Author: Master_Ikrik
Type: PS2 Game
Released: 2005
Designer: High Moon Studios
Publisher: Capcom
Genre: First-person shooter
You are Jericho Cross, outlaw, renegade, vampire. Well, you're not really a vampire at first; you sort of get turned into one. You rob a train owned by "The Darkwatch", and you end up unleashing an extremely powerful vampire named Lazarus - who turns you into one as well. It's also a western; I've noticed some new western games coming out, this and "Samurai Western." Connection, probably not.
If you do not know what an FPS is all about, it's all about the guns: the variety and the amount. There are fewer then ten guns in all. The Redeemer, the basic pistol which is always good for the whole game. The dual pistols, half the firepower but double the guns. The shotgun (all FPS must have one of these). The carbine, the sniper, the crossbow (fires explosive bolts) and the rocket launcher. You have two types of explosives, TNT and "Splitter Grenades" (which you hardly ever get), but you should always have some TNT. Another problem is that you can only have 2 guns on you at once, which seriously impairs your destructive capabilities.
As I said earlier, you are a vampire - fangs, bloodsucking, etc. - which means you have special powers. Most useful is the "Blood Shield", which protects your health and constantly regenerates. Another cool one is blood vision, which turns all the scenery red and your enemies white, so you can pick them out in the dark. Vampire jumping is nice, but you're in the air for such a long time, it's almost distressing.
As you progress through the game you are faced with choices; to be good or to be evil. Choosing which side will allow you to have skills, which in a sense give you an extreme advantage to what you normally have. If you stick with one class (good or evil), by the last boss you can have the final skill for that side.
The enemies you fight you will fight for the entire game. There are no more then 15 enemies, some of which you fight only around 5 times. For each type of enemy there is one model, so it seems like your fighting the same skeleton throughout the entire game. The AI is all right, but if they're ranged they tend to stay in one place as you shoot them. The AI is also very predictable - even for an FPS - as they will all try to access you from the same way.
The graphics impressed me to no end, insane graphics. The cinematics impressed me to no end as well, not movie quality but probably the best i've seen in a game, except for maybe MGS3, but then again those guys throw the animators in a cell until they finish. Gameplay graphics are also very nice, but no joke, it's dark, seriously. The game is also short, with only one alternate ending and a ending video which is slightly disappointing.
They're great, see above paragraph for more information. Your character also looks raggety, which I personaly loved to no end.
Effects: 7/10Most of it is great but the script needed serious work; even though the voice actors were mostly awesome, sometimes the lines were forced or they paused for too long, as if they stopped speaking and then spoke again, making it awkward.
Gameplay: 8/10Good controls, responsiveness is quite nice, but the AI is way too predictable.
Replayability: 7/10The choice between good and evil is quite nice and affects the game a lot, but it's short and the variety of guns is sadly not that great.
Overall: 8/10It's a good game but even cowboy vampires could have used a lot more work. And if Lazuras' powers are getting stronger every day, every minute, how come the enemies don't accurately reflect that? It hasn't lived up to the hype; if you want a really awesome FPS however, look no further then Red Faction: an oldie, but an awesome one none-the-less.