Lost Planet: Extreme Condition [X360]

There is a t-shirt out there with an image of an original NES controller and the slogan "Know Your Roots" printed beneath. This shirt was probably passed around at Capcom during development of Lost Planet because the game is the epitome of old-school play. From the massive multi-part boss fights, to action sequences that challenge your dexterity, and a convoluted story that just barely holds it all together, Lost Planet feels just like the games we grew up on and then some.

At its core, Lost Planet is a very by-the-numbers game: Watch a cutscene, run through a level, kill some enemies, watch another cutscene, kill more enemies, find a massive alien boss, search desperately for its weak spot, swear a bit, discover a pattern, kill the boss, survive by the skin of your teeth, breathe. What sets it apart is the extreme level of polish that's been given to the visuals and the gameplay experience itself.

When you first boot up, the cinematic influence is extremely obvious, and it's carried over into the level design. Though linear in nature, each level is packed with eye candy designed to show off the power of the hardware. A cold blue haze can be seen in the distance, snow tracks are left on the ground, ice shatters and explosions leave very realistic looking smoke.

To compensate for the linear nature of the levels, the designers have instituted multiple "mini-paths" into the adventure. You can often go from room A to room D via your choice of room B or room C. There is also a focus on open areas with multiple ledges in order to encourage usage of the grappling hook, or anchor, as the game refers to it.

Learning to use the grappling hook is a satisfying part of the experience as it can be quite the assent in combat. Savvy players will use the hook to quickly move out of harm's way or to get the drop on an enemy in a mechanized Vital Suit. Despite a few annoying quirks (you can't shoot the grapple unless your feet are firmly on the ground) the anchor is a welcome asset in both the single and multiplayer components of Lost Planet.

Ultimately, the single-player campaign is a must-play due to the boss fights against the insect-like Akrid. These in-depth matches are straight out of the classic 8-bit era where success lies not with unloading massive amounts of ordinance, but rather taking the time to discover a boss' weak point and then taking him down. Many of these battles are multi-stage affairs, requiring trial-and-error, but the level of satisfaction when a baddie goes down is worth the effort. Oddly, the human bosses in VSes weren't nearly as challenging as the Akrid, often feeling generic.