Chinese New Year’s and the last night on Earth for Andrew Sterling. At least, that is the plan on the part of the Chinese who arrested him and are holding him at Chang Prison, a hole in the planet that none leave alive.

However, there are others who have plans and that means requiring someone of Sterling’s abilities to see them through. Abilities? But wasn’t he an innocent man accused of espionage unjustly. Not really. Sterling was a note member of MI-6, British intelligence. His cover was blown and he was disavowed, leaving him to the unpleasant hospitality of the prison and its guards.

So he sits, beaten, in sorry shape, when a female agent shows up to help secure his release. But this release is not through channels, per se. She dropped in through a skylight, killed a guard and gave Sterling some medical kits, and a weapon. He has to make his way to the computer room, download his files and erase them, and then make his way out the prison.

Of course, the Chinese – those not out celebrating – are not going to let him waltz out without resistance.

But this begins the action-adventure of Cold Winter, Swordfish Studios and Vivendi Universal Games’ PlayStation2 release.

Of course, Sterling is free and not happy about being set up. His journey will uncover a nefarious scheme by an organization known as Grey Wings. But first things first. After his release, Sterling goes to work for a man named Dan Perish, who finds work for people of Sterling’s abilities. The first task is to take down an arms dealer, and that in turn leads to the tendrils of the aforementioned ruthless organization.

Cold Winter weaves the stories of several people together into one tale that combines minor puzzles and shooter action. Stealth is a sometimes thing, and players should definitely not zerg through the environments, but for the most part you use natural cover, a modicum of caution and kill everything that gets in your way.

The game’s controls are simple to use and players should have little trouble launching into this game. The targeting seems a little sluggish at times, but once players become acclimated to the way the targeting works, it almost seems to work in its favor. There are six world locations and more than 30 real-world weapons that can be utilized throughout the course of the game.

The game also takes into count real-world physics, which are particularly useful when it comes to shooting the bad guys – usually meaning anyone in Sterling’s path. Hit them in the head and they drop. The same goes for other vital areas. But wing them and they will fight on. The AI, though, is merely average. They will not raise an alarm when the opportunity presents itself, but you can usually find them presenting some decent challenges along the path through the game. The puzzles are somewhat linear, but this is a decent story with solid action.

If Cold Winter has any drawbacks they may lay in that some of the dialogue seems a little forced and rushes to advance the storyline. The game itself is not particularly original, but has some great elements that bring the entertainment value to life.

Cold War will support multiplayer modes with up to eight players involved in deathmatch, king of the hill, flag tag, domination (capture, defend and hold objective points), last man standing and head match scenarios.

This game is moody, dark and rife with action, but while the graphics are not particularly spectacular, they do a serviceable job in capturing the flavor of the game. The game is also somewhat violent and carries a “Mature” rating.

Cold Winter is a good shooter, with a decent feel and solid action. It is, however, a little linear and that may affect replay value.

Gameplay: 7.4
The controls are a bit sluggish when it comes to targeting and the game’s load times are typical. The game is also a bit linear and the puzzles are not particularly detailed.

Graphics: 7.3
The game does seem a bit dark, but the moody nature suits it. The environments are good, and the real-world physics work well.

Sound: 7.0
The musical score is solid, but some of the dialogue seems a touch forced.

Difficulty: Medium
Use a bit of caution when working through levels, avoid rushing through with guns blazing, and you should do well.

Concept: 7.2
The game has a nice feel, but blends some slightly original story ideas with a lot of cliché ones. At times you almost feel the set-up was great but the level was stock shooter action.

Multiplayer: 7.5
The game supports up to eight players in a decent variety of combat, but again, this is nothing that stands out as original.

Overall: 7.4
The game plays decently, and the story is entertaining enough to draw a player through the story. There have been other titles that have had as many twists, suspicion and duplicitous tones, coupled with shooter action. The real-world physics work well here. Cold Winter takes a dark tale and tells it with solid elements.