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G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout takes the iconic franchise and slaps it onto a mediocre at-best third-person shooter.
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout Game Cover
58%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, graphics
Most mentioned negative aspects:gameplay, stability
60% User Score Based on 114 reviews
Critic Score 55%Based on 7 reviews

Platforms

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G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout Game Cover

About G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is a single player and multiplayer casual shooter game. It was developed by IguanaBee and was released on December 14, 2020. It received neutral reviews from critics and mostly positive reviews from players.

G.I. Joe and Cobra are back! G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is a team-based third-person shooter where you play as your favorite characters from Team G.I. Joe and Team Cobra. Experience the action from both sides as you help G.I. Joe restore order and lead Cobra to world domination. G.I. JOE VS COBRA - Play with 12 of your favorite characters from both sides including Snake Eyes, Duke, Roadblock, S…

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G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout screenshot
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Reviews

60%Audience ScoreBased on 114 reviews
story13 positive mentions
stability2 negative mentions
  • Authentic G.I. Joe experience with iconic characters, cheesy dialogues, and a nostalgic story that appeals to fans of the franchise.
  • Simple and accessible third-person shooter gameplay with various weapons, unique character ultimates, and local split-screen co-op for shared play.
  • Engaging comic book art style, decent voice acting, and a soundtrack that effectively captures the spirit of the classic G.I. Joe cartoons.
  • Gameplay is repetitive and simplistic with poor AI that undermines combat and co-op experience; partner AI often unhelpful or obstructive.
  • Limited enemy variety focusing mainly on palette-swapped robot troops, leading to a lack of tactical depth and monotonous combat encounters.
  • Lack of online multiplayer, short campaign length, and technical issues including awkward controls, buggy performance, and uninspired level design.

  • story

    63 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    21% positive mentions, 74% neutral mentions, 5% negative mentions

    The story of G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is a nostalgic tribute to the 1980s cartoon and comic series, featuring a straightforward, cheesy, and light narrative that fits well with the franchise’s classic tone. While the plot is simple and sometimes childish, it effectively captures the spirit of the original series with good voice acting and comic-style cutscenes, offering enjoyable back-and-forth missions between the Joes and Cobra. Though not groundbreaking or deeply immersive, the story serves as a fun, retro-inspired backdrop that fans of the franchise will appreciate.

    • “A love letter to the original 1980s Sunbow Real American Hero cartoon, with a storyline clearly inspired by the 5-part mini-series 'The Pyramid of Darkness', GI Joe: Operation Blackout is a retro cartoon lovers' dream.”
    • “The story kicks off with Cobra successfully disabling the world’s tech infrastructure, putting the Joes on the back foot.”
    • “It's presented in a storyboard style and could easily have been lifted straight from the pages of a Joe comic book or from a Joe cartoon.”
    • “The enemies are dumb, your friendly AI is dumb, the story is dumb.”
    • “The story isn't anywhere near the level of the cartoons, let alone the comics and the cut scenes aren't fully animated.”
    • “It just does not feel right jumping sides and fighting the very characters you just played as in the previous mission.”

  • gameplay

    28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    18% positive mentions, 64% neutral mentions, 18% negative mentions

    Gameplay is generally criticized for being repetitive, clunky, and simplistic, with uninspired design and outdated mechanics that fail to fully engage players. While some appreciate the fan service, character variety, and simple third-person shooter elements, the gameplay often feels generic, with weak boss fights and underwhelming cover mechanics. Despite these flaws, the game offers fun solo and co-op modes with unique character skills, though overall it struggles to rise above its budget and rushed feel.

    • “Alternating between playing as both Cobra and the Joes gave a slight nuance to the otherwise conventional gameplay structure.”
    • “Joe Operation Blackout features a fun, arena-shooter style gameplay, with solo and co-op game modes.”
    • “In addition to its fun gameplay with 18 unique weapons and 36 skins, each character gets their own unique ultimate attack by hitting Q.”
    • “It sounds great on paper — but in practice, the gameplay quickly becomes repetitive and clunky.”
    • “And honestly, I wanted it to succeed so Hasbro would be compelled to make more (better) Joe games... but it came out as expected; low budget, rushed, extremely generic mechanics, (character choice is essentially a reskin with a primary weapon change, none of the weapons feel substantially different); short campaign that gets samey within moments.”
    • “Boss mechanics are extremely simple and on the final boss fight they didn't even do their mechanics right at all, both bosses just ended up doing nothing other than relentlessly chasing me in my face and shooting me.”

  • graphics

    17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    29% positive mentions, 53% neutral mentions, 18% negative mentions

    The game's graphics feature a cel-shaded, cartoonish art style that effectively captures Saturday-morning nostalgia with vibrant colors and comic book influences, though some find it repetitive and less impressive compared to other stylized games. Visual quality is generally decent but occasionally marred by jittery camera movement, cramped split-screen views, and dated, last-gen aesthetics. Overall, while the graphics suit the game's theme and run fairly well, they lack innovation and sophistication for its release period.

    • “The game’s cel-shaded art style is clearly inspired by the classic cartoon, and in that sense, it nails the Saturday-morning nostalgia.”
    • “A fun game full of action, vibrant colors and cool cartoon visuals.”
    • “First of all, the pixel shaded graphics are fantastic, the characters look great, the controls feel great and the characters similarly felt great.”
    • “The graphics, although stylized, still aren't great especially for the time it came out.”
    • “I didn't really care for the cell-shaded graphics or dithered textured skies and I also experienced jittery camera movement that was not smooth at all.”
    • “Graphically, the game doesn't just look last-gen, it almost looks as if it could have come from the generation before.”

  • music

    15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    27% positive mentions, 53% neutral mentions, 20% negative mentions

    The music in the game is generally competent, offering a well-selected, energetic soundtrack that channels a proto-classic feel reminiscent of the original cartoon. However, many fans find the soundtrack generic and miss the iconic original music, which is only available separately in extras rather than as a standard option. Voice acting and catchphrases add some nostalgic value, though quality varies.

    • “The soundtrack is pretty good for the type of G.I. game.”
    • “My only gripe is the original music isn't used as standard; the new music is fine, but if the original music had been used it would have made it an amazing experience overall.”
    • “Voice acting isn't always great, although a couple of standout examples, such as Cobra Commander, and the music has a somewhat proto-classic feel to it that uses some features of the music used in the original cartoon.”
    • “The soundtrack is generic as hell.”
    • “My only gripe is the original music isn't used as standard. The new music is fine, but if the original music had been used it would have made it an amazing experience overall.”
    • “The original music is included to play in the extras menu if you buy the complete edition. An option to switch to the original music would be so welcome.”

  • stability

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    33% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 67% negative mentions

    User feedback on stability is mixed, with some reporting significant bugs and poor performance even on high-end hardware, while others experience smooth and stable gameplay.

    • “Runs great.”
    • “This game is really buggy.”
    • “This game runs poorly on an i9-10900k / 3080ti, it's buggy.”

  • humor

    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The humor in G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is praised for its self-aware, nostalgic charm that captures the spirit of the 1980s cartoon, blending earnest appreciation with amusing character interactions. Fans of the original series will especially appreciate the comedic portrayal of iconic heroes and villains.

    • “With everyone's favorite real American heroes, Duke, Scarlett, Roadblock, Snake Eyes, Lady Jaye and more, as well as all the hilarious incompetence from classic Cobra Commander, Tomax and Xamot, Baroness and Destro, if you loved the 80s cartoon, you'll love G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout!”
    • “Definitely a budget title, but between the self-aware humor, earnest appreciation for the IP, and damn fun action (even the vehicle sections!), Operation Blackout might actually be the first genuinely good G.I. Joe game.”

  • replayability

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    Users find the game's replayability to be lacking, indicating that it offers limited motivation for multiple playthroughs.

    • “The problem is really just replay value.”

  • character development

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The character development is viewed as lacking depth, with users suggesting that the character designs are more appealing as collectible figures than as well-developed in-game personalities.

  • grinding

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    Grinding in the game may offer brief nostalgic enjoyment, but it quickly becomes tedious and repetitive.

  • monetization

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    The game's monetization is viewed more favorably compared to similar licensed titles, offering a better balance of fan service and gameplay without feeling overly exploitative or like a blatant cash grab.

  • atmosphere

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's atmosphere evokes a nostalgic vibe reminiscent of classic cartoons, comics, and action figure collecting, appealing especially to fans of retro pop culture.

  • optimization

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The optimization is generally solid, with only occasional minor performance hiccups that do not significantly impact gameplay.

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Critic Reviews

55%Critics’ scoreBased on 7 critic reviews
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Frequently Asked Questions

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is a casual shooter game. Common tags for G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout include third person, hero shooter, 3D, stylized, modern and others.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is available on Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X|S, PC, PlayStation 5 and others.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout was released on December 14, 2020.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout was developed by IguanaBee.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout has received neutral reviews from players and neutral reviews from critics. Most players liked G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

G.I. Joe: Operation Blackout is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

Similar games include Warhammer 40,000: Kill Team, Transformers: War for Cybertron, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, Watchmen: The End is Nigh, Halo: Spartan Assault and others.