Gun

"A fistful of colt!"

If you think about it you will come to realize that there are not to many westerns out there to play. The name alone is a hit or miss and leaves room to wonder. From the makers of the Tony Hawks series comes this nitty gritty western. I am very honest when it comes to reviewing and take a lot of time to personally review the subject at hand to see if it's truly worthy of the score I gave it. Before we get into details I will explain why I gave this title a straight 10.

First of all like I was saying previous to this, there aren't all to many westerns out there to play. A new western means fresh gameplay, something new and much curiosity to see how it turns out. (or at least hits expectations) And new fresh gameplay means a break from the norm. You don't have to be a "die-hard" western fan to appreciate this title. If you are into third person shooters and a decent in-depth story-line, and you want to try this title then this game is for you. But don't get me wrong there, it isn't just any ordinary third person shooter.

STORY

Let's start out with the story and yes I said decent and in-depth. I never like to reveal to much of the story because it spoils it for you so I'll be very to the point. You assume the role of Colt, you are out hunting and making the usual rounds with your father when things start to turn flipside. Much lead and gunpowder hits the floor before you find yourself in a bad situation and must right many wrongs answer many un-answered questions and exact revenge. (Evil Grin) I told you I wouldn't spoil it now...I like to leave room for wondering! Hahaha!. I will give this much at least, the story is very original for a fresh new title, because some stories out there have been done a thousand times over. The characters are very much believable because the personalities come to life right away, yes the voice acting is pretty good. So good that if the were selling something I bet you would buy it!

CONTROLS

Now for the controls. The controls are on target for responsiveness, and very basic. I'd say the learning curve for these controls are about 10 minutes and thats a very good thing. Even combat is very fluid and horseback riding couldn't get any easier.

GRAPHICS

The graphics, how anticipated were the graphics? One thing stuck out to me the most in this game, and that is the environments. The waterfalls, tannish sun covered mountains in the distance, A view of the next dusty town ahead, the shades over cliffs and trees are amazing. It really made me feel like I was there, I actually felt comfortable with the surroundings and couldn't wait to get back to the game as if I wanted to jump through the screen and take a big ol breath of fresh air! (may sound a bit strange if that makes any sense) The character models are perfect and the words match up with their lips which I always look out for and think is pretty neat how it is done. Haven't run into any glitches and for an open environment game I was very much surprised.

GAMEPLAY

The gameplay, first off let me explain a few things before we get carried away. Yes this game is free-roaming. No the environments aren't gigantic. They are "big enough" pretty much. But don't worry there are plenty of things to buy, guns to earn, and side-missions to complete to build yourself quite the reputation. It was to my surprise and very nifty to see that you can earn money to spend. Money to spend to your liking. The story missions always move on and you always know or at least have a pretty good idea of where you have to go next to start your next mission. So that leaves room for you to get side-tracked and mess around with all the side stuff. Like I said the environment isn't huge but big enough.

Replay Value

The replay value is decent for this title. It's not super long according to how you play. It can take much longer if you like to search every nook and cranny and fulfill every side mission. It's also a title that doesn't get old and for a second or third play soon after is predicted...now if you will excuse me I must return to GUN!

-Happy Gaming!

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 11/28/05