Getting the first chance to play, skepticism reigned. As a shooter, Timeshift would rank average to high marks solely on gameplay. Although it stuttered at time, it was otherwise stable, fast paced and intense. And difficult. That’s where time kicks in.
The basic outlay is simple enough. Three different modes allow you to use time to your advantage, since the overwhelming odds wouldn’t be justifiable otherwise. Rewind, pause and fast forward are the three options, each with its own characteristics.
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Rewind makes everything go back. That means if a bridge just collapsed in front of you, quickly hit rewind and the bridge is back, and the explosion that took it out goes in reverse.
Pause does exactly as it says, but what it allows is to steal the enemy’s weapons. Fast forward is just like rewind, except movement turns incredibly fast and fluid. Using these correctly is key, though which to use when is still under scrutiny.
The time commands obviously make gameplay very easy, so the team worked to balance the issue, but it still needs some tuning. Finding cover to recharge time powers is pretty easy, and once time is going any which way or not at all, there’s no stopping you. What was mentioned previously was the use of rain to make it difficult to see when pausing, but so far that hasn’t impacted the game enough to be noticeable.
As of now, Timeshift looks like it’ll make a fine game, but is not fully there. With the October 30th release date on the 360 and December for the PS3, there is still time for polish and bug fixing, which is all that is required. Add another title to the must have list for this winter, and another 60 out of your pocket.
