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Game Preview: Advent Rising

GameCore is a weekly column by CBSNews.com's William Vitka and Chad Chamberlain that focuses on gamers and gaming.



Ever been to a movie where you constantly hear people shouting at the screen begging some character to do something differently? Ever think to yourself Wow, it would be so cool if I could somehow control the flow of the movie just by yelling out how Neo should use his Matrix powers, for example? Developed by Glyphx and published by Majesco, Advent Rising makes this possible by blending a beautifully written story and awesomely high production value.

Advent Rising is the first in an epic trilogy of games, presented in a stunning cinematic format to deliver an unprecedented variety of game play experiences.

Built on the Unreal Warfare engine, it offers precise, refined play-dynamics with action-packed adventure and style, wrapped in a visually imaginative universe. Advent Rising is akin to a fast-paced action movie where the player is swept up in a continuously evolving series of events.

In an effort to contain my convulsive attack of absolute gaming giddiness, I will briefly go over just a few of the really innovative features this title brings to the field of gaming.

Forgive the comparison, but if you could combine the RPG (Role Playing Game) elements of KOTOR (Knights of the Old Republic), the cinematic and great story scaling of the Lord of The Rings trilogy, mix in a little Metroid Prime, with a touch of Aeon Flux (a really cool animated cartoon that aired on MTV years ago), might get close to what Advent Rising offers its players.

This game has it all, both 1st and 3rd person action (which you can switch between at any point during game play), dual weapon handling, plenty of epic action sequences, lush environments, incredible character designs, superhuman powers including energy blasts, levitation and energy shields, and a versatile control scheme.

Slow motion acrobatics while using psychic powers to force one enemy off a cliff while simultaneously blowing another enemy away with the gun in your left hand then landing a swift knee to the face of yet another enemy?

Yeah, we got that.

And to top it off, this game comes with its own orchestra, so to speak. A 70-piece Hollywood orchestra and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed Advent Rising's original score.

Working with award-winning Science Fiction author Orson Scott Card, Glyphx has created a gripping storyline that will thrust gamers and readers alike into an incredible intergalactic saga.

In Advent Rising, players make decisions that effect not only what they experience in the first game, but the entire Advent trilogy. Oh, yes folks, this game was originally written as a movie. Therefore, all the elements in the game(s) are intrinsically linked to each other in an epic story line. Any script or game that has Orson Scott Card's seal of approval on it has to be good.

Stay tuned; we'll have more information for you to salivate over soon!

By Chad Chamberlain

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