Even though the big-budget console debut of the Matt Hazard character, in 2009’s Eat Lead, was a critical and sales flop, nothing, it seems, could prevent Matt Hazard from returning.

In fact, the witty writing that opens Blood Bath and Beyond explicitly refers to the drubbing the first game received. But where Hazard’s debut was a first-person shooter, Blood Bath and Beyond is a side-scrolling shoot ’em up.

The schtick behind the franchise is that Matt Hazard is an old-school video-game character who’s come out of retirement in order to star in next-gen games. Like the first game, this is a parody of action and shooter games, but not even the halfway clever scripting can elevate it from being a pretty basic experience. And it’s plagued with some serious control issues.

Having the same control stick used for both movement and aiming, for example, causes some difficulty when players need to shoot with precision, because they often find themselves walking to their death while trying to aim. Maybe Hazard should just be given another gold watch and sent off into the sunset.

Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond (D3Publisher; PlayStation 3, Xbox 360; rated mature)

Cross-posted at the Georgia Straight