Loaded was one of those games that really embodied the mid 90's. With its dark, rebellious atmosphere, the unrepentant gratuitous violence, and over-the-top psychotic characters, this was a far cry from the colorful and inviting aesthetic the height of the Super Nintendo boasted. This was 1995, the same year Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest and Chrono Trigger were released. Welcome to the dark ages, bizznitch!!* 

Published by Interplay, Loaded was developed by British studio Gremlin Interactive (the Monty Mole series and Body Harvest for the N64. They even developed an expansion pack port of Gauntlet for the UK). Before our household had a chance to get a PlayStation, this was one of the first games I witnessed being played on the system. The first thing that I thought was "holy crap, that soundtrack is awesome". The visuals were hard to gauge for the time, this was still early 3D rendering, and it was mostly the environments, while the characters and most of the enemies were 2D sprites drawn with the attempt to emulated 3D. It aged poorly and very fast, but there's something fascinating about looking back at games from this era. 

During a time period where stuff like Time Killers and Kasumi Ninja on the Atari Jaguar were shamelessly trying to capitalize on the wanton destruction and violence in video games (which lost its edge after the ESRB rating system was established) with twisted character designs, the deranged maniacs from Loaded hold their own, and while it never became a staple franchise, there's something memorable about this roster. The six playable characters, Butch, Fwank, Bounca, Cap'N Hands, Mamma, and Vox boast a unique aesthetic and they catch the eye, thanks to the artistic talents of Les Spink and Greg Staples. 

The visuals may be a little on the dark and muddy side, and the frame rate can be rather unstable when the action picks up. Despite the game taking place on a prison planet, the confines are mostly indoors, so very little of the early missions feel "alien" and the levels can seem rather samey. It can also be aggravating that it's seldom a clear indicator of what your item drops are upon first glance. I KNOW I'm acquiring THINGS, but unless it's ammo, I don't care. Counterpoint to that, the restricted confines of the corridors and dirty  hallways do have a marooned and isolated feel. 

Loaded's gameplay is very similar to the previously mentioned Gauntlet, what with its top-down camera perspective and run-n-gun style. For its time, it's fairly solid, the weapons are fast, and the controls are simple. If you're visiting this game for the first time, there is a little bit of reverse engineering you'll have to do with your video game motor skills. Loaded BEGS to be a twin stick shooter, but Dualshock analog sticks were still several years off. It's quite daunting how in the aftermath of GoldenEye 007 how big an innovation the two analog stick feature really was for video games. 

Pretty straightforward, each stage of Loaded pretty much has the same objectives; find the color-coded key cards in order to gain further access. Not really breaking the mold here, and unless you're playing co-op, it will occasionally prove to be a mental chore to hunt down that ONE bad guy you missed in one of those back rooms for a blue key card you need to proceed...for 15 levels. At least progress can be saved.

As mentioned before, it felt like Loaded was aiming to be a poster boy for the more edgy and ruthless mid-90s that this generation of consoles was ushering in. It didn't stick as a franchise, only getting one other sequel before being banished into the Shadow Realm of long-forgotten video games. It does have a sick soundtrack, produced by Patrick Phelan, and that probably stands the test of time more than anything else. It's not quite as good as The Chaos Engine: Soldiers of Fortune, but Loaded can be some pretty fun arcade-style action that's probably best played with a buddy.