War of the Monsters takes place the near future when sinister aliens invade the Earth, but the scientists have devised a plan to defeat them. Using radioactive guns, they destroy this force but there’s an unfortunate side-effect. The radiation has created fearsome mutated monsters that proceed to go on a massive rampage throughout the world’s cities. You take the role of one of these monsters, and your goal is to destroy as many of the other monsters as you can before they can wipe you out. There are 10 in all, though only 8 are available initially with the other two becoming available as you beat the game. These characters are more than a little inspired by 1950’s and 60’s science fiction anti-heroes such as Godzilla and King Kong. Unfortunately, WOTM lacks the licenses to use any of those classic movie villains. However, the archetypes are acceptable replacements with a giant lizard, a huge ape, alien giants, massive electric balls, and other characters that recreate the spirit of those classic cinema monsters.

Several modes of play are included that encompass single and multi-player modes. As usual, the single-player Adventure mode is the most satisfying. In this mode, you progress through a series of levels with a single monster and face the occasional boss character. This is also the only mode where you can earn Combat Points, which you can use to buy extras including costumes, characters, new locations and more. The Combat Points also unlock the multiplayer mini-games. The other single player modes are much simpler and allow you to jump right in for a fast, frenetic game. In the Free-for-all mode, you select how many opponents you face, the number of kills and which location you’ll play in. The game also includes an Endurance mode, where you try to defeat as many enemies as you can with a single life. There are several multiplayer modes included, which take place in a split-screen, but this comes together when the players are at close range for a cool effect. These include a variation on the Free-for-all mode, plus an Elimination mode and the mini-games that are loads of fun. Sadly, the game doesn’t support online play, which is disappointing because this would be perfect. Since Incog did Twisted Metal Black Online, WOTM’s lack of internet support is a bit disappointing. Despite this, WOTM still offers a decent array of multiplayer modes that are fun to play, so it’s better not to dwell on what’s not there.

WOTM’s fighting system is quite extensive, and entertaining with a mix of fighting and destruction. The monsters go at each other with a variety of moves including both long and short range attacks and can pick up and throw objects, and destroy buildings with abandon. You can battle using your standard attacks that include punches and kicks.The monsters can fire long-range projectiles such as flames and other objects that can be used to hurt a foe from a safe distance. However, the projectile weapons have a limited amount of energy, but you can collect energy power-ups to restore these to full power. Players can also use defensive moves to get out of an opponents’ line of fire, such as jumping and climbing up buildings. This is quite intuitive and you can create a lot of damage by hitting the opponent multiple times. This sounds like just another fighting game, but the environments are truly interactive and can play a large role in the battles. One of the coolest aspects of WOTM is that you can pick up cars, trucks, trains, girders and other objects and throw them at enemies. You can also hold and use them as weapons at close range, which adds an interesting dimension of strategy to the battles. You can block an opponent’s attack by pressing the shift button and going into the defensive position. Players can also look around when their monster is stationary, but can adjust the camera angle. Grabbing and throwing the enemies can also cause plenty of incremental damage. Another aspect of the fighting is that you can take advantage of an opponent when they’re down by pummeling them while they’re helpless. Finally, you can crush an opponent under a falling building if you time your attack just right, causing an automatic win.

There are some really cool special moves to perform a devastating combo on your opponent when the power-up indicator is at full strength. Each monster has its own set of special combo moves, but fortunately these are easy to perform and inflict a lot of damage. While it’s a relatively straightforward game, here’s a surprisingly large number of moves that you can use which gives the game more depth than you’d expect. Controlling the monsters isn’t that difficult thanks to the intuitive controls. Moving around is simple layers should be able to get right into the action without much effort, and the interface makes the fighting loads of fun. The difficulty balance isn’t as complex as a traditional fighting game and WOTM’s controls definitely tilted towards the simpler, easier to play command structure.