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Dead Mans Hand Preview |
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Dead Mans Hand
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Made by Human Head studios, who made Rune for the PC, and published by Atari, in Dead Man's Hand, you take on the role of El Tajon, an outlaw who has just escaped from jail after being shot and left for dead by his former gang known as "The Nine". Obviously he is slightly pissed, and wants revenge. The game is divided into multiple missions and bounties, which can be played in any order. These missions are also non-linear, and can result in different paths through the game. This relatively unique system should prevent frustration at being stuck on a particular level. The bounties will include other people instead of just the nine, and will allow you to earn money. Bonus levels will also be in the game, and will take a rail shooter style, shooting from boats, trains and horseback, in a similar style to most lightgun games. In addition to this, the player will engage in a game of poker before each mission. Wins are rewarded with special abilities, extra ammo and more health. These can also be gambled for bigger bonuses.
The weapon selection will include all the standard FPS classics - pistols, shotguns and rifles, and some other weapons such as dynamite, knives, cannons and the gatling gun. The alternate fire modes will be built up by killing enemies rapidly, and then will function as a special attack. The game will feature 9 weapons in total, each with multiple firing modes. Locations will include towns, mountains, deserts, mines and many other classic western locations. These include destructable envrionments, and the game will include realistic physics. Blowing up the beams supporting a house can cause the whole building to collapse. Things that have been destroyed will stay how they are if the player returns to the location later. At the moment, only a selection of characters have been seen, but the game could include fighting enemies on horseback as well.
The game runs on a heavily modified version of the Unreal engine. Characters and environments are smooth and nicely detailed, and the view distance is good. Since this game is only on Xbox, it has no excuse not to make use of techniques such as bump mapping. It also looks like quite a lot will go on on-screen at the same time, making for some chaotic fire-fights. The in-game physics engine sends bad guys flying with rag doll physics, smashing any furniture they land on, and any lose items they have will go flying.
The game's multiplayer options will include split-screen and Xbox Live play, including co-operative and competative play modes. Further details haven't been announced, but it is fairly safe to assume basic game modes, such as death match, team death match, capture the flag and domination will be included, and possibly co-operative play for the single player game.
Considering this game is exclusive to Xbox, it is going to have some serious competition in late 2003 when it is released. Human Head and Atari probably know this, and will try their hardest to make it the best they possibly can. So far it is looking nice, and should be a change from metallic corridors and military compounds.
Review By: Flid Merchant
Game Info: Dead Mans Hand
Buy Game: Buy Dead Mans Hand Now!
Screenshots (3):
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