PlayStation 2

Turok: Evolution

All in all, Turok plays more or less just how it should. Quick thrills, cheap kills. It's a no brainer of a game perfect for a rental or if your fancy blasting your enemies into little blood spurting pieces. It's a good little game that's fun, as long as your brain is switched off. Just don't think, play!

Turok: Evolution has some reasonably good graphics, excellent sound and music, and a nice story, but these are all severely hampered by twitchy control issues and the lack of checkpoints or a mid-mission save feature. Unless you are some kind of gaming god you will probably be reduced to using a cheat code to get through some level sooner or later.

Is Turok: Evolution the next Halo? Do chickens have teeth? Evolution lacks Halos seamless integration of plot, varied gameplay devices, and aggressive pacing. Friendly squad artificial intelligence, for example, is integrated into the game but it is done in such an arbitrary fashion that, unlike Halo, there is no sense of connection between the player and the friendly soldiers. The lack of mid-level saves hurts the flow of the game, as some of the levels are quite long and challenging, and having to replay large chunks of a level is a real test of patience. Acclaim integrated some flying levels that feature rail-shooting gameplay reminiscent of Rogue Squadron and Panzer Dragoon, which although decently designed are needlessly disjointed from the rest of the game, much like the driving levels in EAs Bond-themed shooter Agent Under Fire.

Your level of interest in Turok: Evolution will be very much contingent on your interest in past Turok games. Aside from a few minor issues, this latest installment is pretty solid all around, but it doesn't bring many new ideas to the table. In the end, Turok: Evolution is a bread-and-butter console shooter that will let you blast enemies to your heart's content, but not a whole lot else. If that's good enough for you, then go for it.

If you're looking to pick up a version of Turok: Evolution and are lucky enough to have more than one console, take a pass on the PlayStation 2 version. The graphics are, by far, the worst of the three, the dodgy framerates make it almost unplayable at times, and the multiplayer modes only support two players. If the PS2 is your only option, it's hard to recommend as anything other than a rental unless your thirst for multiplayer action has gone unquenched.

I found Turok: Evolution to be a mix of enjoyment and frustration. At times I was thoroughly amused, sniping enemies and causing mayhem, while at other moments I was frustrated and in a state of pure tedium. I can only recommend that the most hardcore of Turok fans pick the title up. Everyone else will want to stick to a rental, because it's definitely worth checking out, especially given that the multiplayer mode is quite entertaining.

Turok: Evolution is for you. Switching and firing off a round between the entire arsenal of weapons is a cinch and the only control feature you have to worry about. At the very least, this latest Turok will have your blood pumping and fingers twitching during a weekend rental.

If this game were to be considered a line segment, say line AC, then my feelings on this game would be the midpoint B, because I enjoy certain parts of this game, however a big majority of the game is rather boring, and once you beat it, there’s absolutely no reason to play it again. This game would be ok for a 5-day or so rental period, because the game isn’t the most challenging game you’ll ever play, as I beat it in a 6 hour time period with no problems at all. Once again, the PS2 is bombarded with more below average-average games.

Je le répète Turok Evolution est une déception cruelle. On est vraiment à la limite de se demander si on ne serait pas en train de se payer notre tête. Pas qu'à la limite d'ailleurs. Le titre se révèle presque injouable tellement le gameplay est repoussant et primaire, la maniabilité fastidieuse (surtout en vol) et la réalisation presque pathétique durant la moitié du jeu. TE parvient tout de même à se montrer moins bon que ses ancêtres sur N64, bravo, belle performance.