Timeshift (Xbox 360)

By Mike Neylon on Thursday, November 15, 2007 at 6:00 PM EST

Once in a while a game comes along with a catchy core gameplay concept that sounds great on paper, but how the final game fares woefully fails to deliver on that promise. Unfortunately, Timeshift is one of those games - while it provides a very satisfying use of time manipulation powers within a first-person shooter framework, the rest of the elements of the game are pretty much run-of-the-mill and makes the overall game less exciting that it should be.

Timeshift places you in a special prototype armored suit that is capable of time-travel, which you have just utilized to escape an explosion in the suits development lab. You’re tasked with tracking down the traitor Krone that had planted the bomb and stolen the other prototype suit. However, the suit fails, and you find yourself in an alternate 1930’s, where Krone has used his futuristic knowledge to develop highly advanced equipment for the time and has taken over the world. You find that the suit currently cannot take you back until you negate this alternate timeline, but you do have limited control of time: the ability to slow time around you, to completely stop time, or to even reverse time for a few seconds. All of these are found to be very useful skills by those resisting Krone’s rule, and you quickly find yourself with common goals to find and eliminate Krone.

The time control powers in Timeshift are used both for combat purposes and for getting through some obstacles in the game. Within combat, there are a number of possible ways to use the time powers, whether it’s to give you more time to line up long range shots, to rush into a group of near-statuesque guards to take them out during slow or paused time, or even to return a grenade back to its sender by reversing time. Many of the combat situations in the game lead to rather enthralling uses of the power alongside typical shooter play; there’s something deeply satisfying about seeing bodies go flying or gibs suddenly splattering once your time resets back to normal. Unfortunately, after several levels of this, the game pretty much remains the same - you do gain some new stereotypical weapons, and eventually you’ll meet others that have limited time control powers as well - but by this point, the time powers become very old, even to the point of making the game a cake-walk when the level of difficulty should be increasing as you progress.

The other use of time powers is to manipulate time so as to pass certain architectural obstacles. An obvious use is to reverse time to prevent damage in a passage you need to cross, but other uses include slowing time to get through a quickly-closing door or to stop time to avoid damage from fire and electrical obstacles. Generally, the game will default to the proper time action when you approach such obstacles making it rather easy to figure out how you must get through it, though you can call up any of the time manipulation powers at will. The level design otherwise lacks any major points of deviation - your path through each level is linear and marked out easily by checkpoints, making the general level progress rather boring.

The game does sport some pretty impressive graphics, using nice focusing effects to blur far-distant objects or those up close when you are aiming through a scope, and rarely misses a beat during the most intense battles. There is something to be said about the environment; the game is supposedly an alternative 1930 influenced by Krone’s involvement, but it feels too high tech for just the influence of one man - there’s high-end computers, massive spider mechs, advanced weapons, and sprawling mechanical complexes, and lacks the suggestion of being an alternate historical time. Other parts of the presentation are otherwise lackluster - the story is barely present, voice acting is hit or miss, and in general, the game does little to make a complete experience.

The single player campaign lasts about 10 hours, and can be attempted at three difficulty levels. Timeshift also offers both ranked and player matches over Xbox Live with a number of gameplay modes including standard deathmatch and capture-the-flag. Time effects are simulated in multiplayer by creating spheres of these time areas either generated by players or the levels themselves, which cause those inside the bubbles to experience the effects of slow or paused time. While this aspect adds another strategical component of gameplay, the multiplayer mode is otherwise as uninspired as much as the single player mission.

Timeshift could have been more - the game is to be commended for nailing the implementation of the time manipulation powers, but much more work could have been done to provide a stronger story, more intricate level design, and better gameplay progression through the campaign to keep the game interesting throughout.