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TimeSplitters Gold V.2 Review

By Drifting

For those of you not familiar with the game, TimeSplitters Gold is a 2D top-down shooter based on the TimeSplitters games, incorporating characters, weapons and levels from the series. As far as I know, it's the only game of its kind. Pretty cool, huh? Read on for my review below.

I'll grade TimeSplitters Gold in four basic categories: Gameplay, Graphics, Controls and Music. Let's get started.

Gameplay

Score - 7/10

The gameplay is rather simple. There's only one game mode, deathmatch, so the game quickly gets monotonous. The AI isn't very intelligent at all. They simply run up right next to you and begin shooting at you and it's relatively easy to kill them as a result. It would be nice if they could move around while shooting you to increase the skill required in killing them. In TimeSplitters Gold there are currently three maps: VR, Bunker, and a "Test" map. The two maps from TSFP seem to have been reproduced as faithfully as possible to their original counterparts. Overall, I have no major complaints about the maps, though the AI could definitely use some improving.

Luckily, the game is redeemed somewhat by the excellent reproduction of the Anaconda minigame from TimeSplitters 2, probably better known from its cell phone game incarnation, Snake. The controls are a bit clunky, but more on that later.

Graphics

Score - 8/10

Since this is a 2D game, it is best to look at it in a "retro" perspective when considering the quality of its graphics. The game's graphics are about average for a 2D Game Maker game, and in fact the maps often show the creator went to great lengths to make them as accurate to their FP counterparts in every way possible, as I briefly mentioned earlier. My one minor complaint is the tendency of the character sprites to look the same, although I suppose that's to be expected in a top-down game of any kind.

Controls

Score - 6/10

The controls are really the weakest area in the game. Using the W, S, A, and D keys to move, rather than the arrow keys, makes the controls somewhat clunky, though the learning curve is quickly overcome. This is a major inconvenience at the moment. The same controls apply to the Anaconda minigame, where the arrow keys are the obvious choice. Once again, it's merely a matter of overcoming the learning curve, though I'm betting these controls have put off some people.

Music

Score - 8/10

The music in this game is top-notch. Well, as top-notch as a MIDI can be anyway. The MIDIs, like the maps obviously had a lot of attention put into them in order to make them as accurate to the originals as possible. Sure, there's only a few songs so far, but they're great.

Overall Score - 7.5/10

The game's aesthetics are great, with lots of attention to small details, but the actual gameplay is flawed with difficult controls and lackluster AI, as well as lack of variety. Hopefully in an upcoming version some of these flaws can be corrected.

To download cob's TimeSplitters Gold and give it a try yourself, go to the official site and follow the link at the bottom of the page to download.