GameCube

TimeSplitters: Future Perfect

Ok, so I get a little geeked out over TimeSplitters: Future Perfect. It’s easy to see why though, and besides who really wants to run around as a marine who can’t even tape a flashlight to the bottom of his shotgun?

When it comes down to it, TimeSplitters: Future Perfect stands well against nearly all other shooters available today on Xbox, and most definitely on GCN and PS2. The multi-player experience alone makes the game worth it, but the added features, such as the League, add to what amounts to a very long couple weeks of gameplay, possibly months. If you have an affixation with first-person shooters, Free Radical delivered a product worth buying.

Even though the single player mission lasts only about ten hours, there are plenty of challenges and league matches to plow through, which unlock new weapons, cheats, and characters (over 150 in all, each with their own stats if you choose to play multiplayer with them on). And the mapmaker is the most impressive I've ever seen on a console, user-friendly yet full of potential, it even rivals some of the lower and middle-end mapmakers out on PC. Future Perfect is simply fantastic, where around each corner is a rousing surprise, and the story is successful where several others have failed. It is fortified with enough game modes so that it is fully prepared to endure the test of time.

The bottomline is Time Splitters: Future Perfect is a game you simply should have in your gaming library if you're seriously into FPS games period. No question this is a game that can stand toe-to-toe with all the big time first-person shooters out there. Spectacular graphics, superlative gameplay, solid audio, great voice-overs, and a compelling story plot rocket this new hit into gaming greatness. A full 4 + Gin gems goes out to a highly impressive game that will undoubtedly turn quite a few heads as well as the "hands of time"

If a game’s weight were based solely on the content that it delivered, attempting to remove TimeSplitters Future Perfect from retail shelves would result in your arms being ripped clean off and the game crashing through the floor. From its boisterously entertaining time-travelling story and array of uniquely crafted single-player challenges to its massive multiplayer offering and remarkable mapmaker program, not even a crane could lift this game.

Der Humor von Future Perfect ist dank der Nebendarsteller und der Zeitschleifen einfach grandios. Ungeschlagen bleibt auch wieder der Mehrspieler-Part. Die 15 Spielmodi haben einen unglaublichen Unterhaltungswert. Technisch kann es sich trotz Rucklern sehen lassen. Fans des Vorgängers müssen zugreifen.

While not reaching the same levels of marketing genius as Nintendo's Pokemon series, Free Radical's TimeSplitters franchise has garnered the independent developer quite a reputation with critics and gamers alike, while keeping the bacon coming home every other year since the series' inception. The TimeSplitters gig is an easy formula to keep going, when you think about it. It's constantly changing time periods, settings, enemies, and weapons, and it's all tied together with a loose story. In a way, Cortez is always on the run trying to collect them all, the time crystals, that is.

TimeSplitters Future Perfect is very much in the same vein as the previous games in the series. The story mode (which is fairly short lived) is an improvement on the previous ones though and on the Xbox and PlayStation 2 you have the addition of online play. The GameCube version suffers from a lack of an online mode but with that said it's still an enjoyable game and if you're fortunate enough to have friends who want to play the game with you then split-screen gaming for up to 4 players is still an option. On the whole both versions are great games although you'll probably choose the PlayStation 2 or Xbox version, if you want to add longevity to the game by taking it online.

Time is flying. Summer is coming. All that warm air and fun in the sun has got to go. Save yourself from summer's torture and spend your days inside on the couch where you belong. TimeSplitters: Future Perfect may not be the Halo 2 competitor GameCube needs, but it's got just the right combination of single- and multiplayer goodness to drain the batteries in your WaveBird controllers.

Some of the more interesting arenas include Venice, a disco, and a flying zeppelin. A nice "wide screen" option makes the most of the screen's real estate, and thanks to the option of adding computer "bots", the game plays a mean solo death match. As icing on the cake, Future Perfect even includes a "map maker" that lets you construct your own levels! First-person shooters don't tend to age well, but this would have to rank as one of its best on the GameCube.

TimeSplitters: Future Perfect isn't exactly a Game of the Year candidate, but it's a blast for a little while. After spending the few hours it takes to beat the single player game, it's easy to lose even more in the multitude of online and bot matches. Honestly, as far as FPS games on the GameCube go, it really doesn't get too much better than this. It's time to SPLIT!

Overall, Future Perfect doesn't break any new ground, and the few things it pulls from other big-name FPS aren't as well done as the games it takes from, but their inclusion is appreciated and could've been done a lot worse. Keep this in mind when considering a purchase. It is indeed more Timesplitters, and for every lackluster feature or addition, there's a great one to counter it. It's not a bad game, it's just nothing new or mind-blowing. It is, most certainly, still a truckload of fun. It's hard to say whether or not Future Perfect is better or worse than TS2, since they both have things going for it the other doesn't. So let's just leave it at the fact that the game isn't a disappointment. By going into Future Perfect with the right expectations, you'll enjoy it that much more.

In the end, it's obvious Free Radical had fun crafting TimeSplitters: Future Perfect … and it shows. While the story mode is a bit lacking, it shines with all of the other styles of gameplay. There's a huge amount of challenges to face and secrets to unlock. With all the game has to offer, it's well worth the price of admission.

All in all, TimeSplitters: Future Perfect makes for good, meaningless fun. However, many of its modes don't feel complete. As consoles get more competent at handling the first-person shooter genre, TimeSplitters feels more like a relic from a bygone era. That feeling is further amplified by the GameCube's lack of online support. The game's variety does give it some decent legs, though, and fans of the series' mapmaker functionality will certainly enjoy diving right back into this feature. If you only own a GameCube, TimeSplitters: Future Perfect is a good choice, but if you own multiple consoles and are at all interested in competitive play, this should be your last choice.

Toujours au rendez-vous, l'équipe de Free Radical nous donne une nouvelle fois une raison de leur faire confiance. Suivant scrupuleusement le schéma de TS 2, cet opus parvient tout de même à sublimer l'aspect graphique du design inhérent aux développeurs du studio précité, tout en offrant au joueur une expérience ludique unique. Malheureusement, l'absence de nouveautés profondes et les lacunes relatives à l'I.A par exemple, empêche TS 3 de parvenir sur la plus haute marche d'un podium disputé. Mais si vous aimez les singes et les canards n'hésitez pas. Moi j'y retourne.

Visually, the game does an excellent job of separating the time periods as the levels share very little in the way of design and texture mapping. Whether it's an Irish castle, a runaway train reminiscent of those in Indiana Jones movies, or a Tron-inspired VR simulation, each of the 16 areas is quite distinct. In case you get bored, an included mapmaker lets you create your own levels and missions, which can then be shared online. Rounding out the package-and ensuring hours of replay value-is the Arcade and Challenge modes. In Arcade, you can face off against bots in any multiplayer mode, while the challenges can range from cat racing to decapitating zombie monkeys with a shotgun.