawn points (denoted by a skull and cross bones) before killing every enemy left in the stage (with no way out until the task is complete in God of War style). Yet the action doesn’t ever really become repetitive, even though the insults thrown your way do.

The longer Rubi’s killing spree goes on for, the more your score multiplier increases, with the game awarding points for different combinations. This reminded me somewhat of the Devil May Cry franchise with the game appreciating her bloodlust and complimenting her on being a ‘Ball Breaker’ or a ‘Skull Crusher.’ Players can use these style points to upgrade Rubi’s weapons and abilities, essential to becoming more dangerous as the game progresses.

Another aspect that reminded me of Price of Persia was the way in which Rubi will show you where you should head next by sending a thin red line in the direction of your next task should you ask. This Rubi Vision is pretty effective if you do need help and never gives away too much.

Although Quick Time Events do rear their ugly head in WET, they are pretty short and very easy so we can forgive the developers for their inclusion. The majority of them will be played out during an impressive, well-executed car chase that sees Rubi leaping between the roofs of cars in a high speed chase on a busy freeway, something I haven’t enjoyed quite so much since The Matrix.

Another interesting aspect of the game is when Rubi gets really angry and enters rage mode, normally triggered when she shoots an enemy in the face, blood spattering on her face. The screen turns red, with Rubi and enemies depicted in black and spots of white here and there to spice things up a little, somewhat reminiscent of Frank Miller’s Sin City film and Madworld. During this time Rubi becomes more powerful, with great rock music pounding to add to the carnage theme, and it does help to bring a touch of variety to the game.

While the old movie reel dying effect that appears when Rubi’s health is low looks pretty good at the beginning, it soon bocames annoying when coupled with the thumping heartbeat. I would rather have had a simple health bar to keep track of my health, or a simple splash of blood to indicate things are not going quite according to plan.

I also have to point out that I don’t appreciate the inclusion of excessive bad language in a game. For me it doesn’t add anything to WET because it’s plain to see that Rubi is a girl with something to prove and that she won’t be pushed around. Throwing in more than the occasional swear word just doesn’t help prove this since she’s already sawing enemies heads off with no second thought.

The screen tearing, despite being deliberate and working effectively to push the old movie theme, did not sit well with me. The cutscenes were pretty well rendered but the screen tearing ruined them for me and at the end of the day I opted to turn this effect off – thank goodness the developers thought to include this option. This complaint, combined with the bad language, tainted my WET gaming experience, and while I am looking forward to Rubi’s next adventure, I do hope that the developers will consider these two points before then.

While it’s clear that Rubi does lack a certain charm, with sayings like ‘come get some’ and ‘whose the bitch now,’ it is this lack of charm that actually ends us lending her a splash of charm by the end of the game. Love it or hate it, WET is an enjoyable non-stop action game that is sure to get your adrenaline pumping and sharpen both your shooting and sword skills.

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