“‘Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC – Xbox 360 version verified.”‘
Every year, the ridiculous pre-Christmas rush leaves the average games reviewer with a bunch of games they want to play but just don’t have time to even look at. This year was particularly bad: when we’re getting games like Assassin’s Creed, The Orange Box or Crysis week after week, who has time to look at a BlackSite or TimeShift? It’s only now, as things start to quiet down between Christmas and New Year’s, that we have a chance to take stock, search the stacks, and see if there’s anything good we’ve missed. As someone with a penchant for underdogs, it’s one of my treats of the holiday season.
Of course, TimeShift has hardly made it easier for itself. Saber’s game was originally slated for an Xbox release in 2005. Then the original publisher Atari shifted production to the Xbox 360 before deciding to throw the game into development hell. Then came Vivendi Universal and offered Saber a chance to take a little more time and turn a failed project into a great one. Unfortunately, the game released a major change in technology, setting, and visual direction later in November; Around the time The Orange Box, Call of Duty 4, and Crysis hit the streets. Ironically, for a game where control of time is a key theme, TimeShift’s timing couldn’t have been worse.
Worse still, a game that would have already felt like a derivative of other FPS games now feels even less original. Using slow-motion controls would have always reminded you of FEAR, and certain elements – the dystopian futuristic setting, sinister government forces, poorly armed resistance, and intrusive civilian announcements – beg comparisons to Half-Life 2. In fact, it begs comparisons to Half-Life. Life 2. If TimeShift needed a subtitle, “FEAR and loathing in City 17” would have done the job. However, his biggest new idea – his time-controlling beta suit – now feels ripped from the nanosuit in Crysis, while other parts of the game are coming close to Halo 3. As a result, TimeShift could easily be condemned as a B-movie version by other, better games.
But maybe that’s not so bad. There’s always something entertaining about a really good B-movie, and Crysis is actually a thoroughly entertaining B-game.
It helps that technically it’s not nearly as old as you might expect. Saber’s engine doesn’t look old hat in the age of Gears of War, Halo 3, and Call of Duty 4 – which is good since they’re the games that most people think of. When things are going well, the game’s devastated cityscape, rich detail, strong dynamic lighting, and excellent water and weather effects remind you of Epic’s work in Gears. Period details in some interiors are reminiscent of Bioshock, while a mid-game section set in a beautiful snowy alpine setting wouldn’t have embarrassed Bungie’s latest blockbuster.
When it’s bad – when it’s just dishing out another boxy, nondescript industrial interior – it just looks like the more generic sections of FEAR or Half-Life 2. The character models look a bit like someone tried to use FEAR’s high-tech armor with them to splicing Gears of War’s steroid-popping freaks, but as you can now imagine popping bullets in Marcus, Dom, and pals isn’t as bad as it sounds.
The world also feels solid. Many walls, barricades and objects can be shattered by heavy firepower and the ragdoll body dynamics are very compelling. Use your suit’s slow-motion function, fire a grenade at the nearest group of bull-necked combo wannabes and the effects are quite spectacular, aided by some very nice blur and distortion effects that show the flow of time being interrupted. In short, TimeShift might not be as amazing as Crysis or as awesome as Call of Duty 4, but it certainly doesn’t look or feel like its poor country cousin.
The question is, does it play as one? Well, the action definitely feels like it’s right on video. As far as I can tell from the (I think intentionally) confusing intro movie and the snippets of text jammed in as the game loads levels, you’re a scientist working on a revolutionary time control suit at a top-secret military research facility. Another scientist, Dr. Krone, steals the Alpha Prototype model and uses it to travel through time and become an evil dictator on an alternate, totalitarian future Earth. Only by rescuing the damaged beta version of the suit can you jump to his alternate timeline, help the “Occupier” resistance, uncover Krone’s evil deeds, and put the world to rights.
To do this, the suit gives you several abilities. First, it behaves a bit like armor, tracking your physical condition and repairing damage when you take a breather, much like Halo’s shield or Call of Duty 4’s health recharge feature. More importantly, it allows you to watch the flow of time to control. Press and hold the left bumper (on the Xbox 360 version) and you can pause, slow down, or even reverse time for a few seconds. Tap the bumper and the suit’s built-in AI will select an appropriate power for you. That means you can do some pretty cool things. Apparently old FEAR blasts several baddies in slow motion and watches them collapse as time speeds up again. Routine is a breeze, but you can also grab guns, dodge heavily armored robot guards, and solve your share of simple puzzles.
And utilizing those abilities is crucial, as there’s quite a bit to be said for combat – at least on anything beyond the casual level. TimeShift places great emphasis on powerful weapons, placing them in the hands of large numbers of enemy troops capable of using them. With you often surrounded and outnumbered, and with no Gears of War-style cover system in place, careful use of the slow-motion and pause features is the only way to tip the balance in your favor.
I couldn’t say the KI is on par with FEAR or STALKER, but your enemies are showing some signs of group intelligence and it’s hard to win a firefight against them fairly and honestly. As a result, the plot develops its own rhythm, similar to FEAR. You make contact with the enemy, duck around a corner, use your powers, and then do as much damage as humanly possible before the meter runs out, before heading out to find a safe place to hang out to relax and recharge. There’s a fair amount of suspense, then a very satisfying gory release.
However, it’s hard to avoid the thought that much of the suit’s potential has been wasted. Watching a bunch of enemies get shot back in slow motion never gets boring; nor does it turn back time when a grenade is flying towards you. However, anyone expecting puzzles in the order of Prince of Persia: Sands of Time will leave disappointed. It’s all in the spirit of break time to escape the falling elevator or cross the collapsing bridge, and the points where you can reverse time are obviously controlled and obviously signposted. There’s none of the experimentation or flexibility you get in a Crysis or Bioshock, and the fact that the suit suggests what power to use means you can click on the left bumper and 90 percent of your brain shut off completely.
In addition, the game is so linear that Call of Duty 4 feels like STALKER. There’s obviously some narrative hidden somewhere, but the pieces all feel separate from one another, and as you progress from level to level following a list of constantly updated objectives, it’s hard to figure out where you’re going, what you’re doing, and why. Without the atmosphere of Bioshock or Half-Life 2, TimeShift can only rely on its action.
Still, it’s an oddly addicting game. It helps that the pace is excellent, with most levels having a nice up and down of shooting. The medium level of challenge is just right, checkpoints are carefully placed and you can save when and where you want. There are a few useless shooting sections on rails, but the game makes up for that with a nice race track through the mountains on a quad bike. And the enemies, the settings, and the weapons all get more interesting and varied over time – and we’ve all seen bigger, better games where that’s not true. TimeShift isn’t a very clever shooter, but for dumb shooters it’s meaty and solidly constructed.
And as long as you like silly shooters, you should probably pick this up. In many ways, TimeShift is the FPS equivalent of some kind of low-budget action movie that used to star Jean-Claude Van Damme but now stars Jason Statham. You wouldn’t buy it at full price via Call of Duty 4 or The Orange Box, any more than you would see Crank at the cinema via The Bourne Ultimatum, but if you saw it at a bargain price at your local video store, you wouldn’t be disappointed , if you would pick it up and take it home.
TimeShift isn’t the game it could have been – but given its troubled history, we can say that for both good and bad. It’s not worth more than a seven for all of the reasons above, but there were times when I got carried away playing it that I’d swear it was played more like an eight. If you’ve already worked your way through the more experienced colleagues at TimeShift, you should bear that in mind.
“‘Verdict”‘
It’s unoriginal and underperforms with its handful of good ideas to anyone’s idea of excellence, but as a dumb shooter TimeShift is actually loads of fun. Buy it at a bargain basement price and then enjoy it.
characteristics
| player | 16 |
| Online multiplayer | With online multiplayer |
