Electronic Arts invited us for a visit to the Free Radical Design Studios, creators of the Timesplitters series. Purpose of our visit: a full day with Senior Producer Martin and Karl, Lead Art Director and co-founder of Free Radical. It was early day when we had to leave from Brussels-Zaventem – around 07am, which is barely three hours after any self-respecting jurnalist goes to sleep at night.


There have been two Timesplitter games already, both of which were excellent shooters and which were warmly received by both the gamespress as the gamers themselves. Free Radical Design has a reputation to protect with their latest title and in the following paragraphs, we will shed light on why this title will probaly be -and is at this moment- a ‘must-have’ shooter for your console.



Let me start off with the Singleplayer mode. A couple of weeks after Timesplitters 2 was released, the creative team of Free Radicle Design sat together and evaluated the criticism, suggestions and pointers that came both from the developing team as the ‘general gaming public’. Being frustrated themselves because they had to drop the online multiplayer mode on TS2 at the last minute, Free Radical opted to focus nearly entirely on the multiplayer mode on the next title, the result: Timesplitters: Future Perfect.

Future Perfects starts of where TS2 ended, in the year 2401. While you are returning home for some R&R and re-entering Earths atmosphere, the shit hits the fan: a full-blow attack by the ‘timesplitters’. Of course, you crashland way off course and need to make your way to base. It’s up to you to get there soldier – just blow away everything that crosses your path and looks ugly.

The cutscenes struck me immediately, they are of a very high quality and are all made with the game engine itself – no fancy director and actors were hired. The beginsequence portrays your character, Cortez – a hardend warrior that has a striking resemblance to Vin Diesels character Riddick, but the devs assure us that Cortez’ character was already settled upon, before the Hollywood movie came to the Big Screen. A pure coincidence. Au contraire, Free Radical Design had their Cortez on a storyboard long before Vin Diesel became ‘hot’… especially amongst the I-Love-Muscled-Actors-Who-Cannot-Act-gay fans.


Anyway, I disgress. The gameplay is of the highest quality I have ever encountered in a console shooter. Because let’s be honest here, console-shooters can be quite tricky to master. Not with this 'Timesplitters 3', the controls are intuitive and aiming is easy to learn.

To make the game a bit easier to understand than it’s predecessor, you will only be able to play with Sgt. Cortez and 1 other character in Timesplitters 3. Thanks Allah that the boys over at Free Radical Design took the time to work on a decent AI for the secondary character. No pumping lead in your buddy’s behind any more! Seriously, this is some of the best AI I’ve seen on a console shooter.

As far as the story goes, you will have to warp from timezone to timezone, chasing after the Timesplitters. In some levels, you’ll be using vehicles to drive around and manoeuvering machines to get to the places you need to be. Not that the game is lineair. It might be, but at least they hid it very well! No complaints here, chasing the Timesplitters stays pretty fun.

Tommorow, more on the use of blood in Timesplitters: Future Perfect along with the massive insertion of humor, extra games, the funny extra characters and the quite nifty mapmaker.