The environment itself is problematic at times though. They have these large, visually rich environments and then areas that are no-go right in the middle. Yet on the edges there will be places that look like they might hold some secret hidden object but are instant death when you move into them. Why one would leave those areas open just so players could fall into them and die is beyond comprehension.

Also, as with many third-person games, the camera becomes a pain in the backside, especially during heated battles and close quarters. It will often get placed in a position that is hard to use like wedged between an enemy and a wall. Pulling the left trigger will aim you at an enemy but the camera does not always swing around to look at them directly if you are on the run or backed into a corner.

Another annoying thing about the game is that when you go up against one of the big bosses and die, you will have to waste time listening to them prattle on again before you can get back to the battle. Instead of just throwing you straight back into it you have to sit and watch some animation that you have seen, perhaps even a dozen times before. Talk about annoying and frustrating, that’s pretty high on the list as it constantly wastes time and is redundant. Why they didn’t make the entrance cut-scene one video instead of two is beyond me. You can skip half of it but then are forced to watch the other half (specifically against Tiamat).

They at least did allow you to swim and in fact, when you see water deep enough, dive right in. It’s almost guaranteed that there will be an underwater tunnel that leads to some hidden treasure. There is a lot of collecting in this game. You collect weapons, you collect powerups you collect souls, artifacts, armor pieces, life force pieces, on and on. That really just gives them a reason to make bigger areas and you to go and try to find it all. Of course, you could skip it all, drive straight through the story and be done in no less than 10 hours I bet.

Now, is the game fun? Heck yes! War manages to do some heavy damage and the deeper you get into the game the more intricate and cool the moves become. Is it frustrating at times? Heck yes! The game is tough even on normal difficulty I can’t imagine what it might be like on Apocalyptic, but you can get that I’ll try it out. Plus, it’s fairly long. I’ve been playing for around 10 hours and still have at least two mega-bosses, one ultra-mega-boss and three areas to open according to the map. So yesI don’t think I’d go play it again, but it does make me want to finish it and find all the hidden stuff., there’s plenty to do and see and enjoy. Really, flaws aside it’s a good game that appears worth the cost. The levels are large, the enemies diverse and the challenge level high. It’s a great big pile of cool and we knew it would be. You couldn’t possibly hype a game as much as this one was and then fail utterly...could you?