GUN

Three hundred years after Coronado’s Expedition, a young hunter is awoken in 1880’s Montana by the man he thinks is his father. Ned White guides his son, Colton, out on a hunt that takes a strange twist and thrusts Colton into a deep mystery against an evil force.

No, this is not a point-and-click adventure. This is a third-person shooter (with first-person elements) that has Colton gunning his way through hosts of those intent on stopping him.

Not long after the hunt ends, Colton and Ned board a steamer, a paddlewheel river boat. Ned meets up with Sadie and while they have a secretive discussion behind closed doors, Colton bumps into a preacher of dubious intent. It is moments later that the preacher confronts Sadie on the bow of the ship, demanding to know where the talisman is, and then – when rebuffed – puts a tomahawk in the top of her head. He signals to the shore, and then scores of bad guys begin an assault on the ship. Ned, who had a coin for the Alhambra Saloon in Dodge City, reveals – just before the ship is overrun – that he really is not Colton’s father, and he needs to find Jenny in Dodge City.

This is all a precursor to a series of adventures, and side quests, that will have Colton working through the West, earning a reputation, becoming quite the gun hand and maybe uncovering a satchel full of gold.

The game alternates between the third- and first-person vantage points. For the most part, it plays out in third-person perspective, but jumps into first person when Colton triggers Quickdraw mode, which is a quick targeting, slow-motion mode. This is a timed mode and Colton must make the most of the opportunity. He can also swap out weapons, improving his guns, and must track his health, drinking from a flask (and replenishing it when needed) to fill up his health bar.

The game also has mounted combat and Colton will learn to ride, shoot, skid-stop and shoot and make up a lot of ground by spurring on his horse (can’t do it too often because spurring a horse does damage it and can kill it) at the right moments.

The game does have a minor learning curve and there are occasional clipping problems, but nothing that detracts from the game itself. The game carries a color scheme that seems to capture the dustiness of the Old West. The audio work is very good and gamers may recognize the voice of Kris Kristofferson as the voice of Ned.

GUN has a really nice feel to it, and the game evolves nicely as Colton tries to unravel clues as to who he is en route to ties with the Coronado gold.

Look for GUN to release November 8 on the GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox and PC platforms, and in mid-November on the Xbox 360.