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I want to say The Club is now an obscure title. I feel like I saw this game in various shops frequently in the past because the box art looks familiar but it’s possible I’m thinking of something else. It got good to mixed reviews and a sequel was never developed so I guess it just came and went and it was made by a developer primarily known for their racing games. Developed by Bizarre Creations and published by Sega, The Club was released for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in February, 2008. For this review, I played the PC version which does come with Games for Windows Live but I couldn’t sign into it so I removed it altogether. It should be noted that removing Games for Windows Live will render you unable to access the online multiplayer and leaderboards. I did play the Steam version, specifically, and apparently this version has an issue applying the latest title update but it can be installed manually.
The story is pretty simple. The Club is an underground blood-sport controlled by the wealthy elite and the game centers on eight contestants that are forced to compete for survival. That’s the gist of it. Each contestant has their own backstory and motives but the game doesn’t flesh them out all that well. This game actually reminds me of the Twisted Metal series because the plot elements are styled in a similar fashion. It all centers on a tournament and each character is unique has a unique ending cut scene that can only be seen after winning the tournament. However, there’s no supernatural elements and most of the characters are silent and show very little personality.
The Club is a game I enjoyed more and more the more I played it. It’s a third-person shooter with a scoring system and the scoring system is the real focus here. It’s not just a generic system like a tacked on arcade mode that you might see in other games. There’s some actual depth to the scoring and practice and skill can result in high scores. Before jumping into a Tournament, a video will explain how the scoring system works and I would highly suggest watching the whole thing.
Without the scoring system, The Club would be a very average third-person shooter. You’ll get to use plenty of firearms like pistols, assault rifles, submachine guns, shotguns, and sniper rifles among others and there’s nothing super flashy about the gunplay. But it does prove to be good enough. Blood puffs appear when enemies are shot, blood can splatter on walls, and enemies appear to ragdoll when killed. I do wish some of the character and enemy animations were a bit snappier but, overall, running around and shooting baddies is satisfying.
There are multiple game modes and the only one I did not check out was multiplayer. I don’t know if the online community for this game is still active but if not, The Club does support system link or LAN so you can play with others locally. Luckily, there’s a decent amount of content here to keep solo players occupied for a while. You can play through the Tournament mode which is how you unlock stuff, you can try for high scores in the Single Event mode, and even build your own playlists of events in the Gunplay mode. I would recommend jumping into the Tournament mode first because that’s how you unlock all the tournaments, two of the eight characters, an additional difficulty level, and concept art.
The Club features numerous Tournaments each set in a different location and consist of multiple events or game types. You’ll have to run through environments shooting baddies, sometimes within a time limit and some events require you to simply survive in marked areas. Killing bad guys rewards you with points and increases your combo multiplier and you are rewarded more points for stylish kills. The amount of points you earn for a kill is determined by numerous factors including enemy type, range and hit location. I find this makes the scoring system quite engaging because even if you win or achieve a good score, there’s always a good chance you can do better.
The general idea in most events is to keep moving. Combos are the key to high scores. Each kill fills up your kill bar which then ticks down and once it ticks all the way down your combo multiplier starts bleeding, or in other words decreases. So you need to keep killing enemies which means you’ll need to keep moving and try not to miss. Once an area is clear, you might need to sprint to the next area so you can engage more enemies before the kill bar ticks all the way down.
Killing everyone from a single location is usually not good idea if you’re trying for a high score. For example, if you enter an area and blast away everyone from the doorway, there might not be any enemies left to shoot as you move to the next area, meaning your combo will most likely bleed before you reach the next set of enemies. You want to keep moving and shooting. The Club is basically the definition of a run and gun shooter in the most literal sense. You can find and shoot Skull Shots hidden in the environments to increase your combo and refill your kill bar which is often a great way to keep your combo up and going as you move from area to area.
Achieving high scores in The Club will also come down to memorization and good aim. Despite the fact the environments have arrows pointing you in the directions you need to go, the fast-pace nature of the action can make it easy to miss turns and navigate off-course. It would be almost impossible to get lost but mistakes like wrong turns can result in a bleeding combo. So memorizing the routes, where the enemies are, and where the Skull Shots are located can be a big help.
You’ll encounter a decent cast of foes but it appears to be the same cast across all tournaments; they’re all typical goons with different guns. Some are equipped with armor, others carry shields, and you’ll have to watch out for snipers and guys with rocket launchers, and every now and then a guy with a minigun will show up.
The gameplay in The Club can be seen as a shooting gallery but it doesn’t really feel that way to me which I think is interesting considering it’s all about scoring. It just doesn’t feel that simple and that’s because enemies don’t simply pop up and remain in the same position. They run around, take cover, vault over obstacles, they come from different directions, some come rappelling down ropes, they utilize weapon emplacements, and some will lob grenades. They can can appear at different vantage points like on rooftops or shooting at you from windows, or guys with rocket launchers aiming at you from atop distant structures so you’ll need to be aware of your surroundings and be sure to aim high and low.
The Club does feature a good variety of environments and has a gritty style about it that fits the whole blood-sport element. You’ll shoot your way through numerous locations around the globe including war-torn cities, abandoned buildings, a prison, steel mill, and many more. Each Tournament is a set in a different location and each event within a tournament will take you to different areas and routes around that location. In the events that have you running to the exit, there are arrows to guide you the right way and there’s often multiple paths and even secret areas to discover.
When it comes to the presentation, The Club definitely shows its age but it still doesn’t look too bad. The locations are detailed and bullets can rip through certain parts of the environments which looks cool. I did witness some weird color changes and flickering which I resolved by restarting the game. The audio is a mixed bag. I can’t remember a single tune from the soundtrack and most of the sound effects are delayed by half a second. I also think some of the weapons could sound a bit more powerful. On the technical side, the game ran smooth for the most part and it crashed on me once.
In the end, I really enjoyed The Club. It’s not the greatest third-person shooter I’ve ever played but it is fun, feels unique, and can be addictive. It’s not a long game in the traditional sense. You can easily beat all the tournaments in a single sitting. However, it is game that encourages multiple playthroughs. The replay value is high thanks mainly to the scoring system. There’s definitely room for improvement but I think what was established here is a lot of fun. If I had to come up with a wish list of things for the sequel I would ask for more enemy variety, refined mechanics, more locations, additional game types, and even some set pieces break up the typical run and gun action like on-rails sequences for example. I also think this is the kind of game that would benefit from a mode that centers on gameplay modifiers. Things that could make things easier or more challenging, or simply mix things up and as a result, affect how the scoring works. But alas, it’s all a pipe dream at this point. The game is no longer updated and I doubt we’ll ever see a sequel. In fact, the developer, Bizarre Creations, was shut down some time ago. Maybe a spiritual successor will be developed. Who knows?
I would recommend The Club to anyone looking for a different type of third-person shooter. If you’re looking for a deep story and characters or a lot of flashy action and set pieces, you’ll want to look elsewhere. The scoring system is what carries The Club. It’s what makes the experience addictive. If that sounds appealing to you then definitely check it out.