Timesplitters

Everyone's been harping on for ages about what a great game TimeSplitters is, but now that it's actually here, does it live up to all that prerelease hype? Is it really that great? Is it obvious that the GoldenEye boys were behind the development? Yes, yes and yes. It's fabulous, so fabulous in fact that we've even had instances of die-hard FPS-haters picking up the joypad and having a good time with the thing. It's that great. Part of the charm is no doubt due to the fact that deep down, TimeSplitters is one of the simplest games around. In one-player story mode the objective is "find an object, kill everyone and then get back to where you started." It's real, old-school. Doom-type stuff, and boy is it fun. And tough. Many players will probably only bother with the story mode when they realize it's the only way to open up the cool stuff for the real "meat and potatoes" of the game which is the multiplayer aspect. Deathmatch, teamplay and capture the flag (bag, in this case) modes are all here and in each mode you can play with up to four of you crowded around the TV and fight it out with or without bots of varying intelligence. Everything in the game is customizable; you can change weapons sets, characters and then most importantly, you can build your own levels. The editor is a joy to use and assures this is a game that's going to stay with you for a LONG time. An instant PS2 classic. Buy it.

Sure, you can play TimeSplitters alone. The singleplayer game's got no plot and packs simple fetch-the-doodad objectives, but it's still surprisingly fun and addictive--especially the bonus challenges. More than just cleverly designed, the arenas are downright creepy, thanks to the game's oddball aesthetic. But you're best off buying TimeSpiitters with a multi-tap and calling over three pals. This is the fastest, smoothest fragfest on the consoles, and you get all the modes and options you'd expect from the guys who worked on GoldenEye. You can even play the Story Mode cooperatively. Heck, the map editor itself will keep you busy for days.

TimeSplitters feels like a game that I should like more, but I just can't bring myself to. As a change of pace for first-person shooters. I can appreciate its speed and simplicity, but after awhile it just seems like there isn't enough depth. I really like the amount of extras that you open up as you progress through the levels because it really makes you want to keep playing. It's just too bad that the story and atmosphere are unimpressive, as is the low interactivity with the environments. The saving grace is the map creator that lets you easily make new maps for multiplayer combat. It's too bad the rest of the game isn't as well thought-out.