The year is 2171 A.D. Humanity has reached for the stars once more. Keen to seize a controlling stake in this as yet unconquered region, the global superpowers have raced to build orbital elevators, swiftly turning the emptiness of space into a tangle of surveillance satellite networks and military way stations. Back on the surface, while nations no longer engage in all-out war, border skirmishes have become the more frequent. On these ever-shifting front lines, armoured humanoid battle vehicles - code named "wanzers" (from "wanderpanzer") - have proven to be the unrivaled kings. History has taught us that wherever humanity goes, war is sure to follow... and in this technological age, there is nowhere man cannot go...

Front Mission Evolved is the latest game in the Front Mission franchise. Fans of the series may find this release a bit of a let down. The game is a third-person shooter that gives players full control of a massive humanoid war machine called the wanzer.

The vocal acting and general story is a little on the poor side, and the game play is repetitive and soon gets boring. Even the levels where you leave your wanzer (stupid, stupid name but hilarious if you're under 16... "Ha! Ha! It sound's like w*nker. Ha! Ha!") soon start to get annoying. This is mainly down to the fact you can spend a great deal of time trying to work out where to go only to discover a hidden ladder that will allow you to progress to the next area. But the look and feel of the game is very old fashioned.

What is interesting is the ability to customise your vehicle. Here you can change the colour and decals to your heart's content. Fancy a super glossy bright pink wanzer? No problem - you can stomp around the levels as loud and bright as you like. Also the ability to add your preference of weapons also helps to add much to the game play.

However, sadly, the end result is a futuristic game that just feels too old fashioned.

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Darren Rea