"It's very close to being Perfect."

My friend was the one responsible for getting me into the TimeSplitters series and I never for one split second regret any part of it because the series is certainly something to write home about. Those guys at Free Radical really know their stuff!

STORY: 9/10
You play as a Vin Diesel look alike called Cortez who is to recover mysterious Time Crystals that allow its holder to travel through time to any time period they desire. Past, present and future. On his way Cortez meets some pretty humours characters and as you would expect from Free Radical, the game doesn't take itself too seriously so there's a lot of humour involved. The cutscenes are impressive but I like them for their humour more than anything else. Fans of TS2 will remember characters like Corporal Hart, Khallos and the so 60's cop Harry Tipper who may sound like he's completely in love with himself but is actually doing pretty well for a guy who wants to save the world nevertheless. Overall the story is funny and enjoyable and if you don't take yourself too seriously you may actually enjoy it yourself.

GRAPHICS: 9/10
The graphic engine is sharp and looks farely neat compared to a lot of other FPS I've played. The more realistic the environment, the more you feel like you're really there, and that's pretty important in a game because it makes you wish you were there amongst all the action. I think the graphics in this game have been slightly improved from TS2 and the characters seem to move around a bit more freely. The only problem with the grpahics is when you're in a large open area the engine may slow you down a touch, as I've discovered in some Story missions and MapMaker levels.

CONTROLS: 10/10
When I played TS2 for the first time at my friends house I instantly hated the game because of the controls but when my other friend bought the game and told me about it, it sounded rather interesting, so I thought "What the hell, I'll give it another go." and I did, and it yeilded fantastic results because I worked out that you could actually change the control settings to suit your own setup. For those of you who care, I use Radical B because it's similar to Goldeneye's controls. They are very easy controls to get used to as well, and if you don't like the control settings you can customise your own. If you find that the PS2 controller seems a bit outdated you can always use a Logitech Turbo controller like me, as they handle well especially with games like this.

MUSIC/SOUND: 10/10
There's really not much to say about the music because it's just splendid! There's plenty of music to listen to while you play your Custom Arcade games which also make a return in TS3. Some music from TS2 and the first TS return as well. Okay everyone gather round, ready... MOVE MOVE MOVE MOVE MOVE LIKE A MONKEY! DANCE DANCE DANCE DANCE DANCE LIKE A MONKEY! What more can I say? You gotta love it!

GAMEPLAY: 10/10
This is the best part of the game and deserves 11 out of 10 but somehow that just doesn't seem quite possible... There are Story missions to complete on Easy, Normal and Hard, Arcade modes to complete, Challenge mode, the all enhanced MapMaker that now allows you to add more tiles and logic, even set the type of wether for an outdoor level. You can even make Assault missions! Play online against your friends, however I'm really not sure how many people actually go to the trouble of playing online, as it must be very costly. Anyway you'll never get sick of the gameplay and if you do then I guess FPS aren't really for you then because I can't get enough of it.

OVERALL: 9/10
RENT OR BUY?: Buy it and if you don't like it Mr. Monkey will not be pleased! I defy you not to love this game.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/05/06