Turok Evolution -- Game Review Written by Nicholas Mezza
System- XBOX, Gamecube
Genre-Action, First Person Shooter
Play Modes- Single Player, Multiplayer Deathmatch
Rating-M

This title is the fourth Turok game released (Not counting Rage Wars, which was only a deathmatch game). Acclaim Studios Austin, the people who brought you the terrible Turok 3, created this game. When I saw their logo, I almost didn't bother with this game. And I wish I hadn't.

The story is not really related to the original two games, and is not what you would call inspiring. Basically another tribe takes you in, and you are sent out to destroy the enemy. You start out in first person mode, and shoot away at enemies while traveling in a straight line to the exit. Hmm... Sounds like a great, innovative new game, huh? Then the game throws you a curve. You get to fly a pterodactyl with guns on it. This could have been an interesting side trip, but its difficulty eliminates its chances. Instead of an exiting flight through the trees, or whatever, you find yourself on a bird that is difficult to steer, and dies instantly when you touch a wall. This mode is not attractive to a flight sim fan, and just doesn't fit in a first person shooter.

The graphics are a mixed bag. Overall, the textures and general look of the environment are sub-par for the Xbox. What really caught my eye was the prominent use of 2D sprites (ugh!). There are some nice effects, though, which draw your eye away from the general look of things. The weapons are beautifully designed, and rockets leave a very nice looking heat distortion in the air (as well as a very nice blast).

Sound effects for the weapons are good, but not awe-inspiring. The music blends well with the jungle environment.

The artificial intelligence of the enemies in the game is where it starts getting bad. You will find yourself fighting enemies that usually either run mindlessly in circles, in a beeline towards you, or stand still while they shoot you from afar. Rarely do enemies even move to follow you. They simply wait for you to look around the corner. This creates the undesirable situation of blasting away before they take you down to 50% health, or using a sniper weapon.

The control style of the game is somewhat poor. I am usually a marksman in action games. I could barely hit an enemy 1 out of 4 times in this game. The rest of the controls are all right for the first person shooter mode. However in the flying levels, the controls are stiff and difficult to get used to.

I could find no difficulty control. This is a very serious problem in this game. I would have set the game to be a little easier. While the first person shooter levels are playable, it seems as if health is thrown in to keep you barely alive rather than to help players who are having problems.

I would not recommend this game. With a better AI, the game may have been somewhat interesting, but fighting turrets is not my idea of fun.