G-pinions

It's fantastic. Or at least, the three-level demo is the most gratifying handheld experience I think I've ever had. I'm surprised that the concept hasn't been attempted before, because it's such a great idea and works incredibly well - it plays like a traditional racing game until you catch up to your targets (whatever they may be, as the story dictates), at which point you can shoot them, ram them, and JUMP ON THEIR CAR. Or boat, or I'm sure other modes of transport that aren't in the demo. Once attached, you can shoot the driver or passengers, hang off the back or sides to avoid gunfire, or jump back to another car and finish the job from there. You almost always have several targets to take down, and if they're driving close enough you'll be doing a lot of hopping back and forth and trying not to get shot off.

It wouldn't be much more than a fun idea if it wasn't executed well, but it's very airtight and makes the entirely dynamic work. There are only a couple of buttons; accelerate, brake, lock on/shoot, cycle targets, and jump. You can only jump when you're within range, and it's automatic once you hit the button - no worrying about a bad landing, and it keeps things moving. The camera pulls in to focus on your car-jacking when you land, and stays that way until the car is clear. If you take out the driver first, you better be ready to steer from that perspective while you finish the job. Wilier enemies will even pull off the same moves as you, jumping away from danger, sometimes back to the original car that you left. You have a justicometer that fills up a bit with everything positive that you do, and drains away when you hit civilians (or jack them, which is entirely possible to do and all too tempting). With a full meter, you can either give yourself some health back, or receive a great slo-mo effect when jumping cars, allowing for some ridiculously badass maneuvers (gunning down several targets in multiple cars all before landing, for one).

While it feels a lot like a console game, there is something very rewarding about having it in the palm of your hands. It's also a perfect portable experience, as the levels only take a couple of minutes to run through. I fear that it might get a bit stale depending on how far they stretch the concepts they're presented, but I know that there are on-foot portions in the final game, as well as helicopter gunning segments which you do get to try out. If things can stay fresh, it's a definite purchase for me. The PSP line-up is looking a lot better these days, and Pursuit Force has the potential to be the first great 3D exclusive on the system (Infected came close, and GTA doesn't count). Chalk up one more for March.

It's really a shame that Half-Life 2 was released so late in the Xbox's life. Had Valve taken six months more to port it to the 360 instead, episodic expansions included, it would be a lot more of a landmark release for console shooters. As it stands, it's simply a shockingly impressive port of a brilliant PC game that will be ignored by and large by Xbox owners, and the annals of console shooter history. I know that I chose an odd time to pick it up, but we're in an ugly 360 gap until March 7th, and hey, it can only make Black feel all the more different right?

We all know why the game is great - the most realistic, gameplay-affecting physics ever, a great story (that you'll actually care about) with great in-game exposition, fantastic pacing where every second looks and feels unique (like RE4), and the gravity gun. However, I will say that for all of it's brilliant physics and resulting level design prowess, the basic engine and world still don't feel as tangible as Halo; it feels incredibly real and complete, but the sensation of basic movement and environmental interaction, while visually sensible, just doesn't feel as immersive as Bungie's world. I guess that's just a nasty side-effect of it's mouse/keyboard origins, and to be fair, no other game lives up to Halo in that regard either. It's just the slightest bit disappointing considering how seamless the experience is otherwise.

That's really the only complaint I can level against it though. There are plenty of reviews singing it's praises, I just wanted to chime in with one more positive impression, and not just relative to it's port status. It's EASILY the best Xbox game of last year, and worth buying/keeping the system for.