Weapons
are limited to a pistol, shotgun, sub-machinegun and
explosives in the forms of grenades and explosive canisters.
All of the weapons have a great feel to them. They are
solid, destructive and very satisfying. They have girth.
When firing the sub-machinegun you will have to work
really hard to keep it steady from the constant recoil.
The shotgun makes a bloody mess, especially during headshots.
The enemy's cranium splatters like one of Gallaghers'
watermelons in his cheesy Sledge-O-Matic routine. The
enemy also exhibits a great tumbling animation that
makes it look as though they were hit with a wrecking
ball.

The
weapons wreak havoc on the environment as well. There
are many things to nick, break, blast and explode.
The walls will be filled with bullet holes and hopefully
covered with the blood of the enemy if you're doing
your job properly. You can interact with various items
in the environments such as computers, sinks and crates.
Items can be picked up and thrown when you find yourself
without a weapon. When some of the more aggressive
enemies make their appearance later in the game you'll
have to take cover behind various obstacles otherwise
you'll quickly be filled with holes. As long as you're
a pretty decent shot you will be able to make short
work of the enemy. The AI will strafe but they won't
jump out of the way like something from the Matrix.
If you're having trouble hitting them, you can try
blowing them up by throwing grenades or tossing explosive
canisters and shooting at them to make them blow up.
For
the first part of the game you will battle the same
guy over and over. At least it looks like the same
guy. I call him Bozo the Clone. He's more of an annoyance
than a challenge and if he starts to get overwhelmed
he calls in reinforcements which are more clones of
him. Damn these futuristic games that can get away
with these things. It gets a lot more challenging
later in the game when enemies come from above, below
and out of the shadows. They are more aggressive and
often times more powerful. The game will respond to
your skill level and will react accordingly by providing
you with more health and ammo when you need it. Not
unlimited amounts, but enough to keep the challenge
alive. Great feature. It keeps us all in the game
regardless of how inexperienced some players may be.
Unfortunately the game doesn't have a multi-player
mode but considering how good the single-player mode
is, all is forgiven. A good player will be able to
blast through this game in an afternoon.

SiN
Episodes: Emergence is a good looking game. It's got
some really nice visuals and a really good sense of
depth. The audio is a little sparse but at least we're
not forced to sit through boring cutscenes just for
the sake of forcing a storyline on us every few minutes.
The story asks more questions than it answers, and
if you want some answers, you'll have to buy more
installments of this game as they are offered.
Features:
- Intense
Combat - Face off against ruthless enemies, like
jetpack soldiers and mutants that evolve as you
fight them.
- Witness
enemies that adapt to your actions and truly work
as a team, as they cover each other, and help fallen
comrades to get back on their feet.
- Outsmart
your opponents by using your environment to your
advantage as you set up traps using lethal elements
of the environment.
- Location
based damage rewards accuracy while melee combat
moves enable you to get up close and personal.
- Unprecedented
Interactivity - Blast your way through highly interactive
environments powered by an enhanced version of the
Source engine.
- Characters
dynamically react to what you're looking at and
the environment.
- Target
and shoot off specific vehicle parts and literally
blow cars to pieces. Experience the next level of
vehicle combat with a flexible positioning system
enabling you to move around the interior with an
unprecedented degree of freedom, allowing you to
pick the ideal position to attack that enemy position
up ahead.
By
Mike Chasselwaite
CCC
Freelance Writer
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