reviews Tes Ted. Reviewed. veRdic Tized
84 MAXIMUMPC october 2007
I
f you’ve ever had that dream where all
the awesome things you love are in one
place, but everything is a little hazy and
it all ends too soon when you wake up,
you’ll have a good idea what playing Lost
Planet is like. This ported Xbox 360 game
is packed to the brim with enough giant
insects, killer worms, armored mechs, and
glorious explosions to enthrall any science-
fiction geek. Its only major shortcoming is
that all of this awesomeness is crammed
into a package that’s all too brief—we com-
pleted the fantastic single-player campaign
in just over six hours.
The setting for this third-person bug-
smashing romp is E.D.N. III, an ice-cov-
ered planet that foolish humans tried to
colonize once upon a time. After their first
attempt to conquer both the icy elements
and native inhabitants (the bugs) failed
miserably, the original colonists eventually
resorted to piracy to survive. Yes, they’re
snow-faring pirates—this game is that
cool. As Wayne, you not only pump rifle
rounds into hundreds of roaring bugs and
pesky pirates but also fend off attacks
from the evil NEVEC corporation, which
is hell-bent on terraforming the planet in
another attempt to make it inhabitable.
While unraveling the conspiracy behind
NEVEC’s operation, we blew our waythrough 10 missions that traversed snow-
covered mountains, snow-covered caves,
and abandoned snow-covered ghost
towns. Though the frosty theme blanketed
most of the environments, the variety of
opponents, weapons, and mechs mixedup the fights suf-
ficiently to keep us
entertained. The
levels are actu-
ally timed to a
certain extent, as
a thermal-energy
meter slowly drains
as you move and
take damage.
Vanquished bugs
and pirates drop
gooey puddles of thermal
energy, but I always found
that I had more than enough
to complete most levels at a
comfortable pace.
And here’s where Lost
Planet’s gameplay flaw
reveals itself. Players rushing
to reach the end of a level
can simply sprint through
most of the action, bypass-
ing firefights and confron-
tations while conserving
thermal energy. In fact, once
we realized this trick, most shoot-outs felt
more like irritating obstacles than intense
challenges of firearm prowess.
Luckily, reaching the end of a level is
its own reward, as epic boss battles are
the best part of the game.
Whether we were launch-
ing barrages of rockets
into a giant moth or pump-
ing lead into squadrons
of NEVEC mechs, each
boss encounter was a
different and memorable
experience that kept us
on the edge of our seat.
We could even excuse the
somewhat predictable and
repetitive attack patterns
of the bosses, since this
only reminded us of classic
side-scrolling platformers.
Though we lament the
lack of Games for Windows
Live support (no achievements or match-
making), the mouse and keyboard controls
are surprisingly responsive and functional,
making bug-squashing even more fluid
and easy. Lost Planet also boasts long-
awaited DirectX 10 enhancements—ifyou’re running Windows Vista. Existing
pretty shadows and snow-particle effects
look even prettier, as long as you can take
the framerate performance hit. We’re also
digging the improved multiplayer support
Capcom is providing with the game. While
there’s no crossplatform play here, PC-
exclusive maps and models are available
for download. Little extras like this add
welcome value to an already enjoyable
game; Lost Planet sets a great example of
how console games can be successfully
ported to the PC.
—NormaN ChaNLost Planet
Explosive action in a winter wonderland
If you’re without a mech and battling a monstrous insect, be sure to
duck, cover, and roll before you’re impaled.Enemy mechs are a pain to kill but drop an
enormous amount of thermal energy.$40, http://www.lostplanet-thegame.com
ESRB: Tlost planetlaNd of thE lost
Fast-paced and visually
gratifying action both offline
and online.
lost world^8
All too brief campaign that’s
hastened by a minor faulty
gameplay mechanic.the explosions and smoke effects are some of the best
we’ve seen in a PC game.