GAME REVIEW: Full Auto [Xbox360)

Everything is about Guns nowadays. Even Gorillaz are singing about 'Kids With Guns' so it follows suit that Sega would want to take the idea one step further. And so it is we end up with Full Auto... or as most will see it, 'Cars With Guns.' Yes, 'Cars With Guns' that idea that so incensed Matt upon these very pages a few months back. So, does Full Auto enlist its gund to give us a brand new gaming experience or is it simply a go faster stripe for the turgid boredom that the Racing Sim usually is?

The story (yes, even racers have stories nowadays) sees you as a retired racer dragged back into the circuit by a mysterious group known only as 'The Shepards' to compete in a series of violent races. And thats about it. No one knows why, but at least its an excuse to blow stuff up - these are 'violent' races after all.

Sound wise the game is fine, with functional sound effects and in-game music, although this didn't stop SASIC slapping on some Aphex Twin from race to race. One complaint - the music returned to the in game sounds at the end of each race. Why? If SASIC puts Aphex on we want Aphex to STAY ON, just like it does in every other game.
Graphically too, the game is fine. Whilst not fully justifing its Next Gen tag, graphics are clear and nicely rendered and there are some very good lighting effects, particualrly from explosions. What the graphics do particularly well, however, is create a realistic background for you to drive through. The attention to detail is remarkable, lending a realistic weight you wouldn't expect in a game featuring cannons strapped to the roof of minis. What even better is the amount of damage that you can enforce upon the scenery (take not GTA, PGR etc.). From spilling rubbish bins to knocking over lamp posts everything is your plaything. Perhaps best is the amount of damage you can do on each building. During one race, SASIC pulled over to blast one building all the way to hell. Satisfingly out constant volley of bullets rendered noticebale damage to the buildings structure and gave a welcome reminder to our rampage of destruction (and had nothing to do we where last at the time.)

The guns serve a higher purpose than simply causing the local council problems though. Only through destruction can you fill your two powerr gauges. One gauge is for the standard boost function but the other is needed for your unwreck feature. 'Unwreck' feature I hear you ask? Well, esentially the same as the reverse metre from 'Prince Of Persia' this allows you to reverse for a few seconds (its limited to the amount in you metre, mind) every time you make a bit of a mess of your lap. Take a corner badly? Have another go! Fly straight into that explosion? Take a harder left on attempt two! Althought this does take some of the tension form the traditional 'I only get one shot at the perfect lap' racing, it does make achieving those X-Box achievements a lot less random and iritiating and adds a spark of originality to a largely staid genre.

It is, unfortunately, but undertandably, removed for the on-line mode which does make the game considerable less inticing online than offline. Not least because online suffers from some loss of framerate and lag which irritates (it is slightly evident offline, but not enough to be particuarly concerned) and this is hopefully something developers Pseudo Interactive will be mindful of in future releases. The on-line option is one of several in game modes which, although diverse enough, are, as with all racers, to be fair, just the same idea with a lick of paint. There is a healthy choice of sports cars and tracks to keep things interesting though.

So, Full Auto then. A nice addition to the XBOX360's early catalogue, which is more downright fun than PGR but not as technically adept or deep as the latter. Still, for a quick arcade gaming blast of FUN (yes, games are meant to be fun, remember) the XBOX360 offers nothing better at the moment. Worth a look.

Verdict - 7/10 Good