MadWorld is a game that isn't afraid to take chances. The Nintendo Wii has been short on M-rated games, so when something as violent and gruesome as MadWorld comes around, it is sure to garner some attention from both the media and mature gamers looking to slice up some bodies while wielding the Wiimote like a chainsaw. But perhaps turning even more heads than the ESRB rating is the stylized visuals. The main on-screen action is displayed in strictly black and white, highlighted by splashes of red blood. The graphics also feature a cel-shaded design, with touches inspired by graphic novels such as Sin City.

You take on the role of Jack, a contestant in a game-show called Death Watch, where the object is to climb the ranks and be the last man standing. As you take down those ranked ahead of you, more of the story starts to unravel, such as why Jack is here and how Varrigan City got to be the way it is. While it's not much more than an excuse to kill a bunch of opponents, the plot does develop better than you might anticipate from a game like this. The story and its cast of characters isn't the most memorable around, but it gets the job done and provides a nice ambiance for slicing up foes with Jack's chainsaw-arm.

The gameplay of MadWorld is built around a point system, reminiscent of older arcade games. You rack up points by dicing up your enemies, and the more creative you are with the execution, the heftier the reward. So if you simply beat up an enemy with standard attacks until their death, you will only receive a minimal sum of points. However, if you jam a stop sign through their eye socket, throw a tire over their head, then impale them on a bed of spikes. There are many objects lying around at your disposal to toy around and see the different ways to kill your opponents, but unfortunately many of the objects amount to being almost identical, which stops MadWorld from escaping the thing haunting so many beat-'em-up games: repetitiveness.

The levels are intelligently designed with this in mind, though. Breaking up the action once you reach a set number of points are Bloodbath Challenges. These challenge mini-games have you performing all sorts of crazy actions. Some will have you playing golf with the enemies heads, creating a display of fireworks with bodies, or playing some darts. For the most part, the games are a lot of fun for the minute or so you get to play them, and they help add variety to the gameplay. If you don't get enough of these in the story mode, you can also play them with a friend in split-screen, although the games quickly show a lack of depth when by themselves.

After earning enough points you will finally fight the ranked opponent, i.e., the boss battle. The boss characters are interestingly designed, but for the most part the fights themselves aren't as fun. There are a few unique encounters, but more often than not they're just slice, dodge, slice, dodge, until a motion control quick-time-event pops up, to deliver a satisfying finishing move. Try your best to stay alive though, because if you lose all of your lives at any point you will have to restart from the very beginning.

It can be annoying to go through a level multiple times, but since the game lasts roughly five hours on the first playthrough, the added playtime is almost welcome. While shorter than most games of the genre, by the time it's all said and done it feels like about the right length. If it was too much longer, it may have started to drag on and become a chore to play. Plus, it's a game best played in short doses, so it doesn't feel like it flies by. If you're into high scores or trying the game out on a hard mode, the short play time is inviting enough to encourage you to take another run.

The main attraction to MadWorld, the unique graphical style, while a cool, distinctive feature, becomes one of the games hindrances. Sure it looks pretty, but it can make actually playing the game more difficult than it ought to be. Since the environment and character models are all black and white, things tend to blend together, making it difficult to notice everything going on. It doesn't help when you're occasionally thrown off by a weird camera angle. The black and white cel-shaded design is necessary to make MadWorld the game that it is, but unfortunately it comes along with its drawbacks when it comes to having to play a game like this for longer periods of time.

Possibly the strongest aspect of MadWorld is the audio design. Since Death Watch is a televised game-show, Howard "Buckshot" Holmes (Greg Proops) and Kreese Kreeley (John DiMaggio) serve as hilarious commentators, giving comical insight on Jack's situation. The excessive cussing fits the game perfectly whether they are cracking jokes about an ex-wife or referencing a moment from Kreese's past experiences as a Death Watch fighter. Just as good is the games original soundtrack, put together by a handful of underground Hip-Hop artists. The music goes along so well with the gameplay, and puts you in the mood to create some serious mayhem.

If not a remarkable achievement in terms of hack-and-slash gameplay, MadWorld is at least an incredible work of art. The gameplay can be fun in bursts but underneath the flashy outer covering lies an average beat-'em-up game. It's the great presentation though that holds MadWorld together and makes it the exuberant game that it is.

Logan Smithson, Noobfeed