All 8 Twisted Metal Games Ranked

Now, we aren’t going to exaggerate and say, “Bahh, ‘Twisted Metal III’ is a god awful game and should be ashamed and go sit in the corner!!!” For a standard vehicular combat game, it’s…fine. The controls aren’t up to snuff, the physics are all over the place, and the level design is questionable at times. But the game’s biggest crime is how it fails to understand the tone and attitude of the previous “Twisted Metals”. Instead of the grit, attitude, and explosive mayhem, it tried turning the series into something that was more cartoon-y. The inclusion of Rob Zombie’s music fit with the series, but that’s really the only good thing this game had going for it. We try not to be so hard on TM3 given developer 989 Studios was only given eight months to make the game, but honestly, this really is the lowest point of the series.

The point of spin-offs is usually to explore ideas that might evolve a series or even spawn a brand new series. In the case of “Small Brawl”, neither was accomplished. Much like the 989 games, it completely missed the mark on what made the original games marvelous. We could forgive this change from psychopaths to playground troublemakers had everything else in the game been somewhat decent. The speed and combat are noticeably slower compared to previous entries, and the visuals are abysmal for a game that launched late into the PS1’s lifespan. Simply put, this was NOT the “Twisted Metal” anyone wanted.

Pitchforks down, people! We’re not saying the first “Twisted Metal” is abhorrent in any way. Considering how revolutionary it was back then in terms of giving us an experience unlike any other, it’s a fantastic title and served as a solid first step in Sony’s video game venture back in 1995. But that’s the thing - it was good for 1995. Through a modern lens, the first “Twisted Metal” hasn’t held up all that well, and we aren’t necessarily talking about the controls. There are times where the game feels like it’s out to make your life miserable even on the easiest difficulty. In other words, the game does not ease you into the madness in the slightest. It was great for its time, but we’d point anyone new to the franchise to other installments.

Yes, it’s odd that we would put TM4 over the original, but admittedly, TM4 showed that 989 Studios could make a solid vehicular combat game. Even though they were still leaning into the cartoon goofiness that was introduced in TM3, 989 took another crack at it and improved on a couple of things. First off, the level design was much more focused and didn’t feel like it was haphazardly cobbled together. Second, they spiffed the visuals up a notch - always a plus. But in addition to retaining Rob Zombie’s music for the soundtrack, they went a step further and allowed players to create their very own vehicles. Granted, it was a barebones customization feature, but regardless, TM4 had some excellent ideas despite it straying a bit further away from the originals.

Much like TM4, the PS3 “Twisted Metal” came with a lot of unique ideas to bring the series forward. For the first time ever in the series, players could pilot an air vehicle (a helicopter dubbed “Talon”). The story mode was more focused and aimed to achieve a level of visual flair to match AAA games at the time. And the online multiplayer offered up new dishes for veterans as well as classic free-for-all deathmatch. Unfortunately, all of this ambition came at the expense of a few things. Much of the cast from previous titles was cut out, leaving only enough room for Sweet Tooth, Dollface, Mr. Grimm, Calypso, and the Preacher. Then, there was the problem with the game’s main attraction, Nuke Mode, being tied exclusively to online multiplayer. Basically, if you didn’t have PlayStation Plus, you were missing out on half of the entire game.

To this very day, “Twisted Metal 2” remains to be one of the very best games to ever launch on the first PlayStation console. While retaining the core ideas of the original, TM2 improved with its visual fidelity, expanded the roster of characters and vehicles, incorporated character-specific endings, had the AI take a chill pill and balanced the difficulty, and cranked up the mayhem further in its creative level design. Plus, there were all kinds of neat secrets within the levels themselves! Launch a missile at the Statue of Liberty to change her wardrobe. Blow up the Eiffel Tower to create a whole other section of the level. Blast open the door of an Amazonian statue to find an underground passageway beneath the lava. This was what would set the precedent for future “Twisted Metal” games.

“Twisted Metal: Black” is such a fantastic PS2 classic, and it boasted the most ambition we had seen from the franchise at this point. In a sense, this was “Twisted Metal” in full realization. It reintroduced the black comedy of the original games. It went a step further with its dark tones in each character’s backstory and featured excellent voice acting and writing. Maps were larger in scale and held plenty of secrets for hidden passages. And the gameplay was significantly faster than previous titles, making the combat more tense and hectic. And even though this is widely regarded as the hardest game in the franchise, there’s actually something much more satisfying here compared to the difficulty of, say, the very first game. As far as the “cat-&-mouse” pacing goes, this was when “Twisted Metal” exercised that philosophy most, and it did it with flying colors.

For as much as we loved “Black”, “Head-On” reigns supreme as the best in the franchise. We’ll love “Black” for its unique take on the IP and how it revived the series’ original identity. However, “Head-On” was pure “Twisted Metal” with a modern lens, and it was a perfect fit for PSP. Difficulty was scaled back significantly compared to “Black”, focusing more on providing a more arcade-like experience. Levels now contained minigames that tested your driving and shooting skills and rewarded you with unlockable vehicles and weapon upgrades to make your campaign smoother. Couple this with tasty music and a return to the comic book aesthetic, and you have what is the greatest “Twisted Metal” game in the franchise. And as if this game couldn’t get any better, the 2008 PS2 port came with a plethora of goodies that showed the cancellation of the ill-fated “Twisted Metal: Harbor City” as well as a look back on the series as a whole with creators David Jaffe and Scott Campbell as well as other folks who have contributed to the franchise’s success.