Alter Echo

Alter Echo Description

As the variation of different breeds of game slowly dwindle, some developers are looking to combine several genres of gaming to refresh matters. Alter Echo is a fine example of this new approach, developed by THQ studio Outrage for Xbox. Quite literally a "one hero versus the planet" action adventure, players assume the role of protagonist Nevin, who must battle for survival on a living planet. Enemy after enemy after enemy, the planet's living soul and biomechanical properties mean adversaries are continually re-spawned. Finally, a reasonable excuse for magically appearing bad guys. The multiple genre aspect of gaming we mention is brought to life in the form of a morphing suit. With the suit, Nevin can assume three different modes - Melee, Gun and Stealth. The former is the default playing style, good for hand-to-hand combat, wielding weapons and fast movement. Gun mode transforms the player into an oversized cannon - good for annihilating your foes in an instant. And Stealth mode is self-explanatory, making Nevin extremely agile, able to climb walls and even be invisible. A new Time Dilation technique allows the player to freeze time in order to make a pre-emptive combo attack upon the enemy. And the game world is as intriguing as the gameplay. Unexpectedly, Alter Echo detaches itself from a realistic game world in favour of vibrant, almost cartoon-like locales and it works very well. It's crisp, clean and there are few glitches. In an industry flooded with myriad clones and sequels, Alter Echo is a refreshing change from the norm.